Sunday, October 28, 2012

An Exceptionally Lame Exclusive, The Power Of The Force Mail-Away Spirit Obi-Wan Kenobi Figure Flops!


The Good: Basic sculpt
The Bad: Later recast, Terrible collectible value, Lame coloring, Horrible articulation
The Basics: The Spirit Obi-Wan Kenobi is a limited edition Power Of The Force action figure which was a mail-away exclusive that managed to be overproduced to the point of worthlessness.


The very best Star Wars exclusive figures choose a decent blend of rarity and uniqueness. In other words, the exclusive figures that remain the most valuable and most interesting tend to be unique sculpts or characters that are not cast and recast over and over again. Unfortunately for the mail-away Spirit Obi-Wan Kenobi exclusive figure from the Power Of The Force line, Kenner recolored a less popular action figure and vastly overproduced the exclusive. Since 1997 when this figure was originally released, Hasbro released a vastly superior sculpt and colored version of the Spirit Obi-Wan Kenobi figure (reviewed here!).

For those unfamiliar with it, the Spirit Obi-Wan Kenobi figure is based upon how the dead Jedi appeared in The Empire Strikes Back (reviewed here!) and Return Of The Jedi (reviewed here!). Translucent, the Spirit Obi-Wan was essentially the ghost of Obi-Wan Kenobi.

The 4" Spirit Obi-Wan Kenobi is a bland, basic, poorly-articulated recoloring of the Power Of The Force Obi-Wan Kenobi action figure.

Basics

The Spirit Obi-Wan Kenobi is a 3 5/8" tall plastic replica of the non-corporeal version of Obi-Wan Kenobi. Cast in his robes with his bearded face, the Spirit Obi-Wan Kenobi is essentially the same figure as the Power Of The Force version of Obi-Wan Kenobi with a solid body and base, as opposed to movable legs. As a result, the bottom of the figure is a wide/flat base and is completely unposeable.

The figure is made of hard, translucent aqua-colored plastic. Over the last fifteen years, the plastic has discolored some and has some yellowing, which is troubling and one has to wonder what the “shelf life” of the figure is before it turns an entirely putrid green color. Even so, the translucent nature of the figure shows Kenner made an effort to create the Spirit Obi-Wan in a neat way.

Accessories

The Spirit Obi-Wan Kenobi comes with no accessories as the figure.

Playability

The four inch toy line was designed for play and the Spirit Obi-Wan Kenobi is poor for that. While the figure has exceptional balance, that is largely due to the fact that it has almost no poseability. While the arms and head may be rotated on simple swivel joints, those joints are exceptionally stiff (in fact, I tore the arm off one of mine trying to get it to turn in its socket). The Spirit Obi-Wan Kenobi figure is a real dud as far as play goes, though if found new it might flesh out some displays fine (especially if the display is blacklit!).

Collectibility

The Spirit Obi-Wan Kenobi was incredibly overproduced, even for a mail-away exclusive. In combination with a vastly better resculpt, that has caused the value of the Power Of The Force Mail Away Spirit Obi-Wan Kenobi to plummet. This figure is virtually worthless now.

Overview

The Spirit Obi-Wan Kenobi is a simple figure that is not worth picking up for a serious collector.

For other Power Of The Force figures from The Empire Strikes Back or Return Of The Jedi, please check out my reviews of:
Ugnaughts 2-pack
Princess Leia Organa in Hoth Gear
Snowtrooper
C-3PO with removable limbs
2-1B Medic Droid
Zuckuss
Bossk
Captain Piett
Hoth Luke Skywalker
Yoda
Luke Skywalker In Dagobah Fatigues
4-LOM
Hoth Han Solo
Dengar
R2-D2
Admiral Ackbar
Saelt-Marae
Chewbacca As Boushh's Bounty
Princess Leia In Ewok Celebration Gown
Gamorrean Guard
EV-9D9
Weequay Skiff Guard
Jedi Luke Skywalker
Bib Fortuna
Emperor's Royal Guard
Imperial Speeder Bike
Nien Nunb

1/10

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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