Figure of the Day: Day 799
7/13/2008 6:45:09 PM - Adam

WUHER with Droid Detector Unit
Power of the Force Exclusive
Item No.:
Asst. 84184 No. 84389
Manufacturer: Hasbro
Number: n/a
Includes: Droid Detector Unit, CommTech Chip
Action Feature: n/a
Retail: $12.99
Availability: 2000
Appearances: Star Wars

Image: Adam Pawlus' giant microwave.

Bio: The surly human Wuher saw a lot of action while working at the seedy Mos Eisley cantina. His policy not to allow droids in the establishment was facilitated by a droid detector unit. Upon entering the cantina with Obi-Wan Kenobi and Luke Skywalker, R2-D2 and C-3PO were promptly ousted. (Taken from the figure's cardback.)

Commentary: Because the fans demanded it-- oh, and how-- Wuher was eventually released. Fan site owners, fan petitions (specifically at Yakface.com), and countless requests all came together to make this figure happen. Heck, it seemed like they didn't want to for the longest time, but some fans *cough* made sure to say things like "You made the bar, and have no intention to release a person to tend said bar?" when meeting up with anyone from the Star Wars team. Apparently bean counters can't fight with incessant nagging, so this figure should be filed under the "win" pile. We did it! (Well, they did it, but we got it.)

The figure is decent for his time and stands up fairly well today. Sure, more articulation and detail could be added, but it probably won't be so it's good that the costume was fairly authentic and the face was grizzled enough the first time around. With only six points of articulation, it's important that little details be there so fans don't notice as much. Molding a cup to his hand was both an inspired and annoying idea, because dedicating the cup to his right hand seems to imply that Wuher is a drunk, and also a customer. This is a figure that should be able to distribute drinks, not merely consume them. Still, odds are if you buy this figure all he's going to do is sit behind a bar anyway, so it's certainly good enough to perform that function.

Collector's Notes: Originally a pricey Fan Club exclusive, this figure was dumped to retail clearance at Toys "R" Us for about two bucks as the Fan Club liquidated much of its inventory due to their selling off the license to Paizo, and the fact that Wuher wasn't a particularly good figure for direct-to-fan sales. As such, it didn't stay hard to get for long, and a new version was retooled, repainted, and released in 2004. I prefer the 2000 release as shown here.

--Adam Pawlus



Day 799: July 13, 2008


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