Category Archives: Flashback Friday Figure Addendum

Flashback Friday Figure Addendum #0076: Luke Skywalker – Dark Empire

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Flashback Friday Figure Addendum and tagged with , , , , ,

LUKE SKYWALKER — DARK EMPIRE

STAR WARS: POWER OF THE FORCE II (KENNER)

Heeeeeeeey, it’s Friday again!  Right now, I’m all about keeping the Star Wars thing rolling, so let’s have a little more of that!  Let’s delve back into the now defunct Star Wars Expanded Universe with a follow-up look at Dark Empire Luke!

 “Six years after the destruction of the second Death Star, the galaxy is thrust into turmoil. A reborn evil threatens to enslave the galaxy, and the Republic’s closest friend – Luke Skywalker – may become their greatest enemy. Freed from their detention cell, a group of rebels begin their escape from the Imperial planet Byss. But the sudden appearance of Luke Skywalker, Jedi Master, could mean unfortunate news for the Rebels. Has Luke fallen under the spell of the dark side?”

Remember two weeks ago when I was talking about the Star Wars Expanded Universe? Well, hows about a little more of that? Yeah, let’s go with that. It’s another Dark Empire figure! Wooooo! This time, it’s Luke Skywalker, in his ‘90s anti-hero phase. Let’s have a look!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Dark Empire Luke Skywalker was another of the four Dark Empire figures in the one and only series of Kenner’s Star Wars: Expanded Universe line. The figure stands about 3 1/2 inches tall and he has 7 points of articulation. Like the Clone Emperor, the seventh point of articulation is on his wrist (though this time it was the right one), which was more to allow for the removal of Luke’s hand…which is why my figure is missing his right hand. Luke had a totally unique sculpt, based on his bad-boy look from the Dark Empire comics. It’s sort of goofy and definitely dated, but I can’t help but find it endearing. By this point in time, Kenner had lost the bulky, puffy look of their early ‘90s Star Wars figures, so this guy doesn’t look anywhere near as goofy, at least proportion-wise. The head was a new mold, showcasing Luke’s extra bouncy hair from Dark Empire, but it has the same facial construction as Kenner’s second-generation PotF2 Luke heads, which had a slightly better Hamill likeness. It’s a little strange that he’s ended up looking so much younger, but I don’t think it looks terrible at all. Luke’s paint is pretty solid overall. I think it’s a bit more pleasing to the eye than the Clone Emperor, and the application is generally pretty clean. Luke included a lightsaber—red to denote his flirting with the Dark Side during the events of Dark Empire—as well as a blaster pistol. He also included another of the fold-out 3D display stand things, which was pretty cool. Reeeeeaaaaally wish I still had one of those.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I think this was the first instance of me eagerly awaiting the release of a Star Wars figure. I was at the local Another Universe at the mall with my Dad, and I saw this guy on the cover of a Star Wars fan magazine, which had the details on the whole Expanded Universe assortment. My Dad was nice enough to buy the magazine for me, and I remember dragging that thing all over the place while I eagerly awaited this figure’s release. As I mentioned in the Clone Emperor review, I found this guy in the Farpoint dealer’s room the year he was released, and he was purchased for me by my Grandmother. He’s a pretty awesome figure, and still remains one of my favorites.

This has always been one of my favorite Power of the Force figures, and I think my original review conveys that pretty well, as well as showing just how well-loved he was, given his *many* missing parts.  He actually spent a lot of his time with a stand-in right hand, stolen from a spare Saga Clone Trooper I had, which didn’t really fit or match, but it made me feel better.  I actually purchased a whole replacement Luke back when I got most of the other Expanded Universe figures, so I had a complete one there, but, then, over the course of a couple of years, the original hand and lightsaber from my old figure turned back up, which made me quite happy.  Buying the replacement still gave me a chance to get his 3D fold-out back-drop again, though, and I do really, really love those.  I did *unfortunately* misplace the replacement blaster I picked up, so I may have to do another lead-in photo at some point.  For now, though, I’m happy my favorite PotF figure has all his essential parts again.

Friday Figure Addendum #0075: Aquaman

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Flashback Friday Figure Addendum and tagged with , , , ,

AQUAMAN

SUPER POWERS (KENNER)

When is a Friday Figure Addendum not a Flashback? When it’s for a review I only ran three days ago.  I mean, I guess that’s still a flashback.  Right?  But it doesn’t feel like it, and I’m writing this literally right after the proper review, so I’m just gonna drop the “Flashback” for this one.  So, let’s talk a little more about Aquaman!

In Tuesday’s review, I discussed my Super Powers Aquaman, who was a rather cheap addition to my collection, which came to me in rather rough shape.  Further more, I was seven when I got it, so it only got more played with from there.  For the fullest extent of what I’m talking about, here’s what my Aquaman looked like in March of this year:

As you can see, he took quite a beating.   Since my Super Powers are something I’m rather proud of, with a pretty prominent display spot, I wanted him to be a bit better.  I used to do a fair bit of customizing, and even some restoring from time to time, so I decided to break those skills out again, and get this guy back up to his fullest potential.  I think I did pretty well, and I’m very happy with the end result.  And, I threw in a repro trident courtesy of Made Like Old, so he feels all polished and complete.  For a beater figure I bought for $2.50 almost three decades ago, I think he’s doing pretty well!

Flashback Friday Figure Addendum #0074: Speeder Bike (w/ Luke Skywalker in Endor Gear)

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Flashback Friday Figure Addendum and tagged with , , , , , ,

SPEEDER BIKE (W/ LUKE SKYWALKER IN ENDOR GEAR)

STAR WARS: POWER OF THE FORCE II (KENNER)

Well, it’s Friday again, guys.  We made it.  It’s here, and the week is over.  Yay?  Yeah, let’s go with yay.  And what am I doing?  I’m talking about Star Wars.  It’s what I do in times of trouble.  Or just times, really.  Kind of a background noise.  Anyway, here’s a return look at Luke Skywalker and a Speeder Bike!

A couple of weeks ago, I took a look at the first of three versions of the Imperial Speeder Bike released by Kenner in their Power of the Force II line. The vehicle’s mold was first introduced in the vintage Return of the Jedi line, and was then re-packaged in the ’90s, with one of three different pilots. I’ve already looked at the one with Leia. Today, I look at her brother Luke, alongside his own Speeder.

THE VEHICLE ITSELF

The speeder bikes in these sets were all identical, meaning this one is exactly the same as the one I looked at alongside Leia two weeks ago. I liked it then, and I still like it now. I imagine I’ll still like it when I get around to the third variant of this set.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Like the Leia figure included with the last one, this one has an Endor variant of Luke Skywalker. Luke spends a little bit less of his time in this gear, but it’s still a fairly distinctive appearance for the character. Like Leia, it had previously appeared in the vintage line, but this was the first we saw of it in this re-launch. It would also be our only Endor Luke for a little while, as figures of him from Jedi tended to go for his, well, Jedi appearance. As such, this figure’s sculpt would remain completely unique to him. He stands 3 3/4 inches tall and has 7 points of articulation. Check out those sweet knee joints! That was a pretty huge deal. Luke’s head is rather similar to the Endor Rebel trooper, not only with the same helmet, but also a rather similar facial structure. This Luke’s sculpt was notable for not including his outer vest; he was not the only version of Luke to omit it in this line, but he was the first one. Like his sister, Luke has a removable rubber poncho piece. This one’s not quite as nice. It isn’t very well fitted to the figure, making him look really pudgy. It also lacks the nice, subtle paintwork, meaning it’s just a lot of unpainted tan plastic. This guy was packed with a variant of the green lightsaber included with the basic RotJ Luke, though this one was wider than that one so that his slightly enlarged grip can still hold it.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

As a kid, I only had one Speeder Bike, and it was this one. I was definitely a Luke kid, so I needed to have another version of him, and the Endor one was one of my favorites. That being said, I remember the actual figure didn’t get a ton of use; instead he was robbed of his poncho and speeder, which I gave to my standard Jedi Luke. Looking back at this figure, I kind of remember why that was the case. He’s not a bad figure, but he’s not as strong a figure as the Leia. 

Luke and Speeder Bike were my middle review of the three Speeder Bikes, but, as noted in the review, the first of them added to my collection, and the only one I had from the actual run of the line.  I think my review hits pretty much all of the salient points.  I don’t think it’s ultimately as strong a set as the one with Leia, but it’s still a solid little offering.  The only thing I was missing at the time was his oddly fat lightsaber, which I have since replaced.  It’s still real weird looking, but there it is.

Flashback Friday Figure Addendum #0073: Chewbacca

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Flashback Friday Figure Addendum and tagged with , , , ,

CHEWBACCA

STAR WARS: POWER OF THE FORCE II (KENNER)

Oh-ho-ho, it’s Fridaaaay, you knoooooow!  Would you believe…I’m talking about Star Wars again?  Probably?  I mean it does sort of track, right?  Yeah.  Well, with another week successfully made through, I’m capping things off with a return look at Chewbacca!

“As Han Solo’s partner, Chewbacca the Wookiee (or Chewie, as Solo calls him) distinguished himself as a talented pilot, starship mechanic and smuggler. After being rescued from Imperial slavers by Solo, Chewbacca pledged a life debt to the rogue pilot and followed him to several different planets as their relationship grew and the two became close friends and partners. When Solo acquired the light freighter Millennium Falcon, he and Chewbacca began their career as intergalactic smugglers. Chewbacca’s reputation as a brawler gave him a distinct advantage in shady business negotiations, and it was he who initiated the deal to transport Obi-Wan Kenobi and Luke Skywalker from Tatooine to Alderaan.”

Okay, so here’s something of an odd thing that slipped through the cracks of my review schedule: somehow, in all of the Power of the Force reviews I’ve written here on the site, I’ve managed to leave one single figure from the initial assortment un-reviewed for far longer than I realized. I speak of today’s entry, the line’s first take on Chewbacca, who has thus far escaped my reviewing focus. Not to worry, dear reader, I’ve got him all set for today, so lets take a look at this crazy monkey man who really isn’t a monkey man!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Chewbacca was, as noted in the intro, part of Kenner’s first 1995 assortment for their revamped Power of the Force line. He joined standard versions of Luke, Han, Leia, R2, C-3PO, Obi-Wan, Vader, Lando, the Stormtrooper, and Boba Fett in bringing Star Wars back to toy shelves for the first time in over a decade. This would mark Chewy’s second time getting a 3 3/4-scale figure, following his old vintage release, placing him in the same category as Vader, the Stormtrooper, and Boba Fett. The figure stands 4 inches tall and he has 6 points of articulation…technically. There’s a neck joint there, but best of luck really getting any sort of motion out of it. This guy got an all-new sculpt, which would serve as the basis for Chewy’s Shadows of the Empire figure as well. Chewbacca’s vintage sculpt was definitely on the scrawny side of things and…well, this one definitely goes for the other end of the spectrum. Way on the other end of the spectrum. This guy’s like two of the vintage guy. Chewy may have been bigger than the other characters, but he wasn’t a body builder like this one. He falls into a similar category to Vader, who was likewise a little on the small side for his vintage release, and then ballooned way up for his ’95 figure. It’s downright goofy looking, and ends up making Chewy look a lot more simian than he did in the films, especially with that less shaggy, more carefully groomed appearance he’s got. At the very least, the texturing on the fur isn’t too bad, though the bandolier isn’t quite so lucky; it looks stretched to fit Chewy’s new bulk, and ends up missing out on some of the better detail work of later versions. The major details are there, but not much beyond that. Chewbacca’s paintwork is fairly decent, perhaps the best of the initial batch, in fact. He actually gets some nice accenting on his fur to give it its proper variations in color, a definite step up from the vintage counterpart. Chewbacca was packed with both his usual bowcaster and also a more generic and definitely very ’90s gun, just in case one wasn’t enough for him.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Part of the reason Chewbacca got overlooked for review is because he kind of got overlooked in my collection, too. As I mentioned in my Bounty Hunter Chewbacca review, that was my standard, and quite frankly, my go-to Chewbacca as a kid. I didn’t actually have a basic Chewy; he was one of the figures that was in the batch of figures my Grandmother had for me and my cousin at her house. It meant I got to play with one, but it wasn’t ultimately mine. When the figures got split up between us, Chewy went with my cousin, and I never thought much about it, having moved onto better Chewbaccas. When filling in my collection, I actually forgot about this figure, until managing to find one loose a couple of Christmases ago while on vacation. I then forgot I had that figure and hadn’t actually reviewed it until I took it down off the shelf for the photo that ended my recent C-3PO review, at which point I got him onto the schedule as soon as I could. And, here we are. He’s not great, or anything. He’s goofy and not very accurate, but also not as fun as the Bounty Hunter Chewy, so he’s just sort of here.

Poor Chewbacca, the overlooked figure.  I actually forgot about that bit, but it’s a late 2020 review, so I’ve forgotten a lot of what I was writing during that stretch of time.  Each addendum from that period’s like a fun little mystery!  Honestly, it’s not a bad review, and I think it tackles the weird, overly simian Chewy from the early line pretty well.  I just looked at the mold again for the coin release and…well, it’s still very goofy.  I mean, I love it, but it’s goofy.  My figure was missing his wonky secondary gun when I first reviewed him, something I’ve since addressed, so here he is in all his two-gun-wielding glory!

Flashback Friday Figure Addendum #0072: Beast

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Flashback Friday Figure Addendum and tagged with , , , ,

BEAST

X-MEN (TOY BIZ)

Hey, we made it to Friday again!  Alright!  I’m so proud of us!  We just keep making it happen!  Yay!  …Look, I hope no one finds the Friday pep-talks too off-putting.  I figure we could all use a bit of a regular pick-me-up these days.  I certainly can.  Today’s pick-me-up comes in the form of a guy who certainly possesses the strength to actually pick me up, because it’s Hank McCoy, aka The Beast!

“Blue-furred and boisterous, the Beast’s monstrous exterior conceals the fact that he possesses the mind of an articulate, well-read genius! Ever ready to answer the call should either man or mutant be in peril, the Beast employs both his dexterous digits and his scientific skills as a member of the X-Men.”

The ’90s X-Men line-up was a pretty sizeable, even just going by the cartoon’s more paired down version of the cast, which for a burgeoning toy line can be a slightly daunting prospect. It took several assortments to make their way through the main cast. Founding member Beast was a later addition, though certainly not the latest. I’m taking a look at that figure today.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Beast was released in Series 6 of the Toy Biz X-Men line. Aside from the cartoon-creation Morph, he was the only X-Man proper in the line-up. The same figure would subsequently be re-issued as part of the “Classics” line-up which put out all of the main cartoon cast in one assortment, and then again as part of the Marvel Universe line. The three figures are essentially identical, and it’s worth noting that my figure comes from the “Classics” release. This figure’s sculpt would also serve as the inspiration for both the 10-inch and Steel Mutants figures. The figure stands just over 5 inches tall and he has 11 points of articulation…in theory. In reality, it’s more like 7, because his action feature makes the joints at the knees and ankles effectively useless. Said action feature is dubbed “Mutant Flipping Power” and means that there are springs in his knee and ankle joints, which are supposed to allow him to flip. In my experience, it was never a very reliable feature and just made it rather hard to keep the figure standing. Tied into the feature was this weird switch thing on the figure’s back, for which I’ve never figured out the purpose. His sculpt definitely follows that early ’90s look for the character, at his most bulked up and monstrous. Nevertheless, he’s still got that sophisticated Henry McCoy expression on his face, as if he’s contemplating the moral quandaries of his current heroic endeavor. The rest of the sculpt is surprisingly smooth for such a hairy guy, especially when compared to other, similarly textured characters from this and surrounding series. I can only guess they were going for more of a stylistic thing on Hank. The figure’s pretty light on the paint front, with most of him being just molded in a light blue. There’s a bit of paint for his shorts and belt, as well as his eyes and teeth. For whatever reason, his eyes are solid yellow; he’s gone back and forth between having pupils and pure white eyes, but the yellow’s more of a Nightcrawler thing usually. Beast was packed with a suction cup-sporting bar to hang from, which was cool enough, though the suction cup long ago fell off of mine.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I don’t actually recall much about getting this figure. I think he was one of those “my Dad got one and then I also wanted one” figures. I certainly would have wanted him for the purposes of filling out my X-Men line-up. He’s an okay figure. The action feature gets in the way here more than on most Toy Biz figures, which can be annoying, but his sculpt’s fairly decent, and he definitely fit with that toon aesthetic. 

I reviewed this one at the tail end of 2019, and it’s another one of those ones kind of lost to the blur of that period of time, so I remember very little about actually writing it.  Seems like I generally did alright by him.  Since writing this review, looking at card backs for the figure reveals that the weird flippy thing on his back is *supposed* to aid in his whole back-flip ability.  It doesn’t, but it’s supposed to.  At the time of review, I had *most* of my figure’s primary accessory, his bar with attached suction cup, but it was missing the suction cup, which felt important, so I found a replacement.  The Classics re-release (which was the one I had) also gave him GW Bridge’s machine gun for…reasons. Also, the back of the box showed him with Apocalypse’s staff, and the packaged images I’ve found online don’t have it, but I’ve got way too many Apocalypse staffs in my possession to have come from my Apocalypse, and I do recall my Beast including one, so I’m leaning towards maybe there was a running change?  Or, perhaps I’m just crazy.  Maybe I’ve just been unknowingly stealing other people’s Apocalypse staffs this whole time.  Wouldn’t be the weirdest thing I’ve done.

Flashback Friday Figure Addendum #0071: Luke Skywalker in Hoth Gear

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Flashback Friday Figure Addendum and tagged with , , , , ,

LUKE SKYWALKER in HOTH GEAR

STAR WARS: POWER OF THE FORCE II (KENNER)

It’s another Friday, and we’re still here…I hope.  It’s…well, sometimes it’s touch and go these days, right?  Well, if you’re reading this than we’ve all made it to the end of the week unscathed.  Yay us!  Go team!  How about a little bit of flashing back to slightly happier times, perhaps?  Yeah, let’s look at this here Luke Skywalker in Hoth Gear again!

Doesn’t it feel like I *just* reviewed this figure? Well, I didn’t. Well, I didn’t. Reviewed a very similar figure, of course, because that’s the insanity of toy collecting. But this one’s different, you see. He…ummm….he’s got…goggles? Yeah, let’s go with that.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Luke Skywalker in Hoth Gear was released in the 1997 assortment of Power of the Force II figures. We’d had our first taste of Hoth figures the prior year with a Hoth version of Han. The figure stands 3 3/4 inches and he has 6 points of articulation. He’s wearing the same cold-weather gear that we saw him wearing in the two-pack with a Wampa, but this figure depicts him a few moments earlier in the film, prior to the Wampa’s attack. So he still has the goggles, and his face is un-scarred. His sculpt is unique to him (though parts of it would be slightly re-tooled for a few later variants of this same gear), and it’s pretty decent. He’s still a bit puffy and bulked-up, but with the cold-weather gear, that doesn’t feel quite so off. The level of detailing on the outfit is quite sharp, and looks very good for the time, rivaling even more modern offerings. My figure is missing his little head scarf thingy, which was a free-hanging piece that was prone to breaking off. Luke’s paintwork is about what you’d expect. Fairly basic and an overall decent match for what we see on the screen. Application is clean, and there’s pretty much no slop. Hoth Gear Luke was originally packed with his lightsaber and a blaster pistol, but mine has lost them in the years since I got him.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I remember this figure being rather hard to come by, at least initially. Stores still had tons of Hoth Han, and I was constantly having to explain that it wasn’t the same thing. I eventually got him in the Farpoint Dealer’s room the year he was released. If I recall correctly, it was the same dealer from whom I ultimately got my Princess Leia figure, that very same year. It’s been a favorite of mine for a while, even if it is rather environment specific. 

There’s a sort of comedy to me opening the review by noting I *just* reviewed a similar figure, when said “similar figure” was the 2018 ForceLink release from the Solo product launch, and not, you know, either of the two virtually identical Power of the Force Hoth Lukes that I would later review.  Like, I was complaining about similarity, and I hadn’t even scratched the surface.  Otherwise, pretty straight forward review.  At the time, I was missing his blaster and saber, but I’ve since replaced both of those.  His head scarf is still broken, but at least he’s fully armed!

Flashback Friday Figure Addenum #0070: Sabretooth

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Flashback Friday Figure Addendum and tagged with , , , ,

SABRETOOTH

X-MEN (TOY BIZ)

It’s Friday!  Which is actually almost true for me, but it’s actually last week’s Friday because I had to write all of this week’s reviews in advance.  So, I have no clue how this week went, or how desperately we all need it to end.  Personally, I’m just hoping we’re all still hanging in here.  We did it guys.  I’m proud of us.  Anyway, let’s get all flashback-y, and figure addendum-y, with some returning focus for Sabretooth!

“Sabretooth is Wolverine’s greatest enemy. Both are products of the Top-Secret Weapon X program. But instead of using his super-sharp claws and fighting abilities for good, Sabretooth became the Evil Mutants’ master assassin! Sabretooth has the same powers as Wolverine, including a mutant healing ability. What makes Sabretooth so dangerous is the fact that he’s even more savage in battle than Wolverine! When the two of them fight, it’s anyone’s guess who will win.”

Despite his connection to Wolverine, Victor Creed, better known as Sabretooth, first appeared as a foe to Iron Fist. Like fellow X-foe Mystique, he was an example of long-time X-scribe Chris Claremont spreading the love so to speak, and introducing characters he intended to use in X-Men in some of his other books. Whatever his source, he’s been an enduring foe for Wolverine and the X-Men, and was at the height of his popularity alongside them in the ’90s, when he got his first action figure.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Sabretooth was released in Series 2 of Toy Biz’s X-Men line. He’s based on Sabretooth’s original John Byrne-designed costume, which, interestingly enough, Sabretooth had just ditched in the comics at the time of this figure’s release. The early line was kind of plagued with things like this, which is why characters had a tendency to show up a second time pretty quickly (Sabretooth’s second figure would arrive just three series later). The figure stands 5 inches tall and has 8 points of articulation. Sabretooth lacked neck articulation, a surprisingly common phenomenon in the early years of the line. Unlike other figures this happened to, Sabretooth doesn’t really have any specific gimmicks preventing a neck joint from being added, so I guess it was just a design thing. Whatever the case, it’s a bit limiting on posing. Sabretooth’s sculpt was unique to him. It’s okay, but not really anything to write home about. It leans closer to the weaker of the Series 1 sculpts than it does the stronger Series 2 sculpts. The details are rather soft, especially on the face, the hair is rather oddly shaped, and the proportions are really on the scrawny side for a Sabretooth figure. His paintwork is pretty basic; the standard colors are all handled decently. The two shades of yellow for the fur and his hair are kind of close to each other, meaning they kind of blend together and look kind of odd. Sabretooth was packed with this weird sort of claw thing to hold. He also had an action feature, where the front plate of his stomach could be flipped back and forth. One side is clean, while the other has claw marks, thereby simulating his healing factor.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

By the time I was collecting, this figure had vanished from shelves, replaced by his more cartoon-indicative second figure, so that was the one I had. I picked this one up a couple of years ago second hand. Part of his appeal was being the first copy of this guy I’d seen without horrible paint scraping on the eyes. He’s not really a great figure…or even a particularly good figure. I guess if you really like his original costume, that’s a plus, but it’s not even the best version of that costume on the market.

This was a spring of 2019 review, and I recall being rather burned out at this point, which I think shows a bit in the writing.  Admittedly, Sabretooth isn’t the most inspiring of figures, so I can’t blame myself exclusively.  I think I did okay with the basics.  He’s really not a terribly impressive first outing for the character, so it’s nice that he got a second go so quickly.  When I reviewed him, he was missing his weird orange weapon thing.  But now he’s got it.  And it’s all weird and orange.  But it’s there.  So…you know, there it is.

Flashback Friday Figure Addendum #0069: Boba Fett

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Flashback Friday Figure Addendum and tagged with , , , , ,

BOBA FETT

STAR WARS: POWER OF THE FORCE II (KENNER)

Well, here we are at Friday.  We’ve made it.  I mean, I hope.  Gonna be real, I’m writing this on Monday, and I’m already exhausted, so we’re just gonna see how it goes.  I mean, I guess you guys already know.  So, there’s that.  But speaking of uncertain timelines and moving back and forth, it’s time for another Flashback Friday Figure Addendum.  Let’s take another look at Boba Fett!

“The most notorious and fearsome bounty hunter in the galaxy is also the most mysterious. Many legends and stories have arisen over the years, but few facts are known of the man called Boba Fett, or his link to Han Solo’s past. Since the Clone Wars, Fett has worked as a mercenary, a soldier, a personal guard, an assassin, and most frequently, as the most expensive bounty hunter in the known systems.”

Is it safe? Can I come out? One never can be too sure when reviewing a Boba Fett figure. His fans are easily startled, but they soon return, and in greater numbers…or something like that.

So, yeah, looking at the Fett-man today. He’s had a lot of toys over the years, but they used to be fewer and further between. The return of the brand in the ‘90s got in on the whole ‘90s anti-hero fad, so he was pushed to the forefront. As such, he figured pretty prominently into Kenner’s relaunch, getting not one, but three figures in short succession. I’ll be looking at the first of those today.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Boba Fett was part of the first series of Power of the Force II figures, hitting in 1995. The fact that Boba made it into Series 1 was quite a feat, given his relative obscurity compared to the others in the assortment with him. It wasn’t really something that would happen again; he tends to be held back for at least the second assortment now. The figure stands 3 3/4 inches tall and he has 6 points of articulation. His sculpt was unique, and as an early offering from the line, he’s certainly filtered through the line’s distinctive style. The big thing is his overall build, which isn’t quite as absurd as a few of the others in the early line-up, but it’s still really puffy for the character seen on screen. Definitely some Mandalorian super-engineering going on here. Similar to the Stormtroopers, his armor takes a bit of a turn as well. Most notably, his helmet, specifically the visor, has taken a slightly different look from the movies. It’s a lot rounder at the edges and the visor is quite a bit wider than it should be. His view-finder is also quite a bit stubbier than it really ought to be; at it’s current length, there’s no way it would be able to come down in front of his eye. The rocket pack and the scarf/Wookie braids are both removable pieces. The rocket’s pretty decent, and actually stays on a lot better than later figures. The braids and scarf rely on a rather bulky shoulder piece to attach, which looks a little off when the figure is fully assembled. Later figures would definitely get these parts down better. The paint work on Boba is based on his slightly more colorful RotJ design, so he gets the blue and orange pack and the red wrist gauntlets. The figure actually does a pretty solid job of getting all of the painted elements in place, and he even gets the bits of chipped paint on the armored sections. Boba included his distinctive blaster rifle, a piece which is missing from my figure.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

As a kid, I didn’t have this figure; I had the deluxe version instead. And I didn’t even have that one on purpose. My cousin got two of them for his birthday, and I got to keep the extra. That figure went missing over the years, and in the mean time, I’ve picked up more of an appreciation for Boba. I got this guy from Yesterday’s Fun. He was out of his box, but still in his tray, and only missing the rifle, so I figured he was worth it. He’s a goofy figure. Since Boba’s a character that’s really only got the cool design going for him, I think he was hurt a bit more by a line that made everybody look really goofy. 

Re-reading this review, I remembered I used to have a troll!  What a guy.  Man, what a simple time, when I just had that one troll, and my biggest worry was upsetting him with my totally accurate Boba Fett takes.  I’m taking a big risk here, honestly.  Oh, well.

I will say, I think I was perhaps a tad harsh on this figure in my original review.  I mean, yeah, he’s goofy, but I see that as less of an issue these days.  I actually like the goofiness.  Anyway, when I reviewed him, he didn’t have his blaster rifle, but I’ve since found him a replacement, which makes him all nice and complete.  It’s neat.  Other than that, he’s really just as he was before.  Simple.  Nice.  Overhyped (joking…mostly).

Flashback Friday Figure Addendum #0068: Wolverine II

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Flashback Friday Figure Addendum and tagged with , , , ,

WOLVERINE II

X-MEN (TOY BIZ)

Oooooooooooooohhhhhhhhh…….it’s Friday, which is the end of the week and also that day where I get to be all funky fresh with the Flashback Friday Figure Addendums!  So many “F”s!  But that’s also kind of the end of the “F”s here, because today we’re taking a second look at an X-Man by the name of Wolverine (II)

“His super-sharp adamantium claws can slash through steel. His mutant healing ability can mend even the worst wounds in minutes. He’s Wolverine, the best at what he does and what he does best is fight Evil Mutants! With his keen senses of sight, smell and hearing, and his frighteningly fierce fighting style, enemies claim Wolverine is more animal than mutant. But his fellow X-Men know that he’s the best friend they have, especially when the going gets deadly dangerous!”

Did you know that wolverines use snow as refrigerators to keep their food fresh? That’s your fun FiQ fact for today…’s Tiger Stripe Wolverine review. You guys thought I was going to forget about the running gag, didn’t you? Well, I didn’t! Okay, let’s just take a look at the figure, shall we?

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Wolverine, or “Wolverine II” as he is referred to on all of the packaging, is part of the second series of Toy Biz’s X-Men line. The first series had used Wolverine’s then-current brown costume, but Logan had reverted back to an approximation of his classic look not too long after that figure’s release, so Toy Biz followed suit with this figure. The figure stands 5 inches tall and he has 10 points of articulation. Wolverine’s sculpt was new to him, and would serve as the basis for a number of figures that would follow, including when it was up-scaled for the 10-inch Deluxe Edition figure (reviewed here). While the smaller scale doesn’t quite serve the sculpt quite as well as the larger, but all of the basics are still there, and it’s still a pretty strong offering for the character. He’s a little on the tall side for a proper Logan, but that was the trend of the time, and he’s certainly not as bad as some of the figures that would follow. The primary differences between this figure and the larger one are to do with his claws and the raised lever on his back to allow for an “action feature” when spinning his torso. The claws are an interesting choice. They’re spring loaded, but since there’s no locking mechanism, they just pop right back into place. Also, they’re stubby and curved, and the spring feature makes his forearms really boxy, so I’m not really sure it’s worth the tradeoff. Wolverine’s paintwork is decent enough. Fairly basic, and not without some slop, especially around the edges of the blue parts of the costume. The black details also seem to extend a bit further into the rest of the costume than they traditionally do in the comics, but that’s rather minor. Wolverine was packed with a gun, because, when you get down to it, isn’t that really Wolverine’s defining trait? Having a gun? Well, not my Wolverine, because his gun is missing.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

So, this figure was *not* my first Wolverine. That would be the Battle-Ravaged Wolverine from the Invasion Series, which was the current figure of Wolverine when I got into collecting. The trouble with that figure, as cool as it is, arose when I got the Black Bird, which the larger Battle-Ravaged figure couldn’t actually fit inside of, meaning I really needed a smaller figure. Around the time I got my Black Bird, my parents were in the process of buying a new house, and my dad was going back and forth many days getting things ready to move in. I accompanied on many of those trips, Black Bird in tow, with only my Series 1 Cyclops in it, since he was the only one who actually fit. On one of those days, my dad had to go and pick up carpet from the mall, where there was also a KB Toys. In exchange for accompanying, my Dad bought me this guy (he also bought himself a Ch’od figure, because him also getting a figure was part of the ritual) to go with my Black Bird. He stuck with me for the whole move in process at the new house. Is he the best Wolverine ever? Maybe not, but I do still really like him. 

Hey, it’s the tiger-stripe Wolverine fun facts about actual Wolverines gag!  I kept that going all the way into 2022.  I think I might even still have the list of all the facts I wrote down to pull from somewhere….but I can’t seem to find it now.  Perhaps one day, they may return, when we need them most.  In terms of review stuff, I think this one’s not bad.  I honestly forgot I’d reviewed the 10-inch version prior to this, which does sort of outsource the sculpt discussion a bit, but that works out okay.  Otherwise, I noted that he was missing his oh-so-important gun, which I have since replaced.  Check it out.  Very fancy.  Also very packed with multiple figures, so not very hard to find a spare.  Yay!

Flashback Friday Figure Addendum #0067: Luke Skywalker – Ceremonial Outfit

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Flashback Friday Figure Addendum and tagged with , , , , ,

LUKE SKYWALKER — CEREMONIAL OUTFIT

STAR WARS: POWER OF THE FORCE II (KENNER)

It’s Friday!  Welcome to Friday!  We made it Friday!  I mean, I hope.  I’m writing this on Sunday, and really just hoping for the best here, because boy has it sure been touch and go, huh?  But let’s not think about that.  Let’s think about the past, specifically mine, as we flashback for another figure addendum, with a return to Luke!

“In the main throne room of a Massassi temple, Luke Skywalker receives an honorary medal for his part in the destruction of the Imperial Death Star.”

There’s a lot of potential Luke Skywalker variants out there. He got one distinct design for each movie, plus his pilot gear, and at least one other major look for each film. For A New Hope, he actually has four distinct looks. My personal favorite is one that doesn’t actually appear for all that long; it’s the snazzy dress outfit he wears during the film’s final scene, set during an award ceremony. It’s had less figures than other looks, but as a variant of Luke Skywalker, it’s still had its fair share.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Luke Skywalker in his Ceremonial Outfit was released as part of the 1997 assortment of Star Wars: Power of the Force II. He was the seventh of the eleven Lukes in the line, and the second-to-last unique outfit, prior to the line switching over to variations of Farmboy Luke. It was actually one of two Ceremonial Lukes released in 1997, the other being part of the Princess Leia Collection. It was a good year for a look that hadn’t yet seen an action figure release. The figure stands 3 3/4 inches tall and has 6 points of articulation. This Luke marked the debut of Kenner’s second POTF2 Luke head sculpt. As noted in the past, it’s not really much closer than the first attempt at a Hamill likeness, but I do tend to prefer this one. The rest of the sculpt is unique to this particular figure. As far as this line goes, it was pretty solid. Sharp detailing, reasonable proportions, and a fairly neutral stance, all of which add up to an above average figure from this particular line. The paintwork on Luke is pretty standard stuff, which is to say the colors are a good match for the film and the application is all sharp. There’s no slop to speak of, and everything stays within its appropriate lines. Luke was packed with a blaster pistol and his medal from the ceremony, which are both missing from my figure, sadly.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

This was a fairly early Luke in my collection, and is probably one of the Power of the Force figures I purchased closest to his initial release. I got him from KB Toys, during a trip to the mall with my Grandmother. He was purchased alongside a whole bunch of others, but the others were all meant to stay at her house, with this guy being the one who would be going home with me. He’s remained a favorite of mine, and served as my go-to Luke for a good chunk of time. 

In 2017, I got pretty serious about making Power of the Force reviews a regular feature every other Saturday, and by March of 2018, when this review was originally published, I’d kept it going for quite a while.  I pretty much managed to keep it that way until March of 2020, when, you know, everything fell apart.  This was before my big dive back into the line, mind you, so I thought I was actually getting close to wrapping things up.  Quaint.  My actual review feels pretty basic, but not bad.  Missing at the time were his two accessories, which are now his once more.  Check out that medal and blaster action!