ECHO BASE FIGURE REVIEWS #8: GIRAN

DESCRIPTION: Giran is a Nikto Guard who helps Malakili take care of the vicious rancor in the chamber below Jabba's lair. A warrior species with a reputation for shady activities, the Nikto are loyal to the Hutts and work in Jabba's palace and on his sail barge.

SCULPT: 8/10 - Giran's got one of the most detailed sculpts of any action figure ever. For a character that appeared in the dark for mere seconds, Hasbro has captured pretty much every single details of Giran's armored outfit. But the coolest part of this figure may be the headsculpt. Every little scale, horn, and bump in his Nikto noggin is perfect, making this figure look like he jumped right out of the screen. The ONLY reason this category gets an 8/10 is because unfortunately Giran's baggy pants really limit his knee articulation.

ARTICULATION: 10/10 - 14 points of articulation. Despite the knee articulation being somewhat limited, this is still one pretty poseable figure.

PAINT APS/DECO: 10/10 - Giran's excellent sculpt has an excellent paintjob. Every little detail is covered nicely.

ACCESSORIES: 10/10 - Includes removable hood, force pike, and Build-a-Droid pack-in.

AVAILABILITY: 8/10 - While not nearly as common as Malakili and Panno, Giran definitely seems to hang around on the pegs for a while after figures like Luke, Leia, and the Ewoks are long gone.

FINAL SCORE: 46/50 - A-

IN CONCLUSION: I'm quite pleased with Giran. He's definitely the best figure in the RotJ wave, and definitely one of the coolest figures released in The Legacy Collection. The sculpt is just INCREDIBLE. Giran looks awesome on my Jabba's Palace shelf, and goes with the new rancor and his partner in crime Malakili quite nicely. He's also pretty easy to find, so I think I might pick up a couple more for custom fodder.