See-Threepio (C-3PO) - Jumbo Vintage Kenner Figures

If you’re a collector of 12” figures, is there anything more rewarding than having the complete dozen of vintage Kenner 12-backs in your collection in one-sixth scale? Some collectors may be hard pressed to find something that tickles their nostalgia bone greater than this. Apparently, Gentle Giant Ltd. knows the power of the original Kenner line and has developed a truly niche, but special, collection of the original Kenner action figures from the 70s and 80s and have produced them in a collectible format intended for those who purchase high-end collectibles. Hindsight is always 20/20 they say, but we wonder if Kenner would have saved some time and energy by doing the same thing Gentle Giant Ltd. is doing now to make their own “Large Size Action Figures” back in the day. Of course, none of the features would have been able to be included, so perhaps that wouldn’t have been ideal. But since for collectors in general it’s all about the 3.75” scale as far as our minds can go back, perhaps replicating the three and three-quarter inch figure into one-sixth scale might have been a good gamble, even back then.

See-Threepio (C-3PO) is next up on Gentle Giant’s plate. It’s quite something to see him in 12” scale. Details that have been overlooked for years are now exaggerated and you can see detail never really documented before as well as some priceless imperfections that we would never want to see fixed. He comes with the same standard five points of swivel articulation and he can pretty much only attain poses with his feet flat on the surface. See-Threepio (C-3PO) can certainly stand unassisted, but his center of gravity is slightly off and will go for a spill if you don’t precariously situate him in a display environment. As with the 1978 action figure, See-Threepio (C-3PO) comes without any accessories. You think that even in the Kenner era that they would have given him a communicator. But perhaps that was much too small of an accessory that could get lost or accidentally swallowed by young fans. And who knows if Kenner was even able to create a holding grip with the vac-metallization process. While beautiful, it’s a deco technique that is very limiting and prevents the way some action figures get approached even today.

Speaking of See-Threepio (C-3PO)’s vac-metallization, the Jumbo Vintage Kenner Figure has received a gorgeous finish. A bit more golden yellow in color than the 1978 release, See-Threepio (C-3PO) is certainly sight to behold and proves once again, decades after the fact, why we were enamored of him when he was released as a 3.75” action figure. Some aspects of the figure in this scale aren’t completely ideal, but they weren’t ideal on the original figure either. And that is it’s hard to make out the details on his face thanks to the simple sculpt and the way the gold finish obstructs the detail. It’s hardly a complaint, but we had expected to see things that we never saw until now, but it actually made things more obscure and confusing. That being said, See-Threepio (C-3PO) is truly an impressive collectible display and it makes us love the Jumbo Vintage Kenner Figures line even more than ever. It seems any action figure from the Kenner line is safe for consideration. And for the most part with only a few exceptions, Gentle Giant Ltd. seems to be releasing these in original order as much as possible. We will wait, because some of our favorites reside under the Return Of The Jedi banner.