Oversaturating a toy line can often lead to some great ideas. The Star Wars franchise has been producing merchandise more or less unabated since the first film was released in 1977. Now you can buy almost any character that’s appeared in all six movies, in any outfit you saw them wearing. So where does a licensee go from there?

Hasbro decided to make action figures based upon concept art - in this case, the iconic pre-production paintings of Ralph McQuarrie. Some were sold individually, and two six-character sets were released as well.

The figures - Boba Fett, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Yoda, Chewbacca, Han Solo, C-3P0, R2-D2, Snowtrooper, Luke Skywalker and Starkiller Hero (among others) - are lovingly sculpted and painted, echoing the concept art as much as possible. There’s a lot of articulation too, so you can put the characters into a variety of poses. The accessories are equally well-made, and most of them fit easily into the figures’ hands (Chewie’s rifle is the trickiest, and probably could’ve used a bit more finessing). The weapon holsters actually work, making it a little less likely that the pistols will get lost.

The limb joints are made as much a part of the design as possible. Overall, it’s a great approach, but the diagonally-sliced ‘elbows’ do present some posing difficulties. Aside from the lack of display bases (a little less excusable in a larger set), there’s not a lot of minuses here.

The package design for the larger sets, while not dazzling, keep their priorities straight. The overall look evokes design motifs from the films, the logo is prominent, and McQuarrie’s signature is front and center. Not too cluttered, and the front ‘window’ lets you see the figures clearly with no element of them covered (handy if you like to compare paint jobs like I do).

These sets are three years old now, but you can still buy both of them - though the cost increase isn’t trivial. Planet X has set 1 and set 2 for $24.99 + shipping (each), a good bargain considering that set 1 can cost up to $100, and set 2 can go as high as $75. Snap ‘em up while you can!