Darth Vader - TFA - 12-Inch Figures

Destined to bring balance to the Force, Anakin Skywalker feel to the dark side and arose as Darth Vader.

Hasbro is certainly making the most of their 2013 SW [DV/ROTS] Darth Vader 12-Inch Figure sculpt. They’re flip-flopping between his Episode V and Episode IV likeness (with some Episode III inspiration thrown in here and there), but try as they might, they just cannot get this figure to be completely screen accurate no matter what they do. The differences between all of the Darth Vader costumes gets exhausting to itemize over and over again. But between differently colored details on the chest box to whether the robes go under or over the chest armor, the Darth Vader 12-Inch Figure in the Star Wars toy line just hasn’t delivered the quality product it should have to Star Wars collectors of all ages. Now repainted, Darth Vader's chest box has been decorated to imitate its appearance in Episode III and Episode IV for The Force Awakens line. It's difficult to link this figure to just one film, but in our opinion, this particular version of Darth Vader is more closely based to his likeness in A New Hope. With red and green lights on the chest box and an inferior soft-goods cape, Darth Vader hasn’t aged any better since his original release in 2013. So it is perplexing to us that Hasbro consistently releases it in each new line look.

This Darth Vader figure is tired and should be put to bed for good now. As you know, Darth Vader was one of the first “shampoo bottles” Hasbro ever produced, and they didn’t have the template perfected. Darth Vader is much too lanky, comes with a poorly cut soft-goods cape and has a lightsaber hilt permanently affixed to his right hand. Oh, and the plastic used to cast him is much too shiny. It’s ridiculous how much he glistens in the littlest bit of light. Despite the lackluster appeal of this 12-Inch Figure, Darth Vader is always a character that will perform well at retail. He is always sought after on the pegs. Perhaps Hasbro takes this for granted. One would think that Hasbro would have tooled an all-new version of Darth Vader to make him more relevant to the modern era, especially since so many of the newer 12-Inch Figures look infinitely better by comparison. It’s time to tool an all-new figure from here on out. Darth Vader comes with the same seven (7) points of articulation as he always has. Movement like this doesn’t do much to help you pose the figure meaningfully. We cannot stand that the hilt of the lightsaber is permanently affixed to his right hand. The blade, however, is removable, so you get options here.

While Hasbro added swivel wrist movement to this sculpt, Darth Vader still only comes with a swivel head, two swivel shoulders and two swivel hips which again does very little for the kid or collector. Besides, the arms hang so closely to the body that the range of movement of them is greatly inhibited. The good news is that the swivel wrists do help to allow you to pose the lightsaber in some optional ways, but it’s still not ideal. Darth Vader also comes with a poor quality cut soft-goods cape. It’s essentially a felt triangle that is permanently attached to the figure. With a little patience, you can attain a rather believable drape with it, but it looks cheap, and no consideration was made to make it look aesthetically pleasing to the eye. Darth Vader has been cast in a very cheap plastic that is much too shiny for his good. It’s a shame that Hasbro decided to reissue this figure when they’re making better figures currently. When fully displayed, at first glance Darth Vader may not look that bad to you. But we can assure you that unfortunate sacrifices have been made to keep this figure within Hasbro’s tooling budget and subsequent MSRP of less than $10. And for all intents and purposes, that’s exactly what you’re getting here.