Hasbro's Garindan (Long Snoot) Star Wars - The Power of the Force: Action figure review

Garindan, a Kubaz informant, works only for the highest bidders - usually the Empire or Jabba the Hutt. Garindan followed the young Skywalker and his mentor Ben Kenobi through the alleys of Mos Eisley.  - From the package blurb. 

The shadowy spy retroactively named Garindan only appears briefly in A New Hope as the shrouded figure with the long nose and goggled eyes, he is the character who tips off the Imperial stormtroopers that Luke and Obi-Wan Kenobi have gone to Docking Bay 94 in Mos Eisley.  He appears twice or thrice, following the Jedi Knight and his new apprentice through alleys and bystreets and muttering into a handheld comlink in a squeaky language. 

Garindan is not identified by name in the film or the 1976 Alan Dean Foster-penned novelization; the figure is also known colloquially as "Long Snoot" because of his long proboscis. 

The Figure: 

 Height: 1.85 Meters
Status: Spy
Classification: Kubaz
Affiliation: To The Highest Bidder
Weapon of Choice: Blaster Pistol, Hold-Out Pistol 

Bipedal and roughly humanoid, the Kubaz alien is roughly the size of an average human but has that long snoot that gives him his nickname.  Garindan is attired in a hooded cape - done in plastic - and goggles to protect his vision from the twin suns of Tatooine. 

Though Garindan never wields a weapon in Star Wars - Episode IV: A New Hope, Hasbro has equipped him with a hold-out blaster.  After all, he is a spy who will work for organized criminals such as Jabba or the local Imperial authorities, and spying is a nasty, dangerous business. 

The figure was actually released in three different packaging variants; the toy itself was not modified but it came in two Green Collection carded bubblepacks, one with a picture and one with a hologram in foil, and one Freeze Frame carded bubblepack.  This last one included a Freeze Frame slide with a still from A New Hope that could be used in a slide projector. 

Weapons and Accessories: 
Hold Out Blaster 
 Plastic Cape 
 Freeze Frame (.01 only)   

My Take:  Although Garindan is only seen for less than a minute in Star Wars: A New Hope, his actions lead to the docking bay shootout between Han Solo and a squad of Imperial stormtroopers before the fateful flight of theMillennium Falcon.  This kicks off the first adventure Luke Skywalker has in his quest to become a Jedi Knight, so the spy's small but pivotal role makes him worthy of his own little action figure. 

As far as detailing goes, it's very nicely done.  The dark gray, almost black outfit is perfectly suited for skulking about in the alleys and sideways of Mos Eisley and elsewhere; the sculpt is nicely done for a figure of 1997 vintage.  The only bit of unclothed Kubaz - the long nose - is rendered in simulated brown skin tones with almost-elephant-like wrinkles and folds on the surface. 

As far as articulation goes, it's not too shabby.  Garindan's hooded head can be turned from side to side even though he's a cloaked figure.  That's because Hasbro did not affix the cape's hood to the rest of the simulated garment to allow for neck movement.

The figure's arm movements, though, are restricted by the cape, which is rendered in plastic instead of cloth.  The arms have no elbow joints so posing the figure naturally is difficult.  Additionally, the figure can only be posed In standing or "walking" stances, since there are not enough articulation points in the legs to have him sit unless Garindan is sitting with his legs stiffly straight. 

On the whole, the figure is for serious collectors only; Garindan is hard to find in local stores unless you go to a comics-and-collectibles store.  Prices there can vary from $1.00 for a Long Snoot loose and without his blaster to $15.00 and up for one in a carded bubblepack in mint condition

I bought mine about eight years ago from a private collector who was going to go to college and was selling off her figures.  I paid $10 and it was packaged, but the seller put the carded bubblepack in a too-confined box, so the  near-mint figure's bubblepack was all bent and no longer displayable that way, so I decided to open Garindan and pose him on a shelf.

As always, parents are cautioned that Star Wars figures have small accessories or parts that can be choking hazards for children under three years of age, and Hasbro recommends this toy for kids ages four and up.

(c) 2010, 2012 by  Alex Diaz-Granados. All Rights Reserved