Luke Skywalker Jedi Destiny Set (Stormtrooper Disguise/X-Wing Pilot/Jedi Knight) - TVC - Special Action Figure Sets

Luke Skywalker rose from humble beginnings to become one of the greatest Jedi the galaxy has ever known.

The journey of the legendary Luke Skywalker began on Tatooine. A simple farmboy, Luke's life was forever changed when he discovered a distress call from the rebel Princess Leia. Luke infiltrated the Death Star, disguised as a Stormtrooper, to rescue the princess. He then joined the Rebellion and piloted an X-Wing into battle against the Empire. But the call of the Force was strong, and after training with Jedi Master Yoda, Luke realized his true power as a Jedi Knight.

Without sounding like we’re complaining right from the start, there’s something “not right” about getting three definitive LUKE SKYWALKER figures in a San Diego Comic-Con exclusive. Sure, it’s more likely than not that figures from this set will eventually arrive singly carded and part of The Vintage Collection basic figure line. But they should have all made their debut as single-carded The Vintage Collection figures. Now, if we could dismiss the, yes, important, issue of this set at the start so we can move on to more important things. The “photorealistic” technology is not perfect for 3.75” figures yet. But it isn’t nearly as bad as high-resolution photography makes it appear. To the human eye, askew paint operations and deco are negligible and barely noticeable. But through the lens of a high definition camera, sloppily applied deco will indeed make an action figure look dreadful. That’s about where we’re at with the figures contained within the 2019 exclusive Luke Skywalker Jedi Destiny Set (Stormtrooper Disguise/X-Wing Pilot/Jedi Knight) Special Action Figure Set. So, if you can overlook the facial paint operations and appreciate what Hasbro has given us, you’ll discover that you now have three definitive status versions of three vintage Kenner Luke Skywalker action figures you had as a kid. The Luke Skywalker Jedi Destiny Set (Stormtrooper Disguise/X-Wing Pilot/Jedi Knight) Special Action Figure Set is a gift from Hasbro, even if the figures didn’t launch the way we’d hoped, and they are necessary for your collection, not optional.

We anticipate that over time the Special Action Figure Set (Luke Skywalker Jedi Destiny Set) will command a premium on the aftermarket. You’re well-advised to secure this set as soon as humanly possible to avoid the astronomic cost it will demand in a short time. The Luke Skywalker Jedi Destiny Set (Stormtrooper Disguise/X-Wing Pilot/Jedi Knight) Special Action Figure Set is the most brilliant set of figures Hasbro has ever collected together and produced for collectors. Yes, we’re quite disappointed that they’re all relegated to an exclusive three-pack and NOT on individual TVC card backs, but we’re confident we’ll see some of these again. It would be comforting to know for sure that ALL of them are coming in the basic figure line, which is very likely. It’s the waiting that’s killing us. Regardless of how they’ll come in the future, they should have initially released as basic figures in new case assortments. As mentioned in the opening paragraph, some of the figures in this three-pack have some ”photorealistic” deco issues (especially noticeable in the eyes), but this will vary case by case. The only all-new figure here is Luke Skywalker (X-Wing Pilot), but there is a tremendous amount of newness added to the other two figures that make them feel “all-new” as well. The key detail is that all three figures received all-new portraits, and this is huge because Hasbro is in a place with technology where head sculpts haven’t looked better. From the shape of facial details to the texture of hair, these three versions of Luke Skywalker have NOT looked better.

Luke Skywalker (Stormtrooper Disguise) is a retool and repaint of 2019’s TVC Han Solo (Stormtrooper) (VC143) figure. This time, Hasbro gave the figure an all-new head sculpt and belt, which includes a nonremovable commlink and grappling hook. Also impressive, Hasbro added what we believe is the first truly functional E-11 blaster holster. The barrel of the gun slides down into it and hangs close to the body. We’re thrilled with this detail. The new features added to Luke Skywalker (Stormtrooper Disguise) dramatically set him apart from the Han Solo (Stormtrooper) (VC143) figure. Still, because they utilize the same tooling, Han and Luke don’t vary in height, which sadly is a slight disappointment. We haven’t seen a difference in their height outside of the 6” line, so perhaps this is a non-issue altogether. Why would we expect Hasbro to change now? Hasbro cast Luke Skywalker (Stormtrooper Disguise) in a brilliant and crisp white plastic. We’ve also noticed that the figure’s joints with the figure’s articulation system as also very tight and hold there positions perfectly and uncompromisingly. Also, we love the helmet Hasbro used for Han Solo (Stormtrooper), and they used the same one for Luke Skywalker (Stormtrooper Disguise). It looks just as good on Luke Skywalker as it did for Han Solo. Whether you have him standing at attention, or running through the halls of the Death Star, Luke Skywalker (Stormtrooper Disguise) easily steals the definitive status from all previous versions of this character.

Luke Skywalker (X-Wing Pilot) is the only “all-new” figure here. And as we suspected, Hasbro appears to have taken the digital approach of The Black Series [Phase I] Luke Skywalker (#01) figure and applied it to a super-articulated 3.75” version. Utilizing the “modern” articulation system, which includes ball-jointed wrists, swivel thighs, and other extra points of articulation, Luke Skywalker (X-Wing Pilot) takes all previous versions of the character in this outfit and instantly makes them obsolete. Luke Skywalker (X-Wing Pilot) has NEVER looked better, and Hasbro should be pleased and PROUD of what they accomplished with this figure. If we had to direct any criticism to them about the figure, we’d comment that the flight suit’s straps around the thighs are much too tight and inhibit the full range of movement of the joints. With a little finagling, you can put them up over the joints and take advantage of the articulation, but it’s a bit time consuming, and the figure doesn’t have as much fluid lower body movement as we’d like to have seen. The figure also comes with an all-new helmet, which also has beautiful deco and all of the required details to make it screen-accurate. Also included with Luke Skywalker (X-Wing Pilot) is a blaster pistol. He doesn’t hold it as well as we’d hoped, but it is functional, so it’s a nonissue. We’d wish Hasbro was consistent throughout the years with the shade of orange they chose for all X-wing fighter pilots. Luke Skywalker (X-Wing Pilot) appears to have yet another different shade.

For us, the pride and joy of the Luke Skywalker Jedi Destiny Set (Stormtrooper Disguise/X-Wing Pilot/Jedi Knight) Special Action Figure Set is the Luke Skywalker (Jedi Knight) figure. You’d shake your head incessantly if you went back in time to see what collectors went through to get this character fully updated to definitive status. Hasbro would mostly leave out the cloak, and if they did include one, it would be in the wrong color and have the wrong drape and style (or sleeves). They finally got it right. Hasbro designed a brown cloak with a stunning and perfect drape that clings to all the right areas of the figure to accent the figure’s silhouette. To us, it appears that the fabric they used was put through some liquid treatment to hold its shape better on the figure. We may be incorrect about that, but they’re something noticeably different in the texture of the fabric. Hasbro took 2012’s TVC Luke Skywalker (Lightsaber Construction) (VC87) figure and tweaked the figure from head to toe. Most of the body is nearly identical to the VC87 figure, but you’ll see different score lines, differently shaped bumps and wrinkles, clearly proving that Hasbro tweaked the original sculpt here and there. But most importantly, they eliminated the terribly-shaped hands with deformed bumps on the wrists. Tooling all-new hands, Lue Skywalker (Jedi Knight) hasn’t looked better. Luke Skywalker (Jedi Knight) also has a brilliant new head sculpt with a corrected hair part as well. It’s a stunning likeness of Mark Hamill.

Luke Skywalker (Stormtrooper Disguise) and Luke Skywalker (X-Wing Pilot) would be straightforward basic figure releases in The Vintage Collection since we didn’t have either character released yet in the VC numbering system. But Luke Skywalker (Jedi Knight) is not as clear cut. In the third wave of The Vintage Collection released in 2010 Hasbro gave us Luke Skywalker (Jedi Knight Outfit) (VC23). But that figure wasn’t a truly modern update to the vintage Kenner figure. In mid-production, Hasbro updated the card back and name of the figure to Luke Skywalker (Endor Capture) (and it was since re-released as Luke Skywalker (Endor) in 2019). So, if Hasbro re-releases the Luke Skywalker (Jedi Knight) figure from this set into The Vintage Collection, it would necessitate a unique VC number with the original artwork of the first release of the 2010 figure. How sad is it that a definitive Luke Skywalker (Jedi Knight) figure didn’t come in The Vintage Collection line until 2020-ish? Regardless, we finally have the figure, and it’s a gem. The Luke Skywalker Jedi Destiny Set (Stormtrooper Disguise/X-Wing Pilot/Jedi Knight) Special Action Figure Set may bring desperately wanted Star Wars action figures in a way that wasn’t ideal for us. Still, we’re thrilled to have them in our collection. Hasbro, while seemingly not fully engaged with The Vintage Collection collectors, do come through for us here and there, and we shouldn’t treat them like no good deed goes unpunished. There are problems, but sets like this help to forgive the mistakes rather easily.