STAR WARS Clone Wars: Pre Vizsla, leader of the Mandalorian Death Watch

Presenting Star Wars Clone Wars Pre Vizsla, leader of the Mandalorian Death Watch. 

I'm not a very big fan of the Star Wars Animated Series - despite being a Star Wars fanatic. I've never liked cartoons that distort the human form i.e. the Justice League Animated series, etc... and have always preferred those that stayed "truer" to the human form i.e G.I. Joe, Thundercats, He-Man, etc... Don't get me wrong, I think the Star Wars Animated Series presented a wonderful action filled  world that provided fans with a deeper understanding of the Clone Wars, but the spindly bodies always kept me from collecting them as toys. I'd watch the cartoons, yes, but that's all.

However, every now and then certain unique characters come  out of the Clone Wars with unique characteristics that warrant collecting and this is one of them. Pre Vizsla, leader of the Mandalorian Death Watch. 

  

Pre Vizsla is unique because of a weapon that he has that his ancestors stole from the Jedi, one of the most unique weapons in the Star Wars Universe, a Darksaber.

What's to like about Pre Vizsla?

Pre Vizsla is the leader of a splinter group of Mandalorians  who seek to remove the pacifist leaders (A Mandalorian Pacifist leading a warrior culture? How'd that happen in the first place?) of the Madalorians and bring them back to an age where warriors rule over democracy through any means possible - Some would go as far as to call them terrorists. 

Pre Vizsla comes armed with a pair of blasters, a jet-pack a removable traditional Mandalorian Helm, the aforementioned Darksaber and a removable half-cape bearing the Death Watch insignia. 

Pre Vizsla sides with the forces of Count Dooku and eventually ends up in a one-on-one battle against Jedi master Obi Wan Kenobi. 

It is there that Pre Vizsla shows his prowess at one time battling Obi Wan Kenobi hand-to-hand after Kenobi had forced Pre Vizsla to lose his Darksaber. Happily you will find that this figure maintains flexibility worthy of of Pre Vizsla's martial prowess. As you can tell with these pictures which depict the joints that allow Pre Vizsla to actually draw his blasters and hyper-extend his weapons.

You also have to love the more "Shadow Trooper" paint scheme of Pre Vizsla's Mandalorian armor which is similar but quite distinct from the more "In-your-face" armor of Jango and Boba Fett. Note the clan markings on Pre Vizsla's helm and shoulder pads.

And of course there's the Darksaber. 

The Darksaber is unique. It's not just the only recorded appearance of a black lightsaber, it's also the only lightsaber out there with a blade. Your traditional lightsaber has no "cutting edge" so to speak, the "light blade" is a cylinder of light that cuts through anything. The Darksaber has a clearly defined cutting edge making it unique. Legend has it that countless Jedi have died at the Darksaber's blade. Were it not for Obi Wan Kenobi's force abilities, he would have met the same fate at Pre Vizsla's hands.

What's not to like about Pre Vizsla?

Well as with every Star Wars Animated figure, Pre Vizsla is lanky. Look at how thin those arms and legs are. it makes his helmet look like a bucket on a mop - which is sad because it's such a cool helmet. Also his cape could have been better - I can imagine Edna Mode (Incredibles) looking at Pre Vizsla and screaming "NO CAPES!!!!" And true enough his cape does get in the way of his sword arm AND his jetpack - no way does that jetpack fire without it catching on fire. It doesn't even have the underwire that some Jedi cloaks have to improve pose-ability.

Honestly it looks like a dirty rag. Without it though, the lankiness of Pre Vizsla is almost overwhelming. I sincerely hope that a non-Star Wars Animated series version of Pre Vizsla is in the works.

All in all though he's a wonderful figure to have and has an item that Star Wars geeks would love to talk and even debate about i.e. why would a lightsaber need a bladed edge? Would the dull side of a Darksaber cut? etc.... Also if you play the game that Star Wars tried to introduce with this animated line, he's not a bad figure - except in luck where he really sucks. Just look at that battle skills and leadership scores. Pre Vizsla even manages a respectable 11 on the force ability scale - thanks to the bonus.

I purchased Pre Vizsla on e-bay (Bidding war victory) He retails now on Amazon for US 11.25