This figure is a fascinating study and fodder for a recent debate.  Here we have a figure that decidedly falls short of super articulated status.  Aside from swivel hips, which are essentially useless on this figure, there isn’t a speck of articulation below the waist.  Super articulation is usually one of the deciding factors that makes a figure definitive, yet this under-articulated figure is fairly close to definitive.  In fact for me personally, it is definitive.  I graded it “close” simply because someone would inevitably yell at me in the comments for calling a knee-less and ankle-less figure, “definitive”.

But when looked at in the context of the character, essentially a member of the administrative personnel, the articulation it does have is sufficient enough to express the character’s on-screen essence.  General Madine, the one time Imperial turned Rebel General, gives a briefing while standing.  That’s it.  That means the figure needs to point, and by virtue of the swivel shoulders, ball jointed elbows and swivel forearms, it can point and point well.  Top notch pointing.  Combine this with the legs, which, while they lack articulation, are intricately sculpted to perfectly portray fabric pants, and you have a figure that has enough articulation to express its purpose and the aesthetics to blend in with more modern figures.  It’s a solid 7 out of 10 (and I’d like to go higher, but please see my yelling-phobia with respect to the definitive status).

So this confirms the notion that not every figure needs to be super articulated, but that doesn’t mean I will EVER campaign to allow Hasbro to judiciously reduce articulation for two reasons.  First, ceding ground on articulation count is how we rode the slipperiest of slopes to a low quality 5POA mainline.  Second, and this is the big one, I do not trust Hasbro to be judicious on which figures can shave articulation and which can’t.  I don’t mean to insult any of the Star Wars brand team with that.  They are certainly knowledgeable Star Wars fans, but they are unlike their customers.  Why?  Because they are sane and balanced people.  Every character has a “minimum required articulation” needed to express that character in action figure form, but only we maniacal, obsessive compulsive, probably-in-need-of-some-sort-of-medication collectors know what that amount is.  It’s not a science. It’s more of a feeling honed by decades of posing little plastic men and women on shelves.  There is no rule.  And that’s the problem with the “minimum required articulation” concept.  A corporation would want a rule, which, in this case, would be grouping characters into categories to determine their MRA ™℠®©.  Jedi would need x articulation.  Soldiers would need y, and non-action based backgrounders would need z.  Such a rule would fail on characters like Jocasta Nu, who doesn’t need Jedi Level Articulation (JLA ™℠®©) and on a character like Garindan, who, despite not having an action role, does need the extra articulation to hold his comlink up to his snoot. 

Why are we having this somewhat generic discussion here in the General Madine review?  I’m glad you asked.  As 99% of our readership likely knows, General Madine was part of the vintage Kenner “Collect All 92” line up:

(click for full sized image)

This was actually one of the first Return of the Jedi figures I got back in the day.

So, it would be good if Hasbro found some way to sneak a General Madine into the Vintage Collection, but this creates another dilemma.  The Vintage Collection is considered the premium collector line where “best of the best” is the standard with the commensurate price point.  General Madine would need to be upgraded with articulation in order to maintain the Vintage Collection’s premium standard, but he is too minor of a character on which to use the precious new tooling dollars.  So how to thread this needle of wanting older (or non SA) sculpts issued on Vintage Collection cards for either reasons of nostalgia or demand (ex. Quay Tolsite). I suggest the following:

• Such figures should be one per case and never carried forward
• Ensure there is a call out such as “limited edition re-release” on the bubble
• Treat these characters with the “vault” mindset like Disney does with their animated movies
• Ensure the “get it before its gone” and “while supplies last” concepts are well marketed to ensure FOMO kicks in
• DO NOT GO TO THIS WELL TOO OFTEN (USE RESTRAINT)

You do all these things, and the excitement of owning a perceived rare/limited item might override collector anger over paying $14 for a figure that was $5 a decade and a half ago.  Okay, collectors are always mad, but they’ll be mad all the way to the cash register.