STAR WARS, Nothin' But STAR WARS!
By: Dan CzirakyDate: Sunday, December 03, 2000
STAR WARS: POWER OF THE JEDI -- Collections 1&2 (Hasbro)
Let's start this look at Star Wars toys with Hasbro's latest Star Wars 3-3/4-inch figures in sets and in sealed cases. Set 1 features six figures, primarily from Episode I. These figures are grouped in this set with 'Qui-Gon Jinn (Mos Espa Disguise),' a great new sculpt of this Jedi Master. Qui-Gon comes with a cloth poncho, his green-bladed light saber, and an impressive eight points of articulation (including ball-jointed shoulders). The likeness to actor Liam Neeson is the best yet in this scale, and his left hand is posed in 'Jedi-mind-trick' mode for his attempted influencing of junk dealer Watto. Completing this set is 'Leia Organa (General),' from Return of the Jedi. Leia was dressed this way during the briefing with Mon Mothma on the plans for the second Death Star, and also wore the outfit under her forest camo poncho while on Endor's moon. She has the standard six points of articulation, one of the better Leia head-sculpts, and comes with two blaster pistols.
Set 2 is comprised of just two new figures, but they're examples of some of Hasbro's best work ever! 'Ben (Obi-Wan) Kenobi (Jedi Knight)' has the late Sir Alec Guinness' character in his casual robes from the scene in his hut from SW:ANH. The figure has eight points of articulation, a very good likeness to Sir Alec, Ben's blue-bladed light saber, and the hilt of Luke's father's light saber attached to his belt (it's removable). The second figure is a true marvel: 'Darth Vader (Dagobah).' This is the Vader apparition that Luke faced inside the cave on Dagobah in The Empire Strikes Back. It is molded in translucent black plastic, has a glorious ten points of articulation, detachable head (!), and a removable faceplate (with clear red eye lenses) that reveals Luke's own face under Vader's mask. The light saber is a rich, vibrant red (as opposed to the watery pink we've seen in the past with most Vader figures) and has a highly detailed paint application on the hilt. If you display your figures in a case or on a shelf, a little back-lighting makes a great, eerie effect with this figure.
STAR WARS: THE POWER OF THE FORCE (Hasbro)
Admiral Motti with Imperial Blaster: This is one of those rare, second-wave COMMTech chip figures released late in 1999, now almost impossible to find. He's one of those obscure characters who's a favorite among rabid Star Wars: A New Hope fans and collectors. Motti was the first character on whom we ever saw Darth Vader use the Dark Side of the Force to strangle into submission. Senior officer in charge of operations on the Death Star, Motti was vocally doubtful of Vader's abilities to use the Force to find the station's battle plans stolen by the Rebel Alliance. 'Your sad devotion to that ancient religion has not given you clairvoyance enough to find the Rebels' hidden fortress,' he tersely commented, spurring Vader's silent hand gesture that signaled Motti's choking. 'I find your lack of faith disturbing,' Vader replied smugly. He would have killed Motti had Grand Moff Tarkin not intervened. Of course, Motti died along with Tarkin and the rest of the Imperials aboard the Death Star after Luke Skywalker successfully used the Force to target the station's thermal exhaust port, setting off a devastating chain reaction. This 'Motti' figure possess eight points of articulation, including a jointed left elbow and left hand that allows for the recreation of Motti's strangulation. His COMMTech chip contains his '... sad devotion ...' speech, and interacts with the chip for the 'Darth Vader with Interrogation Droid' figure (which is the single worst COMMTech chip ever produced!).
TOY SITE NEWS
Speaking of Star Wars figures, Hasbro has completely revamped their Star Wars Toys web site (www.starwars.hasbro.com) to reflect the look of their new Power of the Jedi logo. The site has some great new pluses, including looks at upcoming and in-progress figures. Also, they've extended their 'Product Index' to include toys from the Kenner Toys era (1978-85). Newer toys feature a 360-degree viewer option and packaging details. Unfortunately, if you utilized the 'My Toys List' feature from the Episode I-themed version of this site, none of that information has been retained (boo-hiss!). If you want to build your list up again from scratch, you'll have to re-register, but at least you can now include your old pre-1995 toys, too! Hasbro is still updating that 'Product Index' list, and a few photos are off (they're still confusing the original, 1995 Darth Vader with the 1997 Vader with Removable Helmet, for instance). Another nifty new feature is the 'Collectors Poll,' which allows collectors to vote for the next, obscure character to be made into a figure. Last year's winner was Duros (a cantinas alien from SW:ANH). So far this year, it looks like Amanaman (a Jabba's palace alien from ROTJ) is the front-runner. Also be sure to check out 'Action Figure Theater,' featuring short films made by animating action figures. Overall, the new Hasbro/Star Wars site is a nice improvement.
