I enjoyed Andor quite a bit, so even though it’s not one of the most toyetic Star Wars shows, I still want figures of characters like Maarva, Dedra Meero, Cyril, Brasso, Cinta, and today’s figure Vel Sartha. Let’s take a look!
My box came a bit on the crushed side, so much so that I couldn’t stand it up without support. The figure came undamaged, so it did the job I personally need it to do. Vel comes with one rifle and that’s it. That’s usually the case with Black Series lately, but it’s still kind of a bummer.
The rifle does have some transforming functionality. The stock can fold up and the barrel can collapse. It’s kind of neat and I would love it even more if the stock fit Vel’s arm better. It’s slightly too long for her, which is actually true to the show, but makes for awkward carrying. The grip on the gun is a bit too large for the figure to hold comfortably and her trigger finger barely fits on the trigger.
You can kind of stick the stock under her arm and it does work for some firing poses if a little fiddly. The one thing it is missing is the strap she wears for it, so I might customize that.
She’s light on accessories and I would have liked to see that data pad she uses to break into the Imperial facility or perhaps one of those credits cylinders from the heist or maybe her poncho from her introduction.
Sculpting is solid with good proportions and sharp clothing details. The jacket has a nice weight to it and I like the way they made the undershirt that peeks out from under the jacket a different piece at the waist. The likeness works for me, though I think I would have preferred a more pissed off expression. Vel seems either mad or stressed all the time, justifiably so.
She’s a fairly short actress, so it tracks that the figure is so tiny, though honestly it’s making me question the scale of that Cassian figure.
The paint isn’t impressive, but solid. While the face print does a decent job with the likeness, there’s a slight drift to the right eye with my figure. Generally the details are clean, but there isn’t a lot of them and it could use an overall wash. I do like that they tried to blend the plastic color of her ponytail with the hair around her face with an overspray to get that dirty blond effect.
The articulation is Black Series bare minimum. She’s got:
- Ball and socket head, lower neck, and waist
- Swivel/hinge shoulders, elbows, wrists, hips, knees, and ankles
- Swivel thighs
The ball joints get nice range of motion with excellent tilt, but the elbows and knees are strictly 90 degrees.
Overall Vel gets the job done, but isn’t terribly exciting. I think part of that for me is the design of the character doesn’t really have a lot of Star Wars pizazz, the other part is the accessory is kind of fiddly. I’m still glad to add her to the Andor shelf, but this feels a little flat. Maybe an extra accessory like her poncho or some of her heist equipment would make it a bit more fun. Then again, Andor is not exactly what I would call a fun show. I think I am also feeling the sort of cumulative effect of waves full of lackluster and perfunctory feeling figures. It might be me, but I feel like this line used to be Hasbro’s premiere figure line, but lately it has felt like an also-ran.
