C-3PO - POTF2 [FB/CT] - Basic

A long time ago....
A new Star Wars movie will premier in movie theaters next Summer. It is Episode I of the Star Wars saga and the first movie in a new trilogy that goes back in time a full generation to tell the story of Luke Skywalker's father Anakin. We will see how Anakin became a great Jedi Knight but then turned to the dark side to become Darth Vader.

C-3PO, the always proper, overly anxious, human-cyborg relations protocol was a key member of the tightly knit Rebel Alliance that fought against Darth Vader and the evil Galactic Empire. But buried in the dust of history is the fact that the droid and Vader actually shared a common bond many years prior, when the evil Lord was a promising young man named Anakin Skywalker. As a gifted mechanical builder, Anakin cobbled together a skeletal-looking protocol droid and named it C-3PO. Many adventures and a gold-coated facelift later, C-3PO would once again cross paths with his equally-rebuilt creator in a less than happy reunion.

It’s a phenomenon that we aren’t quite able to fully explain, but for us (and seemingly true for other collectors) it is always exciting to get a new C-3PO action figure. Kenner/Hasbro once again delivers a very noteworthy version of C-3PO for collectors based on his tragic fall from getting startled by the Tusken Raiders. Complete with removable left arm, this version of C-3PO will be a longstanding collector favorite figure. It has a neat feature, as a splendid filthy paint job and is based on a short scene which is probably more memorable than many other parts of Episode IV. The tightly wound C-3PO was always overanxious in the Star Wars films, but when you look at a scene like the one this action figure is based, it seems that he had plenty of reasons to always be a scaredy-cat. This action figure portrays both the fear, and the consequences of that fear quite well. It has quickly developed into one of our most favorite versions of C-3PO to date. Although referred early on by Hasbro as both “shop worn” and “desert worn” version of this droid, this C-3PO figure should really be called C-3PO (Tusken Raider Fury) because that is really what happened here.

We’ll get back to the action figure in a moment or two, but collectors may be more intrigued about the Episode I FlashBack Photo that has been included with C-3PO. It reveals what C-3PO looks like before he received his metal plating. As you are all well aware, releasing an image from Episode I prior to the official 1999 product release date is a rarity, and it’s quite cool to see C-3PO as a humanoid collections of wires. That action figure is going to be a doozey to produce! Anyway, that is one of the most remarkable things about the FlashBack waves of figures. They give insider glimpses to Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace and there is probably nothing more than a Star Wars fan wants then an early look of what’s to come. Obviously, these Episode I FlashBack Photos will mean a whole lot less after the release of the film. Anyway, C-3PO may not being the excitement of his early appearance to the basic figure line, but there is no doubt that FlashBack C-3PO doesn’t make an impact of his own. The sculpt is rather wonderful and although the articulation isn’t ideal, there is here to easily recreate the scenes on which this figure is based. You should have very little complaints about it.

Released in the final wave of The Power Of The Force “2” FlashBack phase, C-3PO also joined the much requested Aunt Beru (With Service Droid) and odd “in the flesh” version of Anakin Skywalker, an ill-fitted attempt at recreating the spirit of Anakin Skywalker figure that Kenner made in 1985’s The Power Of The Force line. Clearly that Anakin Skywalker was based on something from an Expanded Universe event that just didn’t happen yet. (We can’t see how it could possibly happen. We digress.) The final wave of the FlashBack figures was indeed small, but it was only to set up the “new and improved” CommTech phase of POTF2 which also boasted a healthy dose of characters from Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope. We feel that C-3PO is a very important action figure for your collection. He isn’t without fault, but he is definitely one of the nicest versions of C-3PO you can find. Better will come, but we wonder if Hasbro will ever be able to match the artful deco this figure received ever again. (Editor’s Note: This figure was so great that Hasbro reissued in the Star Wars “Saga” [Phase III] lineup as the C-3PO (Tatooine Ambush) ('03 #21) basic figure.)