Obi-Wan Kenobi (Jedi) - POTJ - Basic

Obi-Wan is headstrong and impulsive, but he is also loyal and trustworthy. Despite the objections of the Jedi Council, Obi-Wan has vowed to fulfill his Master's dying wish: to train Anakin Skywalker to become a Jedi.

We know what you’re thinking already. How could Hasbro release yet another new version of Obi-Wan Kenobi from The Phantom Menace so soon after the Episode I line wrapped up? We agree with you wholeheartedly and it pains us to see repetition continually plague the line. With all of the influx of Episode I products, collectors had plenty of time to secure as many versions of Qui-Gon Jinn and Obi-Wan Kenobi as they wanted. So why with the Power Of The Jedi line look have they made him one of the first new figures for this lineup as well? You may beg to differ, but Obi-Wan Kenobi sells and he is one of the most popular characters of the entire Star Wars saga. Heck, he is even part of the Power Of The Jedi logo, so expect him to make frequent appearances in the basic figure line from here on out. Hasbro has sculpted an all-new figure which doesn’t honestly look all that bad. And he performed well at retail. What makes him unique from other Obi-Wan Kenobi action figures is that this represents him from the beginning as well as the end of the film and his plastic molded robe is completely removable. But how does it hold up as an action figure.

While Hasbro definitely attempted to take steps to refresh the current state of Obi-Wan Kenobi, he barely is that of of a improvement of what’s previously been released. In fact, some may say he is less impressive by comparison. Obi-Wan Kenobi (Jedi) has been posed with very awkward legs. They lean and make it very difficult to position him upright without the assistance of his plastic molded robe giving him that extra support he needs. The likeness of Obi-Wan Kenobi (Jedi) is decent, but nowhere near perfect. His Padawan braid has been cast in plastic instead of soft-goods (we preferred the soft-goods so much more) and his body seems a little too chunky for the character’s actual body type. He comes with eight points of articulation, all swivel which include the head, shoulders, elbows, waist and hips. It may seem like a fair amount, but Obi-Wan Kenobi (Jedi) is severely limited in how many distinct poses you can achieve with him. He comes with a lightsaber accessory and we have to admit that we found it frustrating to come up with some engagingly cool poses. Hasbro must add lower body articulation to Jedi action figures. For us, it’s a minimum requirement.

Probably one of the most unrequested figures in the Power Of The Jedi line, Obi-Wan Kenobi (Jedi) still sold well despite not being Hasbro’s greatest effort. We believe that’s a testament to the popularity of the character, and the hope that this action figure would be a few steps ahead of all previous versions of this character made in the Episode I line. But ultimately this figure just doesn’t deliver and we’re overall quite disappointed in it. We’re pretty confident that Hasbro isn’t fully impressed with it either. Although it interestingly represents Obi-Wan Kenobi from both the beginning of The Phantom Meance (when he and Qui-Gon Jinn went to negotiate with the Neimoidians) as well as the end of the film (at Qui-Gon’s funeral), we still think Hasbro is a long way off before they get this character right in the basic action figure line. Obi-Wan Kenobi (Jedi) may just turn out to be one of the most unnecessary basic figure releases in the Power Of The Jedi line. Not much new is brought to the table here, it’s just an average sculpt, and the removable robe isn’t anything to shout out about because it just isn’t that exciting. In our honest opinion, you’ll likely be able to find a more interesting Obi-Wan Kenobi action figure in the Episode I line instead.