Original review by Chris 10/814

Darth Vader’s helmet is iconic.  Even highly abstracted artistic renditions are instantly recognizable.  So recognizable is the imagery that Vader’s visage was used to promote Revenge of the Sith even though the armored version of the character only appeared in the film for a few moments.  Vader with his arms menacingly crossed was used to promote The Force Unleashed even though he was not the main character of the game.  At the risk of blasphemy, the image of Darth Vader almost has the recognition of religious iconography.  So is it terrible for me to say that I prefer Ralph McQuarrie’s version?  The helmet is more angular and seems even more ferocious.  The blaster is reminiscent of World War II era officer with his 1911 sidearm.  It would be too much of good thing if the concept of too much of a good thing wasn’t ridiculous. 

There are two notable McQuarrie versions of Darth Vader.  One is the cover painting for the 1976 novelization of Star Wars.  This is the larger design with the exaggerated brow arches and sweeping flares on the side.  The other is from the erroneously fan titled Luke vs. Darth Vader painting.  When that particular image was painted, Luke was still a female character in the script.  Vader’s opponent in that wonderful artwork was actually supposed to represent a rebel trooper defending the Blockade Runner.  While we all love Pello Scrambas and his band of Rebel Fleet Troopers, how cool would a squad of lightsaber wielding troopers in breathing apparatuses have been, but I digress.  Consistent with the extra attention Hasbro paid to the figures in the McQuarrie Signature Series, this figure includes swappable heads to represent both of the artist’s renditions of the character.  Hasbro easily could have included the head from the Luke vs. Vader painting and no one would have cared.  It’s a painful reminder that only seven short years ago, Hasbro cared and tried to engage collectors.  Now we’re treated as the nuisance that we are. 

Unfortunately seven short years is a long time and action figure technology progressed to the point where one aspect of this figure is quite dated.  In maudlin fashion, it pains me to tell you that the concept Darth Vader has….swivel…elbows.  Everything else is present for an outstanding figure.  Thankfully it has articulated ankles which aids greatly in the dueling poses.  It features a working holster for the included sidearm which is always appreciated. The duel heads offer a configurable aspect that compelled a certain person named me to buy two figures to be able to display both configurations simultaneously.  The swivel elbows are the screeching needle on the enthusiasm LP however.  When trying to pose the arms straight it gives the figure a Frankenstein’s monster appearance and they lack ideal range of motion when rotated to bend the arms.  Lastly, both the swivel elbows and swivel forearms pop off far too easily. This takes a figure to which I would gushingly give a perfect score all the way down to a still awesome 8 out of 10. 

Updated review by Bret 9/20/19

We’ll keep the 8, but for different reasons than stated by Chris.  The figure is really a 6 due to the swivel elbows, but we’ll jack it up to 8 because of the uniqueness, the McQuarrie-ness, the dual helmets, and the fact that he’s got a blaster and a Batman cape.