Luke Skywalker - SW [DV/ROTS] - 12-Inch Figures

Now a powerful Jedi, Luke Skywalker battles Darth Vader and Emperor Palpatine, wielding his lightsaber with supreme skill.

It was quite a surprise when Hasbro decided to resurrect the 12-Inch Figure line. But once the collecting community saw exactly how it was coming back, many of us just shook our heads in disbelief anyway. Infamously dubbed as “shampoo bottles,” the cheap quality of the newfound 12-Inch Figures line was hardly anything to get excited about because it was evident that there was very little saving grace to this format. The “new” 12-Inch Figures line made its debut in the Star Wars [Yoda/Attack of The Clones] line in early 2013. A dreadful Anakin Skywalker and phase I Clone Trooper were the initial offerings, and they sat (and last time we checked continue to sit) collecting dust at retail. Determined, to make this format work, they continued the line despite poor sales the next season. To their credit, Hasbro did up the ante a little bit halfway into the year when the line switched over to the Star Wars [Darth Vader/Revenge Of The Sith] line and included characters that would be surefire hits. Most notable perhaps was Darth Vader, and it’s consistently one of the first figures to disappear in a store that has decided to sell this line. Far from what an ideal 12-Inch Figure should be, the misnomer scale (they’re not really in 12-Inch Figure scale), the simplistic articulation and the inconsistent attached/free accessories makes the line feel like it has a little bit of a personality disorder.

But we think that Hasbro has risen the bar ever so slightly for the 2014 offerings. Let us reiterate: just slightly because these are far from ideal. One figure that has stood out from the rest is Luke Skywalker (as he appears in his Death Star II/Endor Capture iteration). Based on the Saga Legends sculpt, but blown up to be much larger with a few changes (like unopened shirt this time around), Luke Skywalker has a sculpt and a complementary paint job that borders on better than good. He has a thin and athletic stature; he has a portrait that looks very much like the character from the film. The paint job, albeit a little too simple for our tastes, is quite excellent. His eyes look good, and his hairline is on point. Although his lightsaber hilt is permanently attached to his right hand, the blade is removable which already offers the kid or collector variety that’s unexpected and appreciated. He has a fantastic center of gravity, and despite not offering a nearly infinite array of posing options, Luke Skywalker looks pretty good no matter how you decide to situate him. Even the color of his hair seems as if it’s one of the closest matches we have seen from Hasbro, 3.75” scale or otherwise. And the streamlined V-shape of his body gives him a posture that looks ripped right out of the film. We were pleasantly surprised by Luke Skywalker. It doesn’t mean we favor the format, but we think you could do a whole lot worse for $10.

Luke Skywalker comes with a swivel head (and it’s quite difficult to articulate it on our sample at least), two swivel shoulders, two swivel wrists and two swivel hips. Again, don’t expect to carve out some pretty dramatic poses out of him because that’s going to be impossible. But even just standing upright in your collection, Luke Skywalker will still look great no matter what. As we’ve mentioned earlier, Luke Skywalker’s paint job isn’t terrible. The hair looks good, the eyes could be much worse, and his mostly black outfit is accentuated with a few silver details to make the outfit pop (which it does nicely). His left hand is flesh-toned, and he is wearing a black glove on his right hand. As you can see, most of the important details are in place. We have to comment specifically on his upper body too. Hasbro has nailed the proportions of Luke Skywalker perfectly. And his collar area is spot on as well. If there was a way to take this sculpt, reduce it back down to 3.75” scale and give it super articulation, this could be one impressive version of Luke Skywalker. We’re certainly not knocking 2010’s TVC Luke Skywalker (Endor Capture [Jedi Knight Outfit]) (VC23) figure. But there is something about the silhouette of this 12-Inch Figure which seems a bit more accurate.