Landspeeder - POTF2 [R/G] - Vehicles

If you think about it, the last half of 1995 was a bit too much to bear for Star Wars collectors. But being unable to bear it all wasn’t negative in anyway. It was like we were all living a wonderful dream and waiting for someone to wake us up. We never needed to be awakened and the Star Wars toys were real. And it was only the beginning as Kenner stated that they had huge aspirations for the modern line. After an official launch in July/August of basic action figures, Hasbro quickly got out some of the most basic vehicles to accompany these vehicles. One of them was the classic Landspeeder vehicle (now one word instead of two). What’s more, they jazzed it up a little bit more to show just how far technology had come a decade later to almost the exact day since the line terminated in 1985. Utilizing the very shell of the classic 1978 Kenner Land Speeder vehicle, they decided to focus on the vehicle’s deco to make it more screen authentic and accurate to the film. In fact, they even colored the Landspeeder differently to more closely reflect the shades we all see in the film. Ultimately, we got an upgraded classic Land Speeder vehicle that looks so much better than the vintage version and thanks to its introduction into the modern line will being a whole new generation the same joy it brought us growing up.

The Landspeeder has an all-new 1995 date stamp. This is because it technically is an all-new vehicle. Sure, we’re pretty sure it borrows the shell of the vintage release, but Kenner has now tooled a ton more detail to give the modern Landspeeder its lived-in look. It’s missing panels now. It has scratches. It has dents. It has a new windshield with a drastically different arc. Even the cushion in the set have a different pattern. And it has a completely new and more accurate paint job. The final paint job accentuates all of the vehicles imperfections beautifully. So we’re quite taken with how far Kenner took the “reboot” of this vehicle I the modern toy line. To keep things familiar, Kenner also kept some of the vehicle’s basic features as well. There is a shifter that allows the wheels to lock up into the vehicle’s body or to lower to create a hovering effect – just like the vintage version. And when you push in the knob at the front of the vehicle, the hood pops open to reveal an engine that Luke Skywalker can repair at his leisure. So the meshing of old and new is woven into an all-new release. It captures the magic of the vintage era vehicle but it also has been given a spark of newness thanks to the way Kenner approached its deco.

What perhaps is most impressive about the Landspeeder is the MSRP. Kenner has managed to keep this item under $10 which is something we find rather incredible. Sure, the vintage 1978 Land Speeder was a mere $4.99, but even at double the price, this is a value for collectors. The retooling alone makes this a worthy purchase. All in all, we’re quite taken with the first modern Landspeeder vehicle. For us, it is the perfect marriage of old and new and it will be a great starting tool for a whole new generation of Star Wars fans to become interested in the classic Star Wars franchise. Until Kenner tools a completely all-new vehicle (which hopefully they will do as they’re doing this for the action figures), this will be the perfect placeholder for both longtime and brand new Star Wars fans. (Editor’s Note: Hasbro did ultimately release an all-new version of this vehicle as store exclusive a couple of times.) We’re sure that Kenner was under the gun to get a batch of vehicles out as quickly as possible. Perhaps it is the reason that we’re getting the rehashed vehicles like this. But ultimately it doesn’t matter because we have to admit it is just so wonderful to see them available on store shelves again. Be sure to add this revised Landspeeder to your collection as well.