I am writing this review at the back end of September 2015 and a tad under 3-months before The Force Awakens hits cinema's - but I want to go on record and suggest that Guavian Enforcer(s) may well be the Boba Fett of the new film. I can't see him having a major part, possibly not even having any lines, but from the figure he certainly is going to be a bad *** and will appeal to a lot of fans.
Guavian Enforcer is #08 in The Force Awakens releases, and is packed in wave 2 in the Red/Black packaging that we have talked so much about in earlier reviews - and that I am not going to repeat her for fear of sounding like a broken record.
Put of the box the Enforcer stands 6" high, and instantly impresses once you have him in hand. When the images of the Guavian Enforcer first broke he was quickly labelled as a Deadpool wannabee, but I think if anything he looks more like a Star Trek character that Voyager or DS9 were dropping in to the later stages of their series. He looks mercenary and mean and although some may suggest he is a droid of some kind, I am fairly confident this is a man/alien under the suit and the helmet.
Starting at the helmet it is made up of what looks like two halves, a back black section and a front red face-plate - into which is a cut out containing mesh and within that a red disc. The head sits on top of a black ribbed neck piece which runs into the shoulders which are covered with a very "clone like" shoulder piece. The under-suit is full of really intricate fabric textures, flip him over and have a look at his back and its almost a circuit board pattern printed into the garment. On top of this are various panels on the shoulders and down into a pair of heavy duty ribbed gloves.
A substantial belt with four giant pockets encircles his mid-drift and then below this a what I can best describe as a gun-slingers belt which resembles the one Han wears in First Hope. Down onto the left leg and there is some kind of mechanism on the thigh and from this comes a red pipe which disappears behind a large knee pad on the left knee. The right leg has no such mechanism, but does sport another thigh holster - more weaponry? The boots are knee high and ribbed again down into the feet which see to have parts on either side which in my head may or may not be rockets (Cad Bane?)
The decor on this figure is a thing of beauty and streets ahead of the other figures I have seen so far. My big criticism of a lot of TFA figures is a lack of depth and weathering, but that certainly doesn't apply to the Enforcer. The figure is essentially two muted colours of burgundy and black, but the burgundy has so much depth due to what looks like at least two darker washes that then picks out all that detail I mentioned above in the outfit. The black areas are flat in colour in the main, but still have a sheen to reflect like armour and are trimmed in most places with red to tie them in to the outfit.
The head is painted with a couple of metallic scratches down across the face-plate and into the chin, all of which makes this guy look like he has seen some action and probably operates in a grimy spaceship / spaceport / underground lair - and had he been around 30 years ago wouldn't have looked out of place in Jabba's Palace.
Articulation is also really good, despite the armoured panels. The head rotates a full 360 degree and has a real depth of movement to look up and down. The arms move out 90 degrees to the body and rotate fully and can be placed up above the Enforcers head. The elbow joint and swivel means 2-handed weapon poses are possible - although for that you would have to choose which of his weapons to disregard and that is a tough choice as you will see in a moment. The Torso is jointed, with the joint hidden neatly behind the upper belt and this allows him to swivel his top half a good range either side.
Both hip joints can move reasonably well, although his left leg is restricted by a holster on his belt. The knees are double jointed, and both work brilliantly despite the left knee behind a huge knee pad. Even the red pipe is the right length to bend with the knee to almost its full potential. If I am nit picking, then the feet are a little loose in their ankle joints and it takes a bit to get him standing securely.
The Guavian comes packing with two equally impressive blasters/weapons. The first resembles a sawn off shot gun and the other looks very similar to Fett's own weapon from Empire, perhaps the Guavians are fans of Mandalorian hardware? The weapons themselves are cast in a plain grey plastic, and have had a silver drybrush to make them look a little worn,. They probably could do with a black wash also to grime them up, but they do the job and can sit nicely in either hand.
I really can't find much fault with the Guavian Enforcer and he sets the bench mark for me in terms of what Hasbro should be giving us with all the 6" Black Series figures. The sculpt is great, the paint finish is great and the articulation is there and has been thought about so that nothing really restricts the movement. I award the Guavian Enforcer a very rare 5 out of 5 and I would encourage everyone to go out and pick him up.
