Obi-Wan Kenobi And Darth Maul (Mandalore) - SW [DV/ROTS] - Mission Series (MS06)

Jedi hero Obi-Wan Kenobi confronts the evil Sith Lord Darth Maul on the planet Mandalore. Obi-Wan has dueled Maul several times since their first encounter on Naboo, and must face him once again when Kenobi comes to Dutchess Satine's rescue.

Uh. What can be said of the action figures in the Star Wars [Darth Vader/Revenge Of The Sith] line? A whole new approach is being taken now. Figures come with five points of articulation if we're lucky, and articulation and accessories have gone the way of the dodo bird, save the strict collector-focused products. And even some of those are getting skimped. What may pour salt in the wound most of all for eager collectors looking to buy them all is that with the release of the second wave of Mission Series figures, Hasbro has added a never before released character. And perhaps even more painful than that is that it’s a character from The Clone Wars series.... in minimalistic realistic style. It creates a whirlwind of confusion, and many collectors have given up on trying to understand Hasbro intent and direction they have taken the basic figure line. While it’s a wonderful to get first-time available characters in the toy line, at what expense is this being done, and what will be the long-term ramifications if the line doesn’t become a hit for Hasbro? The inaugural waves were Episode III heavy and hadn’t sold briskly. Now that Hasbro is creating products that will engage more of the buying public, it’s unlikely these anticipated products will reach store shelves because we’re already feeling the bottlenecking. Well, enough of the gloom and doom. Let’s talk about this Mission Series two-pack. Because while it’s not what we want to see, it does have some merit.

The Obi-Wan Kenobi And Darth Maul (Mandalore) Mission Series set may be the most exciting release yet in this line. Both figures are new for the Saga Legends line, but they’re also first time offerings in their unique ways. While we received the “Episode III” The Clone Wars version of Obi-Wan Kenobi in the animated line, released as 2011’s TCW [SOTDS] Obi-Wan Kenobi (CW40), this is the very first time we’re getting him in realistic style, albeit poorly articulated. The sculpt is frankly excellent, but it looks terrible thanks to a horrific paint job. Most of it has been recycled from 2013’s SW [DV/ROTS] Obi-Wan Kenobi (SL04) figure. Please don’t judge this figure by the paint operations alone otherwise you won’t even consider the figure. Those with artistic skills will make this figure looks fantastic. We would even go so far as to say that it’s one of the greatest portraits of Obi-Wan Kenobi to date. Darth Maul looks cool, but he also suffers from a terrible paint job as well. The red and black paint on his face bleeds mercilessly together and gives him an overall much too dark face color. There is a lot of detail in his costume, however, and it truly makes us pine for a super-articulated version of him. Come on Hasbro; he is Darth Maul for goodness sake. He’s one of the most popular characters from the Star Wars universe. You really couldn’t have reserved this slot for the collector-focused line? Hasbro needs to realize how many adult collectors love The Clone Wars show and the many characters from it.

The packaging itself is a misnomer. Obi-Wan Kenobi (in this outfit) did not battle Darth Maul (in this outfit). Hasbro has mixed up a few different episodes from The Clone Wars here, including multiple episodes from season 4 and season 5 of The Clone Wars television show. But weirdly the set works as a whole. Technically, Obi-Wan Kenobi should have come in a red Mandalorian disguise and not his quasi Episode III duds. That’s what makes this set so disappointing. Imagine if Hasbro reserved this concept for the adult collector line? Imagine how easily they could have taken one of the many existing Mandalorian body sculpts and stuck an Obi-Wan Kenobi portrait on top of it. And again, with all of the Darth Maul action figures they’ve made, how easy would it have been to retool an existing sculpt of Darth Maul, and maybe add new legs.... or something. So many collectors would have jumped on that set immediately, but right now all we have is minimally articulated versions of these characters. The pricing of the Mission Series line is an absolute steal. For ten dollars you get two action figures each with an accessory. These are 1995 prices, and no one has room to complain about that. Whether they’ll be massive hits or not is a different issue. The Obi-Wan Kenobi And Darth Maul (Mandalore) Mission Series set will likely be one of the most sought-after sets in wave 2. Zealots of The Clone Wars TV show are desperately waiting for any and all Star Wars toy-related products that get produced based on this property. This set is worthy of considering to purchase.