Review: Star Wars Black Series Jon Favreau as Paz Vizsla from The Mandalorian, Convention Exclusive
- Mephitsu
- 14 minutes ago
- 6 min read
"It was forged by my ancestor, founder of House Vizsla."
The Star Wars action figure line has always recognised Star Wars creator George Lucas over the years with special figure releases of George in 3.75-inch and more recently in the 6-inch Black Series as a Stormtrooper to mark the 50th Anniversary of Lucasfilm in 2022. Prior to the Lucas release, the Black Series had also recognised Clone Wars and Rebels showrunner Dave Filoni with a 2021 figure of him as an X-Wing pilot, albeit this is also a canon release considering Filoni’s Trapper Wolf cameos in The Mandalorian. The following year, 2022, The Mandalorian’s main showrunner Jon Favreau was similarly honoured with the release of a Paz Vizsla figure - the character he voiced in The Mandalorian - updated with a removable helmet and a Favreau headsculpt beneath.
The Jon Favreau Paz Vizsla figure was an exclusive release marking Star Wars Celebration 2022. It was available during the event in Anaheim, and afterwards via Hasbro Pulse. Since that date, the figure has seen wider availability as stocks were also offered to Fan Channel retailers. The Vizsla release uses the convention exclusive packaging first established for the 2020 Cad Bane release, and features an outer black box with gold Black series logo and character detailing. The black of the box features an embedded image, created using different matt and gloss black finishes. For Vizsla, this image is an embedded vie of a Mandalorian helmet.
The outer black section is essentially a sleeve that contains an inner white box that can be slid out from the side. It is this that contains the figure, strapped into a recessed section with no window or protective cover as such. Accessories are packed into the side of this singular recess, and figure and parts are held in place by grey paper ties that must be cut to release the figure. The exposed right hand side of the box also features the established Galaxy Collection artwork and uses the same accent colour as the mainline Mandalorian releases. The exclusive figures are not numbered or part of the wider collection, so this artwork of an unmasked Jon in Mandalorian armour does not connect to any other releases. If you flip over the back of the box with the white drawer pulled out, the usual background text is included, which in this case talks about Jon Favreau as the creator of The Mandalorian and his persona, Paz Vizsla, within the show.
The figure, once unpacked, features the same bulky Mandalorian Heavy Artillery armour as was first released in 2019 as part of the first wave of Mandalorian figures. The armour is cast in a deep blue, with the suited parts underneath in a grey cloth sculpt with visible folds and creases. The armour is weathered by way of sculpted and painted damage, dings are built into the panels, are as scratches with many painted out in bright silver to reveal the Beskar metal beneath.
The armour includes variant sections around the forearms and the shins. Each forearm section is a different colour, dark brown on the right hand and lighter sandy brown on the left. The right-hand section features a corresponding brown gloved hand with a small red and silver dart weapon sculpted on the inner surface and painted. The left hand bracer features an upper cannon arm which is used as a flamethrower weapon. The main barrel connects back up to the body by way of a semi-flexible grey hose, which will connect to the backpack as we will see shortly. The lower leg armour remains broadly consistent with the other armour type, but both knees and some or all of the shin guards are painted in a sandy brown colour. The armour is finished by way of a broad two-tone brown belt with a painted silver buckle, and silver fasteners on the pouches. To the back of this and incorporated in the cast piece is a red/brown skirt in soft plastic, complete with ragged hem.
The unmasked head is an excellent likeness to Jon Favreau and is not the same as used on the Marvel Legends line for Happy Hogan, which might have crossed Hasbro’s mind when developing the figure. It is given the same face print tech as the other releases, and that includes Jon’s beard, which is multi-toned vs the darker, slicked back hair. This hair shape allows the helmet to slip on and off easily, almost too easily if it wasn’t for Jon’s nose and once engaged, it will rattle around a little. The helmet uses the same blue as the armour with a black visor trimmed with lighter blue cheek sections and repeated silver scratch damage. The component parts to either side - range finders or similar - are a gunmetal grey, with a cleaner and brighter silver painted centre.
The enormous backpack and weapon plug into the figure by way of a single socket on the reverse. This is a combined jet pack and repeater cannon cast in orange with silver and gunmetal painted components. From the central section comes the ammunition feed for the cannon, a black segmented piece that holds a relatively good level of flexibility despite its width. This connects into the grey cannon, which is detailed in full with rivets, panels and components but lacking any paint detail until the trio of barrels, which are painted black at the nozzle and then fade back to silver and eventually fade out completely towards the main body of the gun.
from left to right: 2022 Exclusive, 2024 Re-Release, 2019 Original
This is the third standard release of Paz Vizsla, and the fifth if you include the non-screen-accurate Carbonized and Credit Collection versions. Comparing the three side by side, the variance is pretty much in the paint apps and most notably in the sandy beige colours. The original 2019 version was lighter in finish, with the newer 2024 version going much deeper and intense in colour. This Exclusive goes even paler on the sandy armoured panels and is the lightest and brightest of the three
The articulation is as we would find on a figure that dates to 2019, pinned at the knees and with 19 points of articulation in total, including the butterfly shoulders and dual-joint neck. Due to the build and extent of the Heavy Mandalorian armour, movement is partly restricted but you can pose Jon/Paz into multiple positions, including firing positions with his wrist armour, or with the larger repeating blaster. The weapon includes a pivoting second grip so it can get into two-handed positions, aided by the butterfly joints and elbow movement to have it positioned out into firing position. The bulk also allows the figure to remain stable once posed, with the broad feet and solid ankle rockers holding him in most positions. The weight might pose a problem if you wanted to get him flying using the jetpack, as we see in Season 1, the aftermarket stand would need to be substantial.
All in all, this is a perfect Star Wars Exclusive, sitting outside the mainline and releasing as a figure we already have, but with a twist that in this case nods to the showrunner of The Mandalorian and allowing Black Series fans to display him with mask off and alongside the other ‘Director’ figures of Dave Filoni and ‘the Creator’ George Lucas. The only irony with the figure is the creation of a figure with a removable helmet to mark a character who, by creed, has never removed their helmet or been seen unmasked outside of set photos, which is, of course, where this figure is aiming for.
For those without a Paz Vizsla for your Mandalorian shelf, this figure works just as well helmeted and in that role in your collection - although more general releases have superseded this in terms of decor and availability thanks to the 2024 Galaxy Collection repack. For in box collectors, the exclusive packaging is nice, and for a time, created a nice uniform run of releases also featuring Dave Filoni and Cad Bane. For single exclusive figures, I do like this approach of forgoing a window to show off the figure as best you can without opening it fully.
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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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