Note: For those who aren’t in the loop with all the abbreviations I used:
VOTC stands for Vintage Original Trilogy Collection, which was a limited series of 12 figures from 2004 that were in packages that replicated the Vintage cards.

VTSC is for Vintage The Saga Collection, which was just like the VOTC, except it was a series of five figures.

Packaging - ***
Initially, I thought the idea of the angled card looked stupid to me, but it has grown on me. It gives incredible space to these beautiful paintings of the characters that Hasbro got from some artist, who really should be credited. They look a lot better than some of the work you find in the Dark Horse comics. 

Another great aspect is the fact that there is no annoying tape that we fans have had to deal with for the past two years, since Revenge of the Sith. So, put away those scissors and box cutters and just use your fingers for these!

Sculpting - McQuarrie Fett & Death Star Trooper- ****, Honor Guard*** ½, Luke- **
I’ll start with the good stuff here.
The McQuarrie Concept Boba Fett is based on several of the earliest drawings of Boba Fett. The main helmet, which is the one that the figure is “wearing” in the package, is closer to the Fett we see in the films. (The alternate head will be discussed in the accessories.) Fett’s outfit is different from the films’ in every way, from the boots to the gloves and the figure captures it perfectly. 

The Death Star Trooper looks incredible and is a fine improvement over the 1998, pre-posed figure. The head sculpt is absolutely incredible. It shows an aged, serious man with a generic-enough looking face to allow for army building. The troop’s hands are also really cool. They can grip the blaster tight enough and the left hand has a real nature gesture. The only problem, which is very small, is that his holster, like all other recent Imps, doesn’t hold the blaster very well. Hasbro continues to try, but I still don’t think they’ve hit the nail on the head yet.
The Honor Guard is practically perfect in every way, considering that he is just in a simple military outfit without any decoration. My only issue that makes me take a ½ star off is that his legs are posed so far apart. You never see a soldier or an officer standing still like that when not at ease. 

Now, Luke doesn’t fare anywhere near as well as the others. His head sculpt is horrible, especially compared to the “medi-core” sculpt on the VOTC Tatooine Luke and VTSC Pilot Luke. I mean, you can’t even see Mark Hamill in it at all! Another issue is that his arms look a little longer than they need to be! The figure is also really short. I know Hamill is short in stature, but I didn’t think he was so short that he wouldn’t even get up to some figure’s shoulders! 

Paint - McQuarie Fett- *** ½, Death Star Trooper & Honor Guard - ****, Luke- *
Although McQuarrie Fett might look perfect, it really isn’t. It should have been really easy to keep the armor straight white, but, the armor has this odd dirty look to it that isn’t supposed to be there. There also aren’t that many clean lines. The gold rings around the wrists and the gold bar on the back of the helmet fade off and aren’t completely painted.

As for the Trooper, well, for a guy in black, with a silver belt, there really isn’t a way to go wrong, unless you screw up the face, which Hasbro did not do. The hair is done right and the eyes don’t make him look like a dead man. 

Like the Trooper, the Honor Guard is in a simple, one color suit. He’s in a green outfit, so of course, Hasbro used green plastic. Thus all they had to paint was the belt and head, which they did a great job on both. 

Luke, though, continues to falter. I mean, it’s bad enough that the face sculpt didn’t even resemble Hamill and on top of that the paint in horrid. He is pale as a ghost (because Hasbro likes to mold the heads in flesh-toned plastic) and his eyes are in a “bug-eyed” fashion! There are also these little chicken-scratches on his jacket that have no importance. Maybe if they were at least straight, it might look right, but they aren’t. It is worth noting that for some reason, Hasbro was able to make the stripes on the pant legs straight, which seems like a show of inconsistency. 

Articulation - McQuarrie Fett, Honor Guard, Death Star Trooper & Luke- *** ½
All four of these figures have the same articulation, with a few exceptions. 
Fett has a ball-jointed head, ball-jointed shoulders, knees and elbows, cut wrists and hips and a cut waist. Now, I know the boot design doesn’t necessarily allow for a ball-jointed ankle, they still could have given Fett cut joints there. 

The Trooper has: a ball-jointed head, ball-jointed shoulders, elbows, knees and ankles, along with cut forearms (at the gloves) and hips and a cut waist. The reason I took a half star off is because of, like many other figures, there is a ‘skirt’ that inhibits hip movement. Other than that, the figure is perfect in this category. 

The Honor Guard has the same as the Trooper, so he gets the same score. Luke also has the same, except he has cut forearms at the wrist, so it’s really a cut wrist on both arms. He gets the half star off because Hasbro failed to give him the ball-jointed ankles. It’s kind of inexcusable, because so many other figures with similar boots have ankle joints. I don’t know why Hasbro dropped the ball, but they did. 

Accessories - McQuarrie Fett- ****, Honor Guard ***, Death Star Trooper- **, Luke- ** ½
Fett is pretty loaded with stuff. He comes, most notably, with an alternate helmet that features one of the more unique designs for Fett’s helmet. Also included is a jet-pack, blaster and flame effect. The effect fits snuggly in a hole on his left gauntlet.

The other figures are a little light in this category. The Trooper just comes with a great removable helmet and the basic Imp blaster (with some really nice new silver paint). The Honor Guard has a removable helmet, blaster and a staff. Luke has a blaster (which is the wrong blaster; he should come with Leia’s long pistol, according to Sideshow’s new figure), a lightsaber hilt (inexcusably painted like Vader’s; just like the VTSC Pilot Luke) and a newly sculpted Medal of Valor. Now considering the hefty amount of accessories future figures are coming with (a new Tatooine Luke is coming with a huge Moisture Vaporator and two new Cantina aliens are coming with the U-Shaped bar piece), it’s a little disappointing. I’m sure if Hasbro was creative, they could have given the Trooper something, like a Death Star console or a new Mouse Droid. The Honor Guard could have come with maybe another medal to give to a Han Solo figure or some other Yavin piece. Luke would be a little harder to figure out, but there would have been no harm done if they did give him a lit lightsaber. 

I almost forgot, but they also come with coins for your coin album. I don’t really think of them as real accessories, though, which is probably why I forgot. 

Action Feature - Fett- ****, the rest- N/A
Okay, maybe the flip-open chest blaster on Fett isn’t really an action feature, but I think it is. It’s really cool and what makes the figure incredibly unique. 

Fun Factor - ***
Like I’ve said in my previous reviews, Star Wars figures are always fun. However, getting a Luke without a lit lightsaber is like Creedence Clearwater Revival without John Fogerty. Kids expect a Luke to have one to swing around at the bad guys. 
The Trooper and Honor Guard should be fun for everyone, being a basic trooper with a gun AND a removable helmet! Fett is also a great toy, more importantly. (Not having access to young children under the age of seventeen means that I do not have the best data on this, but trust me, if I can have fun with it...)

Value - **
The price of figures is really annoying. I got the Trooper and Luke at a Toys ‘R’ Us for $6.99 and Fett and the Honor Guard at a Target for the same price. Even though Fett does come with more than the other figures, it’s still not worth the price. (Is anything worth the price you buy it for these days?) 

Things to Watch Out For -
Just like every mass market toy, just look to see if you pick up one with the best paint job. 

Overall - McQuarrie Fett- ****, Death Star Trooper *** ½, Honor Guard- ***, Luke- ** ½
Of the four figures, the McQuarrie Concept Boba Fett is the must-have. Although it’s a tricky find, once you get it, you’ll think the search was definitely worth it. Other than that, the Trooper and Guard are nice figures to flesh out dioramas, but really aren’t that necessary. If you get the Luke, you can easily switch heads with a better one. Either that, or just wait out for Hasbro to take another crack at it, which will never happen. 
A final thought: If you have the Early Bird kit from 2005, you definitely want to get the Trooper. It allows you to finally make a nice display. I’ve included a shot of my set up here. 

SCORE RECAP:
Packaging- ***
Sculpt - McQuarrie Fett & Death Star Trooper- ****, Honor Guard*** ½, Luke- **
Paint - McQuarie Fett- *** ½, Death Star Trooper & Honor Guard - ****, Luke- *
Articulation - McQuarrie Fett, Honor Guard, Death Star Trooper & Luke- *** ½
Accessories - McQuarrie Fett- ****, Honor Guard ***, Death Star Trooper- **, Luke- ** ½
Action Feature - Fett- ****, the rest- N/A
Fun Factor - ***
Value- **
Overall- McQuarrie Fett- ****, Death Star Trooper *** ½, Honor Guard- ***, Luke- ** ½

Where to Buy -
These figures are from the current wave of Star Wars figures, so they are still shipping. The best places to go are, of course, Wal-Mart, Toys ‘R’ Us and Target.

And check out the MROTW Sponsor Andrew's Toyz, where you can get full sets of these for $45, or cased for $81!

Related Links:
I did a review on the site for the 2006 Carkoon Wave back last January. I have also reviewed Gentle Giant’s Vader statue, Sideshow’s Anakin Skywalker 12” Figure and the 2006 SDCC exclusive Dark Lord Anakin/Vader. The next review from me might be the Leia in Boushh disguise from Sideshow, but as I mentioned before, it was delayed again. 

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