Tag Archives: Power of the Force II

#1207: Lando Calrissian as Skiff Guard

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Reviews and tagged with , , , ,

LANDO CALRISSIAN AS SKIFF GUARD

STAR WARS: THE POWER OF THE FORCE II (KENNER)

landoskiff1

Man, the Star Wars characters sure do like disguising themselves, don’t they?  At some point in the franchise, just about every main character has gone incognito (even Chewbacca).  And, of course, toy companies love this, since it’s a pretty easy way of milking another variation of the main characters to make into an action figure.  Lando Calrissian was actually the very first character to get such a figure (well, technically.  He and Leia as Boush were released at the same time, but Lando’s date stamp is from ’82, while hers is from ’83).  That’s not actually the figure I’m looking at today, though.  It seems Lando’s disguised look is more enduring than some of the others, seeing as it makes up roughly a third of all of his figures.  Today, I’m looking at Kenner’s second stab at this particular look.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

landoskiff2Lando was released in the first assortment of the 1997 series of Kenner’s Staw Wars: Power of the Force II.  It was the second version of Lando in the line and his fifth figure overall.  As touched on in the intro, this figure is based on Lando’s Skiff Guard disguise from the opening of Return of the Jedi.  Honestly, even as a disguised look, this is the most action-oriented design we saw Lando in, and I think that’s where a lot of its appeal comes from.  The figure stands about 3 3/4 inches tall and he has 6 points of articulation.  Lando comes from later in the POTF2 line, which was after the sculpts has calmed down a bit and worked out some of the ‘90s over-stylization.  He’s still a fair bit more jacked than Billy Dee Williams ever was, but that was on par with the rest of the line.  His head sculpt was the same one used for the Bespin version of Lando (and later the General version as well).  It’s not a spot-on Billy Dee Williams, but it’s still closer than most of the likenesses at the time.  And at least it was consistent, right?  The body sculpt was all-new to this figure.  Apart from the aforementioned “jacked” nature of the build, it’s a decent enough translation of the onscreen design.  He also ditches a lot of the pre-posing from earlier in the line, instead getting a more natural pose, and thereby offering a bit more versatility.  Lando’s paintwork is generally pretty solid.  Nothing spectacular, or particularly noteworthy, but it’s certainly well-done.  The colors are all well matched to the costume from the movie, and all the application is pretty clean.  There are some slight mismatches between some of the paint and molded elements, but nothing super awful.  Lando originally included a removable mask and vibro-axe, but my figure hasn’t had either in well over a decade.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

This is my very first Lando action figure, though he didn’t technically start out as mine.  He was one of a handful of Star Wars figures that I helped my Grandmother pick out at KB Toys back in the day so that my cousin Patrick and I would both have some figures at her house to play with (since we spent at least one day of the week there).  Eventually, Patrick grew out of his Star Wars phase and neither of us was spending as much time there, so Lando and the others eventually came home with me.  He’s the only one that made it through all of my various collection purges, mostly due to being the only Lando figure I owned for a good long while.  He’s actually not a bad figure, and he’s probably aged better than most of the others in this line.

#0877: Princess Leia & Han Solo

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Reviews and tagged with , , , , , ,

PRINCESS LEIA & HAN SOLO – BESPIN

STAR WARS: POWER OF THE FORCE II (KENNER)

HanLeia1

You know, they say the best things come in threes (who says that? I don’t say that! I don’t think that’s a thing…) I’ve already done two days of Princess Leia reviews, why not go for a third? Well, you’re getting a third whether you want it or not. This is my site! ….Which I’m incredibly glad you’re all reading right now! So…if you don’t like this, I promise I won’t review a Princess Leia tomorrow. Anyway, here’s today’s review. It’s not just Leia, though, there’s also a Han! Yay?

THE FIGURES THEMSELVES

Like yesterday’s set, these two are from 1997’s The Princess Leia Collection sub-set if the Power of the Force II line. This pair represented The Empire Strikes Back.

PRINCESS LEIA

HanLeia2After spending almost the entirety of the first film in the same basic outfit, Leia was given a few more looks for the sequel. While her Hoth look from early in the film is by far the more definitive look, this figure was based on her slightly more regal look from a few of her scenes on Bespin. She’s 3 ¾ inches tall and has the usual 6 points of articulation. Unlike the last pair of figures, this Leia didn’t have an equivalent single-release figure. She got a totally new sculpt. Like the other figures in this line, it’s not really fantastic, but it’s passable enough. The general proportions are fairly decent, and she looks sort of like Carrie Fisher. She’s a bit oddly posed, though; the legs are in a slight stride (making it really hard to keep her standing) and her right arm is bent in such a way as to make it longer than the left. Like the prior Leia, this figure uses some cloth parts for her costume, specifically the skirt and cape (though, this time, the cape uses a plastic piece for the collar). The pieces once again scale pretty well for cloth, which is always nice to see. The paint is all pretty passable and clean, though some of the work on the face is a little bit heavy. Leia includes no accessories of her own (unless you count Han!).

HAN SOLO

HanLeia3While Leia got a few different looks in ESB, Han pretty much just stuck with the one main look for the majority of the film. Since it’s the look that he wears around Bespin, it makes sense to pack this one with Leia. The figure is a little taller than Leia, and has the same 6 points of articulation. Like yesterday’s Luke and Leia, Bespin Han had a single-release counterpart in the main line (which I even reviewed on this site!). This figure uses the same head as that one (as did most of the PotFII figures); it’s not a great head sculpt, mostly because it bears next to no resemblance to Harrison Ford, but at least it was consistent. The rest of the sculpt is okay, but not fantastic. Like Luke, the body feels rather undersized, especially the hands. This only exaggerates the problems with this head. I think part of this may be to counteract the use of a cloth coat, which does bulk up the figure a little. The coat isn’t as well tailored as Luke’s, but it’s alright, I guess. Once again, the sculpted version looks a fair bit better. The paint is fairly well handled, though, like Leia, the face is a bit heavy handed. It’s not technically a paint issue, but it should be noted that the color of the coat is incorrect. It should be blue. It’s worth noting that the single-release figure also had the wrong colored coat, so it may have been a licensing thing. Han was packed with his usual blaster, which, like all of the PotFII blasters is a fair bit over-sized.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

As with yesterday’s set, I picked this pair up from a collectibles store across from the theatre where I saw The Force Awakens. This was actually the one of the two sets I was more looking forward to, but after opening them, I think it may be the lesser set. Once again, the Leia figure is the superior of the two figures, and she’s helped by the fact that she’s the only PotFII version of this particular look. Han, on the other hand, is rather a letdown. Still, this is a cool enough set that I don’t regret getting them.

#0797: Endor Rebel Soldier

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Reviews and tagged with , , , , , ,

ENDOR REBEL SOLDIER

POWER OF THE FORCE II

EndorRebel1

Star Wars has always had army builders and generic troops as an important part of the story (and toylines). The Imperial forces tend to get the most focus and have the most effort devoted to them, but we can’t let the bad guys have all the fun, right? Enter the Rebel Soldiers. The Rebels have a tendency to change up their designs to suit their environment, even more so than the Imperials, so they’ve got a few divergent looks. One of my personal favorites has always been their uniformed look from Endor, which has been privy to a few different figures over the years. Today I’ll be looking at the second of those figures.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

EndorRebel2The Endor Rebel Soldier was released in the 1997 series of Kenner’s Power of the Force II line. The figure is a little bit over 3 ¾ inches tall and he has the standard 6 points of articulation of the time. He doesn’t appear to be based on one Rebel Soldier in particular, but is instead an amalgamation of several of the Rebels from the Endor scenes. The sculpt is generally very well done, and I’d consider it above the usual quality of a PotF2 figure. The general proportions aren’t too exaggerated, and there’s only the slightest bit of pre-posing to him. The best work is definitely on the head, particularly the helmet, which is a great recreation of the film design. From the neck down the details are a bit looser. The Rebel uniform had a few different looks, and this figure tries to make itself work well enough for a bunch of them. It does this by going a bit fuzzy on some of the more defining elements of the uniform. The texturing on the uniform is pretty nicely handled, and rather abundant, which is a little surprising on a figure from this time period. The only real iffy part of the sculpt is his feet, which look more like ugg boots than the WW2 inspired look from the film. The paint on this guy is probably his weakest point. It’s not bad, mind you, just not terribly accurate to the film. Instead of the more complex selection of various colors, the majority of this figure has been painted in a generic camo pattern. It doesn’t look half bad, and I think it probably ends up making him a bit more interesting as a toy than a more faithful color scheme might have done. The Rebel Soldier includes a backpack and a rifle. Both are a little oversized, though not as comically so as other PotF2 figures.  He also included a “Freeze Frame,” which was the gimmick of PotF2 at the time.  It’s just a projector slide of Han, Leia, and several of the Endor Rebel Soldiers in front of the Imperial base.  It doesn’t add much value to the actual figure, but I guess it’s sort of nifty.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I originally got this figure from the KB Toys outlet near where my family vacationed every summer. I recall just liking the basic look of the guy, and just being fond of the Endor Rebels in general. He was one of my favorite PotF2 figures, and I even gave him a name (Pterlick, after one of my middle school teachers). Somewhere along the line, I lost track of him. Ever since, every time I came across a selection of well-priced PotF2 figures, I’d always look for him. After a few years, I finally got lucky just last month, when I found him at the House of Fun. I’m glad to have him again, and even more glad that he held up as well as I remembered.

EndorRebel3

#0672: Bounty Hunter Chewbacca

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Reviews and tagged with , , , , ,

BOUNTY HUNTER CHEWBACCA

STAR WARS: POWER OF THE FORCE II

ChewieBountyHunter1

My first introduction to Star Wars toys was courtesy of Kenner’s Power of the Force II line of figures. The interesting thing is that I came into the line during the second round of figures, so some of my initial versions of the main characters weren’t exactly standard issue. I’ve already discussed how Dagobah training Luke was my first figure in the line, and some of the other main characters followed a similar pattern. Chewbacca was one such character, which seems a little odd, since you wouldn’t think there would be a lot of potential Chewbacca variants. Well, faithful reader, feast your eyes on Bounty Hunter Chewbacca!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

ChewieBountyHunter2Bounty Hunter Chewbacca was part of the second year of Power of the Force II figures. He was released as part of a small subset of figures based on Shadows of the Empire, which is a story set between Empire and Jedi. In the story, Chewbacca has to take on the guise of well-known Wookie bounty hunter Snoova in order to infiltrate Imperial City. So, technically, this figure could pass for either character. This is only the third time that Chewbacca had made it into the 3 ¾ inch line, which is surprisingly low, given his prominence. The figure stands a little over 4 inches tall and has 6 points of articulation. As a Chewbacca variant, you might think that this figure would be heavy on reuse. However, that’s not the case, as the only shared part between this and the regular POTF2 Chewie is the left leg. Everything else is new to this guy, though the sculpt maintains more than a few similarities with the regular version. Chewbacca definitely has a slightly exaggerated style about him (as did most of the POTFII figures) but I think this is one of the few figures in the line that really couldn’t work without the slightly cartoony feel. The concept looks pretty nifty here, presented in all its over-complicated 90s glory, but placed on a more realistically proportioned body I dare say it would look downright silly. And being exaggerated certainly doesn’t mean the figure doesn’t have some great texturing. The armor in particular looks sufficiently worn and beaten. Someone had a lot of fun sculpting this guy. This version of Chewbacca also got some of the very best paintwork POTF2 had to offer. All of the base paint is cleanly applied, with minimal bleed over. He’s also got some pretty nice work on his fur, which, in story, has patches died to make him look more like Snoova. They could have just been solid blotches of color, but they’ve actually been worked in rather subtly, making them look like they’re actually died into his fur. Chewbacca was packed with a giant blaster and a sci-fi looking axe, which both just add to the 90s over-complication thing. They can both be held, or the axe can also be plugged into his back for storage.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

This guy was my very first Chewbacca figure. If I recall correctly, Chewie was one of the last main characters I got. I remember that my Grandmother took me to the store (Sears, I think) specifically because I had asked to get a Chewbacca figure. I seem to recall that both versions of Chewbacca were there, but I picked this one. Even then I knew what cool was! The one pictured is actually a replacement I picked up a few months ago, as the original got lost some ways back. I have to admit, I was ready to tear into this one for its absurdity when I first sat down to write this, but I’ve come out of the review with a rekindled love for this X-Treme little guy.

#0506: Han Solo – Bespin

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Reviews and tagged with , , , ,

HAN SOLO – BESPIN

POWER OF THE FORCE II

HanBespin1

Hey! Do you like reading about Han Solo figures? I sure hope you do, cuz I’m reviewing another one today. Yes, after the barrel of laughs I had writing yesterday’s review, I thought, why not another one? So, I’ll be wrapping up this little subset of Power of the Force II reviews with another Han Solo. Yay!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

HanBespin2This particular Han found himself released in the second year of Kenner’s Power of the Force II line. After doing the primary looks of most of the main characters from A New Hope (as well as one or two figures from the other two movies), the second year turned to the later looks of the primary characters, just to make sure the line didn’t run out of Hans and Lukes. So, Han is based on his primary look from Empire Strikes Back, commonly referred to as his Bespin look, as it’s what he’s wearing during all of those scenes. It’s definitely a fan-favorite look, and I’d say its popularity rivals the ANH look. The figure is about 3 ¾ inches tall and he has 6 points of articulation. The figure’s sculpt is mostly new, with the exception of the head, which is re-used from the previous Han figure. That was definitely the best sculpted piece on the last figure, but it’s still saddled with its own set of issues, chief among them being it just doesn’t really look like Han Solo. That said, it’s on an entirely new body here, and that does the sculpt a few favors, chief amongst them being that the head is just a heck of a lot more proportional with the new body. Kenner kind of caught on to some of the complaints about the first assortment of POTF II figures’ proportions, so later assortments ended up at least a tad less ridiculous. Han is still a little bulky, but it’s more evenly spread this time. He lacks the laughable hour glass figure of the previous Han, and his arms don’t look like they’re about to bust the seams of his sleeves either. Those are both pretty big improvements. The figure’s clothes also have a fair bit more texture this time around, especially the shirt and coat, which helps make the figure at least a little more interesting looking. Sadly, he still has some oddly posed legs, but at least they look more like a deep step this time than the freaking side lunge that smuggler Han was doing. The paintwork on Han is overall pretty clean and well handled, and it seems to be better that the other Han. However, there’s a paint chip on his neck, which is rather annoying. Also, the most glaring issue with that paint is that they flat out got the color of his coat wrong. In the movie it’s very definitely blue. Here, it’s black for some reason. I wonder why that happened. Han includes his trademark (and still way oversized) blaster pistol, as a large gun, which I am once again pretty certain he never actually carries in the movies.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Okay, so while I didn’t actually have this figure growing up, I did get to play with one on a fairly regular basis. See, my grandmother wanted my cousin Patrick and me to have some figures to play with when we stayed with her, so she had me pick out a handful of POTF II figures for the two of us. This version of Han was among them. Patrick and I had dug out a small little dirt pit in the back yard, which we used as a stand in for the Sarlac Pit, and one day, it started raining and we had to run back in. We thought we had grabbed all of the figures, but poor Han got left behind. The next time we were both at the house, our grandfather had filled in the pit. Patrick and I dug for a while, but Han was nowhere to be found. It’s always been that figure that got away. While at Farpoint this year, still high from the excitement of getting the other POTF II figures from the charity sale, I found this Han at one of the dealer’s tables. His package had yellowed so much that it looked like the poor guy had been encased in amber, but the figure was just fine. And now I have that Han figure again. Huzzah!

#0505: Han Solo

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Reviews and tagged with , , , ,

HAN SOLO

POWER OF THE FORCE II

HanANH1

I’m desperately trying to come up with a good intro here, and literally the only thing going through my head is “Han Solo Cup.” Of which I feel rather ashamed. Yesterday, I remarked that I never had any of the Power of the Force II Stormtroopers. Well, funny thing about that is, on the flip side, the only Han Solo I owned from the line was Stormtrooper disguise Han. And, in what seems to be the story of my adult collecting life in general, I’ve decided to fix that. So, let’s look at a Han Solo figure!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

HanANH2Han was released in the first assortment of POTF II figures, which shouldn’t really surprise anyone. He was Han freaking Solo after all. He’s roughly 3 ¾ inches in height, and he has the line’s standard 6 points of articulation. He’s based on Han’s primary look from A New Hope, which is generally the look most people associate with the character. Han’s sculpt was original to him, and it exhibits a lot of the same style cues present in other POTF II figures. Let’s start off with the basic proportions of the figure: he has an overall body-builder-esque physique, but even by body-builder standards, he’s a bit absurd. His shoulders are really broad, and his arms are practically bursting out of his sleeves. He also has the huge hands and impossibly thin waist that were prevalent in the line. Han, more so than others in the line, feels like a cartoon caricature, not a human being. On top of the proportions, Han’s sculpt is plagued by a few issues. Like a lot of the others in this line, Han’s legs are somewhat strangely posed, requiring that he stand in a deep stance to be even remotely balanced while standing. Also, though his hands may be large, they haven’t been sculpted to really hold anything. This is the worst on his right hand, you know, the one he holds his blaster with, which is sculpted flat, so he can’t actually do so. Finally, there’s the head. Now, to be fair, the head is easily the best part of this figure, especially from a technical standpoint. There’s some really nice detail and texturing. However, it seems like the sculptor was working from pictures of Harrison Ford at the time these figures were made, instead of at the time of the movies. And even then, it’s hard to see a lot of Ford in this sculpt. He looks a bit like the lovechild of Ford and Tommy Lee Jones, which, needless to say, isn’t Han Solo. Han’s paintwork is pretty much typical for the time. It’s certainly not bad, but it’s not anything amazing either. Everything is pretty much where it’s supposed to be, and there aren’t really any issues with bleed over or slop.  Han included his signature blaster pistol, which is hysterically oversized, and a larger blaster rifle, which doesn’t appear to be one he carries in the film.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

As I mentioned in the intro, this isn’t the Han I had growing up. I think part of what turned me off to Han figures in general was that likeness he had. I just didn’t like that Han looked so much older than he should. But, over time, the old Han figure has started to grow on me. So, Han ended up being one of the POTF II figures that I fished out of the charity sale box at this year’s Farpoint. Like the Stormtrooper, he’s definitely a goofy figure, but I feel a twinge of nostalgia for this guy.

#0504: Stormtrooper

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Reviews and tagged with , , , ,

STORMTROOPER

POWER OF THE FORCE II

StormtrooperPOTF2a

When I was younger, I had my fair share of figures from Kenner’s Power of the Force II line. Seeing as it was the only Star Wars line around when I was younger, it was these guys or nothing. So, these guys it was. For whatever reason, however, I never found myself with a basic Stormtrooper figure. In fact, until recently, the only Stormtroopers I had were the vintage ones my Dad gave me. But, now I’m looking to change that (I guess), so here’s a Stormtrooper from POTF II!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

StormtrooperPOTF2bThe Stormtrooper was released in the first 1995 assortment of Power of the Force II figures. He stands roughly 3 ¾ inches tall and he has 6 whole points of articulation. This is usually the point of the review where I’d say that I don’t know which of the three Stormtrooper designs was used for the figure, but in actuality, it’s fairly clear that this figure is an amalgam of those three designs (and Arnold Schwarzenegger). The entirely of the POTF II line was stricken by some serious steroid use, but the Stormtrooper seems to have been hit the hardest. The most apparent problem with this figure’s sculpt is the fact that he clearly has no neck. Previous troopers didn’t actually show the neck, but they at least made the helmet long enough that you could actually believe there might be one under there. Not the case here. This guy’s just got a head and then some shoulders, with nothing in between. The head sits atop a huge barrel chest that goes into a serious hour glass at the waist, which is certainly an impressive feat, I’ll give him that. The figure then has the requisite arms and legs with a 45 degree bend, just so he can look a little extra awkward. The legs in particular are bad, because they make him rather difficult to keep standing. On top of the oddly proportioned body, the armor is forced to either cooperate with these new found proportions or go home. It’s chosen the former, which means that the details are kind of a rough estimate of what they were in the movies. The figure’s paint is the simplest of the simple, with only a few spots or black here and there, to break up all of that white. The paint is rather sloppily applied; I guess it just follows that rough estimate thing that the sculpt was doing. The Stormtrooper includes his standard blaster rifle, which he can only hold in one hand, and a larger rifle, which he can also only hold in one hand.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Just like yesterday’s Obi-Wan, the Stormtrooper was fished out of a rather large box of Star Wars figures being sold to benefit the Farpoint charities. I must admit to being rather excited when I pulled this guy out. Sure, he’s goofy as hell, but he really resonates with me, for some odd reason. I mean, how could my collection possibly be complete without a muscle-bound Stormtrooper?

#0503: Obi-Wan Kenobi

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Reviews and tagged with , , , ,

OBI-WAN KENOBI

POWER OF THE FORCE II

ObiWanPOTF1

Power of the Force II is really important to me. The line is certainly rather dated by today’s standards, probably even more so than even the vintage line, but it brought the Star Wars brand back to shelves after almost 10 years of absence. And, more importantly, it was the line on the shelves in the mid-1990s, just as a certain toy reviewer was getting into action figures. So, today, let’s have a look at that line’s take on Obi-Wan Kenobi, from back in the days when he’d only been played by one actor!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

ObiWanPOTF2Obi-Wan was released in the first assortment of Power of the Force II figures, which started showing up in 1995-1996. The figure is about 3 ¾ inches in height and he had 6 points of articulation. Oh boy, that waist articulation! Obi-Wan is based on the character’s appearance in A New Hope. Like the rest of the POTF II line, Obi-Wan’s proportions are a little bit whacked. He doesn’t quite have the body builder’s physique that some of the others did, but he’s got some fairly broad shoulders, and man, just look at the size of those hands! Also, his legs have a pretty odd leg posing, which kind of makes him have to stand with a strange stance. For some reason, his outer robes have been done using a removable add-on. The end result is that the figure ends up quite a bit bulkier than he should be. Since the sleeves are still brown to match the outer robe, I honestly can’t think of the practical use for a removable piece. Admittedly, the head is actually a decent sculpt. It has a passing resemblance to Alec Guinness, if perhaps a little squashed. Obi-Wan’s paintwork is decent. Not great, but certainly not bad. There’s a little bit of bleed over in a few of the transition areas. Also, it’s true to the film, but the figure is rather dull, color-wise. You know what makes people want a figure of an old guy? Dull colors. Obi-Wan includes one accessory: his lightsaber. The lightsaber is absurdly long (taller than Obi-Wan), which kinda makes you wonder if old Ben is compensating for something.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

This marks the second of this figure that I have owned. I got my original around the same time as all the others I have from this line, which is when they were first released. I ended up trading that figure for a Val Kilmer Batman variant (what can I say, I was young and foolish!).  I’ve gone all these years without picking up another one. While I was at Farpoint this year, I fished Obi-Wan, along with a few other POTF II figures out of a box of various Star Wars figures that were being sold to benefit the two Farpoint charities. So, I not only got to replace my original figure, but I also got to feel sorta good about it. That’s pretty cool, I guess.

#0192: Jawas

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Reviews and tagged with , , ,

JAWAS

STAR WARS: POWER OF THE FORCE II

Kenner’s Power of the Force II was a very important to my toy collection. The line first hit in 1995, when I was 3 and just beginning to get into action figures. Needless to say, I ended up with quite the selection of figures from the line. One of my favorite subsets of creatures from the original Star Wars was always the Jawas. For some reason, I just love those little guys! So, today’s review covers POTF II’s release of those.

THE FIGURES THEMSELVES

The Jawas were released as part of the 1996 assortment of POFT II figures. They were released as a pair to make up for their smaller stature. The taller one stands about 3 ¼ inches tall and has 5 points of articulation. The shorter one is about 2 ¾ inches, and has 4 points of articulation. In both cases, I’m counting the neck as a point of articulation, but there isn’t very much motion that can be gotten out of either. The sculpts are both pretty good for the time. The taller one is a little bit more detailed, but that’s not too surprising given the difference in size. However, the smaller one still has some very nice detail work. The paint on the pair is fairly basic, but everything is cleanly applied, with no noticeable slop on either figure. Both figures also have a light-piping feature, which allows their eyes to light up. It’s a bit obvious where the clear plastic is on the heads, so I could see some people being annoyed by this. I’m not really bugged by it, but I chalk that up to nostalgia.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I don’t remember exactly when or where I got this pair, but I know it wasn’t too long after I got Dagobah Luke. If I recall correctly, they were bought for me by my Mom, while we were out on an excursion together. I always really liked these figures, and I do seem to recall the taller one getting a spare lightsaber, and thereby being a Jedi-Jawa!

 

Incidentally, my brother Christian had a quick comment about these figures while I was reviewing them:

“This figure likes to go MARTINI too many damn times. I don’t see why they made this figure. It’s a piece of SHIET! Why do I need to feel bad about my life when I already have the war to care about?”

Yeah, he’s a bit on the strange side…

#0161: Luke Skywalker – Dagobah

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Reviews and tagged with , , , , ,

LUKE SKYWALKER – DAGOBAH

STAR WARS: POWER OF THE FORCE II

So, today’s review is actually pretty nifty. I’ve looked at the most recent round of Star Wars toys with The Black Series, and I’ve also taken a look at one of the vintage figures from the original line, but I’ve never really looked at any of the figures released in between.

Star Wars is looked at as one of the permanent fixtures of the action figure aisle nowadays, but that wasn’t always the case. Following Return of the Jedi, the line shifted to Power of the Force for a little while, but that line only ran until 1985, at which point Star Wars toys effectively ended. Ten years later, Kenner relaunched the line under the branding Power of the Force II. In 1995, I was 3 and just getting into action figures. So, POTF II came at just the perfect time and provided me with my very first Star Wars figure, which I’ll be looking at in this review.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Luke was released as part of the 1996 assortment of Power of The Force II. He’s based on Luke’s look while he’s training on Dagobah in Empire Strikes Back. The figure stands about 3 ¾ inches tall, and features 6 points of articulation. That waist articulation was revolutionary, let me tell you. The sculpts for POTF II, in general, have not aged well. For some reason, everybody got really buff. Luke follows that trend, and looks more like Arnold Schwarzenegger than Mark Hamill. From a purely aesthetic stand point, it’s actually not a bad sculpt. There’s some nice texture on his clothing, and the proportions are about right, even if they don’t belong to Mark Hamill. One negative point: the feet are sculpted at a bit of an angle, which can make getting him to stand up a chore. The paint is actually very good for the time. There’s no bleed over or slop and the smaller details are all clean and sharp, and the shading on the shirt to show it’s wet and stained gives the figure a nice level of depth rarely seen on figures of this era. Luke was packed with a lightsaber and a blaster.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

The trip on which I acquired this figure is actually one of my earlier memories of going to the store and buying something. I don’t remember what store it was (for some reason my gut says Target, but that doesn’t seem right). What I very vividly remember was being walked over to the toy aisle by my parents, seeing the display of figures and running to them. I saw Luke hanging there and immediately grabbed him. In particular, I remember my mind being completely blown by the idea that he actually included a lightsaber. I guess I just assumed that would have to be a separate purchase. I had yet to pick up on how action figures worked, I guess. Regardless, I was thrilled to have this figure. As the years have gone by, the figure has started to show its age, but I still feel pretty damned nostalgic for him. All in all, he’s not a bad figure, and the sentimental value pushes him up to 11.