Sculpt--5/5
If you thought Cloud City Capture Chewbacca looked good, then this Chewbacca will blow you away! This is, without a doubt, the best looking Chewbacca figure made yet. The increased attention to detail in the VOTC line has led to the best-looking sculpted fur I've ever seen. Fur hangs off his arms in a much better fashion than on Cloud City Capture Chewbacca, and it looks good even in poses where the fur "defies gravity". Chewbacca's legs are appropriately thick and hairy-looking, where past Chewbacca figures were on the thinner side. New to Chewbacca figures, are fully-detailed feet. The bottom of his feet feature footpads and toes, adding to the realism of this figure. Unfortunately, there are no pegholes.

Another most welcome advancement is the separately molded bandolier and pouch. While not completely separate (it's glued to his upper body), it allows for unrestricted waist and hip movement. The body section separated into three segments, with each segment overlapping the one below it. This creates a nice layered fur look and does a great job at hiding the waist/abdomen articulation. Chewie's headsculpt looks fabulous, sporting more of a resemblance to the Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi hairstyles. Chewbacca's handsculpts are also very well done, with his right hand sculpted to hold his bowcaster and his left sculpted to hold the bowcaster's barrel grip. If there's one thing to complain about, it's this left hand. It is sculpted palm upward, making it a little difficult to pose when he's not holding his bowcaster. It is also extremely hard to get the bowcaster's grip into this hand.

Articulation--4.5/5
Chewbacca has 14 points of articulation: head, ball-jointed shoulders, ball-jointed elbows, wrists, ball-jointed waist/abdomen, hips, ball-jointed knees, and ball-jointed ankles. Now that's a lot of ball-joints! Besides the awesomeness of all the ball-jointed limbs, the coolest thing about this Chewbacca is the ball-jointed waist/abdomen. This joint is a true ball-joint much like the Wampa and allows movement in a 360 degree radius. You can have Chewie lean forward, backward, side to side, you name it! Pretty much all the articulation on this figure is very well hidden, and this is a rare case where the articulation has actually added to detail of this figure with its layered look. If there's one disappointing aspect, it's the neck joint. I'm kind of sad that it's not like the ball-jointed neck of CCC Chewbacca. Sure, that figure had a major gap between his head and his body, but I think they could've improved on it.

Accessories--4.5/5
You get the best-looking bowcaster Hasbro has made. It's based on the one that came with the 25th Anniversary Han and Chewbacca two-pack, but it's now got even more detail and accuracy. There is added detail in the scopes, and there is now a space underneath the barrel. This large weapon comes disassembled in the bubble, and you must attach the "bow" section to the main body. This is done by slipping the bow through a small slit between the barrel and the grip section of the bowcaster. You might be wondering, "How the heck do you fit that big bow through such a small space??" Well, the answer is elasticity. This bowcaster is made of soft plastic just like most other modern Star Wars accessories, so if you dislike soft weapons then this may not be your cup of tea. In this case however, it was necessary for it to be soft so we could assemble it into a somewhat permanent way. The softness of the bowcaster also makes it easier to get into Chewbacca's hands, which have some seriously tight grips.

Paint--5/5
It's hard to believe that we thought past Chewbacca figures had good paintjobs when you compare them to this figure. This Chewie has dark patches in all the right places, and excellent highlights to make his fur looked varied in color. They also did a very clean job on his face with a nicely painted mouth, eyes, and nose. Even the bottom of his feet are painted. The clips on the bandolier could be slightly better, but overall there's not much to complain about here.

Packaging--5/5
One of the big draws about these figures is the reproduction packaging they come in. Anyone who grew up with the vintage figures will no doubt love seeing these. I myself have to admit that there is something kind of magical about holding these in my hands. It's like buying a bit of my childhood without paying hundreds of dollars. To make the package even more special, Hasbro encased them in a nice clamshell case which protects the card and bubble. The cardbacks are done well and show off the original figure in it's packaging and also show the other figures in the series. It's too bad Hasbro couldn't continue the vintage recreation to the cardbacks, but apparently there were legal issues with that. Still, it would have been cool if they had at least mimicked the look of the vintage cardbacks.

Overall--5/5
Best. Chewbacca. Ever. The best likeness, the best paintjob, the best articulation, the best bowcaster...this is the Chewbacca figure of your dreams. The perfect companion figure to VOTC Han Solo and the perfect replacement for pretty much every other Chewbacca figure. One of the greatest Star Wars figures ever made, period.

--Photos and review by Garett Yoshimura
garett@carrotnetwork.com