Empire Strikes Back Bespin Han Solo, Luke Skywalker, Lando Calrissian, IG-88

I sold the remaining childhood Kenner Star Wars figures I had six years ago, but the forthcoming 50th anniversary of Star Wars has stirred some nostalgia in me. The Empire Strikes Back might have made a bigger impression on me as I was a little older, and it's probably my favorite of the original trilogy for the same reasons as a lot of fans.

Bespin Han Solo

Not my childhood Bespin Han, but a clean sample from an eBay seller at a good price. The legs are a slightly different shade, and he didn't come with the original Bespin blaster, so I bought a reproduction DL-44 blaster, Han's actual sidearm. 

Bespin Luke Skywalker

Also not the same figure I had in 1980. I actually had a brown hair version, but this eBay sample has overall better/more even color and less paint loss. Again, I paid far less for a figure without accessories and bought repro weapons, including a gray DL-44 blaster just to make him my own. Probably my favorite Kenner Luke Skywalker figure, kinda on the lookout for another.

Retro Collection Lando Calrissian

Not a vintage figure, but a Hasbro reissue that looks very much like my 1980 Lando. I have a much deeper appreciation for the Bespin Cloud City figures like Lando, Lobot, and the Bespin Security Guard now, Lando the most colorful in his bright blue shirt. A complex character in the Star Wars Saga!

Retro Collection Empire Strikes Back IG-88 and Mandalorian IG-11 

I compulsively purchased a Retro Collection Mandalorian IG-11 around the same time as the IG-88. In fact, I felt I knew him better anyway, as we barely get but a passing glance of IG-88 in The Empire Strikes Back, but got a fully fleshed out character in IG-11 in The Mandalorian. I'd swear that one leg on both these figures is shorter than the other- they seem a little flimsy in general, to be frank. But they do like nice together.

More Later- May the Force Be with You!

Mego Disney Store Avengers 4pk (2026)

I'm pretty sure I only heard about the Mego Disney Store Avengers 4pk just a week or so before it dropped, mine arriving just five days after I ordered it online without incident. Some collectors reported receiving badly damaged boxes, but mine arrived unscathed. I think Mego adjusted their inventory numbers with the online giant after grossly miscalculating the initial Fantastic Four set, which left many fans without, present company included. In fact, you could still order last year's Spider-Man/Arch Enemies 4pk when I purchased the Avengers set (and still can as of writing this, though the Avengers set is sold out now). I hope we'll get another chance at the Fantastic Four set! Check out my YouTube Short:

I love the packaging and special edition gold coin, and while I've heard a lot of complaints about changes collectors wanted/didn't want, I'm actually thrilled with this set. Finding vintage figures of these characters in good condition can be a pricey endeavor, and I'd remind any of those '70s kids, they wouldn't have cared about any of that back in the day. They very much channel the spirit and aesthetic of '70s Mego!

 

Below, the new Mego Avengers with my ToyBiz Marvel Famous Covers Avengers:

Below, the Disney Store Capt. America and Hulk with vintage Mego Capt. America and Hulk, Thor with the 50th Anniversary WGSH Superman, and Iron Man with my Mego Ultraman...

Stan Lee and Spider-Man team up with the Avengers 

to fight the webslinger's terrible Arch Enemies!

Visit the Mego Museum's World's Greatest Superheroes Gallery

 to see the figures that started it all back in 1972!

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Mego Capt. America (1973)

I'm mostly sure I didn't have a Mego Captain America as a child in the '70s, in spite of the figure's long run from '73 to '82. I remember having Batman and Robin, Superman, Hulk, Spider-Man, Joker, and Penguin, but not Cap. I suspect this sample falls somewhere in the middle of his production run due to his Type 2 body construction, darker flesh tone and stitched belt. I bought a fabric star to replace the thin sticker the eBay seller had given him, and I suspect the sticker on the shield had also been replaced, but he's a good, clean sample.

Below, Captain America with my vintage Mego Spider-Man and Hulk...

Cap was a somewhat plain figure, bereft of the Mego "oven mitt" gloves and white bands around his biceps, but was a beloved figure. He also got standard issue Mego boots, like Superman, not the cuffed type he traditionally wore in the comics. Some later Mego characters were slightly more deluxe, but Cap stayed this more basic figure throughout his nine years or so of production.

Below, Mego Captain America with a couple other cloth-costumed Cap figures in my collection, the awesome 11.5" Disney Store Ultimate Series Capt. America and 9" ToyBiz Capt. America....

Visit the Mego Museum's World's Greatest Superheroes Gallery

 to see the figures that started it all back in 1972!

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12in. Kenner Obi-Wan Kenobi (1979)

Continuing with my 12" Kenner Star Wars collection, I present my 1979 Obi-Wan Kenobi, mentor to both Anakin and Luke Skywalker. Mine is a pretty good sample with only some wear to the belt buckle and a few loose stiches in his turtleneck. His paint is clean, robe in good shape and has his original yellow lightsaber. Obi-Wan was not among the larger Kenner figures in my childhood collection, so it's fun to have him as an adult!

From the year prior, Kenner's 3.75" Obi-Wan Kenobi, debuting in 1978. Neither are from my childhood collection and sport reproduction lightsabers, one a telescoping version! I feel like this figure doesn't get the love it deserves- I appreciate it more as an adult, especially the through-the-arm lightsaber design. Brilliant!

Below, Obi-Wan with the kitbash custom X-Wing Pilot Luke Skywalker...

Obi-Wan along with some of his other Kenner Star Wars friends: 

C-3PO, R2-D2, and Chewbacca...

...And finally, 12" Kenner Obi-Wan Kenobi with my 15" Kenner Darth Vader, a figure I did have as a child, and in my opinion, likely the best of this short-lived like of oversized figures. Now I can recreate the famous lightsaber battle from Star Wars that started it all! Be sure to check out the Toy Collector's Guide on Kenner's 12" Line, 1978-1980!

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Star Wars X-Wing Pilot

 The Star Wars X-Wing Pilot and I go way back- Kenner's original 3.75" figure from 1978 was one of the first of that scale I had. He wasn't my favorite Star Wars figure back then, but as an adult I have a much greater appreciation for his detailed sculpt and bright orange flight suit. This post will showcase the figures of that character in my collection.

When I found Epic Heroes Series Force Strike X-Wing for ten bucks shipped from some warehouse closeout seller on eBay, I knew I wouldn't find a lower cost option for the fighter anywhere again. Its wing expansion function is clunky, constantly causing the wings to pop off when opening them into attack position, and there's no lights and sounds, but it looks a lot like the Kenner version I had as a child. I might not have bought it at the original retail price of $30.00, but it makes a great display piece for my X-Wing Pilot collection, and it even came with a figure.

I got this 12" Gentle Giant Jumbo X-Wing Pilot (Luke Skywalker/Red Five) on sale from BBTS, the second version of this figure that comes with a removable helmet, blaster, and two lightsabers- far superior to the first release. This is the only Gentle Giant Jumbo figure I have, but I'm absolutely mad for them! Yes, his hair is already scuffed from squeezing the helmet on, but there's no way I was going to leave him in the package and not take him out to play with. I love the options on this figure!

That Gentle Giant figure was based on the O.G. Kenner 3.75" X-Wing Pilot figure, of course, two well-loved samples of which I have in my current adult collection. Mine are outfitted with modern reproduction blasters and lightsabers. 

I also have a 1:6 scale Kitbash Custom X-Wing Pilot based on the original Kenner 12" Luke Skywalker outfitted with a later '90s flight suit and custom reproduction lightsaber. I bought a few custom figures from the same seller, this one priced very attractively. He removed the foam from inside the helmet to fit this earlier figure better. The earlier 12" Star Wars figure bodies were basically Ken/Barbie dolls with little in the way of useful articulation, but the faces were so much nicer.

X-Wing Pilot Luke Skywalker with my other kitbash custom Return of the Jedi Luke Skywalker:

... and my Kenner Luke Skywalker with the Gentle Giant X-Wing Pilot ...

...and finally, the display of this small collection in my home! There's not a great deal of room for expansion, but I'm satisfied with this. 2027 will be the 50th anniversary of Star Wars, so I'm feeling a lot of nostalgia for it ahead of this milestone- a movie that had an impact on our culture that's hard to quantify.

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