Holiday Edition [Yoda] (2nd Edition) - SW [S - P3] - Exclusives

Hasbro and Lucasfilm Ltd. are delighted to present the second in a series of Star Wars Holiday Edition commemorative sets. Inspired by the artwork of renowned artist Ralph McQuarrie, this specially designed set captures the imaginative vision of McQuarrie's art in collectible 3¾" action figure scale. Our gift to you, this piece is a distinctive addition to any Star Wars colection. May the Force be with you, and happy holidays.

With the success of 2002’s Star Wars “Saga” Holiday Edition [R2-D2 & C-3PO] Walmart exclusive two-pack, Hasbro felt it best to ensure they had a similar product in the works for 2003. Reserved for the Star Wars Fan Club this time, collector can warmly welcome Holiday Edition [Yoda] (2nd Edition) into their collections. Proudly inspired by the 1981 Lucasfilm Ltd. Holiday card which was an original sketch by renowned artist Ralph McQuarrie, Hasbro takes it into the three-dimensional world as a highly sought after collectible action figure. While Yoda comes with very little articulation, the sculpt is light years ahead of its time. It is a truly wonderful representation of the demure Jedi Master and it came perfectly in time to celebrate the 2003 Christmas season. Complete with a removable Santa sack filled with toys accessory, and his signature gimer stick, Holiday Edition Yoda perfectly celebrates fandom as much as it does the holidays. For $12.99, collectors don’t really get a wealth of plastic with this special release, but we bet that you won’t care once you see how impressive the sculpt is indeed.

Yoda is just slightly bigger in scale than the previous action figure versions we have received of him throughout the years. We can’t say the likeness is a dead ringer for the look of Yoda in the McQuarrie illustration, but there is something uniquely “conceptual” about this version of Yoda while at the same time it interestingly remains faithful to the character in the Original Trilogy. Yoda comes complete in a miniature version of Santa’s costume. The hat and jacket are not removable (soft-goods would have been sublime here), but it doesn’t matter because this is an action figure meant for display for only the holiday season once a year. The Santa sack filled with toys has been flawlessly sculpted to interact with the action figure. It rests on his back, but the bunched up opening of the sack also fits into his right hand in a very believable and natural manner. Even when holding the Santa toy sack Yoda is able to hold his gimer stick in his left hand. If we had to complain, we’d say that Yoda has an awkward center of gravity (he leans forward quite noticeably), but this has evidently been done to counterbalance the weight of the toy sack and prevent him from falling backwards when he is holding it.

Just like the Holiday Edition [R2-D2 & C-3PO] set, Yoda comes with a brilliantly sculpted environmental display base. It’s a snowy terrain and has two toys that have “fallen” out of the toy sack permanently glued to the base. We would have loved to have the ball and block as separate accessories, but Hasbro has decided that they function better as permanent “props” for the base. Either way, Yoda completely displayed on the base looks fantastic. We have to admit that we aren’t fans of Star Wars cross-pollinating with a holiday, but something like this prove that it can be done, and done well. There are a ton of Christmas themed collectible sets that Hasbro can produce. We love the idea of Darth Vader or Ewok wearing a Santa hat (as seen in other Star Wars art) and we think that they would make great collectibles too. If you think about all of the Yoda action figures we have received to date, you’d think that we probably wouldn’t need another. But a unique take like the Holiday Edition [Yoda] (2nd Edition) gift set makes it alright. It’s always great to reflect on the wonderful things we all have. It’s nice that a Star Wars collectible also pauses to help remind us to do the same.