Vintage Star Wars 12" figures...Discuss.

[English Paul]

So I find myself only needing six or seven more Mego figures to be really happy with my collection so to keep me from getting bored whilst I wait for the right ones I need to focus my collecting habbits elsewhere so 2009 is going to be the year that I finally move into the big guys.



I already have Chewbacca, C3P0 and a Leia arriving soon (none of them boxed). Only nine more to go. It can't be that difficult, can it?

One thing I have noticed is that they are going to take up a lot of space. Chewbacca is a huge figure.

Are there any other members that have the 12" range? It would be good the hear your stories.

[huedell]

they look beautiful...and are very nostalgic...but I'd balk at the size.

I don't think I'll ever own a 12 inch figure again----although I've seen some
beauties in the past few years---modern and...of course...vintage
like you're collecting.

Good luck with the collection---I'll try to live vicariously through ya!

[SlipperyLilSuckers]

I just got 4 vintage kenner 12" figures and I'm loving them...Jar Jar, Luke, Darth Maul and Darth Vader.

What brand are the ones pictures?

[English Paul]

Cat, the ones pictured are the Kenner ones from 1978/79. They only ran for two years as they weren't very popular.

More here..... Large Size Action Figures

and here.....

Rebelscum.com: Vintage Star Wars Photo Archives

[Dave Mc]

I have them all but IG-88. I just never felt like spending the cash that he goes for complete. One day I will. Always found it weird that with the limited run of figures they did, IG-88 was selected.

I am missing a part here and there, but they are a cool line and have a charm all their own.

[huedell]

I have them all but IG-88. I just never felt like spending the cash that he goes for complete. One day I will. Always found it weird that with the limited run of figures they did, IG-88 was selected.

Weird character choice, maybe...but as far as ditching the
whole "clothing" aspect for IG-88---I'd guess that was a cost saver
for them---at least to experiment with.

(still, I guess just about NOTHING was gonna save THAT line though!)

[UnderdogDJLSW]

I remember not seeing many of these in the stores back then. I remember a good deal of the R2 D2s but not many of the other characters. I think they didn't want to use up the space for the smaller stuff.

[Mikey]

When I was collecting 12" Star Wars figures in the early 90's they were the first figures I that I started hand-making custom parts to replace their missing stuff.

I used to make repro weapons out of old model kit parts.

The only ones I never had were IG88 and Jawa.

The legs always used to bug me.
50% of the time the inner knee joint was always busted.
I used to buy beat ones cheap just to swap out the legs and upgrade.

My fav figure of them all was the Stormtrooper, even though it was more of a statue then a figure.

[SlipperyLilSuckers]

Thanks Paul. I just thought I had different ones because I looked at the Luke in the top picture and thought he wasn't smiling...but I see he is in the link you posted. I got mine in a cheap bunch and just looked Jar Jar and Maul are from 1993.

I like that Jawa :D

[ScottA]

I had all but the "humans" back in the day. Picked them up in trades and whatnot. But space became an issue after my first child was born so I sold them off. I don't collect SW but if I did I always told myself it would be the 12" figures. Just something about them.

[HardyGirl]

Chewbacca used to remind me of Bigfoot. Are they related? And we used to have a 12" Darth Vader in my classroom; except it was a regular body, Darth head, and costume.

And I already stated that the Shaun Cassidy prototype looked a lot like Luke.

[BendyZaius]

I have almost completed my set of these, missing only the Leia and the IG-88 (of course). Kenner planned a new series for Empire including Hoth Leia, Hoth Han and Bespin Luke, but these were cancelled when the line ended. I have seen pictures of the prototype boxes for them, maybe at theswca.com. I think these were too pricey for the time, like $14.00 each if I remember right. You could get 5 small figures for that.

[Delusional B]

I have a complete, loose set that I've been building since 1978.

I started with Darth Vader in 1978 but he fell off my shelf and his arms came off. I tried to return him and get a new Vader but even new, these were tough to find. So, we returned him and I picked up a Luke, instead.

As a kid, I had Luke and Chewie. My brother had Boba Fett and and C3Po. When he didn't want his anymore, I adopted his. I picked up most of the rest pre-Ebay days through conventions and toy ads. My wife bought me my Han Solo during our Honeymoon trip to Florida at a small comic/toy shop way back in 1992.

I JUST finished the collection last year when I finally bought Luke's grappling hook and Obi-Wans lightsaber.

As a kid, I wanted all the 12" figures but they were pricey (little did we know just how pricey they would be to buy as adults) and difficult to find. I never did see a Han Solo in the store locally. I did see one at a Target during a vacation trip in 78 or 79. Plus, we were all very busy trying to find all the 3 3/4" guys we needed. Things could be just as tough to find back then as they are now...only there wasn't a back-up like ebay. Just ask anyone that was looking to complete their first 12 little figures and couldn't find a Jawa anywhere!

[Mikey]

I always thought making Boba basically a giant 3-3/4" figure was pretty lame.

Same with Vader and Stormtrooper

[Gorn Captain]

I have ten of those big boys.
I'm still missing Ben and Solo.
Of the accessories, I need Chewie's bow and bandolier.

I have to say, I love them. When I was a kid, I only had Luke and Leia. That's all they had in Belgium. This kind of reduced the play action to "let's comb Leia's hair and try a different hairstyle". Boring!
In 1978, I visited Bangor, Wales, where they had ALL of them. I freaked out!
Vader! Chewie!
Unfortunately, my Dad was still convinced these were "dolls", and only under pressure from my Mom, I got one. Vader.
Remember, this was before international mail order, internet, etc.
I had to wait over 15 years to get that Chewie.

So two more, and I'm happy....