The 10 Greatest Star Wars Action Figures – 1977-1985

Inspired by a post at www.dorkdimension.com in which the site author, Nathan, posted a list of his ten favorite vintage Star Wars, I’ve been thinking about my own favorite Star Wars action figures from that period. I immediately knew a few of my favorites — and posted them in the comments section of his post — but working up a list of my absolute ten favorite figures took a little brain-churning.

I think this is my final list. (In alphabetical order, because ranking them in any other way would have been painful.)

Note: All images are from 12back.com, one of the greatest Star Wars toy sites online.

4-LOM

I’ve already reviewed a more modern — and much taller! — version of this character here at battlegrip.com (review here), so you already know that I love the look of this guy. As a kid, I used to love stripping 4-LOM’s coat off and just leaving the harness on. Why? How the hell would I know? I was a stupid kid. Remember?

Admiral Ackbar

My first action figure from Return of the Jedi, Admiral Ackbar arrived in the mail during the spring of 1983 when I was ten years old (soon to be eleven; my dad took me to see Jedi on my birthday and it was great fun, even if the Ewoks annoyed me). I can admit that the only reason that Admiral Ackbar made this list is because before I saw the movie I was sure this guy would be a badass. Imagine how disappointed I was when he barely appeared in the movie and never even fired a blaster.

AT-AT Driver

I didn’t have an AT-AT when I was a kid, but I had an AT-AT Driver. Why? Because he’s an awesome, stormtrooper-like action figure and I’ve always loved stormtroopers. (I need to find that photo of me in a stormtrooper costume from Halloween 1978.) Take a look at him, he’s fantastic with that cool helmet, gray jumpsuit, and goofy box on his chest.

Biker Scout

Were the Biker Scouts and Speeder Bikes the best part of Jedi? Maybe. If someone ever said that to me I would probably agree without thinking too hard about it. A new type of stormtrooper — remember, this was back when we only had basic stormtroopers, sandtroopers, and snowtroopers — this guy blew me away. I mean really, even today that scout trooper helmet is a beautiful design. And the gun? Too cool for school, kids.

Dengar

So what’s cooler, Dengar’s backpack or his scarred, beaten face? I don’t know, but regardless of which it is, this cool bounty hunter captured my attention when I was a kid and made me ask a lot of questions. Why is his bandaged? Where did he come from? Why is he so cool?

His costume, and all of the little details on it, drove my curiosity and forced my imagination to create stories. I know things weren’t really better when I was a kid, but . . . well, they were better. Trust me.

Emperor’s Royal Guard

After I saw Return of the Jedi good old Target had a sale on action figures and I could get three figures for $6. I chose a Biker Scout, an Ewok (what? stupid, stupid kid), and a Royal Guard. The best part of the Royal Guard action figure? Peeking under his skirt to see what he looked like under the robes. No, I’m not gonna tell. Find your own if you wanna know what a Royal Guard looks like under his skirt. And his weapon’s a fun stick.

Hammerhead

The only original film action figure on the list, Hammerhead climbs into the top 10 for two reasons: his head and the way he holds his gun. Sure it’s a dumb reason, but as a kid I loved the fact that he was left handed and couldn’t even hold his gun in his right hand. Today I’d complain non-stop about his right hand, but back then I thought it made him cool. And besides, just look at that head!

IG-88

So is it because The Empire Strikes Back is such a great film that it has so many fun action figures or is the movie great because it has so many awesome toys? Who knows. What I know, though, is that for a few seconds of screen time Lucas sure managed to pump so joy into my childhood with that bounty hunter scene. IG-88 is cool for two reasons: he’s a droid and he’s tall. That, and he has a bandolier. Fun stuff!

Snowtrooper

The second I first spotted a snowtrooper I knew I had to have him. A stormtrooper in a snowsuit? Yeah! The cloth across his face, the giant gun, and the half-cape all added up to fully cement my love of stormtroopers. So why doesn’t the classic stormtrooper appear on this list? Mainly because the original action figure isn’t all that good. Luckily for us, though, today we have tons of great stormtrooper action figures to choose from. Back in 1980, though, this was the best stormtrooper available. And I loved him.

Squid Head

The last figure in my top 10 list is also one of the weirdest. Squid Head, in the movie, did nothing. In my playtime, though, he did it all. A great look combined with a cloth outfit made this a ton of value packed into one action figure. I mean, he’s kinda tall, has a gun, has a belt, has a cape, and has a skirt. What did he do that was cool? He flew spaceships, took prisoners, and led stormtroopers to victory. Good job, Squid Head!

So There They Are

So that’s my list of ten greatest Star Wars action figures as of today. I’m sure if I spent more time thinking about this, and took some time to track down some figures and play with them, my list would change. That’s the best thing about these old toys and memories, every time I encounter something it triggers old memories that sometimes change my mind. Hey, I’m allowed to change my mind.

What are your ten favorite figures from that era?