Gamorrean Guard/Admiral Ackbar/Yak Face/Mon Mothma/Wicket W. Warrick/Emperor’s Royal Guard - RC - Multipacks

Look, we know the Retro Collection isn't everyone's cup of tea. But when you look at a set like the one produced for the 40th Anniversary of Return Of The Jedi, how can your heart not grow a little bigger knowing what Hasbro did for us to celebrate this momentous event? While never too excited about single-carded multipacks, we can make an exception for the Retro Collection "boxed sets" that Hasbro releases as a retailer exclusive often through Shop Disney. In them, Hasbro compiles six unique carded versions of the classic Kenner action figures, sometimes adding a surprise from vac-metallization to a never-before-released action figure through the eyes of vintage Kenner. In the Return Of The Jedi set, we get Mon Mothma, and this figure is the second Original Trilogy version released in a quarter of a century. The last time we received Mon Mothma based on Return Of The Jedi was 1998's POTF2 [Freeze Frame/The Kenner Collection] Mon Mothma figure, and the irony here is that the Retro Collection version has more articulation than the 1998 'modern' version. They placed Mon Mothma on a stunningly beautiful Return Of The Jedi entertainment logo card with an even more gorgeous character photo. We eagerly anticipate the super-articulated release of this character in The Vintage Collection because Hasbro appears to have all the pieces in place now. Hasbro approached Mon Mothma much like 1978's SW Princess Leia Organa, with an open palm on the right hand and the same blaster.

But Mon Mothma is just the tip of the iceberg here. There is much else to enjoy here. The Gamorrean Guard is the following figure in this set, and we know how well the pig guards go over in the Star Wars collecting community. They did an admirable job on the modern "vintage" version, but we must admit they missed the mark on the figure's green skin color. Hasbro hasn't nailed the shade needed to call back our memories of this figure from 1983. It's a decent release, but it could be better. We are incredibly impressed with Admiral Ackbar. The figure's stance is not as wide as the 1983 version, but it cleaned up some of the lines and production "residue" of the classic release. The coloring also differs from Kenner's version, but Admiral Ackbar might be the closest to the original in this entire set. Aside from a wonky-leaning stature, Admiral Ackbar is another fine addition here. Another surprise in this set is Yak Face. For the first time, we get the Yakura on an adequately designed Return Of The Jedi card, complete with a pink nameplate and figure backer. As you might recall, Hasbro, unfortunately, bailed on these critical details when they produced 2019's/2023's TVC Saelt-Marae (VC132) figure. We're thrilled to see the original version of Yak Face on a Kenner card and with the needed components to be faithful to 1985's POTF Yak Face figure. It would have been sublime if they released this figure on The Power Of The Force card. But this is the next best thing.

Wicket W. Warrick feels like a staple in any Return Of The Jedi assortment of figures. It and Yak Face are the only figures not from the 1983 Kenner assortment, with Mon Mothma being all-new and only attempted now. This demure Ewok looks fantastic like the others. However, Hasbro gave it darker colors, giving it a richer appearance than the more lightly-colored version from the 1984 Return Of The Jedi lineup. The removable cowl is slightly more rigid, while the spear feels slightly flimsy. But again, Wicket is a fantastic inclusion in this set. The Emperor's Royal Guard is the final figure in the Return Of The Jedi collection. This figure (and the Gamorrean Guard) should have been part of the Retro Collection assortment released generally. So, we're incredibly excited to see them finally part of the Retro Collection, even if it means it's through a multipack like this. Hasbro didn't perfect its soft-goods robes, but they did a decent job with the materials they had to mimic the 1983 release. Kenner used some magic back in 1983 to design a stellar Emperor's Royal Guard figure, and we believe that Hasbro needs to recapture it to use on their modern figures today. However, aside from some leaning issues, the Emperor's Royal Guard looks beautiful here, complete with gray staff. You'll relive the excitement of this figure again in this box set.

The Return Of The Jedi set has some critique, but most focus on the packaging. For example, the character photo of Yak Face feels computer-generated. Hasbro may not have access to the original (AND RARE) character photo of Yak Face. If they do, they've overprocessed the image for the card art. While people may disagree, the lime green/yellow nameplate and figure backer for the Gamorrean Guard would have been a wiser choice here than the green color they chose instead. Both versions exist in the Kenner line, but something about that yellow works well. They also aggravate us a bit with Admiral Ackbar. To date, The Vintage Collection version has the incorrect color for the nameplate and figure backer, but the Retro Collection gets the correct color. What gives Hasbro? Generally speaking, the Retro Collection Return Of The Jedi set is a perfect addition to the line to celebrate 40 years of Star Wars Episode VI: Return Of The Jedi. After they got the basic figure assortment out, which included standout characters like Luke Skywalker (Jedi Knight Outfit), The Emperor, Lando Calrissian (Skiff Guard Disguise), and Princess Leia Organa (Boushh), we were concerned they'd mess up a secondary collection of characters by trying to squeeze in too many human characters. But thankfully, they focused on aliens and created a motley crew of fantastic Star Wars characters. We're confident you're going to love what they cobbled together here.