FIRST LOOK: Star Wars Takodana Encounter By Hasbro

Maz Kanata joins Hasbro’s Star Wars The Force Awakens collection in the new Takodana Encounter box set.

We’re a solid 6+ months past #ForceFriday, so it shouldn’t come as a big surprise that virtually all the principal characters from the latest Star Wars movie have received the toy treatment… with a few exceptions.  One of those is Maz Kanata, the centuries-old, Force-sensitive smuggler who helps Han Solo, Rey, and Finn on their journey.  Maz made a big impression, especially considering her limited screen time, and now she’s finally joining Hasbro’s 3.75″ toy line.

Rather than a single figure, Maz is part of a new box set which also features our heroes Rey and Finn, as well as BB-8 and some cool new accessories, most notably Luke Skywalker’s lightsaber.  The Maz figure features a fantastic all-new sculpt, with an impressive amount of screen accurate detail in her colorful, gypsy-like attire.  Her intricate goggles magnify her eyes, just like in the movie, although the figure’s lenses cannot be removed.

Maz sports the same 5 points of articulation as the other basic Star Wars figures from Hasbro, but considering her character and small stature, it’s hard to say I even miss any extra articulation.  The diminutive alien stands in perfect scale with the rest of the toy line, and she includes an all new blaster (which looks great, even though I can’t recall her using it in the movie).

While Maz is definitely the highlight of this set, she’s certainly not the only thing we get.  She’s joined by Rey and Finn, who are both re-releases of their basic, Build-A-Weapon figures initially released on Force Friday, although I find their paint apps are tighter and more accurate on these new versions.  Rey includes her removable backpack and her staff, while Finn comes packing the blaster he gets from Han Solo.  Both figures can wield Luke’s blue lightsaber, or marvel at the all new pieces in this box set– Luke’s saber hilt and the treasure chest that Maz kept it in before giving it to Rey.  The saber fits perfectly in the box, which is well sculpted with more junk inside, and a soft rubber top that can open and close easily.

Rounding out the set is everyone’s favorite new droid BB-8, whose only prior release in this toy line was the Jakku scavenger two-pack.  I do wish this version of the droid was painted with unique weathering (he’s rendered as clean as the previous release), but we all love this little guy so much, I can’t complain.  If you’ve skipped or cherry-picked the Star Wars line, this set is a perfect way to get our core heroes and one of their coolest alien allies, all at once.  But even if Maz is the only new figure you’re after, she’s so well done she’s worth the $25 price tag all by herself.

Look for the Takodana Encounter set to hit retail by the end of this month or early May.  And when you find it, remember to take some cool photos and share them on Hasbro’s fan photo campaign using hashtag #HasbroToyPic.  Thanks to Hasbro for giving us the opportunity to run this early look at this great new Star Wars set!