Star Wars Retro Collection: 10 of First 12

 I've only acquired ten of the first twelve Kenner Star Wars figures released again in Hasbro's Retro Collection, but this post will cover the first twelve figures released by Kenner in 1978 - the remaining two I actually have vintage samples of. I had every one of these figures as a child, and though I sold off or gifted them all since, I've had fun rediscovering them as an adult. There were a lot of complaints about how Hasbro's Retro Collection were distributed and released, beginning in 2019, but I'm just glad to have a few.

I only recently acquired these three Stormtroopers, all vintage samples. Two are stamped Hong Kong, the other China. According to Perplexity.AI, the Hong Kong are considered among the first production runs of this figure, Chinese Stormtroopers having been produced later as Kenner's outsourcing throughout Asia broadened.

Below, Kenner's original Stormtroopers and Darth Vader with their later 

Power of the Force line Stormtroopers and Darth Vader from 1995...

Kenner's Death Squad Commander was a somewhat odd choice for Keener to include in the original twelve, but he has his own thing going on and fills out the troop lineup nicely....

My vintage Obi-Wan Kenobi can finally do battle with my Retro Darth Vader ...!

I actually have two vintage Obi-Wan Kenobi figures, both outfitted with replica lightsabers, one the coveted telescoping model ...

It's been a while since I've had a 3.75" Princess Leia in my hands! 

She can now load the Death Star plans into R2-D2 while C-3PO looks on ...

Luke Skywalker was a coveted figure in my youth- having a clean Retro Collection sample is fun! The Bespin Luke figure took his place in 1980, followed by Jedi Luke Skywalker in 1983, but Farmboy Luke was my first in 1978!

The Retro Collection Chewbacca and Han Solo look just like I remember them in 1978! You can probably see some putty holding Han's blaster in the picture below- sadly, he cannot hold his weapon at all. Really unfortunate! Regardless, they'll handle Greedo and Walrus Man easily with their smuggler's swagger!

And last, but certainly not last, the Tusken Raider and Jawa, mysterious inhabitants of Tatooine. Both captured my imagination seeing Star Wars for the first time in the '70s!

When returning to collecting actions as an adult several years ago, 3.75" Star Wars figures were oddly not my main point of interest, though they occupied a lot of my play time as a child. But with the 50th anniversary quickly approaching, I was reminded how much Star Wars meant to us '70s kids and it's fun to have this classic lineup once again!

More Later- May the Force Be with You!

Blokees Champion Class Darth Vader

I had such a great time building the Blokees Luke Skywalker and Han Solo in Stormtrooper Disguise, that I had to circle back and scoop up the Champion Class Darth Vader- a magnificent looking and well-articulated model with lots of extra hand options and even an alternate "swooshing" lightsaber blade.

There were just a few less parts than the Luke and Han Stormtrooper Blokees I put together, 90 to be exact, but now that I'm familiar with their build, assembly went relatively quick. I found the process engaging and enjoyable.

And finally, Vader with my Luke Skywalker and Han Solo in Stormtrooper Disguise...

More Later- May the Force Be with You

Star Wars POTF TIE Fighter (1995)

I had a Kenner Darth Vader TIE Fighter in the '80s which had lights and sounds, a feature sadly missing from this 1995 update. The Power of the Force TIE had added sculpt on the wings however- a definite improvement on the decals used on the original ship. You can find these used at relatively reasonable prices. There's a white version of this produced in 2003 as well (like Kenner's original 1979 TIE Fighter), they seem to be more rare.

I kind of had to get a Power of the Force TIE Fighter Pilot to fit in the cockpit and picked up a couple Stormtroopers and a Darth Vader to lord over them while I was at it. I wasn't into collecting in '95, so I never had any of these- they are cheap to acquire. For years I've seen these warming the pegs of reseller's shops- Kenner's production runs on this line must've been enormous.

I don't care much for Darth Vader's clunky plastic cape, and his lightsaber is way too long, but the Power of the Force figure line's "beefed up" styling is most effective on him. The mix of matte and shiny black throughout are nice ...

The Stormtroopers can be a little challenging to stand- I've ordered some bases to display mine. While not the iconic figure from 1978, these figures haver added neck and waist articulation and are far more affordable. While I had no figures from this '90s line and the original line is where I came from, I find these POTF figures charming.

I actually bought this TIE Fighter to display with some of the larger vintage Kenner Star Wars figures in my collection, using this Starship Wall Mount I bought from Galactic Collector on eBay...

More Later- May the Force Be with You!

Kenner 12in. C-3PO, R2-D2, Chewbacca, Darth Vader (1978)

Star Wars hasn't got nearly enough love on The Super-DuperToyBox, contrary to my firsthand experience witnessing and participating in the blockbuster zeitgeist of the '70s as a child. The amount of Star Wars action figures and vehicles I had was substantial and included a small selection of these 12" Kenner figures, including a Darth Vader and Chewbacca who towered over the other toys in my collection at 15". I've had this Darth Vader for years and was featured in my very first post back in 2010.

C-3PO and R2-D2 were not in my childhood collection but are essential if you ask my opinion. R2 has wheels that roll freely, and his hatch in back pops open via a small button/panel on the front to expose the Death Star plans- a play feature that really makes this droid special. This R2's head swivel no longer clicks when turning, and the C-3PO has a loose left shoulder, but they display nicely.

 

All of these figures have a great deal in common with their 3.75" counterparts- Kenner did a great job scaling them up. They don't really have more articulation than their smaller counterparts, so posing is going to be limited, but they are beautiful toys that really wowed me as a kid! 

And finally, the large scale Kenner Star Wars next to some other graduates of the class of 1978. Mego's 12" Hulk, Spider-Man, Superman, and Jor-El. It was a great time to be a kid! The toys of that era, from the late '70s leading into the early '80s were fantastic, these oversized figures among my favorites!

More Later- Make It FUN!

A Decade at the Super-DuperToyBox

It's hard for me to believe ten years went by so fast, but a decade ago today was my first post on the Super-DuperToyBox. In the summer of 2010 I was selling old toys on E-Bay, and soon found a listing for the 15" Kenner Darth Vader I had as a child. I bought him with the money I earned selling some of my wares, soon finding other toys that brought back childhood memories. Mattel's 8" D.C. Retro Action figures caught my eye quickly,  tapping my nostalgia for the old Mego World's Greatest Heroes line from the 70's. Shortly thereafter I discovered the 90's line of  Marvel Famous Covers 9" figures by ToyBiz that featured cloth outfits much like the old Megos. Before I knew it, I had bought more action figures and a glass curio case to hold them all. I became consumed!

Above: Table full of action figures I had collected in just the first couple months of toy blogging. (December 2010)

Along the way I befriended many a toy blogger I know to this day, and while many have abandoned this platform in favor of Instagram and YouTube, I keep the light on here. I like the long form personally, and after nearly 1,000 posts and well over 1.6 million page views, it's become a thing I'm somewhat proud of, visited by people worldwide every day. Cheers!

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More To Come- Make It FUN!