Hasbro Star Wars - The Power of the Force Bespin Luke Skywalker Review

When Kenner Toys, a Cincinnati, Ohio-based subsidiary of General Mills (makers of Cheerios cereals) became one of the few licensees to take an interest in a modestly-budgeted space-fantasy movie called Star Wars, little did its owners realize that the small 3.75-inch scale "action figures" based on the many heroes and villains created by George Lucas would be as popular as they eventually became with kids, teenagers and even adults.

Indeed, Kenner was so unprepared by the success of Lucas' 1977 blockbuster set "a long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away" that its first 12 figures were introduced in its now-famous "empty box" Christmas campaign: customers had to go to toy stores or big retailers (such as Sears and Roebuck) and basically pre-order them by paying at the counter for a mail-order voucher. 

Despite this initial marketing mishap, Star Wars figures and their many accessories (spacecraft, extra weapons, and playsets which replicated worlds and space stations such as the Death Star) sold very well during their initial seven-year production run, with new collections introduced in tandem with the releases of The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi. 

The Figures Evolve

Although Kenner's figures were so popular that they eventually outsold their larger 12-inch "action figure" forerunners of Hasbro's "G.I. Joe" collection, they did have their flaws.

For starters, because their outfits were molded and painted onto the figures and weren't interchangeable as those like their big "G.I. Joe" cousins, many of the major human characters (Luke Skywalker, Princess Leia, Han Solo, and Obi-Wan Kenobi) had only one basic outfit even when their costumes either had variations or various outfits were worn.  Thus, you often saw Kenner publicity photos of its X-Wing Fighter being piloted by Luke Skywalker - still dressed in his Tatooine outfit!

 Kenner, of course, had a solution: it released more 12-figure "collections" in which new characters and new variants of major characters were introduced, such as 1979's "Luke Skywalker: X-Wing Pilot." 

Another problem the first-generation Kenner figures had was this: they were initially marketed for the younger set of Star Wars fans (kids four and up), and after a few unfortunate accidents involving a rival company's action figures, Star Wars figures had to be made as safe as possible,  This meant that any feature which could be potentially hazardous (such as a proposed launchable backpack missile for Boba Fett) was vetoed.  Of course, the blasters and lightsabers couldn't be enlarged or eschewed, but other things - such as removable hands or face masks) - were either left on drawing boards or canceled.

While this made perfect sense at the time, this did limit the figures' appeal to older fans who wanted them to be more true to the characters' appearance in the movies.  After all, one of the reasons the space-fantasy aspects were so believable was the fact that Lucas had given his imaginary galaxy a lived-in look.  Instead of a sterile, too-clean envirnonment which was a cliche in science fiction movies of the period, the characters of Star Wars ride in vehicles which look used and sometimes beat-up, and their clothes show signs of wear and tear.

Kenner's figures of the late 1970s and early '80s, however, were made at a time when including lots of authentic detailing was not possible, so the characters all "wear" outfits that look as though they had just come out from Imperial Laundry and Dry Cleaning.

The other big issue older collectors had centered on limited posing/staging possibilities.  The toy manufacturing industry simply couldn't add enough points of articulation without making the figures look like a collection of hinges, and because of safety concerns, some scenes, such as the duel between Darth Vader and Luke Skywalker on Bespin's Cloud City, could only be recreated up to the point before Vader cuts off Luke's right hand.

 Bespin Luke Skywalker (with Lightsaber and Blaster Pistol)

Sensing his friends are in critical danger, Luke Skywalker ventures to Cloud City before finishing his Jedi training. Unbeknownst to him, Darth Vader has prepared an elaborate trap with the darkest of intentions.  - from the package blurb

Though one of Kenner's main variants of Luke Skywalker in its 1980-1982 The Empire Strikes Back collections was the Bespin Fatigues figure, that figure's shortcomings were typical of the period.

Not only was Luke's dirty-blonde hair rendered in a bright yellow tone that looked nothing like actor Mark Hamill's, but his khaki outfit, which was also worn on Dagobah during his training with Yoda, was too pristine-looking.  Furthermore, Luke wielded a yellow lightsaber (handgrip and all) which looked nothing like the blue-white laser sword which had been his father's.

Unfortunately, for nearly 20 years this was the only Luke Skywalker action figure from The Empire Strikes Back which could be posed with either Yoda or Darth Vader to recreate key scenes from that movie.

That is, until the now Hasbro-owned Kenner Collection issued Bespin Luke Skywalker as part of its Star Wars - The Power of the Force line in 1998.

Although Bespin Luke Skywalker depicts the young Jedi-in-training in the same Rebel-issue fatigues as on the 1980 figure, toy-making techniques and tools had evolved sufficiently enough for Hasbro's sculptors and painters to add more authentic detailing.

For instance, Luke's head and face no longer have that "marginally better than Fisher-Price doll" look that the 1980 figure sports.  The shape of the head is more natural and less rounded, Luke's hair isn't bright yellow, the eyes have blue pupils and "whites," and that benign semi-smile has now been replaced by a more neutral expression.

And though Skywalker's arsenal still comprises a BlasTech DL-44 blaster pistol and his father's lightsaber, the weapons - especially the lightsaber - look a bit more like the ones seen in the movie.

Weapons and Accessories:

In contrast to the all-yellow lightsaber wielded by Luke's 1980 Bespin Fatigues action figure, Bespin Luke Skywalker comes with a more "realistic" Jedi weapon. 

The lightsaber has a silver handgrip and a translucent light-blue "blade" which convincingly simulates the laser energy effect seen in the first two movies. (Later variants of Luke's lightsaber are more authentic-looking because the handgrip has had black detailing added.)

For fans who want more authenticity than they got with the 1980 original figure, Bespin Luke Skywalker has a detachable right hand that simulates the grievous injury inflicted by Darth Vader during their climactic duel in Cloud City's main reactor room.

Another gimmick that comes with Bespin Luke Skywalker is a Freeze Frame slide which features a still shot from The Empire Strikes Back.  Though Hasbro/Kenner also offered (separately, of course) a Freeze Frame projector, it can be used on a regular slide projector.

My Take:

Though Hasbro eventually got around to doing an even more detailed and scene-specific variant of the Luke in Cloud City figure, this 1998 offering is still a nice (if perhaps imperfect) Star Wars collectible.  The Freeze Frame accessory isn't too noteworthy unless one has a slide projector and more Freeze Frame figures/slides, and the detachable right hand is mainly of interest because it's the first time the feature was included in this particular character variant figure.