Tag Archives: Star Wars

#0333: Commander Gree

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

COMMANDER GREE

STAR WARS 30th ANNIVERSARY COLLECTIONCommanderGree1

Generally speaking, I don’t like the Star Wars prequels. I remember enjoying them overall when they were released, but as time has gone on, I like them less and less. That being said, there are a few things I did like from those movies. One of the biggest things was the Clone Troopers, who were just all kinds of cool. In Revenge of the Sith, we were introduced to several named clones who served as commanders of certain forces, and featured their own unique looks. My personal favorite was always Commander Gree, the clone in charge of the forces on Kashyyyk.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

CommanderGreeWilsonGree was released in the 2008 series of the Star Wars 30th Anniversary Collection. The figure stands 3 ¾ inches tall and features 26 points of articulation. Gree is based on the character’s appearance in Revenge of the Sith. He makes use of the pieces from several of the previous Clone Troopers, with the addition of a new torso featuring Gree’s “suspenders.” All of the pieces are pretty accurate to the movie, which is pretty cool. The figure features a removable helmet, which is quite nicely scaled. Surprisingly enough, the underlying head isn’t undersized to ensure this, and it even has more than a passing resemblance to actor Temuera Morrison, which is much better than the last two clones I reviewed. The paintwork is the most important part of any Commander Gree figure, and the paint here is spectacularly done. There’s a tone of texture and detail on pretty much every piece of the figure and he features no noticeable slop or bleed over. Gree includes a short blaster rifle, a pair of binoculars, a backpack with an antenna, and a display stand featuring his name and the movie he appeared in.

CommanderGree2 CommanderGree3

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Gree is a figure I passed on a few times when he was released. I already had the earlier version from the Revenge of the Sith line, and I figured that was probably good enough. Recently, my local comicbook store, Cosmic Comix, had a sale and marked all their Star Wars figures down to $3.99. For that price, I was willing to go for it. I’m glad I did because this version of Gree is a definite step up from the previous one.

#0322: Biker Scout

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

BIKER SCOUT

STAR WARS: THE BLACK SERIES

BikerScoutSmall1

To make matters of confusion worse in regards to the two separate scales for Hasbro’s Star Wars: The Black Series, I’ve opted to go through with reviewing the lone figure that I own in both scales. The key difference here is that this time around, it’s an Original Trilogy character. But, wait, wasn’t I sticking to the larger scale for OT characters? Quiet you! Today’s figure is the Star Wars equivalent of George of the Jungle, the Biker Scout. Watch out for that tree!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

BikerScoutSmallWilsonThe Biker Scout was released as figure #07 in the first assortment of the 3 ¾ inch scale Star Wars: The Black Series. Like the Clone Sergeant and the Clone Pilot before him, this isn’t any particular character, but rather one of the basic Scout Troopers, seen in Return of the Jedi. The Biker Scout is roughly 3 ¾ inches tall and has 25 points of articulation. At first glance, I thought this figure might just be a straight rerelease of the Saga Legends version of this design, but it looks like Hasbro’s given this one a pretty thorough re-work. The articulation isn’t quite there just yet, but Hasbro’s definitely making some serious strides. The Biker Scout’s sculpt appears to be all-new [EDIT: A little bit of looking around shows that this figure is the same sculpt as the Biker Scout included with the 2012 Toys R Us exclusive Speeder Bike. Since I don’t have that set, this sculpt is still new to me]. There are quite a few similarities to previous versions, but that’s to be expected. On its own, it’s not a bad sculpt, and does a pretty decent job capturing the various elements of the design. The only real negative of the figure is the helmet. The Goggles seem to be too small in relation to the helmet, and the helmet itself seems too small in relation to the rest of the body, which makes the figure look like a bit of a pin-head. The paint work on the Biker Scout is mostly straight forward, but there are a few issues. There are a few areas with some small scrapes and smudges, as well as a decent bit of bleed over on the elbow and knee pads. Also, the shoulder and ankle joints have been molded in black plastic, which makes them stand out unnecessarily. Had they been molded in white plastic, this could have been avoided. Lastly, the pouches on his mid-section, while cleanly painted, have been painted a solid tan, which seems like just a bit too much of a contrast from the surrounding areas. The Biker Scout is armed with a small blaster pistol.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

The Biker Scout was gotten at the same time as the Clone Pilot and the Clone Sergeant. As I mentioned in my review of his larger scaled counterpart, the Biker Scout is my favorite Trooper design from Star Wars. That being said, I think this figure would have been better served had I gotten it before the 6-inch version. It’s not a bad figure on its own, but it pales in comparison to the truly impressive Biker Scout from the larger line. The point is, this is a good figure. It’s probably the best version of the Biker Scout in the 3 ¾ inch scale. If you prefer that scale, than this is the figure for you!

BikerScoutSmall2

#0321: Clone Pilot

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

CLONE PILOT

STAR WARS: THE BLACK SERIES

ClonePilot1

Sure, having two different scales of Star Wars: The Black Series operating under the same name is a bit confusing, but you have to admit they both have their merits. While I still prefer the larger scale figures for the Original Trilogy characters, I don’t mind picking up the few Prequel figures here and there at the smaller scale, and by extension, the smaller price point. In particular, I’m a decent fan of the Clone Troopers, which has led me to pick up a few of the line’s offerings on that front. Today, I’ll be looking at the Clone Pilot.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

ClonePilotWilsonThe Clone Pilot is figure #08 in the first assortment of 3 ¾ inch-scale Star Wars: The Black Series. The figure is based on the “phase I” version of the pilot, initially seen in Attack of the Clones. The Clone Pilot is 3 ¾ inches in height and features 26 points of articulation. From a sculpt standpoint, the Clone Pilot is the exact same figure as the Clone Sergeant in all areas but the helmet. Aside from the un-helmeted head being a bit on the small side, it’s a really well sculpted figure and it captures the basic clone look quite nicely. Hasbro obviously wants to get their mileage out of this new clone mold and I can’t blame them. The figure’s new helmet is in keeping with the quality of the rest of the figure. It’s got nice, crisp detail lines, and all the proportions and such look right on the mark. The paintwork on the Clone Pilot isn’t quite as nice as that on the Sergeant. For starters, there’s no accent work on the body, which is less interesting. It’s true to the design, but it’s a bit bland. The figure also has some odd red staining on his left shoulder and right knee, which is distracting. The skin tone on the face is also a lot paler and makes him look lifeless. That being said, the rest of the paintwork is nice and clean, and this figure doesn’t have the same eye issues as the Sergeant. The Clone Pilot’s only accessory is a small blaster rifle, which is a bit disappointing after seeing the two rifles with the Sergeant.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I got the Clone Pilot at the same time I purchased the Clone Sergeant. It’s not as good a figure as the Sergeant, but it’s still a pretty great figure in its own right. I’m glad to see Hasbro making strides to improve the smaller scale Star Wars line. I’m sure we’ll be seeing more clones appearing on the new base body as well. All in all, not a bad figure!

ClonePilot2

#0320: Clone Sergeant

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

CLONE SERGEANT

STAR WARS: THE BLACK SERIES

CloneSergeant1

So, remember how Star Wars: The Black Series was supposed to be a deluxe 6-inch line of figures, sort of as Hasbro’s big move to please the fans? Yeah, well apparently, that was just a little too un-Hasbro of them. It was a move that wasn’t confusing at all, and that didn’t work. So, to make up for this, they decided to simultaneously release a 3 ¾ inch line under the exact same name, to the detriment of fans and ill-informed retail workers everywhere. On the plus side, the line does promise a more diverse line-up than the larger scale figures, as well as some improvements over the previous 3 ¾ inch figures. Today, I’ll be taking a look at the line’s version of the Clone Sergeant, who interestingly enough was just announced for the 6-inch line as well. Prepare for the confusion everybody!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

CloneSergeantWilsonThe Clone Sergeant is part of the first assortment of the 3 ¾ inch scale Star Wars: The Black Series. The figure is just a basic Clone Sergeant, not any character in particular, and the figure is in the clone’s original “Phase I” armor. If I recall correctly, the Sergeant rank is not seen in Attack of Clones, so this is officially a Clone wars figure. The Sergeant is about 3 ¾ inches in height and features 26 points of articulation. While the articulation is still a little bit stilted in a few areas, the level present in these new figures is incredibly impressive. Hasbro’s done quite a few Clone Troopers over the years, with lots of shared parts between them, but I think that the newly engineered articulation means this figure sports an all-new sculpt. The details of the sculpt are nice and sharp, and the figure’s proportions look pretty good. The helmet is removable. The helmet is properly scaled, but in order to make it fit properly, the head had to be a tad under-scaled. The underlying head also bears little resemblance to actor Temuera Morrison, which is too bad. However, I can’t see many people leaving the helmet off, so it’s not much of a loss. The paint work is basic, but also key in differentiating the Sergeant from the other Clones. The Sergeant has an olive green accent on his armor, which looks really great, and definitely makes the figure stand out. The paintwork is all nice and cleanly applied. The unmasked head has some slightly odd eyes, but they aren’t horrible for the scale. The Sergeant includes both long and short blaster rifles, which allows you to add just a touch of customization.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

The Clone Sergeant was purchased at a Walmart, nearby my girlfriend’s college campus. I don’t usually shop at Walmart, but she needed to get a few things and I went with her. Me being me, I took a look in the action figure aisle, where I found this guy and a few other SW:TBS figures. I hadn’t initially planned on getting any of them, but Super Awesome Girlfriend is a terrible influence on me (okay, not really. She’s just incredibly supportive!) So, I ended up getting a few figures from the line. I really like the Sergeant, mostly due to the green accents, which are just really cool!

CloneSergeant2

#0285: Biker Scout & Speeder Bike

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

BIKER SCOUT & SPEEDER BIKE

STAR WARS: THE BLACK SERIES

BikerScout1

We interrupt the regularly scheduled “Birthday Stuff” reviews for a quick little venture into a galaxy far, far away. You might notice that there are two reviews today. Yeah, they’re both by me, I just screwed up the scheduling. See, I originally intended to publish the Green Ranger review today, just like I did, but I decided I wanted to take a break from the birthday things to review something I was very excited about. Sadly, the day got away from me, so I didn’t get a chance to stop the Green Ranger from auto posting. My bad! Anyway, that means there will be two reviews today, just cuz.

The subject of this review comes from Hasbro’s Star Wars: The Black Series, their very popular 6-inch scaled line of Star Wars figures. So far, they’ve put out three series of figures with another three planned. In addition to that, they’ve also started offering a line of Deluxe figures and vehicles, starting with Jabba the Hutt and today’s focus, the Biker Scout and Speeder bike!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

BikerScout2The Biker Scout stands about 6 inches tall and features 31 points of articulation. He’s based on the basic scout design from the final battle on the forest moon of Endor in Return of the Jedi. The Biker Scout features an all new sculpt. No re-use from any of the previous figures, and not even any upscaling of pieces from the 3 ¾ inch Biker Scouts. The sculpt is probably the most accurate take on the design over the years. All of the proportions look just right, especially on the helmet, which is a really key area of the design. Do be mindful if you pick one up in person: the helmet is made of softer plastic and it gets pressed up against the packaging in such a way that might warp it a bit. The arms might be just a tad too long, mostly due to the elbow joints, and the hands might be slightly too small, but it doesn’t look too bad with the right pose. The uniform features some pretty great texture work to differentiate the armor from the cloth parts of the costume, which gives the figure a nice bit of dimension. The paint work on the Biker Scout is pretty good, by Hasbro standards at least. The basic paint work is pretty clean, though the visor is a bit fuzzy on the edges. He has a wash over a few of the white areas. It brings out some of the details well, but it might be better if it were just a little bit more subtle. The Scout includes a blaster pistol, which is nice, but mine broke putting it in his hand, so be careful.

BikerScoutWilson BikerScout3

THE VEHICLE ITSELF

BikerScout4The Speeder Bike is effectively the title half of this set, even if the Biker Scout may have gotten more of the tooling put towards him. The bike is about 10 inches long, and about 2 inches tall at its tallest, with articulated back flaps and a rotating gun on the underside. The sculpt is really quite intricate, with lots of really cool details hidden in the various nooks of the sculpt. It looks to be really accurate to the movie, which is cool, and I’m glad to see a speeder bike that is mucked up by an exploding feature. The paint work is pretty good overall, but it is a bit varied. The metal under-workings have some really nice dry-brushed silver details, which is pretty cool, but the silver details on the main body are a bit more solid, which makes them look a bit too placed. Otherwise, the paint is nice, with no slop or bleed over. The Speeder Bike includes a clear(ish) stand that plugs in via ball joint, allowing the bike to be posed in mid-flight.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I found this set at my local Target yesterday. I actually found it completely by accident, since I wasn’t expecting it to be released just yet. I was there looking for a couple of other things, and came across this bad boy, which was very exciting! The Biker Scout is my favorite Trooper design from Star Wars, so I’ve been patiently awaiting his release since the beginning of the Black Series. I am thrilled to finally have this set, and it’s hands down my favorite item from the line!

BikerScout7

#0211: Stormtroopers

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

STORMTROOPERS

STAR WARS: THE BLACK SERIES

Stormtroopers

THE FIGURE IN QUESTION

EPISODE 211

It was a dark time for the FIGURE IN QUESTION. Negotiations have broken down following the disappointment of the Slave Leia figure. The rebellion has recovered from this blow with the release of the Bespin Luke Skywalker figure. The rebels quietly celebrate their victory. Little do they know that the evil Galactic Empire has plans for an awesome figure of their own. If only the collectors could find that figure….

Yep, Star Wars: The Black Series is a pretty cool line, but I can’t help but feel that it’s a bit short on representing the Empire. Sure, we got a pretty cool Sandtrooper back in series one, but that’s just a Sandtrooper. It can’t even find the droids it’s looking for! But then, Hasbro announced the Stormtrooper! Everyone loves the Stormtroopers! And you can buy a bunch, meaning that your Empire’s ranks could quickly grow, right? Yeah, in theory anyway. But then Hasbro decided to pack him one per case. So…that didn’t go so well. After a few months I finally tracked a couple, but man…

THE FIGURE ITSELF

The Stormtrooper was released in the third series of Star Wars: The Black Series. His number is #09. The Stormtrooper is pretty much the same in every movie (I know there are some differences that a die-hard fan could point out, but I don’t know them.), so they’ve gone with the one look.  The figure is a little over 6 inches tall and has 29 points of articulation. In a first for the line, the Stormtrooper’s sculpt is mostly re-use. The figure shares everything but the belt and left shin with series one’s Sandtrooper. The head might also be a new sculpt, but I can’t tell. The difference might just be paint releated. Anyway, the sculpt was nice to begin with, so it works really nicely here. The big difference between this figure and the Sandtrooper is the paint. The Stormtrooper is much cleaner, which makes the figures sculpt look a bit bolder. The figure is mostly molded in the appropriate white, but he has some black detailing, which is mostly clean. I did notice a few areas of slop, but they seem to vary from figure to figure, so check them if you have the opportunity. The Stormtrooper includes two accessories: his basic rifle, which is reused from both the Sandtrooper and Han Solo, as well as a larger rifle, which is speculated to see a re-use with robot assassin IG-88. Once again, this is a bit of a step down from earlier series, but I can’t really think of anything else to give the troopers.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

After a while of searching, I finally caught the Stormtrooper while it was in stock on Amazon. I was able to get two of them, because you can’t just have one Stormtrooper, that would be wrong. I had enjoyed the Sandtrooper quite a bit, and was eager to see how the sculpt would look when used for the main trooper. Aside from the issues finding the figures, they really didn’t disappoint!

StormTrooperswbubble

#0210: Luke Skywalker – Bespin

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

LUKE SKYWALKER – BESPIN

STAR WARS: THE BLACK SERIES

Luke(Bespin)

I’m just a moderate Star Wars fan, but I am an action figure fan (in case the site hadn’t already clued you in on that…), and that means I frequently find myself venturing into the galaxy far, far away for my purchases. Hasbro recently brought the characters into the 6 inch scale with their new Star Wars: The Black Series. The line boasts improved sculpts, better articulation, and a greater selection of accessories. It’s also quickly become one of my favorite lines. The third series proved to be a bit difficult to procure at first, but I’ve finally tracked a set down and I’ll be reviewing them today and tomorrow (It’s only a three figure assortment and I don’t need prequel Obi Wan, so just the two for me.)

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Luke comes from the third series of Star Wars: The Black Series. Each figure in the line gets a number, and Luke is #011. He’s presented here in his main gear from The Empire Strikes Back, generally referred to as his Bespin look. It’s generally see as one of the character’s definitive looks, so it’s great to see it in the line. The figure stands just shy of 6 inches tall and features 29 points of articulation. All of the articulation seems to work pretty well, though I am slightly annoyed by the choice to give both hands a forward/back joint instead of the usual mix of one forward/back, one left/right. It’s a minor issue, but it limits the pose-ability a bit. Luke features an entirely new sculpt, which is great all-around. It’s well proportioned, nicely detailed, and the head has more than a passing resemblance to Mark Hamill. He also features an add-on belt piece, which could probably be removed if you so desired, but isn’t meant to be. On the paint side, he’s not quite as good as previous waves, but he’s not bad, and seems a lot better than I’d heard from other reviews. My figure seems to have received a decent paint job with no slop or bleed over. He’s got a decent wash on his body-suit, which does an excellent job bringing out the details in the sculpt. Luke is accessorized with a blaster and a lightsaber, both of which are reused from the previous LightsabersLuke. This is a bit of a letdown, given the larger selection featured with the rest of the line. Heck, the previous Luke even included a helmet in addition to these two pieces. I’d have liked to at least get a few extra hands, or at bare minimum that his right hand was removable to recreate the Bespin duel. Alas, he just gets the two pieces. Oh well.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I got Luke from Amazon. He’s been in stock there for a little while, but I wanted to wait until they got in the Stormtrooper at a reasonable price before ordering him. Initially, I wasn’t sure I was going to get this figure. I already had the pilot version of the character from series one, and that’s a really cool figure. However, once I saw some pictures of this figure, I knew I couldn’t miss out on him. Plus, he’s Bespin Luke. What kind of a fan would I be if I didn’t have him? Anyway, I’m really glad I got this figure, and I’m going to have a lot of trouble picking which of the two Lukes will be my default.

SwBlacks1vss2

#0203: Anakin Skywalker – Hanger Duel

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

ANAKIN SKYWALKER – HANGER DUEL

STAR WARS SAGA

Anakin

So, I kind of missed May the 4th, or Star Wars day as its come to be known. Yeah, I was busy over the weekend, and totally didn’t think of the date. Which meant my May 4th review was the T-1000, not something Star Wars related. For those of you that were offended by that, I am eternally sorry. I’ll try not to let it happen next year!

Today’s figure is Star Wars themed. I’d say that it was an apology, but it’s Anakin, so…

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Anakin was released as part of one of the later assortments of Star Wars Saga, which was the line released around the time of Star Wars: Attack of the Clones. This particular figure is the “hanger duel” version of the character, which is Anakin from his battle with Count Dooku at the end of the movie. He’s in his basic Jedi garb from the movie. The figure stands about 3 ¾ inches tall and has 9 points of articulation. The hips are rendered practically motionless by the skirt piece, plus his shoulders are on a weird diagonal, and the elbow joints are just straight cut joints, which means they do nothing. Essentially, his articulation is mostly pointless. The sculpt isn’t terrible, though he has some monkey arms, and he doesn’t look much like Hayden Christiansen. But the texture work is pretty nice. The paint is fairly basic, but is cleanly applied, with no slop or bleed over. The figure features two action features. The first is a wheel on his back that spins his left hand. The second is a removable right arm, attached via magnets (because Hasbro was obsessed with them at the time), which replicates Anakin’s injury from the duel. The figure included two lightsabers: one green, one blue.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I got Anakin from a trip to my local Toys R Us with my Dad. I was obsessed with Star Wars toys at the time, and I thought Attack of the Clones was a lot better than it actually was. It was truly a blissful time. Anyway, I has been looking all over the place for this figure, after seeing it online. It’s not the greatest figure, but I do actually feel a bit of sentimental attachment to it.

#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.