Star Wars: The Modern 12 Back Part II

Part II

Part One, showcasing the first four figures, is here. Now we’re really hitting the big guns…

Chewbacca

Chewbacca is one of the characters that helps to shape Star Wars the most. His relationship with Han softens the smuggler’s image, making him a more relatable character, and Chewie’s loyalty (most explicitly shown in ESB) erodes even the hardest of hearts. He may not have much of a character arc, but the OT wouldn’t be the same without him... whilst the PT would be a tiny bit better.

This Chewbacca is from the 2011 Vintage Collection Android set and is my preferred modern sculpt of the character, in large part due to the mouth being closed. There’s 15 points of articulation but he’s such a lean character there’s only so much posing you can do. That said, ball-jointed hips would have killed the look of him, so it’s an understandable trade off. This version was second hand and so his trusty bowcaster is missing its bow. It’s a shame, but I’m not too panicked about finding a replacement – I’m sure one will turn up eventually.

Princess Leia

For a film series that was being made up on the fly, the way that Princess Leia and Han Solo’s story arcs intertwine is extremely well done. She starts off as the uptight senator and bastion of the Old Republic, but as the saga progresses she eventually mellows, remaining a strong leader (at least until the final act of ROTJ), whilst becoming more forgiving of Han’s devil-may-care attitude, and even a little bit cocky herself.

This figure is from 2004’s VOTC line, and it looks like it too. It’s a decent figure, better than any from the POTF2 days, but Leia looks young, more like the teenage queen Lucas originally envisioned. Well scaled, but by that definition extremely small, she goes well with Han and Luke but unlike the respective likenesses of the other two, doesn’t quite do Carrie Fisher justice. An update for the captured Princess is sorely needed.

Luke Skywalker

The main hero of the OT, here’s Luke as he first appeared way back when: a young moisture farmer unable to take control of his own destiny who turns space adventurer, Princess-saver, Jedi-in-training and rebel hero. That’s a lot to pack into two hours, and is probably why so many kids grew up idolising young Skywalker. It may be cooler nowadays to say Han was your favourite, but there were fights over who would be Luke in my playground, brah.

Luke here is from the Blu-ray Commemorative pack for A New Hope, which is a slight repaint of 2009’s Resurgence of the Jedi figure. It’s the best modern ANH Luke by some margin, with 14 points of articulation, a fantastic sculpt and one of the better Mark Hamill likenesses Hasbro has produced. The arms do hang a little long and the figure suffers from not having ball-jointed hips, which could have been hidden by his skirt, but as Luke Skywalker goes this is a superb action figure. He fits in the Vintage Collection Landspeeder as well, which is always a bonus!

R2-D2

Star Wars wouldn’t have happened without R2-D2, the astromech with attitude and an unnatural devotion to his mission. Whilst Han had Chewie, Luke had R2, a divide between the natural and mechanical worlds that is examined thoroughly in Will Brooker’s highly readable BFI guide to Star Wars. I’m not excited at the prospect of seeing R2 again in the sequel trilogy after the way he was used in the prequels, but if they are going to be wheeling out the same characters again then you’d suppose that he has to be in there somewhere…

Also from the Blu-ray Commemorative pack, this R2 was originally from 2005’s Saga Collection Early Bird set. It looks gorgeous with a shiny chrome top, crisp blue paint job and lots of nice little details, including a removable third leg and light-piping for the eye. This is by far the best R2 at 3.75”, and well worth purchasing.

Part I is up here, and Part III will be online on Friday.

Thanks for reading!

Star Wars: The Modern 12 Back Part I

Part I

In the Star Wars collecting community there’s a lot of reverence for the first 12 action figures Kenner released. Initially on cards known as ’12 backs’ due to the card art showing illustrations of these original dozen figures, this selection of characters is at the core of any Star Wars collection, and with good reason – Luke, Han and Leia, Chewie and the Droids and Old Ben Kenobi give you all the good guys; Darth Vader, a Stormtrooper and, bizarrely, an Imperial Death Squad Commander round out the bad guys, whilst a Jawa and Tusken Raider give you all the indigenous life you need. Of course, the Star Wars toy line is now well known for quite how wide and deep it goes; but with these 12 figures you’re one Grand Moff Tarkin short of A New Hope prison break.

When I was starting out with the modern line I latched on to the 12 back figures as a collecting focus, and aimed to get the best present day iterations of each. Earlier this year I more or less completed that goal, and now it’s time to finally give these guys (and gal) a stage…

Tusken Raider

Though they may be easily startled, the Tusken Raiders would still be pretty terrifying to encounter when out in the sticks alone. This figure, from 2012’s Discover the Force line is a solid representation of the Sand People as they appeared in A New Hope, resplendent with flowing robes and a gaffi stick. This one also came with a rifle, but that’s more for shooting at Pod Racers than knocking out errant moisture farmers…

With 14 points of articulation this Tusken Raider, originally released in 2006 as part of the VTSC line, is the finest sample you’re going to find – just as long as you don’t want his swivel hips to straddle a Bantha, that is…

C-3PO

Human-Cyborg relations have rarely looked finer than they do here, with 2006’s Saga Collection C-3PO. Whilst this figure is based on Threepio from Return of the Jedi, coming with an Ewok throne, he’s not a character that changes appearance, save for gaining dust or dirt, through the Original Trilogy. With eight points of articulation this Threepio does all that you need him to do, and the shiny gold finish (with silver lower right leg) bring the character fully to 3.75” life.

I was really interested in getting the Vintage Collection matte gold C-3PO, but the lack of availability and exorbitant secondary market price put me off. It doesn't matter though, as this Threepio is a fantastic release, and fits in with the modern 12 perfectly.

Imperial Navy Commander

The Imperial Navy Commander was a slightly confusing release for the start of the line, coming out ahead of Greedo and Walrus Man, and nearly two decades before Grand Moff Tarkin saw the plastic light of day. However he makes good cannon fodder for the Rebel heroes, or as an officer for Darth Vader to boss around. Every Empire needs its underlings, right?

This version is from 2012, and The Vintage Collection. With 14 points of articulation, a removable helmet and a gun with working holster this guy has some serious build quality for a nameless background character. It commands a fair price on the secondary market, so I think I was lucky to get it when I did.

Han Solo

Captain, scoundrel and coolest guy in the galaxy, Han Solo was a lock for the very first wave of Star Wars figures. The pinhead/big head variations of Han Solo were amongst the first variations to happen in the line, starting a long tradition of collectors searching for every running change/factory screw up they could find. Considering you’re here you probably know all about Han Solo, so there’s not much else to say – except for maybe that he shot first.

This Yavin Ceremony Han Solo is from The Vintage Collection in 2011, and comes with the medal he received at the end of the film. Whilst some collectors prefer earlier versions of the character, this is the definitive Han figure to me. With 14 points of articulation (including some very tidy wrists), a blaster with working holster and an absolutely dead-on appearance, you will not find a better A New Hope Han Solo.

Parts II and III to follow!