Obi-Wan Kenobi And General Grievous (Utapau) - SW [DV/ROTS] - Mission Series (MS08)

Added: June 26th 2014
Category: Star Wars [Darth Vader/Revenge Of The Sith]
Reviewer: Paul Harrison
Score:

Name: Obi-Wan Kenobi And General Grievous (Utapau)
Collection: Star Wars [Darth Vader/Revenge Of The Sith]
Number: MS08
Source: Revenge Of The Sith
Availability: June 2014
License: Hasbro

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Obi-Wan Kenobi and General Grievous face off in an explosive duel on Utapau. Their lightsabers crash together again and again as they battle. Grievous flees, fearing he may lose the fight, but Obi-Wan pursues him, determined to stop this powerful enemy once and for all.

We have decided to be positive about the Mission Series and Saga Legends figures. So we positively are unable to fathom what collectors see in them and the support that respected colleagues have for them is mind-boggling at best. We know the economy is terrible despite what the media hides and there are clearly needs to be met in the toy aisles. Yes, action figures are wants and not needs, so if there isn’t money in your budget for them then you should not be buying them. But for those that do have a few extra pennies in their toy budget, we will tell you unequivocally that the figures Hasbro are producing in the Mission Series and Saga Legends lines are not the answer to your needs. It’s not an issue of hate for these figures. It’s not an issue of not being unable to understand that parents need affordable action figure for birthdays and what not. It’s an issue of quality and Hasbro has buried their head in the sand about and they’re releasing action figures to the market that they would have been embarrassed to let get by quality control even just a year or two earlier. They promised diversity and options in the line, but Hasbro is already repackaging figures they just released in the same Mission Series line, or the complementary Saga Legends line just a few short months earlier. So who is more foolish? Hasbro for pulling the wool over the public’s eyes, or the buying public following Hasbro off of a steep cliff like lemmings and blindly supporting poorly produced action figures?

We fully understand that for collectors there are nostalgic ties to simplified articulation. WE GET IT. That isn't the point here however. It may have behooved Hasbro to continue to package these figures in vintage Kenner packaging. Maybe we would have all been blinded by that light. They might have garnered more support from the adult collectors while still satisfying a need for retail. And this way parents would be able to have something affordable to buy for birthday parties and holidays like so many defenders of the line spit out of their mouth ad nauseum. Still, we’re not sure why adult collectors, no matter the packaging, would be satisfied to see such horridly painted action figures in glorious vintage packaging. It would be an abomination at best. So what is the answer? We have a lot of opinions about the Mission Series and Saga Legends lines, but we are at a loss for the answers. Perhaps the Star Wars brand needs a complete reset. Whether a new licensee need to breathe new life into the line or whether Hasbro needs a sabbatical, something needs to be done to save the action figures we have loved for the last three decades. To be fair, not everything is terrible in the Mission Series and Saga Legends lines. But we are seeing a downward spiral trend happening with quality and it’s just not acceptable anymore. One release that isn’t a traumatic purchase (but isn’t great either) is the Obi-Wan Kenobi And General Grievous (Utapau) (MS08) set. It does have a few redeeming qualities.

Let’s talk about the wound first. Obi-Wan Kenobi is an even worse repaint of 2013’s SW [DV/ROTS] Obi-Wan Kenobi (SL04) figure. We don’t know how they could have found a way to paint him worse than the first time, but they did. The hair color is wrong, the eyes look like to tiny dots and he still has that awkward lean forward that just isn’t cutting it for us. Oh, and it’s nearly frustrating to make him hold his lightsaber. How in the world are KIDS not going to flip out when they can’t make their budget action figure hold its lightsaber? It would have been better if Hasbro included another Utapau Clone Trooper here with Grievous. After all, you army build clones and not Obi-Wan Kenobis. General Grievous is the saving grace of this set. While we think the head sculpt is definitely off (especially in the eyes, but that could be because of the poor paint operations), we think that General Grievous has a fairly decent sculpt otherwise. What’s nice is that although he comes with seven points of articulation, he can hold his pose effortlessly and has a shockingly good paint job elsewhere in the sculpt. We actually didn’t expect a figure to look this good in the Mission Series lineup, so we’re reasonably impressed. General Grievous would have been served best by getting released in the Saga Legends line. Hasbro would have gotten a dollar more for him and there wouldn’t be a redundant Obi-Wan Kenobi action figure to buy again. Oh, and General Grievous comes with a blue-lit lightsaber and a green-lit lightsaber to battle Obi-Wan Kenobi. It’s far from perfect, but it’s one of the best releases in the Mission Series line, which is quite sad since there have been quite a few now.

Collector Notes

Obi-Wan Kenobi And General Grievous (Utapau)

Assortment Number: A5919/A5228

UPC: 653569896586

Retail: $9.99 USD

Market Value: Click here to check the latest prices based on Click here to check the market value on eBay! listings.

Obi-Wan Kenobi

Status: Obi-Wan Kenobi is a repaint of 2013's SW [DV/ROTS] Obi-Wan Kenobi (SL04) figure.

Articulation Count: 5 points

Articulation Details: swivel head, 2 swivel shoulders, 2 swivel hips

Accessory Count: 1

Accessory Details: lightsaber

Date Stamp: 2013

General Grievous

Status: General Grievous is an all-new figure.

Articulation Count: 7 points

Articulation Details: swivel head, 2 swivel shoulders, 2 swivel forearms, 2 swivel hips

Accessory Count: 2

Accessory Details: blue lightsaber, green lightsaber

Date Stamp: 2013

Star Wars [Darth Vader/Revenge Of The Sith] Mission Series Wave 1

Darth Vader And Seeker Droid (Death Star) (MS01)

Anakin Skywalker And 501st Legion Trooper (Coruscant) (MS02)

Battle Droid And Jango Fett (Geonosis) (MS03)

Battle Droid And 212th Battalion Clone Trooper (Utapau) (MS04)

Star Wars [Darth Vader/Revenge Of The Sith] Mission Series Wave 2

R2-D2 And C-3PO (Tantive IV) (MS05)

Obi-Wan Kenobi And Darth Maul (Mandalore) (MS06)

Han Solo And Chewbacca (Death Star) (MS07)

Star Wars [Darth Vader/Revenge Of The Sith] Mission Series Wave 3

Obi-Wan Kenobi And General Grievous (Utapau) (MS08)

Luke Skywalker And Darth Vader (Bespin) (MS09)

Darth Sidious And Yoda (Senate Duel) (MS10)



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