The Toys: The Basic Figures
The Phantom Menace figures retained the same 3.75″ scale as the original Star Wars action figures and Hasbro-Kenner’s revival did. However, it ditched the latter’s “Heroic” sculpt that was championed at launch in 1995, giving characters more dynamic fixed stances and beefed-up, muscular appearances that made Luke Skywalker look a bit more like He-Man.
With over 30 characters from the film releasing in just a handful of months, the new figures were an evolution of the same kinds of toys that had launched with the first Star Wars. Boasting a similar size and improved articulation, better paint jobs and more accurate likenesses, the Phantom Menace figures set the stage for what would come over the next decade-plus of Star Wars action figures.
