Cad Bane, the Lee Van Cleef inspired Bounty Hunter, was a major player during The Clone Wars animated show appearing in a number of episodes that have since seen him translate to The Bad Batch as an antagonist, and then the biggest jump of all to live-action with his appearance in The Book of Boba Fett.
Cad Bane's Black Series figure, taken from his Clone Wars appearances, was released in 2020 first as an exclusive with his droid TO-DO and then as a single release as part of the Galaxy Collection Wave 2. Cad Bane is number 06 in The Clone Wars series, following on from the Mandalorian Super Commando and slotting in just ahead of Asaaj Ventress. The Clone Wars series uses an appropriate golden yellow in line with the show's main logo and this features as a central border to the box and on the side artwork. The artwork interconnects with the other figures for a wider montage for those who keep the figures boxed.
"A ruthless bounty hunter from the planet Duro, Cad Bane was the preeminent blaster-for-hire in the galaxy at the time of the Clone Wars. No quarry was too dangerous for Bane... if the price was right"
To date, all of the animated Star Wars characters that have translated to the Black Series have been done so with a 'conversion' of sorts to a real-world setting. This is true also of Cad Bane who is sculpted as still slim and lithe, but in keeping with the Duros, we have seen on screen in Star Wars and not overly exaggerated with the slim waist and limbs we see on The Clone Wars.
All details of his classic Clone Wars costumer are replicated including the combat vest, ammo belts around his waist, the armoured bracers with a flame thrower and other attachments, and of course his trademark long flowing coat. These are all cast in a base colour, with further details added to pick out each element such as the individual bullet casings, or the clasps on the coat. There is also a level of weathering added to give him a grubbier look as befits his role.
Bane is also decked out with his twin holstered gunslinger belt that sits easily around his waist and lines up with his hands for a quick draw. And he is also fitted with his rocket boosters that are plugged into the legs on either side of the shin.
Of course, it wouldn't be Cad Bane without the wide-brimmed Cowboy hat and this is an individual piece cast to perfectly fit the Duros head without looking oversized. Beneath the wide brim of the hat is a fully sculpted Cad Bane head sculpt. Again this is given the real-world setting overhaul with less enhanced features while retaining the key shape of Cad Bane's features and those deep-set red eyes.
He comes with his rebreather gear that sits into the cheek section of the head at either side and then comes down the back of the neck to the breathing mechanism itself just below the collar on his coat. The final touch for the costume is his messenger bag which like the hat is individually cast and designed to drape the body perfectly and without looking out of place or sitting awkwardly over the shoulder. It is simply painted in a base brown and can be removed if you don't want it on display.
Bane is also well armed with twin LL-30 blaster pistols cast in silver with painted brown grips. Bane's slim hands are designed to both include a trigger finger so you can pose a blaster in each hand in a firing pose. The hands are also sculpted as such that when the blasters are holstered neatly off Bane's hip, the hands appear to be in the draw position with that trigger finger itching and ready for firing.
Cad Bane is looking good so far, and thankfully is not let down by his articulation either. He features the newer dual joint neck which does wonders for ensuring he can be displayed with the head and hat tilted forward to partially hide his face. The shoulders are also updated with the butterfly joints allowing him to hold the brim of his hat, or to draw and shoot his blasters in a variety of positions.
There is a lot of thought gone into hiding these joints by the sculpt of the parts with overlapping coat sections neatly disguising much of the arm joints, and a similar approach on the legs to further disguise the thigh swivel and knees. Add in the articulation on the boosters, which rotate, and there is in the region of 23 points of articulation across Cad Bane. All of these work perfectly and he has a huge range of motion, including the option for some level of flight poses with an aftermarket stand.
Cad Bane is, arguably, one of my favourite Star Wars Black Series figures on the basis of him ticking all the boxes in one release. He is a great sculpt, has excellent paintwork and weathering, comes with good accessories including his hat, and has good and well-designed articulation. There is nothing of any note to fault.
The single release, as seen here, is identical to the Exclusive version in terms of the Cad Bane figure. The exclusive does include Cad Bane's droid TO-DO who remains exclusive to that 2020 Convention Set and is a great companion to Bane if you can track down that set.
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About Me : As a child of the 70's and 80's I grew up in a golden age for action figures and in my youth bought and sold myself through collections of Star Wars, G.I. Joe (Action Force) and M.A.S.K. while also dabbling in He-Man, Transformers and Ghostbusters. Roll forward and I am now reliving that Youth with the action figures of today and am a collector and fan of the larger 6-8 inch figures from my favourite movie and TV licences - including the ones mentioned above, but also the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Doctor Who and the Aliens. I launched The Mephitsu Archives in 2015 with a view of creating a UK focused site or these figures where fans can pick up the latest action figure news, read reviews and get information on where to buy their figures and what is currently on store shelves. I hope I am delivering that to you guys...