Did Kenner ever get Luke Skywalker correct?!?

In this video we take a deep dive into all the different versions of Luke Skywalker that were produced for Kenner's original vintage Star Wars toy line and try answer the question; Did Kenner ever get Luke Skywalker correct?!?
Don’t eat the yellow lightsaber: • Star Wars Follies: Don...
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[@AnalogToys]

Which version of Kenner's Luke Skywalker was your favourite?

[@mathewbarrie]

My favourite is Jedi Knight Luke. RotJ is my favourite Star Wars film, it's the ultimate Luke Skywalker, and his lightsaber is my favourite colour.

[@MichaelJShaffer]

@AnalogToys Molded face Jedi Knight Luke.

[@JJ-uy2sg]

Storm trooper luke for the disguise effect. Just missed Han.

[@samanthaadams619]

All about Bespin Luke.

[@TimHayes]

Jedi Knight Luke Skywalker.

[@LeFouGallois]

#BackInTheDay, how many of us thought that the hair colour on X-wing pilot Luke was wrong... until we realised years later that it was supposed to be the helmet's visor ? :)

[@JC-fd9zt]

Me 👋🏼

[@matafuko]

I thought it was black hair but I had no idea it was supposed to be Luke (I was born in 84 so never saw the toys in stores - I got them all loose second hand).

[@thecelestialtoygazer7816]

Glad to see the little Doctor Who corner of your shelf

[@yaboym3247]

Me too. Good to see Tony picked up a Genesis Of The Daleks pack Davros.

[@tycondrius23]

I remember for years as a kid wondering why Luke had black hair in the x-wing uniform not realizing it was the visor lol. I will say I do wish hasbro or someone would go back and redo the OTC Luke, Vader and Kenobi and remove the telescopic sabre hand for a regular grip hand. I know the dark times Vader does kinda fill that gap but he seems to lack the sharp details of the original version , Jedi Luke has to be my fav of the bunch . though I can understand the frustration about final duel/endor luke such a simple omission on their part

[@beaker126]

As a kid, one of my uncles was a restaurateur. I was over one day during off hours and behind the bar I found a box of those cocktail cherry swords. Lightsabers galore once I trimmed off the actual hilt.

[@bpalpha]

I learned that colored toothpicks made a great substitution. 😉

[@DanielJohn-xr7ly]

I rocked that too. A renaissance of lightsabers.

[@yaboym3247]

Excellent usage of Del Boy falling through the bar there 😄this is why you're my favourite toy channel.

[@robertbeard8207]

Bespin Luke was and still is my favourite. Because it got rid of that awful (shank up the arm) lightsaber feature. Great detail on the costume as well.

[@JJ-uy2sg]

30 seconds in and this video is making me get that nostalgic feeling that cures so many ills.

[@mrbojangles1391]

This video just makes me extremely sad that I gave all my action figures to my little brother because a girl I liked in grade school told me I was too old to be playing with 'dolls'. Now she's gone and so are my favorite toys.

[@MichaelJShaffer]

A look at Luke(s). This was excellent, Tony, and I loved those wipes you used. 11:23 You humble me, my friend.🖖

[@brianwyde3829]

The Bespin Luke was by far the best version and one of the best 5 figures in the entire run. This guys analysis of each Luke figure is absolutely incredible.

[@DavidLLambertmobile]

As a kid, 1980; I took Luke in his rebel military outfit: khaki garb as showing how stressed, run down he is. He went from fighting on Hoth to flying to Dagobah to train hard with Yoda. Then leave; go directly to Cloud City-Bespin.

[@DanielJohn-xr7ly]

@@DavidLLambertmobile Luke is a scrapper. Got the shit beat out of him but kept trying.

[@patrickbirt9034]

This is a great video! I’m going to source an Endor Luke and swap the heads with the Jedi Knight one now. The collection just doesn’t feel complete without one.

[@Chronically0nline]

Damn, did Doi Ahoy paint the eyes on that x wing Luke? Lol

[@aworldmadeofcardboard3692]

Very incredible production value! Great information, fantastic detail. Analog Toys raises the bar again.

[@markrussell3414]

Excellent video on star wars keep collecting 👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻

[@UsualmikeTelevision]

This was a great video. Had it stashed in the watch later pile way to long! Thank you Tony!!

[@Gideon0297]

Always on point with your content Sir! Thank you.

[@cutulphashby6972]

Another fantastic video- thank you so much Tony!

[@SaturnCanuck]

Thanks tony. Always love your videos

[@macman3676]

I remember as a kid in the 70s that i didnt care what they looked like , these WERE the official toys so it didn’t make a difference. Yet im here aged 51, and bewildered just how inaccurate these likenesses were! Great video. Farmboy Luke my favourite as its the original.

[@darthwizzywizard]

Awesome Video 😊❤

[@futuristica1710]

Great video!

[@clobberonline6812]

Agreed !!

[@mikebull1972]

Great video Tony!

[@HexNottingham]

My biggest gripe about the Luke Skywalker figures started in the mid-90s reboot. Luke's face was never right. They always sculpted him with his mouth hanging open and him looking up with kind of a dumb expression. It didn't get good looking until the Black Series

[@JJ-uy2sg]

Perfect video. Nice play set backdrops. Content we already know but it's how it's presented. Fair inclusion of other people in the collector space. Time well spent watching. Oh and I did accidentally swallow storm trooper Luke's helmet as a kid. Wish I had it now!

[@CineSalvaje]

Great video

[@ParumPirum]

My childhood collection was apparently very Luke-heavy, because I had every single Luke except that fluffy Endor one. I actually remember not liking that weird fabric poncho, thought it looked stupid when I saw it in the toy store. Made it feel like a Barbie doll or something. Using real fabric on any figure was a damn mistake in my opinion! The fabric got lost, worn out and didn't even look good. Still have three of the Lukes in my possession, Hoth Luke, Jedi knight Luke and the Stormtrooper Luke - the last one still has its helmet and blaster. All Light sabres are lost to time, my cat chewed them up in the late 80s.

[@DanielJohn-xr7ly]

Jedi Luke's cloth cape and cowl was awesome though.

[@SFforlife]

Great breakdown! It’s always fascinating learning about toys from before my childhood. (90’s!) I know for a fact little inconsistencies in toys and whatnot bugged the hell outta me lol.

[@AllBreaksLoose]

I had farmboy, bespin, and the Hoth "the other Luke" trooper. All of em were favorites... Nice video tony!

[@SkyStarNova]

The inaccurate look is just part of the charm of those figures. Awesome times.

[@ashleighelizabeth5916]

As a child I made quite a few lightsabers out of toothpicks because: A: figure accessories were always getting lost. B. the molded in style given to Ben and Vader were too short C: they didn't give Luke the correct lightsaber color until well after the release of ROTJ. A flat toothpick colored with a blue or red sharpie and given a black handle with a different sharper was a far better option then what these figures came with IMO.

[@mrpink99]

I used round colored toothpicks in blue and red, which fit perfectly back in 1978, after the flimsy tips broke off all the sabers thanks to heavy usage by my little brother and me

[@jerryziegner]

Another great video. I recall as a kid wondering why Luke had a yellow lightsaber. To make it even stranger, I recall, the Obi Wan figure’s cardboard backer featured an image of him wielding a yellow blade, in a movie still, while the figure came with a blue blade. I guess the marketing team at Kenner weren’t so knowledgeable about the characters in the movie.

[@justinscarred]

Also; Stan Solo + Jedi end duel Luke … = shut up & take my money.

[@tattoodfreeek]

Could've sworn that there was a stormtrooper han solo figure

[@richardlee5536]

Great video, Tony! I agree with all your observations. I still like all 7 Lukes, but the inaccuracies still drive me crazy. It is fortunate although too late, that Hasbro fixed these inaccuracies in the modern line. Too bad that Kenner couldn't have done them correctly in the first place. Good thing we have Stan Solo and Etsy.

[@francoisregis2155]

Great video I never thought about it Kenner at the time probably thought that they were toys and kids wouldn’t care too much about the details. It took us adults collectors to see the flaws or details about the figures.

[@justinscarred]

I dunno if I’d go so far as calling Endor Luke the WORST Luke 😂 but you’re right he should have had a removable helmet for sure

[@AnalogToys]

So which one is worst than Endor Luke?

[@truthisparamount8992]

Was about to say it's nothing compared to what Disney did to him, but you covered it.

[@cyrusq5999]

The first two Lukes (Tatooine & X-Wing) are still my favourites. Don't know why Kenner didn't also give Tatooine Luke the correct colour (blue) lightsaber when the figure was later reissued with the more screen-accurate brown hair? Doesn't the "Droid Factory" three-legged R2-D2 also count as another version of the figure?

[@sidbeckett5655]

Has anyone ever released helmet stickers for X-Wing pilots? Seems like a great way to expand a vintage collection and add Biggs, Wedge, Dak, etc...

[@grimacemusically]

I picked up that Stan Solo Dagobah Luke, and it is PERFECT. Looks absolutely amazing in my Dagobah display.

[@benflay6038]

Nice to see ypur doctor who collection, wait till see dapol figures😅

[@Retrotoyguysi]

Some very good points you have there Tony, but the frustration of how these figures were never screen accurate just adds to their charm. Though I had the Hoth Luke for years before I found out he was a Luke figure, I always took him to be another rebel fighter 😂

[@arctrooper999]

I had a lot of red "lightsabers", everytime my Grandma had a cocktail she would give me the olive with the plastic sword😮

[@edwinsmith-jones6205]

Luke Sywalker was my first ever Star Wars figure. 40+ years (and many adventures) later, although heavily playworn, he's still with me... a treasured lifelong friend.

[@BrappyHour]

You could sell a brick with “Luke Skywalker” printed on it, and it wouldn’t be as bad as what Disney has done.

[@Ghostsofthetimelines]

They still did pretty good! Because they were flying off the shelves when we were kids.

[@r.l.5812]

Jedi Luke I loved the cape/hoodie and the green lightsabre looked cool against the black of his outfit.

[@marktecher3085]

Great video Tony. The biggest problem I had with Luke figures were how he was given a title like Luke Skywalker X Wing Pilot. Yet when he finally got to be a Jedi, the Luke figure was called Luke Skywalker Jedi Knight Outfit. Was he just cosplaying?

[@krdragon6950]

Retroblasting had toy designer Jim Swearingen, on their channel and the question did come up why did Luke Skywalker had a yellow lightsaber? And he explained since Ben Kenobi had a blue lightsaber and Darth Vader had a red one, we will give Luke a yellow lightsaber so we can have The three primary colors. I don’t think Kenner was being very movie accurate with the figures back then.

[@LordAngron]

At 2:10 of the video, the saber is not blue. That scene may have been one of the reasons for a yellow one, as well as any unfinished production materials Kenner had to work from. I personally don't mind that it differentiates itself from Obi-Wan's toy.

[@AnalogToys]

I agree it doesn't look blue, but it doesn't look yellow either. It looks white.

[@gutz323]

The luke in black clothing and cloak, i had a green lightsaber, not blue so mine had the correct colour matching the film.

[@razumtazum3246]

The Luke issues never bothered me as a kid. What bothered me was R2D2. I mean, WTF? The details on the dome looked nothing like him! I mean, where did they even get that from?

[@jozefgoos1735]

Thanks Tony for this KZbin film well done. Yes the desisions that Kenner made are Verry bizar. Even Hasbro,s makes weird choices whit there action figures.

[@Ksknight100]

I had "farm boy" , X-Wing and Hoth Luke figures as a kid. I guess the X-Wing figure was my favourite. I was a bit too old for the others. It's amazing, but as a kid I never noticed the light saber or blaster discrepancies, but I do remember making Hoth Luke a light saber out of a tooth pick!! lol Top video mate; educational and entertaining as always.

[@Dragonette666]

most of the faces on the Luke figures look more like John Schneider as Bo Duke.

[@JC-fd9zt]

I think Kenner didnt include the lightsaber with Hoth Luke, because they wanted kids to buy both Hoth Luke, and Bespin Luke

[@AnalogToys]

I doubt it since Hoth Luke came out two years later and Kenner wanted kids to “collect them all” anyway.

[@michaelharrington75]

2:09 The light saber kinda looks yellow in that scene. Definitely not blue. Maybe that's where kenner got it?

[@mr.revrac5602]

The designer said they gave Luke a yellow one so they hit all the primary colors

[@TheCatBilbo]

My brother had so many of the figures & vehicles! I always preferred the modelling of the Palitoy rather than the Kenner. The Kenner were quite chunky & looked a bit amateurish to my eyes - more toy than model. The Palitoy faces seemed finer, the limbs more animated & the paint better.

[@edwinsmith-jones6205]

I'm confused... are you comparing the vintage figures with the 90's ones?

[@TheCatBilbo]

@@edwinsmith-jones6205 No, the original 70s into 80s. Palitoy were better than Kenner, in my experience.

[@DanielJohn-xr7ly]

Stormtrooper Luke was cool but too tall. I had most of the Lukes, my fav was definitely Jedi Luke. Cloak, blaster, and non attached lightsaber, plus both hands could hold stuff. Likeness was an improvement too. He was my go to Luke.

[@ronniemckinney6808]

Jedi Luke is my favorite of all of the versions of Luke. They finally got the sculpt right with the gun he takes from Jabba's guard and (finally) a correct green saber. Bespin Luke comes in at a close second place.

[@timfankell4242]

I think the X-Wing Pilot Luke was originally intended to be a generic Rebel pilot figure. For whatever reason, Kenner never made the Rebel Fleet Trooper, which would've been a good army builder. I think maybe they opted to go with the pilot figure instead because it went better with the X-Wing Fighter toy they had already produced. The decision to brand it as a Luke Skywalker figure instead came pretty late in production.

[@AnalogToys]

Can you prove that "The decision to brand it as a Luke Skywalker figure instead came pretty late in production"? Sounds more like your own theory than anything factual.

[@timfankell4242]

@@AnalogToys Can't prove anything, just remember being told by someone who was very knowledgeable about the line. I tend to agree, since the black "googles" are probably supposed to be hair (suggesting someone other than Luke).

[@MichaelJShaffer]

@@timfankell4242 There are no cardback pre-production proofs of a generic X-Wing Pilot figure. It was sold as "Luke Skywalker: X-Wing Pilot" on the 1979 21 cardback through 1985 on the POTF "Luke Skywalker (X-Wing Fighter Pilot)" cardback. Also, that was never hair and always has been the helmet visor. No one wears a flight helmet with their hair covering their eyebrows.

[@coloneld13]

Thank you for acknowledging something that annoyed the crap out of me as a child. You’re totally correct….1) Hoth Luke never had a rifle, and 2) he couldn’t hold it. I feel vindicated now. lol Thank you good sir!

[@michaelharrington75]

0:01 Why is R5-D4 turned backwards in some people's collections? They literally turn him backwards while every other figure is facing forward. I see it quite a bit. Just like the collection shown at the begin of this video.

[@rumblehat4357]

Farm boy Luke’s head is iconic. They reused it for Bespin Luke, and should have used it forJedi Knight Luke with the darker hair. The other Luke head sculpts were pretty awful.

[@DavidLLambertmobile]

I find it odd how Star Wars, Marvel license comics: 1977 to 1980, 95% of the story, issue Luke Skywalker wears his farm-Tatooine outfit. A few comics has him in the gold jacket, black clothes. After TESB 1980, Marvel relaxed & Luke wears different clothes, robes.

[@rumblehat4357]

It was kind of weird, but everyone seemed wear the same outfit most of the time. I guess either Marvel didn’t ask if they could change that or Lucasfilm said no, and then later relented. I remember that one Obi Wan story with him as a younger Jedi, and he had on a black outfit. Which was a nice switch. Certainly it wasn’t the norm for them to change clothes a lot back then.

[@GrilloTheFlightless]

Obi wan came with a blue light sabre? Mine (which I got for Christmas in 1980) had a yellow one just like the Luke I got that very same Christmas. The Stormtrooper Luke was a welcome addition to my collection as a kid, but the helmet wore the tip of his nose off over time.

[@RandomAmerican3000]

HA! Worrying about proper figure accessories is only for children who were able to not lose them pretty much instantly. My figures were lucky to get ANY weapon, let alone the correct one.

[@PowerChordEPS]

My first original Kenner was Bespin Luke, got him at a toy show last August. Right now he's flanked by a couple of childhood PotF2 Lukes (Farm boy and RotJ) until I can track down their 70s/80s counterparts. I don't know, I think Bespin might be the best of the lot.

[@jonathanclarke4529]

I could sworn that my ROTJ Luke had a sliding lightsaber (uk)

[@gutz323]

Mine didn't, I had the green light sabre and not the blue one.

[@faithrewarded7486]

The only thing that stormtrooper Luke figure is good for, is gluing the helmet down and using as a stormtrooper. So bad. I know POTF2 had a bad first run, but to their credit, monkey Leia, muscle Chewie, Vader and Luke plus a lot of other, real offenders, were all reissued a couple years later in the run. Most of these originals are questionable. However, I respect their legacy and I'm just a bitter POTF2 kid, scarred from years of abuse from gen-x collectors :P All though, if it weren't for the collector's shop near me selling loose original stormtroopers at 50p a pop in the mid nineties, I never would have had such a good squad of them. Nice one, Tony. He who dares.

[@luisgarcia-km4se]

Todos me encantan, pero mi favorito tiene que ser Luke Caballero Jedi, uno de mus mejores regalos de Navidad

[@indigoyarkindell968]

Jabba Luke should not have the black glove yet either.

[@whiterabbit1632]

Bespin and Jedi

[@maxxxman64]

I liked the board game.

[@kirbymarchbarcena]

The original Luke may not be accurate but remember back then that kids (that's us approaching middle age) were using our imagination to play the toy

[@Belzediel]

Hoth Luke doesn't have a blaster, he has the magnetic grapnel gun used to snag an AT-AT. Still wrong, but less so.

[@AnalogToys]

Wrong again. its Snowspeeder Luke that has the grapnel gun.

[@Belzediel]

@@AnalogToys So, Kenner didn't make a snowspeeder Luke. So, I guess you mean some other company made one, which is fine, but, the device Hoth Luke comes with is the same shape as the magnetic clamp, on a good enough for Kenner mash of the clamp launcher. I don't really see what the issue is.

[@impossiblepie]

I would love Stan Solo to make a movie accurate Death Star Luke, so we never have to swap the heads on the Endor Luke, which does look good.

[@dilbertfish]

They certainly did a better job than Disney.

[@futuristica1710]

Cry harder.

[@dilbertfish]

@futuristica1710 I'll try. I should have clarified that I meant Luke in The Last Jedi.

[@tagekoolander]

The Disney ”star wars” isnt real Star Wars! 💪🏻

[@futuristica1710]

Yes it is. You’re stuck in the 80’s.

[@50caliber29]

I know I'm going to take flak for this but I was 12 in 1977 & was utterly mesmorised & obsessed with Star Wars, especially Han Solo. Han was by far the coolest character ever to my 12yr old brain & remains so to this day. However the 6 inch Star Wars toy range was absolute unmitigated trash. The figures were ridiculously limited in posing, the face sculpts were appaling & looked nothing like the characters. The stupid lightsabers made a mockery of the coolest weapon ever created. The vehicles were tacky and made to the cheapest standards, often using stickers instead of actual built in molded detail & cardboard. Even as a 12 Yr old I hated the toys & never collected them. Compared to Action man for example they were just horrible. In later years I loved Star Wars lego & have numerous sets. The 6 inch range just always seemed cheap & disrespectful to one of my all time favourite franchises, Lego got it right, releasing sets that really give you the feeling they respected the material. I have the lego Millennium Falcon & it's just amazing, compare it to the cheap plastic Palitoy version with its scrappy stickers & bent gun barrels etc. Like I said, I'll be resoundingly criticised for this but it's how I feel & I still feel Star Wars was not given the quality toy range it deserved. Edit: I get that the toys were produced to be cheap so they could be collectable & affordable. I believe they took that aspect to far, but there's absolutely no denying they were successful & lots of kids loved them, I just wasn't one of them

[@jacksprofessionalproductio9403]

It’s been suggested that Kenner made farm boy Luke’s lightsaber yellow, because in the original concept art, he welded a yellow blade. So they probably thought why not give him some differentiation and to keep that unused concept? Now yes, by empire strikes back the continuation of the yellow lightsaber is confusing, but LucasFilm never stormed into Kenner and demanded that the color be changed, so they ran with it. By return of the jedi, Kenner probably had A LOT more access to the behind the scenes stuff and to oversee the production so now they can make things more accurate.

[@cupidstunt22]

Luke Skywalker is a mass murderer

[@timothyward8695]

I suppose the superior story would have been to have him sit back, drink in hand, and enjoy the destruction of the Yavin 4 (following the destruction of Alderaan). That makes for top notch entertainment. You should look into screen writing. You've got a knack for it.

[@madmacabre]

These all looked terrible

[@Yourmomgoestocolledge]

Wtf was Kenner doing? It's like with the POTF figures in the 90s and how buff they were. Thank god we've got Black Series now.

[@brandonbeekman]

Great video!!!