Luke Skywalker (Yavin) - TVC - Basic (VC151)

Celebrate the legacy of Star Wars, the action-and-adventure-packed space saga from a galaxy far, far away, with this collection of premium, highly-detailed 3.75-inch scale figures and vehicles. (Each sold separately. Subject to availability.)

If you polled a generous sampling of The Vintage Collection collectors and asked if they’d be interested in seeing a revisit of Luke Skywalker (Yavin), the answer would be “no.” But for some reason, Hasbro is on a major kick to update as many different Luke Skywalker action figures as possible. And you’ll hear no complaining from us. No matter your take on whether we needed a new version of Luke Skywalker (Yavin) or not, there isn’t any argument that we needed him represented on a The Vintage Collection card back. Check. We have that now. The bonus here is that Hasbro updated a couple of the figure’s parts, repainted it, and cleaned up some of the previous issues giving us the ultimate and definitive version of Luke Skywalker (Yavin) possible. There won’t be a need for a future revisit of this figure. It’s that good. Aside from ignoring the need for ball-jointed ankles (this version didn’t get this much-needed upgrade sadly), Luke Skywalker (Yavin) is an exceptional release in The Vintage Collection lineup. We’re glad to see it released. And we’re thrilled it looks better than it ever has. A Walmart exclusive, Luke Skywalker (Yavin) is part of the Triple Force Friday list of releases exclusive for October 4, 2019, but released in November 2019.

Luke Skywalker (Yavin) is mostly based on 2013’s TBS [P1] Luke Skywalker (#05) figure. We recall when Hasbro announced they were significantly updating 2007’s TAC Luke Skywalker (30 12) figure for now-canceled Legacy Collection “2” line, but subsequently released in The Black Series [Phase I] line, that we looked forward to the figure’s upgrade. In 2014, we were happy to see the improvements made, but as you look back on the figure through today’s eyes, you’ll quickly figure out the portrait on that figure didn’t turn out so well. Despite its imperfections, the 2014 version received respect from collectors. They saw it as imperfect, but it was incredibly better than anything released before it. Thanks to technology and great sculpting techniques, Hasbro created a stunningly beautiful all-new head sculpt (and hairpiece with correctly colored dirty blond hair) and added it to the base of the 2014 The Black Series [Phase I] figure. His forearms are from 2011's TVC Ponda Baba (Walrus Man) (VC70) figure too. If you don’t immediately recall, Hasbro significantly retooled the 2014 version from the 2007 TAC Luke Skywalker (30 12) version. (It came with a new torso, belt and holster piece as well as new coloring.) So they’ve taken the improvements already in place to a heightened level, most notably with the addition of the all-new parts.

But that’s not all Hasbro did for Luke Skywalker (Yavin). They also tooled all-new hands for the figure, which is similar in approach to the ones given to the Luke Skywalker (Jedi Knight) figure part of the Luke Skywalker Destiny Special Action Figure Set. The updated hands do a great deal for the figure. Luke Skywalker (Yavin) has 18 points of articulation across 12 areas. As we’ve already mentioned, we would have loved to see Hasbro included ball-jointed ankles, but it appears as if this character has reached its last hurrah, and we’ll likely never see this figure rereleased in the Hasbro Star Wars line. Instead of a fully lit lightsaber, Hasbro included Luke’s lightsaber hilt. There isn’t a place on the figure to hang it, but it’s a basic accessory to have him hold for display interchangeability. Most importantly, Hasbro carried forward the “Princess Leia Organa” blaster from the 2014 release and once again included it. It’s a screen-accurate accessory, and we’re delighted to see with this an updated version of this character. Luke Skywalker (Yavin) is a fine release. He also had this weapon in The Star Wars Holiday Special as well. The figure looks fantastic next to the three other new Luke Skywalker figures from this year. For the first time in years, we have compatible and similarly-looking Luke Skywalker figures.