Yoda - EI - Basic

An esteemed Jedi Master, Yoda faithfully served the Galactic Republic as one of the 12 members of the Jedi Council.

One of the more unsettling things about Episode I for many fans was the drastically different appearance of Yoda. While George Lucas attempted to keep the story seamless by using a puppet for the “younger” Yoda, many felt the extreme difference between the Episode I puppet and the Original Trilogy puppet were just too much to process. If you live to be 900 years old, does a paltry 20 years really make you look all that different? Whatever. Hasbro embraced this change and released an action figure in the Episode I line that mirrored this look and style of Yoda. From an action figure standpoint, Yoda is divine. The paint operations will choke you up they’re so beautiful and the interactivity the figure has with his included Jedi High Council chair will make the tears continue to fall. In short, this is action figure making at its best, even if the articulation isn’t there 100%. If you’re looking for a faithful interpretation of the puppet from Episode I, then this is the action figure you’re looking for because this doesn’t get better. Again, we’re praising the approach of how Yoda was made for the film, but Hasbro ensured they followed Yoda’s likeness flawlessly.

Yoda isn’t loaded with articulation, but we doubt many will care. In Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace he didn’t do much but sit around. And as an action figure, he mimics this perfectly. The Jedi High Council chair has been expertly designed to interact with Yoda beautifully. Yoda comes with hinge-jointed hips which allow him to essentially fold into a 90 degree angle. His bottom has also been tooled to fit into the seat of the chair very nicely as well. He does slip a tiny bit here and there, but overall we have to admit that we’re pleased how well figure and accessory work together. Aside from the Jedi High Council chair, Yoda comes without any other accessories. This is fine from the standpoint of screen accuracy, but as a toy some of the younger fans may find this particular version of Yoda a little more boring than many of the other versions Hasbro has produced throughout the years. And those who can appreciate the artful aspect of action figures, we know for a fact that you’re going to be blown away by the layers of paint that breath this Yoda sculpt to life…. Even if he looks a little brighter than he did in the film.

Yoda has universal appeal, so that may be the biggest selling point with this action figure. In all honesty, we don’t recall Yoda looking so full and wide in the film, but that is certainly how the action figure has been made. He is significantly bigger (wider and taller) than most other Yoda action figures Hasbro has produced since 1981. That doesn’t mean however that we’re not fond of it. If we had one complaint, we just wish Hasbro would have muted the colors a bit more. But we certainly wouldn’t change the way they decorated this figure as far as the texture and layering. Like all Episode I figures, Yoda comes with a CommTech chip which not only makes the figures “talk” but also serves as a display stand too. Admittedly, we love the design of the CommTech chips, but we think the whole concept, while meant to be modern and current, will ultimately be obsolete by the time the Episode I line completes its run. Because the real actors weren’t used to create the dialogue and phrases, it comes across as cheap and second rate. But as a collectible, it is indeed pretty cool to have a matching “stand” for every Episode I figure. Yoda is a nice action figure. We just wish it resembled Yoda a bit more. (But that’s the film’s fault – not Hasbro’s.)