Bouncing Around From Machine To Machine
After a long holiday season, here we are again.
After returning from a tumultuous holiday with my un-laws, I received a nice end-of-the-year bonus, a peek at a prototype for the upcoming Ralph McQuarrie Darth Vader action figure. In lieu of pictures (which are a big no-no right now with our friends at Hasbro) I’m going to break down the articulation and details for this bad boy for ya’ll.
The original Man In Black is decked out with a lot of articulation. In addition to the usual articulation, here’s what else you can expect.
Knees? Balljointed.
Shoulders? Balljointed.
Elbows? Swivel.*
Wrists? Turns.
Ankles? Pivot.
Waist? Turns.
Neck? See below.
This Vader is decked out with a very cool flowing cape unlike any we’ve ever seen before. The cape is a separate piece that actually attaches to the figure below the neck, completely enclosing it (think a reverse turtleneck). From what I can discern, the head is balljointed to allow for maximum posing. The helmet is a work of art – very Samurai, with cool accents to make his cheek area look more menacing. The mask really does have a lot of great detail work. Consistent with Ralph McQuarrie‘s work, this Vader features a holster attached to his right leg, which hopefully means the Dark Lord will come with a cool blaster in addition to his laser sword.
*Before anyone gripes about swivel elbows versus ball jointed elbows, please understand that this Vader is really plush from the get-go. The swivel elbows will allow for a more natural stance when fighting the (sure to be cool) Ralph McQuarrie Luke Skywalker (with extra-spiffy breathing mask).
January 15th, 2007 at 10:46 am
That McQuarrie Darth Vader sounds absolutely fantastic! I cannot wait until we see pictures.
January 15th, 2007 at 11:35 am
Same here!
Who would have thunk, that 30 yrs later we would be buying this version- astounding!!!
=)
January 15th, 2007 at 3:26 pm
Any new figure is a good figure in my book. I can’t wait for this as well as the other McQuarrie figures.
January 15th, 2007 at 3:43 pm
I am really excited about the McQuarrie concept figures. I’m especially looking forward to this Vader figure and also the Luke figure which is also rumoured to be coming out some time soon.
All good stuff.
January 15th, 2007 at 7:35 pm
Hasbro really seems to be getting a lot right lately, IMHO. It’s things like these that too good to be true which make me wonder sometimes if I am going to wake up from a beautiful, beautiful dream….
January 15th, 2007 at 9:49 pm
2 cool i used 2 have a sticker of that scene on my bed when i was a kid&always hoped they would make it in2 figures!
January 16th, 2007 at 5:28 am
Thanks Adam for the breakdown about the articulation, arguably the most important part of the figure for me… this definitely makes me want it even more than I already do. Good news after the disappointment of the unveiled Snowbunny Padme and her (ugh) fixed shooting pose and limited articulation.
January 16th, 2007 at 6:27 am
Well, I wasn’t gonig to buy yet another Vader figure. I had said previously that Hasbro would have to knock one out of the park to make me do so. Hmm there goes the ball now over the fence!
This figure sounds amazing!
It’s certainly different enough, okay VERY different, to warrant getting it.
Adam, what of the color? Does it have color on it like the McQuarrie paintings? Or is it just black. Can’t wait to see pics of this soon.
Thanks for sharing.
January 16th, 2007 at 8:25 am
I am with jedi_master_sal in thinking that I wasn’t going to be buying any more Vaders, but this one sounds great. I can’t wait to see it!
January 16th, 2007 at 10:23 am
With all the different Darth Vader figures out there (and so many in the last year or two alone) I never thought I’d be interested in another version. This one, however, sounds interesting. I can’t wait to see it.
January 16th, 2007 at 10:32 am
It sounds like Hasbro has taken their time on these and done them right. Boba Fett and the Stormtrooper repaint look cool, and it sounds like Vader is going to be quite a figure too. I’m looking forward to collecting this subset over the next year.
January 16th, 2007 at 5:49 pm
These RM figures are Hasbro’s best idea since the VOTC… I can’t wait.