Bastila Shan — Star Wars The Black Series #GG 21

Overview

Bastila Shan at #GG 21 is the Gaming Greats Collection’s KOTOR Jedi Knight protagonist figure — the brash Force-sensitive Jedi from BioWare’s 2003 RPG, whose battle meditation abilities make her central to the Republic’s resistance against Darth Malak’s Sith fleet. Released July 2023 as a single-boxed mainline release. Non-exclusive — the third consecutive Gaming Greats mainline figure following Cal Kestis (Jedi: Survivor) at #GG 17 and Darth Malak at #GG 20. MSRP $24.99 (the standard mainline pricing). Three accessories: a lightsaber hilt and two removable yellow lightsaber blades that combine into a double-bladed configuration. 19-joint articulation including butterfly shoulders. Year-imprinted 2022, released 2023. The figure sits opposite Darth Malak at #GG 20 as the protagonist-and-antagonist KOTOR pair Hasbro released across the same year.

The KOTOR Protagonist Pair

Bastila Shan at #GG 21 closes the protagonist-and-antagonist pairing that Hasbro built across the 2023 KOTOR releases. Darth Malak at #GG 20 (July 2023) covers the game’s primary villain; Bastila Shan covers the Jedi Knight who confronts him. For collectors building KOTOR-specific displays, the two figures together capture the game’s central conflict at the 6-inch scale.

The mainline distribution at $24.99 makes both figures accessible through any retail channel — Amazon, Entertainment Earth, Target, hobby shops, GameStop included but not exclusive. The Gaming Greats Collection’s “GameStop-exclusive by default” pattern continues to apply only to enemy classes and squad members; protagonist and primary villain characters now consistently ship as mainline releases.

The Double-Bladed Yellow Lightsaber

Bastila Shan came with a double-bladed lightsaber which has two removable yellow blades. Three accessories total: the central hilt and two yellow blades that plug into either end. The dual-removable design supports multiple display configurations: hilt-only (saber stowed), single-blade (one ignited), and double-blade (both ignited for the character’s signature combat configuration). For a $24.99 mainline figure with three accessories, this is the standard mainline accessory loadout — appropriate but not generous.

The yellow blade colour is screen-accurate to the in-game character — most Jedi figures across the Black Series carry green or blue blades, with yellow reserved for the rare Sentinel-class characters. Bastila’s specific yellow saber is part of her character identity in the source material, and Hasbro committed to the screen-accurate colour rather than substituting a more generic blade tone.

The figure is able to hold the hilt well in both hands. The double-bladed configuration supports the screen-accurate two-handed combat poses that the character class requires, with the butterfly shoulder joints (covered below) providing the articulation flexibility for centre-grip weapon configurations.

The 19-Joint Articulation

19 joints. Ball-jointed top neck, ball-jointed lower neck, butterfly joints in the shoulders, ball-jointed shoulders, ball-jointed elbows, ball-jointed wrists, ball-jointed waist, ball-jointed hips, swivel thighs, ball-jointed knees, ball-jointed ankles. The butterfly shoulder joints are the upgrade over the standard 17-joint Phase 4 baseline, supporting the two-handed lightsaber combat poses the character requires. The ball-jointed waist (without the dual upper-body articulation that Darth Malak at #GG 20 carries) provides single-axis torso rotation.

For a Jedi figure with a double-bladed weapon, the butterfly-shoulder articulation is the right engineering choice. Standard ball-joint shoulders force the arms wider than centre-grip weapon configurations require; butterfly joints solve that constraint. Bastila Shan can adopt screen-accurate KOTOR combat poses across the figure’s full range of motion.

The figure stands well on display without falling over. Hasbro’s standing-stability engineering on the figure is solid across both static-display and dynamic-pose configurations.

The Sculpt and Paint

Hasbro sculpted Bastila Shan nicely, and the figure looks good on display. The KOTOR character’s specific visual design — the Jedi robes with the gold accent details, the specific facial structure that distinguishes Bastila from generic Jedi Knight characters, the proportions appropriate to the in-game model — all translate cleanly to the figure’s plastic form.

The paint deco was cleanly applied, but there is no weathering or subtle dirt on the figure. Same recurring critique that affects most Phase 4 releases. For Bastila specifically, the impact is moderate — the KOTOR character’s design isn’t heavily weathered in the source material, so the clean paint reads as more screen-accurate than it would for combat-grime-heavy figures (Republic Commando, Rocket Launcher Trooper). But the figure could still benefit from a wash application across the boots and lower outfit to differentiate sculpted detail from undifferentiated mass-coloured plastic.

The No-Removable-Parts Configuration

There are no removable parts on the figure. The robes, the belt, the gold neck-collar, the boots — all integrated as fixed sculpted elements. Standard Black Series design pattern for Jedi-class characters; the figure ships in a single configuration with the lightsaber as the only meaningful interactive accessory.

For collectors who want kitbashing flexibility, this is restrictive. For collectors who want a screen-accurate Bastila Shan, the integrated approach is appropriate to the character’s source material configuration.

The “What You See Is What You Get” Honesty

Detailed reviewers frame the figure honestly: it’s a very simple-looking figure overall, what you see is what you get here with no removable parts or any additional accessories included besides the lightsaber. This isn’t a critique so much as a clear-eyed description — Bastila Shan is a straightforward mainline Jedi figure with the standard accessory loadout. The figure doesn’t try to be more than it is, and at the $24.99 mainline price point, it doesn’t need to.

For collectors comparing Bastila Shan against the better-equipped figures in the Gaming Greats Collection (Cal Kestis Deluxe at #GG 02 with eight accessories, Cal Kestis Survivor at #GG 17 with three accessories plus BD-1, Darth Malak at #GG 20 with four accessories), Bastila Shan sits at the simpler end of the line. The figure is fairly priced for what it delivers; collectors hoping for more should adjust expectations to the standard mainline accessory configuration.

The KOTOR Source

Knights of the Old Republic is BioWare’s 2003 RPG set roughly 4,000 years before the Skywalker saga. Bastila Shan is the Jedi Knight whose battle-meditation abilities support the Republic’s military efforts against Darth Malak’s Sith conquest. Her relationship with the player character (Darth Revan, whose true identity is the game’s mid-point reveal) is one of the game’s central narrative arcs.

For collectors who played KOTOR, Bastila Shan is one of the game’s most narratively significant characters. The Black Series figure captures the in-game Jedi configuration with the screen-accurate yellow lightsaber and the appropriate Jedi robe design.

This is Bastila Shan’s third Black Series figure across the broader Hasbro line. The 2014 Black Series 6” Bastila Shan (figure id=2297) and the 2014 Vintage Collection Bastila Shan (figure id=877) are the prior releases. The 2023 Gaming Greats version is the most recent and most articulated of the three — though detailed reviewers and KOTOR collectors have varied opinions on which release captures the character best.

The Mural Collection Position

Bastila Shan sits at the twenty-first position in the Gaming Greats Collection mural display. For loose display, the figure works best alongside Darth Malak at #GG 20 for the protagonist-and-antagonist KOTOR pairing, alongside the broader KOTOR Gaming Greats roster (Zaalbar at #GG 04, Darth Malgus at #GG 24, the Jedi Knight Revan at #GG-E02, Darth Nihilus at #GG-E03), or alongside the various Black Series Jedi Knight releases for a broader Jedi roster display.

Secondary Market

Single-boxed mainline release, non-exclusive, July 2023. Available at MSRP through standard retail and the secondary market with broad availability. The mainline distribution and the $24.99 MSRP keep the figure accessible. Verify the lightsaber hilt and both yellow blades are included — the small blades are easy to lose in transit. No production variants documented.

Verdict

Bastila Shan at #GG 21 is the right figure for KOTOR collectors who want the protagonist Jedi Knight in plastic form alongside the Darth Malak villain. The double-bladed yellow lightsaber configuration is the figure’s primary feature, the butterfly-shoulder articulation supports the screen-accurate combat poses, and the mainline distribution at $24.99 makes the figure accessible.

The simple accessory loadout (just the saber) is the figure’s most defensible negative — the figure offers less display flexibility than the better-equipped Gaming Greats releases. The lack of weathering is the recurring Phase 4 paint critique. The integrated everything-permanent design limits kitbashing flexibility.

Buy this figure if you collect KOTOR, if you own Darth Malak and want the matching protagonist, or if you build Jedi Knight roster displays. Skip if you already own a prior Bastila Shan release and the 2023 version’s articulation upgrade isn’t worth a duplicate purchase.

The KOTOR Jedi Knight with the battle meditation abilities. The protagonist-figure to Malak’s antagonist. The mainline release with the double-bladed yellow saber and what-you-see-is-what-you-get honesty. Mainline distribution, July 2023.

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Part of Star Wars The Black Series | Phase 4 Gaming Greats Collection. Related: Darth Malak P4-GG-20 | Zaalbar P4-GG-04 | Darth Malgus P4-GG-24.