Concept Luke Skywalker (Ralph McQuarrie Signature Series) - TAC - Basic (Exclusive)

In the painting depicted on the front, Luke Skywalker and Darth Vader duel. Wearing an oxygen tank and breathing mask, Luke looks eerily like his father. Although crouched before Vader, his stance vibrates with intensity.

2007 was celebratory for multiple reasons. Not only was it time to celebrate 30 years of Star Wars in general, Star Wars fans across the globe geared up for both Star Wars Celebration IV and Celebration Europe, both of which produced unique exclusives of their own. 2007 was the year for concept figures so it made sense that Hasbro would create a few exclusive concept figures and throw them into the mix as well. Celebration IV helped collectors finish up key Ralph McQuarrie concept figures and Concept Luke Skywalker was the candidate of choice for this release. (This is a figure many wanted to see in the basic 30 (77-07) line.) Inspired by the very memorable Ralph McQuarrie painting of Luke Skywalker in space gear battling Darth Vader, this can now be immortalized in plastic thanks to this exclusive release. The action figure is very well designed as Ralph McQuarrie took active part in all of these figures’ development and comes with plenty of accessories to make any collector happy. A concept for Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope, Concept Luke Skywalker (Ralph McQuarrie Signature Series) is another fine example of what Hasbro is able to develop into three-dimensions from the artwork of the man who visually made Star Wars the reality it is today.

The execution of Concept Luke Skywalker (Ralph McQuarrie Signature Series) is beyond excellent. Collectors of all types will find this figure a pleasure and will have a hard time passing up on it. The colors, the details and the articulation for the most part are as celebratory as the event it commemorates. Hasbro knocked this one out of the park and it’s quickly become a favorite amongst collectors who seek after them. Besides the inclusion of swivel elbows, this figure brings a great wealth of premium articulation to the table and the complementary accessories couldn’t fit in more appropriately. Luke may come across as a little too colorful, but if you compare him to reference stills, you’ll see that Hasbro mastered him nearly flawlessly. From the windblown hair to the wider than normal stance of his legs, Luke Skywalker is ready to take on your Concept Darth Vader figure at any moment. A nice bonus is that Luke’s space gear (i.e. breathing mask) is removable so not only does this figure come to you with incredible authenticity, it has versatility as well. (You may want to note that Luke’s mask doesn’t go over his head, so you need to remove his head to remove this piece.

There are some other nice details with the Concept Luke Skywalker figure as well. The lightsaber blade is removable from the hilt of the figure and then this hilt can be attached to the clip on his belt. What’s nice is that the lightsaber blade is hollow and accepts the plug that is part of the lightsaber hilt this time. It’s also clearly stronger and thicker than the lightsabers we received during 2002 in the Star Wars “Saga” line. While we’re sure this doesn’t mean the “plug” is invincible to breakage, we believe it will last longer than its predecessor. While this figure was released as an exclusive for both Celebration IV (in America) and Celebration Europe, each version has it’s own unique coin to commemorate the specific event. So variation hunters will have their work cut out for them if they feel the need to acquire both versions for their collections. Some feel it was overkill to focus on so many concept figures in the 30 (77-07) line. We don’t agree and hope more are planned for the future. Without concept art, we wouldn’t have the characters we have today. Because f this we feel that the concepts portrayed through art should be forever immortalized and shown the proper respect in the basic figure line.

The vivid imagination of conceptual artist Ralph McQuarrie brought to life the characters and worlds envisioned by George Lucas. McQuarrie’s paintings and drawings were instrumental in the push to bring Lucas’s saga to the big screen, giving shape and form to a multitude of fantastic individuals, creatures, planets and technology encompassed in this epic tale. Developed in collaboration with McQuarrie himself, this remarkable action figure series pays tribute to the man whose art defined some of the most memorable characters in film history.