Around 96-97 Hasbro started producing 12" Star Wars characters again, and instead of the stiff leg pose of the 1978 Vintage Stormtrooper, these utilized the re-tooled G.I. Joe 12" body. That is in part what makes these some of my favorite figures, because even though it's the re-tooled body, it reminds me of the old 12" Adventure Team Joes.The initial release of 12" Star Wars Figures included Darth Vader, Obi-Wan, Luke, and Han Solo. It wouldn't be until the subsequent releases that we would see the Stormtrooper (in his many uniforms), Boba Fett, Princess Leia, and all your other favorites.
The Stormtrooper had a vinyl "shell" that made up the armor on the figure. While the armor ended up being soft, it did allow for the figure underneath to bend and move given the articulation of the newer Joe body. Included with the trooper was his standard issue blaster, that for the first time at this scale was a pretty close representation of the movie prop. Later versions of this rifle would be tooled to fire a little red missile.
These first few releases of Star Wars 12" figures came packaged in a five panel box, that lent itself to a vintage feel. The fifth panel being revealed when the flap on the box was open to show the figure in all it's packaged glory. As the Hasbro lines changed packaging direction through out the years, the fifth panel was deleted for just a display style package.
Compared to the newer figures that are being released today, the Hasbro Stormtrooper seems a little clunky, but as I said before, it was the best for it's time and is still a fun figure to have.
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