As Lucasfilm celebrated its 50th Anniversary in 2021, Hasbro set about celebrating the event with a number of special Black Series releases, each emulating a specific era of action figures and their packaging but in the newer 6-inch scale. The Clone Wars wave saw four new/tweaked figures added to the Black Series line with special blister card packaging based on the original 2008 clone wars 3.75-inch white and blue clone trooper helmet style packaging.
The cards are appropriately re-sized for the 6-inch line and carry the character name, artwork, and Lucasfilm 50th logo on an insert at the base of the rounded blister. The back of the card is dominated by the Lucasfilm 50th Anniversary timeline, with the Clone Wars era highlighted in the brief accompanying text. Unlike most other Black Series figures, the card has apparently no room for any character background.
"Commemorate the first 50 years of Lucasfilm with figures inspired by Star Wars: The Clone Wars!"
Obi-Wan Kenobi is presented in his Jedi General gear from the Clone Wars, a mash-up of the Clone Trooper armour and his Jedi Robes. The figure utilises the arms and lower legs of the new 2020 Clone Trooper with updated pinless articulation, while the robes and shoulder armour are an added jacket over a generic black torso, waist and upper legs. The armour is cast in white plastic but is a little more 'off-white' than the crisp bright white of the new Clone Trooper figures.
The robes and shoulder armour are also cast in their base colour - the sand of the robes, with the white painted onto the torso armour which leaves it a shade different to the armour and still with a lot of brown showing at the edges and even some white bleed onto the robes - overall it is quite messy on close inspection. The final deco for the body is the addition of a red Jedi symbol on the left shoulder pauldron as a transfer.
The head sculpt is more or less the same as the former Clone Wars Obi-Wan Black Series release from the Tartakovsky series, but with an improved fit on the hairpiece and a better colouration on the hair and beard. The Ewan McGregor likeness is good and consistent with the look we'd expect between Clone Wars and Revenge of the Sith considering the source material is animated.
Obi-Wan has a single accessory in the shape of his lightsaber. This is a direct carry over from previous Obi-Wan figures with a silver, black and bronze hilt and translucent blue removable blade. The hilt is quite slim compared to other sabres in the line and the connection for the blade is extremely thin and certainly at risk of snapping if not handled gently.
The sabre hilt has retained the plug from the previous figures, and unlike the Tartakovsky Obi-Wan which retained the plug but had no use for it, this Clone Wars Obi-Wan has been given a corresponding socket on his belt to allow the sabre hilt to be secured on the belt when not in use.
Articulation is the same as the Clone Trooper that donated the bulk of the body with the exception of the ab joint which is dropped down to become a ball joint waist on the new figure
The figure has 19 points of articulation in total and benefits greatly from the new dual joint neck both from a movement perspective, but also from getting rid of the unsightly neck joint that has plagued Obi-Wan (and other figures) in the past.
The butterfly shoulders are less effective as the arms can only work within the constraints of the shoulder armour. The skirt section has a similar effect on the upper legs.
All in all, Obi-Wan is easy to pose and stand with plenty of posing options with and without his lightsaber. The figure stands up and alongside the Obi-Wan releases for Episode 1 and Episode 2 and is an improvement on the Tartakovsky figure in terms of armour and articulation. We just need a nailed on Episode 3 Obi-Wan now for a full set. This head would also work well on other Obi-Wan figures such as a Mandalorian disguise figure.
As an exclusive wave, these are limited and at a higher price point than usual, circa £25 from most retailers. The card-backs are gorgeous for mint on card collectors, for whom they are aimed predominantly. It will be interesting to see if these get a re-release down the road in the standard packaging?
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About Me : As a child of the 70's and 80's I grew up in a golden age for action figures and in my youth bought and sold myself through collections of Star Wars, G.I. Joe (Action Force) and M.A.S.K. while also dabbling in He-Man, Transformers and Ghostbusters. Roll forward and I am now reliving that Youth with the action figures of today and am a collector and fan of the larger 6-8 inch figures from my favourite movie and TV licences - including the ones mentioned above, but also the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Doctor Who and the Aliens. I launched The Mephitsu Archives in 2015 with a view of creating a UK focused site or these figures where fans can pick up the latest action figure news, read reviews and get information on where to buy their figures and what is currently on store shelves. I hope I am delivering that to you guys...
action figures, reviews, review, articulation, star wars, black series, the clone wars, republic, jedi, seperatist, anakin skywalker, obi-wan kenobi, arc trooper, echo, hawk, hasbro, Lucasfilm, 50th anniversary