Star Wars: Power Of The Jedi Shmi Skywalker Action Figure Review

Star Wars: Power Of The Jedi Shmi Skywalker Action Figure — 

Although the 1999-2005 Star Wars Prequel Trilogy (The Phantom Menace, Attack of the Clones, and Revenge of the Sith) will likely never be as beloved as the original Classic Trilogy by most fans, they do serve their intended purpose - to fully explain that Darth Vader, one of filmdom's greatest villains of all time, wasn't so much the personification of evil most viewers thought he was, but that he was a tragic figure who made poor choices despite his good intentions during his youth as Anakin Skywalker, the slave boy from Tatooine who left his home to become a Jedi Knight, not realizing that his love for his mother - Shmi - would prove to be one of his biggest Achilles heels once the Sith Lords became aware of his existence.

One of my favorite dramatis personae was the stoic-yet-loving Shmi Skywalker, Anakin's single mom and future grandmother to Luke Skywalker and Princess Leia Organa.  Abducted by space pirates early in her teens, Shmi served under several masters until she and her son were sold to Gardulla the Hutt and whisked off to Tatooine.

On that desolate Outer Rim world, Shmi and Anakin lived the simple but arduous lives of slaves.  Shmi became adept at cleaning and repairing all sorts of electronics components, a skill that served her well when Gardulla lost her and her son to Watto after gambling on the Podraces.

Although there are dark rumors that the Sith Lord Darth Sidious somehow engineered Shmi's "miraculous" conception-by-midichlorians to create Anakin (and thus fulfill the Jedi prophecy of the Chosen One), there's no reason to doubt that Shmi told the truth to Qui-Gon Jinn when she declared that Anakin had no father.  "I can't explain what happened," she says at one point.

What is evident from The Phantom Menace and Attack of the Clones is that Shmi loves her boy.  She is strict but fair with Anakin, and lets him have his hobby of repairing droids and mechanical things.  She also knows he's already a great pilot - he drives Podracers - and though she hates it, she wisely lets Anakin be, knowing in her heart that her son has a great destiny ahead of him.

Shmi Skywalker - The Figure:

Although Shmi is a major character in The Phantom Menace and her ensuing death in Attack of the Clones is one of several catalysts for her son's transformation into Darth Vader, it wasn''t until Hasbro produced this 2001 figure as part of its unified Power of the Jedi product line that collectors could include Anakin's mom in their stashes of figures.

Shmi is rendered as she appears throughout much of Episode I, her black and slightly graying hair done in a conservative servants' bun.  Her face is that of a weary-but-loving single mother who has done her best to raise her spirited child amid the harsh conditions of slave life on Tatooine.



As a girl, Shmi was captured by space pirates, separated from her family, and sold into slavery. Shmi currently serves Watto, a junk dealer on Tatooine, and also earns a small income cleaning computermemory devices. Shmi is devoted to her son, Anakin, who possesses special powers. She can always sense when he is nearby.  - Jedi Force File for Shmi Skywalker

Comments: Though the figure is really nicely done - every detail of the costume designed by Trisha Beggar is perfectly replicated, and the figure's face and hair strongly resemble actress Pernilla August's maternal features - it was available for a long period of time while the Power of the Jedi line was in store shelves six years ago.  One would go looking for a figure of Darth Maul or Jek Porkins, say, and while there would be none or very few of those on the pegs, there would be lots of Shmi Skywalkers hanging there.  She was, as collectors often say, a "peg warmer" - a figure very few people wanted for one reason or another.

Articulation: Although my Shmi Skywalker is still in her carded bubblepack, a visit to http://www.rebelscum.com's photo archives reveals that the mom of Anakin and grandmother to Luke and Leia does have various articulation points that allow more posing possibilities than those of first-generation Kenner Star Wars figures.

In addition to the traditional movement points of neck/head, shoulders/arms, and hips/legs, Shmi Skywalker has koints at the elbows and maybe the wrists, which allow poses such as her clasping her hands in front of her, or outstretched as if to offer her son a hug.  She can also clasp something called a Diagnostic Reader in her hands for poses in which she's depicted as working.

Overall, the figure is really nicely done. Much of the character's clothes are a hybrid of painted/molded plastic with some parts done with fabric to replicate Shmi's simple homemade servant's clothing.

Because the character really didn't have any "action" sequences that would excite too many people, her figure obviously has no weapons or any neat kick-butt extras.  The Jedi Force File booklet that comes with the figure sort of tries to imply some pretend adventures for Shmi (Podrace Treachery and Watto's Revenge), but, nevertheless, her figure was so easy to find when others were not because of her rather minor standing with picky Star Wars fans.

And though I'm not particularly a person who likes to get figures of characters who aren't, well, exciting, I do understand Shmi's relevance to the story of how and why Anakin lost his humanity and became Darth Vader. 

In any case, the detailing of the 2001 Shmi Skywalker figure is still tops, and it's definitely worth adding to anyone's Star Wars action figure collection.

As with all the Star Wars figures of this scale, parents should be aware that Hasbro does not recommend this toy for children under the age of three; the small parts are a choking hazard, especially for "oral stage" toddlers.