You are probably coming to this page wondering, who or what is Pegolas. No, this is not a typo. I will start by letting you know that this information is framed in the view of a collector and may not be exactly how Toy Biz planned the figure. However, this is the timeline exposed to collectors.

 

Pegolas is an actual release that the community dubbed for the different production hand and daggers. It is the second in a stage of what collectors accept as 3 phases.

 

V1 – “Dagger Throwing”

As part of the original assortment Toy Biz planned to debut Legolas with a "Dagger Throwing" feature. This version (V1) however, would only go as far as the Test Shot phase before being cancelled and replaced with a “Dagger Slashing” feature.

 

This "Dagger Throwing" version (V1) is not to be confused with the later version released (ITEM NO. 81571) on the ROTK Blue Square Card. The prototype has a slotted holder on the right-hand side of his back, where the knife would sit before it was launched. The dagger would also have a piece of string which could be held to retrieve the dagger.

 

The “Dagger Throwing” feature was cancelled by Toy Biz early on but was close enough to production that he featured in the early Toy Biz promotional material. Proof sheets were also printed while a Mock-up of a fully painted Final Engineering Prototype (FEP) in packaging was also produced. Why the original version was cancelled is still unknown, but one could be correct in comparing this Legolas with “Dagger Throwing” feature and the infamous "Rocket Firing Boba Fett" from the Kenner vintage Star Wars line.

 

As a result, this makes the Legolas with "Dagger Throwing" feature prototype one of the "Holy Grails" for preproduction collectors.

 

V2 – “Pegolas”

The design of Legolas was then changed to a "Dagger-Slashing and Arrow-Launching Actions" feature. The front of the package was updated to now read “with Dagger-Slashing and Arrow-Launching Actions”. The rear packaging was also modified. Instead of 5 panels illustrating the "Dagger-Throwing and Arrow-Launching Actions" feature it was altered to show only 3 panels depicting the “Dagger-Slashing and Arrow-Launching Actions" feature in action.

 

With the changes made to the packaging keen eyes will have noted that the action feature at the back of the production package still reads “Dagger-Throwing and Arrow-Launching Actions”. It is not known why this error went undetected when so much effort was made to update the packaging. However, this oversight was never corrected, and all production examples will show this feature name.

 

The earliest "Dagger-Slashing" releases had a "peg" in the middle of the hand to hold the dagger. This version (V2) is now referred to by collectors as Pegolas. The dagger was also different in size and style from the "Dagger-Throwing" version (V1).  Soon after, the right hand of Legolas was re-sculpted as found in subsequent releases (V3).

 

It is likely a few thousand were released with the "peg" before transitioning to the new hand. As a result, this has made the Pegolas especially uncommon to find today. It is also difficult to identify one through the packaging, while many were opened without anyone knowing of how uncommon this version is.

 

The key to identifying one is to look at the right hand for a peg hole. This makes the FOTR half-moon Legolas an exciting and fun item to collect.

 

V3 – “Normal Release”

The third and final version of Legolas with "Dagger Slashing" feature is what is commonly found today. The box along with Item/UPC codes remained the same.

 

However, the factory running change that occurred saw this version (V3) released with the re-sculpted hand that better held the dagger for operating the “Dagger Slashing” feature.

 

So how do you spot a Pegolas?

The two images below show close-ups of the key area to help collectors identify both V2 and V3 Legolas.

 

So, now that you see where Pegolas fits into the life cycle, you can see that Pegolas is the true first production release of Legolas. The small and limited release of Pegolas before transitioning to the re-sculpted hand has made this first release extra special to collectors.

 

For those collecting preproduction, the "Dagger Throwing" prototype is one of the Holy Grail's of the entire LOTR line.

 

To date only 2 resin hard copies, 4 test shots and 2 proof sheets have been accounted for.