Editor’s Note:  This review has been updated with our second look at TVC…

Original Review:  Chris - 6/25/10

What makes a great figure varies from collector to collector.  Some want a focus on aesthetics.  Some want articulation that will approximate lifelike range of motion.  Like Mr. Pitt with his socks, I refuse to compromise and want a figure that comes as close as possible to both. The Vintage Collection Luke Skywalker (Bespin Fatigues) hits the marks in all departments.  This figure more than atones for the sins of 2007 offering.  While the ball jointed hips do detract slightly from neutral poses, it does allow for an incredible amount of fighting poses.  The deco is amazing highlighted by a paint wash that really brings the sculpt to life.  Ironically, one of the negatives is that the deco seems to be overdone in one area.  The highlights in the figure’s hair appear more orange than blond and look unnatural.  Despite these two minor complaints, the figure is one of the best ever, and if a quarterback can have a perfect passer rating despite some incomplete passes, this figure can have a perfect Bantha rating despite the few minor misses. 

Updated Review: Bret - 3/27/2018

This figure was amazing in 2010.  It is amazing now.  The sculpt, articulation, paint, likeness, and accessories are all top notch, and have almost no room for imaginable improvement.  Well. I can imagine quite a lot.  Really, as far as the sculpt, I can only say that the hands aren’t natural looking when gripping the lightsaber, but it’s okay because the floating index finger interacts perfectly with the blaster.  As for the joints, the only nits I have with the articulation are that the figure has only swivel wrists, and the ankles are not full rocker joints.  The paint is outstanding, along with a well-done wash over the uniform.  The likeness is about as good as it gets right now.  The accessories are well executed, although I could stand for the blaster to be manufactured out of a sturdier plastic.  All of these negatives amount to next to nothing, and even today I will second Chris’s perfect rating from 8 years ago.  I would love to see Hasbro retool this figure someday into a post-duel version, essentially remaking the Saga (blue card) version which came with the “agony” face, the severed hand medical contraption, and the Bespin weather vane.  I loved that figure at the time, but a re-tooled VC04 figure would annihilate that one.

This figure does command a modest premium on the secondary market, but nothing outrageous.  This figure absolutely remains the definitive Bespin Luke, even 8 years later.  No reason for Hasbro to mess with it for a long time, and given the figure’s availability on eBay, there’s no real reason to re-issue in the near future.  It would be great if the figure had the full VIP articulation treatment (ball jointed wrists and rocker ankles), but it wouldn’t be worth the effort at this point.  This figure is a Hall of Famer.

Updated Review: Bret - 8/10/2020

Doing some housekeeping and realized we never provided a proper review of the Photoreal update to this figure.  Early reports of the Photoreal application to this figure were not flattering.  Either those reports were greatly exaggerated, or Hasbro made some adjustments after the first products rolled off the assembly line.  Turns out it’s not bad at all. It’s a slight improvement over the original, but it’s hard to say if this is a great Mark Hamill.  I don’t think this turned out as good as the new Luke pilot and stormtrooper figures, but it’s still nice.

Other minor changes include improvements to the highlights/weathering on the uniform as well as to the hair.  Of course Hasbro also tweaked the cardback, particularly dropping “Fatigues” from the parenthetical subtitle in the name pill.  I guess they felt the old title was a bit tired.  Get it? Eh.

A note about the figure.  After some reconsideration, we’ve adjusted the grade from a 10 to an 8.  If you read through the comments below (especially from Rum Sleg), you can gather that both Chris and I (mostly Chris) regretted the perfect score.  Chris, for his part, actually wants a full on update to this figure, although that seems unlikely considering Hasbro went through the effort of doing the Photoreal update to the original.  The problems (although minor) are mainly with the wide hips and stance and the lack of current “Jedi Level Articulation” (JLA) for a character of Luke’s importance (ball jointed wrists, rocker ankles).

The figure is still excellent, but we’re reluctant to give it that perfect score, and while clearly the best version of Bespin Luke available, room for simple improvements leave this just short of “definitive” status.

*This figure was meant to be a “fan channel” (online) exclusive, but a shipping error sent some cases to brick and mortar (especially Target).