Luke Skywalker/Darth Vader - R - Mission Series (MS03)

Luke Skywalker and Darth Vader engage in a Lightsaber duel above the gas giant planet Bespin. Luke fights bravely but cannot defeat the highly skilled Vader. Luke loses a hand in the battle and discovers the truth about Vader's identity.

We have decided to be positive about the Mission Series and Saga Legends figures. So we positively are unable to fathom what collectors see in them. Granted, not all of the figures are without merit, but many just look plain terrible. Not only is Hasbro giving us cheaply made and under-articulated action figures, but they’re also already repackaging figures, from the same line no less, into new conceptual sets, or just carrying-forward the same old two-packs. Man oh man oh man. It is truly a gloomy time for Star Wars collectors. Not only is Hasbro offering inferior action figures at a lower price point, but they’re rehashing characters they have produced countless times in this cheapened format. Maybe all-new never before released characters is the more direct approach to go here, Hasbro. While not ideal, maybe that will engage longtime supporters of the line a little more intently. Yeah, we have heard the cheerleaders on the sidelines for the Mission Series and Saga Legends lines. These are a budget way for Hasbro to produce action figures for kids. But why waste money on terribly painted and minimally articulated figures when you can get much better quality on eBay for pennies on the dollar? Is it because they’re new that there is a desire to acquire them? Are we looking past the garbage they are so that we can tickle that itch to buy something new in the Star Wars line? As we prepare for the launch of Rebels, Hasbro has brought some of previously released MIssion Series figures back to the marker. This time it's Luke Skywalker and Darth Vader.

We have to ask. Why in the world would Hasbro make another Episode V set of Luke Skywalker And Darth Vader? In 2012, Hasbro produced the Bespin Battle Battle Packs set that also contained all-new Luke Skywalker and Darth Vader action figures (along with an all-new Boba Fett figure). The outrage from the community was boisterous. Collectors ripped them apart and were ignited with rage that Hasbro would dare produce such a product. But these same collectors have jumped on board in full support of the cheapened Mission Series and Saga Legends lines when the figures from the Bespin Battle Battle Packs set were infinitely better. We don’t understand the inconsistently. The Battle Packs figures had better sculpts, stunning paint jobs and better articulation (included ball-socket head articulation which forgave much of the figure’s lacking articulation elsewhere). And what’s worse, the 2012 SW [TPM 3D] Bespin Battle Battle Packs set was found years later at discount chains and couldn’t be given away for a fraction of the price on clearance. So why does Hasbro or any collector think that we need even worse versions of these figures so soon after the better figures didn’t sell at all? We are beginning to think that everyone is partaking in the drinking of the poison Kool-Aid. Call us haters, call us negative, but we’re only searching for answers to understand why anyone thinks Mission Series and Saga Legends figures are necessary. Hasbro isn’t making them for you. They are for kids. But there are better options for kids.

Luke Skywalker and Darth Vader are straight repacks of the figures from 2014's SW [DV/ROTS] Luke Skywalker And Darth Vader (Bespin) (MS09) Mission Series set. As expected, both figures are disappointments. And we certainly didn't need to see this re-released in Rebels packaging just a few months after its original release earlier in the year. Our sample looks like Luke Skywalker is a deer in headlights, but we think all of the samples we have come across look like this. We don’t think the paint job on his face could be worse, save for an eye drooping down the side of his face. The sculpt of his body isn’t horrific, but with only swivel shoulders and swivel hips, there isn’t much you can do with it. You can’t make him battle Darth Vader realistically,, and the paint job is so pale that it feels like this figure is completely lacking from head to toe. To add insult to injury, Hasbro has repacked the same dang Darth Vader figure which got its start in 2013’s SW [DV/ROTS] Darth Vader And Seeker Droid (MS01) set. So you aren’t getting a bargain here. If you’re buying these sets for your kids, guess what? Hasbro has sold you something you already likely have. You now have two identical figures (save for some very minor paint operation differences) your kids, and you won’t want, and you paid $10 for them. Do yourself a favor. Find figures from past Hasbro lines and get those for your kids. Brick and mortar is a dying breed anyhow. There are so many other and better options online, and you will get quality figures for lower prices. These Mission Series sets are doing the exact opposite.