Obi-Wan Kenobi - TVC - Basic (VC31)

How many times can Hasbro release The Legacy Collection Obi-Wan Kenobi (BD 44) figure? Our answer would be as many times as it takes to get it right. Thankfully, they did with the 2011 The Vintage Collection release. All of us already know what a spectacular figure this is, but you may not be aware of the improvements made to the figure’s paint job that were much needed. Some call it slightly repainted, but we see significant enhancements. (But that’s because it’s part of the obsessive-compulsive disorder and changes made to an action figure are amplified when you have this condition.) Besides the updates to the figure’s paint job, Hasbro has decided to include a soft-goods Jedi outer robe and also fit some paint details missed on the hilt of Obi-Wan’s lightsaber. If you recall, the original 2009 release of this figure came with an Episode I lightsaber. But that was because 2009’s TLC Obi-Wan Kenobi (BD 34), 2009’s TLC Obi-Wan Kenobi (BD 44) and 2009’s LC Obi-Wan Kenobi (BD06) were all meant to be part of what would have been a great Evolutions set before the line got canceled. Perhaps (and most likely) the accessories got mixed up. At the same rate, we are thrilled we got them all as basic action figures single carded, the way figures should always be released in our opinion.

Obi-Wan Kenobi (based on his Episode II appearance) has not had an easy life as an action figure before this. While Hasbro attempted the character more times than we can count, most of them came to us during an era when articulation and accuracy took a backseat to action features and gimmicks. And besides, most came with terrible prepositioned poses and second class likenesses that just ruined the aesthetics of the figure. But that was a time long, long ago, before super-articulation reigned supreme. And when that happened, we saw major improvements lead action figure making. The The Legacy Collection/Build A Droid version was released to thunderous applause. But since the figure lacked some of the finer details, Hasbro has used its release in The Vintage Collection to fix those errors. We’ll get to them in detail in a moment, but we first wanted to point out a glaring packaging error. Hasbro has designated the first issued Episode II Obi-Wan Kenobi figure as the 2003 SW Obi-Wan Kenobi (Outlander Nightclub Encounter) '03 #39. This of course couldn’t be more incorrect. The actual first Episode II Obi-Wan Kenobi figure is the rather terrible 2002 SW Obi-Wan Kenobi (Coruscant Chase) ’02 #03 figure (released a whole year before the latter). We have almost accepted that Hasbro will be not getting a lot of these historical references correctly. It's unfortunate, but it is what it is.

So, what makes this version of Obi-Wan Kenobi unique? Hasbro has completely re-colored the upper portions of his outfit, especially the tunic and given it a few shades of darker tan that more closely mirrors the costume in the film. And the even more obvious change is that they have properly given Obi-Wan Kenobi a yellow undershirt. The belt is a darker brown than before and the details like the food capsules (and whatever else is hanging along his belt) are crisper and more identifiable. The slight darkening of the upper body does wonders for the soft-goods skirt and there is less of a transition and more blending of colors which works beautifully. We don’t see too may changes if any with the portrait. It seems as if Hasbro got that right the first time and we are happy with the repeated results. The last change we see is in the paint job on his boots. A finer paint job is now evident and you can see streaking and wear that barely was there previously. And the inclusion of his soft-goods Jedi robe just brings this figure altogether for us. Obi-Wan Kenobi is a simply but wonderfully updated figure for The Vintage Collection. We are truly thankful that Hasbro is putting the effort forth to do these small tweaks to make the figures are accurate as possible. This is the best Episode II Obi-Wan yet. Get him today!