Sunday, September 4, 2016

Utterly Without Redeeming Value: The Power Of The Force Luke Skywalker Action Figure!


The Good: None!
The Bad: Figure looks nothing like Luke Skywalker, Poor articulation, Lousy balance, Yellowing plastic
The Basics: The Luke Skywalker figure that helped launch the comeback of Star Wars figures just plain sucked!


Fans of Star Wars collectibles once lived in want for something new. It is hard to believe (and, given how packed my home is, hard to imagine!) that it was just over twenty years ago when Hasbro relaunched their Star Wars collectibles line. The first few sets of figures were instantly bought up by eager fans and young parents psyched to be able to give their kids Star Wars figures instead of risking their brood entering their collectible sanctuary and unleashing some of their collectible figures from the 1980s. Unfortunately, while time might have dulled our memories to a time without a constant stream of Star Wars action figures, the memory of collectors also seems to be pretty dim for just how lame that first line of figures was. The worst of the first wave was easily the Power Of The Force Luke Skywalker action figure.

The 4" Luke Skywalker figure is a lousy action figure that was dramatically overproduced, look nothing like the subject of the figure, and has since begun yellowing on the white costume elements, futher degrading the value of the toy.

Basics

The Power Of The Force Luke Skywalker is based upon the costume, at the very least, of Skywalker from A New Hope (reviewed here!). This was made during Kenner's obsession with beefing the characters up. As a result, Luke is wearing his recognizable costume (his white outfit he wears on Tatooine and most of the Death Star scenes), but the person underneath it looks almost nothing like Luke. With an upper body that makes Luke Skywalker look like the Terminator, this is Luke Skywalker on steroids. Luke has no real neck and looks like a body builder and his legs look like those of a professional football player or track star. This incarnation of Luke Skywalker would stand 3 3/4" tall if it would stand up!

The detailing on the costume is incredibly basic. Luke is painted to have molded and colored details on his belt and the boots look like wrapped cloth, which is how they appeared in the film. But Luke's hair looks plastered down and cut like the Incredible Hulk. Still, Kenner got the eyes mostly right as they are bright blue.

Over the years, Luke's white wrap outfit has yellowed. The yellowing of the plastic was an unfortunately common problem with the Kenner Star Wars figures and it is little surprise that this Luke has yellowed as well. As a result, most of the Power Of The Force Luke Skywalker action figures look entirely unlike Luke in both shape and coloring now!

Accessories

The Power Of The Force Luke Skywalker action figure comes with two accessories: a lightsaber and a blaster pistol. The blaster pistol is a solid black, 1" long plastic gun that is essentially Han Solo's blaster pistol. It is very light on the surface detailing, but it is recognizable as a firearm for Luke.

The lightsaber is appropriately blue with a silver-gray plastic base. The weapon is a bit overlong - 3" long - and the saber base is entirely underdetailed. The blue portion that represents the actual "blade" is made of clear blue plastic, which adds an element of realism to it.

Playability

The four inch toy line was designed for play and Luke Skywalker figure is terrible in that regard. The figure is mildly articulated, with only swivel joints at the groin socket, shoulders, waist and neck. This Luke Skywalker stands with a wide stance and is virtually impossible to balance him so he actually stands up. As well, the hands are molded in an awkward way that makes it difficult for the figure to actually hold his accessories and have them look like they are organically placed. The moment one starts to move the figure with the accessories in his hands, they fall right out. As such, the Power Of The Force Luke Skywalker figure is not great for either play or display.

Collectibility

The Luke Skywalker is part of the Power Of The Force four-inch series, a series of Star Wars action figures that was exceptionally common. This was a pegwarmer even at the time, largely because it was massively overproduced and fans were utterly unimpressed by the execution of this version of Luke Skywalker. Now, this remains one of the Kenner failures as even years later, it is hard to find it for more than its initial release price. Investors took a bath on this one and it seems as people notice theirs yellowing, this is not a figure most fans are replacing.

Overview

The Power Of The Force Luke Skywalker action figure has since been replaced by vastly superior sculpts making this one entirely unworthy of any collector's attention or dollars.

For other Star Wars: A New Hope figures in the "Power Of The Force" line, please check out my reviews of:
Grand Moff Tarkin
TIE Fighter Pilot
Sandtrooper
C-3PO
Momaw Nadon
Ponda Baba
R5-D4
Death Star Gunner
Cantina Aliens 3-pack
Garindan
Death Star Escape 3-pack
Luke Skywalker In Stormtrooper Disguise

0/10

For other toy reviews, please visit my Toy Review Index Page for an organized listing!

© 2016 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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