Review: Star Wars Black Series Exclusive Luke Skywalker (Imperial Guard Disguise) & Leia Organa as Boushh from Shadows of the Empire
- Mephitsu
- Oct 1
- 7 min read
"If we're going to go, we need to get moving. We can get ourselves some disguises, and if we hurry, we can be underground before daylight.”
The third of Hasbro’s Star Wars Black Series releases from Shadows of the Empire was a Hasbro Pulse Exclusive 2-Pack featuring Luke Skywalker and Princess Leia Organa. The figures, paying homage to the original Shadows of the Empire Toy line, recreated the disguises Luke and Leia wore on Coruscant while trying to work out the part Prince Xizor was playing in some assassination attempts on Luke. This is where Leia first obtains the Boushh disguise, which would go on to be seen in Return of the Jedi, while Luke ‘borrows’ the red armour of a Coruscant Guard.
The set was released in the UK in September 2025 through Hasbro Pulse and will also be available at Disney Stores at a later date as a shared exclusive. It features the usual black matt design with gloss Black Series logo and uses the same purple colour accent as the other releases of Prince Xizor and Dash Rendar. As a two-pack, this is a wider box while maintaining the same depth and height. It is not numbered in the wider Galaxy Collection context, and the side art is a 50:50 split between Luke and Leia and does not connect to the wider SOTE montage already started by Xizor and Dash.
The rear of the box gives context behind the two disguises as well as showing the full illustrations of both Leia and Luke that are combined on the side panel. The backing card sitting behind the two figures in the box includes an embedded image of the Coruscant skyline.
Starting with Leia, and she is kitted out in the outfit of the Ubese bounty hunter Boushh, which starts with orange ridged trousers, and a dark brown orange shirt piece. Over this sits a sandy coloured robe with baggy sleeves that end at the elbows, and with an extended skirt piece cast in a softer plastic. The torso features armoured panels of a sort with two grey sections extending over the shoulder and sitting on either side of the central chest unit in silver. The boots are also tan colour, while the upper robes are finished with a grey three strap bandoleer, complete with painted ammo, and a soft goods cape that extends at the back over the right shoulder. The cape is quite frayed on arrival, while the bandoleer does have a tendency to slip out of place a bit too easily. Also fitted at the back is a twin canister backpack, complete with Aurebesh symbols. This is removable by way of a plug and socket connection on the back of Leia.
The head sculpt is a good likeness to Carrie Fisher circa the end of Empire and the start of Return of the Jedi, as is the timeline for Shadows of the Empire. She is sculpted with her hair pulled tight into a bun to accommodate the Boushh helmet, with a couple of strands coming loose at the front to hang down and frame the face. Facial printing enhances the likeness and realism.
The helmet is a softer plastic and features a soft orange lower half with front gun metal breather. The upper section is also gun metal in colour, expanding out to a large visor section with a metallic green lens piece with silver greebles and brown detailing to the sides.
Boushh as a figure has been released twice previously, the first in 2015 followed by an Archive release in 2022, which shortened the original figure to a more accurate height and gave the Leia headsculpt and updated facial printing decor finish. This 2025 release uses the Archive figure almost in its entirety, including the shortened legs, but does update the soft goods cape to a smaller version in a lighter fabric. There has also been some variation in the face decor, with a softer brown for the hair and further tweaks of the face features themselves to further improve the look.
2025 (left) vs 2022 Archive (centre) vs 2015 (right)
The helmet has also been re-worked to a new version. It does not change too extensively from the original, but is obviously a new accessory when you compare them all side by side, with the 2025 version being broader around the lower section.
Leia has two accessories, the first of which is the Thermal Detonator, as included on the original figure. Considering its size, it carries a bit of detail with an obvious silver body and a sliding detonator switch on the top. It can sit on Leia’s belt to the left-hand side by way of a socket and plug, or it can be held in her left hand. ]
The staff/rifle weapon is also the same accessory as was included in the original two releases. It is cast in grey plastic, with no further paint detail despite its sculpted detail and the overall extent of the piece, considering it stands taller than the figure end-to-end. The weapon fits in either or both hands.
Leia, as an older format body, does use pinned leg joints and has a total of 16 points of articulation. While there is sufficient movement in the arms and legs in particular to wield the weapons, hold the helmet and to enter some relatively dynamic posing, the configuration is showing its age with a lack of range in the shoulders in particular and limited neck articulation, as well as coming with an ugly and overpainted neck joint.
Luke is his Imperial Guard Armour is a brand new figure, following the established engineering for armoured figures with the gloss red armour panels cast and then connected at the joints by a black ruibbed undersuit. The armour is given further detail with a silver rank panel on the chest armour, silver shoulder straps, and silver components around the belt. The armour is also given a short cape hanging from the right shoulder and down the back to just past the waist. Rather than soft goods as seen on Leia, this cape is a shaped, softer plastic. The red of the armour overall is much brighter than the original 1995 figure, and that is likely intentional so that this new variation of the Coruscant Imperial Guard is a colour match to the ones released for Return of the Jedi and in the Expanded Universe series.
Luke’s headsculpt is also a new piece, despite Hasbro having access to a number of Empire and Return of the Jedi era headsculpts they could have used. This gives the figure a point of variation, almost a transition piece, between the two iconic movies. The likeness is accurate enough to an early 80s Mark Hamill, using facial printing to enhance the sculpt. The hair is almost the best bit, with a messy and well-painted hairstyle that is often ‘off’ on Luke figures. The head looks slightly lost against the bulkier armour, but that would also be accurate, considering Luke is a bit ‘short for a stormtrooper’ and therefore would be a little lost in this larger Imperial armour.
Like the original figure, a removable helmet is included. It is a softer plastic, cast in red with a painted black visor that is ever so slightly rough around the edges. It is a tight fit over Luke’s head, so be mindful of possible paint wear. Once in place, you have a figure that you can display as Luke in disguise, but also that would work as an Expanded Universe Imperial Guard in an Empire-themed display.
The figure comes with a single melee weapon, cast in glossy grey with a central grip and rounded end sections with cut-out components, but no further paint apps. It can be held in either hand and wielded as a single or two-handed weapon.
Luke’s articulation is the newer format, all pinless and with 17 points of articulation in total. The legs can facilitate Luke kneeling and sitting, while the arms are extensive in their range, thanks to the butterfly shoulders, to help wield the large two-handed weapon. There is also quite a bit of range in the torso joint and in the neck, which is jointed at the top and bottom.
For those already thinking it, I can confirm that you can swap heads on this with a Lando figure. You will need to change the head and the neck peg, and Lando’s neck sits slightly too low, but it works for those wanting to go down that route. Perhaps Hasbro will also go down this route as a simple re-release for Shadows of the Empire in the future. Perhaps a two-pack with Chewbacca as Snoova?
Headswap with the Lando Skiff Guard Head and neck peg
As a two-pack exclusive, this set follows the format we’ve seen more recently with a new figure accompanied by a re-release or a repaint/tweak release, thus reducing the development costs overall and therefore allowing Hasbro to keep the cost relatively low with this two-pack retailing at £44.99, which is a fiver less than two single figures would cost you.
Leia, as Boushh, sees some improvements, including the helmet and reducing the size of the cape, although the latter also comes with some issues itself in terms of fraying and also the bandoleer wanting to slip out of place and down Leia’s right shoulder. Luke is a lovely figure, very much paying homage to the original toy and remaining in context with existing Canon figures like the Emperor’s robed Imperial Guards. The figure also works as an EU troop builder and as a base for a Lando in disguise until such time as Hasbro take it upon themselves to add that one to the line.
For fans of Shadows of the Empire, the set looks great alongside Xizor and Dash Rendar, and is eagerly awaiting further releases, ideally Chewie as Snoova and Guri. Princess Leia Organa as Boushh and Luke Skywalker Imperial Guard disguise is currently available on Hasbro Pulse
Keep Track of all the Star Wars Black Series figures from Hasbro at our comprehensive
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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...
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