Princess Leia Organa in her Hoth attire was released at the end of 2018 as part of wave 19 of the Star Wars Black Series, 3rd phase red packaging. This was the second release of Leia from Empire that year after the exclusive release of a Bespin Escape Leia that shared parts with this release.
The exact same Hoth Leia was also released in an Exclusive Echo Base 2-Pack with an Exclusive Brown Coat Han Solo.
Packaging 4/5
Hoth Leia is packed in the standard packaging and is number 75 in the 3rd phase of Black Series releases. The character name gives Leia her full title as Princess Leia Organa. The designation for Hoth follows in brackets.
The Gregory Titus artwork is a particular impressive rendering of Leia and this is repeated as normal on the back of the box alongside a short piece of text about Leia and specifically her role on Hoth.
"Princess Leia Organa was one of the Rebel Alliance's greatest leaders, fearless on the battlefield and dedicated to ending the tyranny of the Empire. In the battle on Hoth, Leia helped evacuate rebel forces as Darth Vader and his fleet descended upon the rebel base."
Paint & Sculpt 4/5
The likeness to Carrie Fisher on this figure is fantastic, arguably the best Leia figure to date. The face print technology enhances the brilliant sculpt particularly with the eyes and then the shading around the nose and eyes.
The hair is intricate with the plaited section coming across the top. The outfit is cast in a white plastic and is the same white flight/jumpsuit as seen on Bespin Escape Leia - although the lower legs have been updated so Leia is wearing her boots on this figure.
Said lower legs are a slightly different shade to the upper legs - only really noticeable in very strong light. This is because the lower part of the leg is cast in the grey for the boots, and therefore the white is painted on - whereas on the rest of the figure it is the base plastic.
While a lot of the figure is cast in the base colour, there are some really well applied paint apps on the badge insignia on her chest and the wrist communicator. Leia is wearing her quilted body warmer, and this is fully removable if you wish.
Accessories 5/5
Leia comes with a number of accessories, starting with the welding goggles she uses in the Falcon to make repairs. These are cast in a rubbery black plastic with some turquoise colouring around the eye pieces. They are designed to go over the figures head snugly and cover the eyes - the fit is tight, but once in place they are a perfect fit and avoid looking too big or clunky - the usual issue with this type of accessory. If you don't want them over the eyes, they can also be pulled up to sit on her forehead - or carried.
Accompanying the goggles is the welding tool Leia is using in the same scene. This is cast in black plastic and has no other paint apps applied. It has a bit of sculpted detail including some very slim pieces which can arrive bent. It fits in either hand of the figure.
The final accessory is Leia's weapon, a DH-17 blaster. This is the same blaster as has been packed previously with the Death Star Trooper and the original Bespin Lando. The gun is cast in black plastic with a silver barrel. It is designed for a larger hand and while it slots into Leia's right hand, the hand itself is too small to grip it fully and get the trigger finger into the grip.
While it is good to get a weapon for Leia, she didn't really use one in Empire while in these clothes - it would therefore have been nice to maybe include the breathing apparatus instead so we could have posed her with Han in the Exogorth Escape set?
Articulation 5/5
Leia has a total of 16 points of articulation, standard for a Black Series figure
Head : ball joint pivot neck
Body : waist ball joint
Arms : ball joint shoulders, single joint rotating elbow, wrist pivot
Legs : ball joint hip, thigh swivel, double joint knees, ankle rocker
With no armour or padding, every one of Leia's joints is fully mobile and each joint is tight and secure. The elbows will just about service a double handed weapon pose, but more with the blaster being carried than being fired. There are no balance issues, and Leia stands perfectly well on the solid ankle rockers.
Summary
Princess Leia in her Hoth outfit is arguably one of the best likenesses to date in the Black Series, a brilliant likeness to Carrie Fisher. The outfit too is well executed with only a minor niggle over the leg shade variations between upper and lower legs.
The accessories, three of them, are great and my only wish would have been for the gun to be swapped with the breathing gear so I can recreate the Mynock Hunt.
Princess Leia Organa (Hoth) does very little to disappoint and I score her top marks with a 5 out of 5 rating.
