Darth Vader - TLC - Saga Legends (SL 3)

Now a Sith apprentice, Vader rejects Obi-Wan's pleas to turn away from the dark side. Instead, he attacks Kenobi in a devastating lightsaber duel on Mustafar. Destruction is Vader's only thought, but in the end, he is the one who lies near death on the black sand shores.

Probably one of the most frustrating things Hasbro has ever done to collectors is label action figures who look like Anakin Skywalker as Darth Vader. Hasbro of course isn't incorrect with this labeling, but it makes things confusing when people identify Darth Vader as the guy in the black iron lung. It has become a little confusing with collection lists and even when searching for figures on the pegs. Darth Vader is and always will be the tall guy in the unforgettable costume, so we hope Hasbro remembers this when it comes to naming the action figures they make. While we are happy to get updated versions of Anakin Skywalker (Darth Vader), sometimes Hasbro reissues the same previously released figure instead. Darth Vader who was first released in the 30 (77-07) line has now been reissued in The Legacy Collection Saga Legends line for another chance at retail. Originally released as 2008's TAC Darth Vader (08 02) figure, Darth Vader enters the toy line once again with little to no changes. As far as paint operation updates are concerned, Darth Vader is looking like more of the same, so while you may find some differences here and there, for all intents and purposes this is the same figure. Darth Vader is pretty much identical to the previous releases we have already seen.

This figure has additional history too. Back in the day, Hasbro took the already very good Anakin Skywalker (Clone Wars Commander) figure from the 2005 ROTS Anakin Skywalker To Darth Vader Evolutions set and added ball-jointed hips for increased optimal mobility! Unfortunately, Hasbro didn't update his arms like they did his legs and they sadly left swivel joints in the elbows. Obviously, this encumbers the movement quite a bit. Despite this oversight, Darth Vader can be posed in a wide array of poses and he is close to being a definitive Darth Vader [Anakin Skywalker] figure with just a few more ehancements. One of the finest attributes of this figure is the paint job. Hasbro has exceeded our expectations here and we are thoroughly impressed with the final product. Simply accessorized with juts his lightsaber, it is all the "stuff" he really needs. This character is intended to represent how Darth Vader looked during (or right before) his now classic duel with Obi-Wan Kenobi, but he should have come with angry "Sith" eyes instead. Perhaps some collectors would have preferred to have a lightsaber hilt packaged with the figure, but we are happy with the arrangement as is. As a Saga Legends figure, the ball-jointed hips are reason enough for us to pick up this figure (as a backup or whatever).

Darth Vader comes with a cardboard locker extra weapons so you can have additional play value with your action figures. We suppose he looks cool with a droid blaster, but we imagine this was just Hasbro's way of allowing kids and collectors to complete previous figures where weapons have been vaccumed up or just simply lost. Darth Vader actually doesn't suffer from any big issue really, and he can balance well on his own two feet. In fact, he can be posed with a wide stance and he is even able to stand in these poses as well. We will always say this in this column that we don't mind retools and repaints as long as Hasbro makes them new enough for our collections. Straight repacks are typically a bone of contention for us, but we have grown to accept that Hasbro needs to do this to amortize costs (and keep great sculpts in the lineup). Darth Vader is really just a straight repack, but that is truly the point of the Saga Legends assortments. Expect to see this Darth Vader action figure frequently, not only in the Saga Legends line, but other multipacks and exclusives in the future. This is a solid action figure and deserves repeated attention in the toy line. Even if collectors are getting tired of him, this is a well-designed and well-articulated action figurefor new fans too. We always have to remember the new fans.