Hasbro Plans to Release Vintage Star Wars Figures for 40th Anniversary

In addition to watching all the movies, a lot of the fun from the franchise comes from collecting all the Star Wars figures you can find.

“How can we make this into a toy?” – Every studio exec everywhere

That’s how a studio makes money. I mean, on top of box office dollars and whatnot, the most bankable franchises are the ones with the most merchandise. And as it so happens, Star Wars toys appeal to kids and adults. In fact, they probably appeal mostly to adults. As Mark Hamill’s Pop Culture Quest consistently points out, adults will spend a few thousand dollars on a collection at any given time.

Luckily, Hasbro’s not here to bankrupt us.

To celebrate the 40th anniversary of A New Hope‘s (originally, it was just called Star Wars) release in 1977, Hasbro plans to re-release a line of 6″ Black Series figures inspired by the original Kenner toys from the ’70s. They made the announcement over the weekend at the New York Toy Fair and gave a few details. Like, the first line hits shelves in spring and retails for about $20 each. (That’s steep for a 6″ toy, but not a Star Wars collectible.) Further, they’ll be repackaged with an updated look but still maintain the original names given to the toys.

Also, just to be clear, Kenner no longer makes toys, with its parent company Hasbro shutting it down nearly 20 years ago.

As someone who already owns a few of these, it kind of stinks to think that they’re releasing them again. But at the same time, an original will always be the original. And as I said, it’s about the money.

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They’ll also release a special legacy pack dedicated to Darth Vader. And for anyone attending Star Wars Celebration Orlando, there will be a special Luke Skywalker in his X-Wing flight suit available exclusively at the convention. Plus, R5-D4 toys will be available through GameStop.