The Good: Amazing sculpting and coloring detail, Decent accessories, Good balance
The Bad: Still cannot sit down.
The Basics: Very close to perfect the Spirit Obi-Wan Kenobi as seen on Dagobah does everything one could want from a spectral image of Obi-Wan, save sit!
Just when I thought I was all out, I am delighted to discover that I have at least one more box of Star Wars figures to go through before my forthcoming move! It’s very exciting for me and I actually find I am enjoying trimming away the fat in my collection. I actually should have known about this box (which I hope to get through before I get deluged with this year’s Hallmark ornaments for review!); I previously reviewed two of the four Dagobah Original Trilogy Collection figures and I knew I bought all four at the same time when they were first released, so . . . I should have known that the Spirit Obi-Wan was kicking around somewhere for me to review!
For those unfamiliar with the Spirit of Obi-Wan Kenobi as he appeared on Dagobah, in the middle of The Empire Strikes Back (reviewed here!), the Spirit Of Obi-Wan Kenobi appears on the planet Dagobah to help guide Luke Skywalker. After appearing only as a spectral voice to advise Yoda to train Luke, Obi-Wan appears in spirit form to try to talk Luke out of quitting his training and going to confront Darth Vader.
The 4" Obi-Wan Kenobi figure is pretty impressive and because it is so well-detailed, it is easy to use this to replace every prior Spirit Of Obi-Wan Kenobi figure released! This, despite the fact that it seems to be just a recoloring of another Obi-Wan Kenobi figure released around the same time. This is actually a cool and impressive toy.
Basics
The Spirit Obi-Wan is a great sculpting of the familiar hero of the Star Wars Trilogy. Here, he is cast just like he looked in A New Hope and colored to look like he did as a spirit in The Empire Strikes Back and Return Of The Jedi. The figure stands 3 5/8" tall and he is dressed in the brown and cream-colored cloaks he wore when he was killed on the Death Star. What makes him so incredible is the coloring. It is clear the mold used was for a prior Obi-Wan Kenobi figure – there is a hole intended to hold a lightsaber hilt, but this figure comes with no such accessory. What Hasbro did on the coloring front was use translucent plastic with a pearlescent sheen to replicate the sparkling effect of the Spirit Obi-Wan Kenobi appeared as in the film. The entire figure is cast in soft plastics.
This toy is a decent sculpt, looking just like Obi-Wan Kenobi after he died. The Spirit Obi-Wan is well-detailed in his coloring detail; even his skin has additional shading due to the pearlescent effect! Despite his lips not being colored at all, the Spirit Obi-Wan makes up for it with incredible depth and shading to his hair. His blue eyes are bright and have a sort of spectral appearance to them as well. As well, there is a decent level of costuming detailing; the hood on the outer cloak looks realistically rendered to have the volume of the hood and the texture to the costume looks incredible.
Accessories
The Spirit of Obi-Wan Kenobi is over-accessorized with only a lightsaber, as well as a stand that connects with the stand from other Dagobah Trilogy Collection figures! That the Spirit of Obi-Wan Kenobi figure comes with a lightsaber is somewhat pointless; the character was dead when he appeared, he couldn’t even hold a lightsaber! Regardless, Spirit Obi-Wan comes with a well-constructed 3” blue-bladed lightsaber with a silver and black hilt. It fits his right hand well-enough, but is not terrible sensible. Still, it is nice that Hasbro included something with him.
The Original Trilogy Collection figures come with stands, including the Spirit Obi-Wan. This stand, however, is a three inches long by two and five-eighths inches wide brown patch that looks like swamp ground. The stand includes the log upon which Obi-Wan sat in Return Of The Jedi. As well, there is a peg, which fits the hole in either of Spirit Of Obi-Wan Kenobi's feet!
Playability
The four inch toy line was designed for play and Obi-Wan Kenobi is great in that regard. The figure is generally well-articulated and has excellent balance when off his stand. This Spirit of Obi-Wan Kenobi figure comes with eight points of articulation, which is a vast improvement over the statue-like mail-away Obi-Wan Kenobi released as part of Kenner’s Power Of The Force toy line! The Spirit Obi-Wan has joints at the elbows, wrists, shoulders, neck, and waist. Like most Star Wars figures, these are all just simple swivel joints.
This is a great figure for posing or for play. As well, it does have decent balance on or off his stand.
Collectibility
The Spirit Obi-Wan is part of the 2004 Original Trilogy Collection four-inch series, a series of Star Wars action figures that was not very common at all, but largely recast figures that had been previously released by Kenner. Hasbro sought to improve the old figures by having a greater attention to detail, coloring and accessory detail and proportion. As such, this Obi-Wan Kenobi is a distinct improvement as far as balance, detailing and accessories from the earlier Spirit Obi-Wan. Released as Original Trilogy Collection (2004) figure #03, this figure is a good idea for those creating an ultimate collection of each major character. It is hard to imagine how this figure might be improved upon, save with even softer robes and knee articulation.
Overview
The Original Trilogy Collection Spirit Obi-Wan is the definitive undead Obi-Wan Kenobi, making it a worthwhile buy, especially at today’s deflated prices on the figure!
For reviews of other 2004 Original Trilogy Collection figures, please visit my reviews of:
01 Luke Skywalker (Dagobah)
02 Yoda
018 Bespin Princess Leia
019 Cloud Car Pilot
020 Lobot
9/10
For other toy reviews, please visit my index page by clicking here!
© 2012 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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