Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back - TLC - Commemorative Tin Collection (3 of 3) (Exclusive)

Whether it’s because The Empire Strikes Back typically tops the list for Star Wars fans as the most favorite film of the Original Trilogy, or whether it’s because of the few, but very striking creatures/droids in the film, there is something unique that happens when Hasbro groups them together in a special action figure multipack. The packaging almost overtakes the figures inside, but just for a little bit. That’s about where our assessment lies for the Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back (3 of 3) Commemorative Tin Collection set from The Legacy Collection line. It’s not completely packed with the best figures on the market, but this is an admirable collection of great main and background characters that should interest a large part of the collecting base, especially those that for one reason or another missed out on these action figures the first time. Another Kmart exclusive, The Legacy Collection Commemorative Tin Collection sets don’t resonate with the same coolness of the general release versions from the 30 (77-07) line, but they are still somewhat noteworthy for the cast of great characters that make them up.

Chewbacca is sadly the biggest dud in this particular set. Hasbro took the slightly repainted version of the original 2003 SW [S - P1] Chewbacca (Cloud City Capture) (’02 #38) figure which was released as 2006’s TSC Chewbacca (With Electronic C-3PO) (SAGA 054) and removed every last accessory except for his blaster and packed him in this tin. Obviously, you need a lot more than a blaster to make this Chewbacca look better than he is, but Hasbro decided against that here. Yoda is the next figure that makes up 25% of this set. Although it’s starting to age, the 2004 VOTC Yoda figure is the figure of choice here. We can’t help that we’re quite fond of this sculpt because the soft-goods and vintage inspired accessories finish him off so nicely. No paint variations exist between the figure from the tin and the figure from The Original Trilogy Collection lineup. But unlike Chewbacca, thankfully Hasbro has decided to carry-forward all of his accessories which we feel is imperative for a multipack like this. The head sculpt could use some reworking, but in general, this is a great Yoda action figure for your dollar. If you missed him in 2004, you had another chance to grab him in 2008.

Hasbro got a little bit lazy with the included Darth Vader figure as well. Thankfully they utilized the better 2006 TSC Darth Vader (SAGA 038) figure to repackage in the Commemorative Tin Collection set. Based on the 2006 TSC Darth Vader (SAGA 013) figure, Hasbro now permanently affixes the helmet down with glue, adds some “Luke Skywalker versus Darth Vader” shoulder damage and calls it a day. But the tin figure is a straight repack of the Darth Vader (SAGA 038) figure. They could have certainly used a worse action figure, so we’re not really complaining. But we’re so much fonder of the Evolutions sculpt and we think that should be Hasbro’s “go to” figure instead. The last figure in the set is the best. IG-88 is a straight repack of 2007’s VTSC IG-88 (Bounty Hunter) figure. This is one of the most hyper-articulated figures in the Star Wars line and we are thrilled to see it re-released again so soon. If you don’t own the figure yet and this is your only opportunity to purchase it, then by all means please do so. It’s interesting to us that IG-88 has now been released both times in vintage Kenner inspired packaging. This set is better than the others, but it’s still an unnecessary release if you’ve already bought them all before this.