Figure of the Day: Day 256: Luke Skywalker (Gunner Station)

LUKE SKYWALKER Millennium Falcon Gunner Station
Power of the Force Gunner Station Assortment
Item No.: Asst. 69665 No. 69848
Number: n/a
Includes: Gunner station, missiles
Action Feature: Really fires!
Retail: $9.99
Availability: Spring 1998
Appearances: Star Wars

Bio: Luke Skywalker was the son of Jedi Knight Anakin Skywalker and Naboo Senator Padmé Amidala, and the older twin brother of Leia Organa Solo. A celebrated pilot, leader, and legendary Jedi Master, Skywalker was most famous for destroying the first Death Star and providing the catalyst for Darth Vader to kill Emperor Palpatine, which led to the eventual downfall of the Galactic Empire and made him the greatest hero of the Alliance to Restore the Republic. (Stolen from Wookieepedia.)

Image: Adam's toy shelf.

Commentary: In 1998, Hasbro (then Kenner) introduced the "New Luke" sculpt. Before, they were all beefy, but now, Luke Skywalker looked a little bit more like his movie appearances. For the Gunner Stations, the basic sculpt (with its six points of articulation) was modified to include a communications headset, which (so far) is unique to this Luke figure and has yet to be revisited. But Hasbro does like to reuse ideas and it's probably only a matter of time. Better Luke figures have been released since this one, but only just barely-- this basic design tends to be the basis of most (if not all) basic Luke figures from the original movie. It's not perfect, but it's pretty great-- if you like big, firing accessories, this may be the one you want to get.

Collector's Notes: This wasn't a great seller. Some online stores still have units from the first shipments, so if you want one, it's going to be easy to get.

Day 256: January 17, 2007