Cad Bane (75024) Lego Star Wars Minifigure

"I'm your worst nightmare, pal..." - Cad Bane addresses C3PO in Clone Wars Season 3 Episode 8 "Evil Plans"

Cad Bane burst into the Star Wars Universe in Series 1 of the Clone Wars TV Series which aired back in 2008.  The Spaghetti Western Character made an instant impact inspired by Lee Van Cleef in The Good The Bad and The Ugly.   Bane is as tough and heartless a villain as you are going to find in the Clone Wars:  he is purely out to profit from the advent of war.  After Jango Fett ‘loses his head’ in Episode II: Attack Of The Clones, Bane rises to prominence as the pre-eminent gun for hire toting dual baster pistols and his trademark wide brimmed hat.  His exploits attract the attention of Count Dooku and Darth Sidious: an esteemed clientele indeed.

This male bounty hunter from Duros becomes a recurring character in the Clone Wars Seasons with him making an appearance in many of the  significant story arcs.  One of the most interesting aspects of Bane is his ability to hold his own and best the Jedi,  his encounter with Jedi Masters Obi-Wan Kenobi and Quinlan Vos on the planet Teth in Season 3 being a perfect example.  Bane possesses no special force powers, his talent is in preparation, planning and when supported by his impressive arsenal of weaponry (including toothpicks...) and trickery he is an impressive adversary.  A shade of Gotham’s Dark Knight here?

Cad Bane has become the subject of two Lego minifigure versions. 

The first variant appeared in two sets that were released in 2010:  8098 Clone Turbo Tank and 8128 Cad Bane’s Speeder.  The latter set was based on Bane’s premiere appearance in the episode “Hostage Crisis” in Season 1.

Roll the clock forward 3 years and the second and latest variant (at time of writing) is based on the Cad Bane we see in Season 4 in a multi-episode story arc that involves a plot to kidnap Chancellor Palpatine.  This is an exclusive minifigure in the 75024 HH-87 Starhopper set released in 2013.

This minifigure version is distinctly different to the original. 

The head piece has narrow set red eyes and black facial feature patterns on a blue skinned alien face. The head piece has no print on the rear.  The cybernetic breathing tubes that were embedded in Banes’s cheekbones and windpipe in the original version are gone.

Fans will be pleased that the same distinctive dark brown wide brimmed hat remains.

The Torso is double printed with a dark brown jersey with dark tan stripes and a reddish brown strap pattern, dark orange arms and reddish brown hands. In contrast, The Torso in the original version included Bane’s heavy dark brown cloak.

The reddish brown hips and legs are plain with no printing to front or rear.

Cad Bane is armed simply with a blaster, rather than his trademark LL-30 Blaster Pistols.

Cad Bane is an important enough character to warrant two minifigure versions.  If the first version 'did' the breathing apparatus and heavy brown cloak look, this version is somewhat simpler. Sometimes as they say: "less is more".

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Battle Droid Commander (9515) Lego Star Wars Minifigure

This is the third variant of the battle droid commander.  The minifigure is unique to the lego set '9515 The Malevolence'.

This minifigure really does reflect the appearance of the battle droid commanders we see in the opening scenes of Episode 1:  The Phantom Menace and also during the clone wars episodes.  It is certainly in line with the Droid Commanders we see in the episode “Destroy Malevolence” on which the 9515 lego set is based.

It looks and feels like a standard battle droid, the range of movement, poseability and weapon are the same.  The only difference being the yellow markings to the head and the yellow spot on the torso.

To put this variant in a bit of context: its predecessor, the 2008 variant that appeared in the '7670 Hailfire Droid and Spider Droid' set differed by having a completely yellow torso.  The first variant seen in 2000 and 2002 was more in line with this variant with the simple yellow markings although was plagued as per all pre-2007 battle droid minifgures by two straight arms meaning it could not hold a blaster properly.  More recently the 2013 set '75019 AT-TE' set includes a similar approach to denoting battle droid commanders but this time takes on the 'Geonosis' dark orange colouration instead of the usual tan. The Rocket Droid Commander that we see in the 2010 set: '8056 Droid Tri-Fighter' also has the yellow markings on torso and head piece to denote rank.

As a minifigure, and particularly as a unique minifigure in a set it hardly gets your pulse rating, but you’ve got to put someone at the head of an advancing column of battle droids.

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Anakin Skywalker (Clone Wars) Lego Star Wars Minifigure

Anakin Skywalker has been the subject of many minifigure versions:  as a boy in various pilot guises; as a Padawan; as a Jedi Knight; in the throes of turning to the dark side and battle-scarred prior to his transformation to Darth Vader.  All versions picking up the evolution of the character that we see in the films: Episode I - III.  

This minifigure version is intended to cater for the fans of the Clone Wars movie and Clone Wars TV Series.  To be fair to Lego, this minifigure version  is pretty good at recreating the appearance of 'Jedi General' Anakin Skywalker and is deliberately 'cartoonish' in appearance.

This minifigure variant was first released in 2008 and can be found in a number of sets:

• 7669:  Anakin's Jedi Starfighter;
• 7675:  AT-TE Walker (2008);
• 7680:  The Twilight (2008);
• 85037:  Star Wars Magnet Set (2010);
• 7931: T-6 Jedi Shuttle (2011);   

The minifigure itself is composed of four parts and is equipped with a two part light blue lightsaber.

The hair piece displays a swept back tousled and is reddish brown in colour. Interestingly, it is also seen on the Mon Mothma Minifigure in set 7754-1:  Home One Mon Calimari Star Cruiser that was released in 2009.

The face is single printed to the front with blue eyes, brown eyebrows and light brown battle scars and lines to the face.

The Torso is a single sided print which is principally black in colour with light grey garment definition, reddish-brown arms, black hands.  The rear is a plain black colour.

The Legs are simply plain black to both sides.

At first glance this variant is almost identical to the minifigure in the 7957: Sith Nightspeeder set from 2011.  Almost.  The Torso is superior in the Nightspeeder set variant with a double sided print, this time with brown fabric detail and more detail on the belt.

Other notable variants that are comparable, include the 9494:  Anakin's Jedi Interceptor Variant released in 2012.  This set is aligned to Episode III: Revenge Of The Sith, so the face is not cartoon-like and distinctly distressed, the hair piece is brown in colour and the double sided Torso has a different depiction of the robes.

All in all, it's a good minifigure, you could quibble that it appears that Anakin wears a very dark blue uniform in the movie/TV episodes rather than the black that Lego have opted for.  Other negatives that go against it are how common it is: it appears in a number of sets across a number of years.  The advance to a double sided torso print in the 2011 Sith Nightspeeder set gives this variant the edge in my opinion.

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Obi-Wan Kenobi in Rako Hardeen disguise (75024)

The ‘Marksman of Concord Dawn’, Rako Hardeen was a human male bounty hunter who was active during the clone wars.  Rako appears during a story arc of four episodes in the second half of Season 4 of the Clone Wars TV series.  The season originally aired between September 2011 and May 2012.

In an intricate, satisfying plot line the bounty hunter Hardeen is hired by an anonymous client to murder Obi Wan Kenobi.  After ‘successfully’ carrying out the assassination with a sniper rifle the mystery client is revealed to be the Jedi Council in the form of Mace Windu and Obi Wan Kenobi himself. From this point Kenobi uses nanotechnology to transform his face and a voice emulator droid and voice sample from Hardeen to impersonate the bounty hunter.  Why?  Kenobi uses Hardeen’s cover to infiltrate the criminal underworld to uncover a separatist plot against Chancellor Palpatine.

This minifigure is unique to the 75024 HH-87 Starhopper set released in summer 2013.

The minifigure is impressive.  The eye is immediately drawn to the head piece.  The head is light flesh coloured with light blue eyes and a dark red maroon tattoo around the right eye.  Other facial features include light brown stubble/scarring.  A beautiful print, on the reverse of the head piece is a small brown curve.

The Torso is predominantly dark grey in colour, with olive green arms and dark grey hands.  The Torso has an overlapping plate structure with light grey collars and metallic silver badge.  The rear is simply printed, mostly dark grey in colour with a reddish brown marking in the centre.

The legs have an interesting print being olive green in colour with metallic gold armour and knee pads with dark brown strapping.

The figure comes with a sniper rifle which is enhanced with a black lightsaber hilt to make an extended barrel.

Rako Hardeen is a great minifigure although it feels like something is missing.  Those that have watched the story arc will frequently see him wearing a helmet.  Admittedly, it is not the most eye catching or in fitting with the rest of the outfit.  You might also ask why would you want to cover that great face print?  However the inclusion of the helmet would have completed the minifigure. 

Those keen eyed viewers of the clone wars will have spotted the re-appearance of Hardeen’s outfit when Kenobi travels to Mandalore to rescue Duchess Satine during another epic Clone Wars story arc in season 5.   Those wanting to recreate scenes from Mandalore might want to switch in Kenobi’s head from the minfigure in the 75012 BARC Speeder with sidecar set.  Mix in the 2013 set 75022 Mandalorian Speeder and 7914 Mandalorian battle pack and you are a good way there.

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