I did break down and buy it. The 40th Anniversary Star Wars: Return of the Jedi Endor Bunker preys on those of us who remember the Kenner playsets of old, like the Ewok Village or Yoda’s shack, or (if you were lucky enough) the Death Star. At least it’s a cheap repack like the Admiral Ackbar figure we covered before.
The Endor Bunker is not an inexpensive item. Via Target, it set us back $59.99. The speeder bike and scout trooper pack is not much less, $41.99. Hasbro, what is with these prices? How can McFarlane Toys deliver a huge Batmobile or Batwing vehicle for less than $40, but anything with the Star Wars name is commanding nearly double the price?
While the balance between price and value is subjective, we still need to point out that other toy companies are delivering collectible-level items for less.
The bunker is an adequate display piece if you put effort into it. There’s no weathering on the plastic. The Endor greenery is done in a single color. The most detail we see is in the small control panel Han has to hotwire. If you’re used to building models or painting Warhammer figures, getting this to look more detailed is an afternoon’s work.
However, that price tag is hard to shake off once you see just how little there is to the Endor Bunker. Aside from a few moving panels and the blast doors, there’s nothing else. Kenner (really Hasbro) didn’t bother including a cardboard backdrop to put inside the bunker. Instead, it opens up to … nothing at all! Maybe Hasbro plans to create a build-your-own-bunker kit as they did with the Tantive IV corridor, but I doubt it. Minimalism appears to be what Hasbro aims for while maximizing the price tag.
Thankfully, the Endor Bunker does not feel cheap. All the parts snap together nicely, and the assembled toy is solid. The double set of doors slide along a track lock into place thanks to friction joints.
As I mentioned before, if there were more to this bunker, even a backdrop, it may be worth the price tag. Since the Disney takeover, the Star Wars toy line has suffered a significant downgrade. Remember when we got things like the highly detailed Millenium Falcon in the late 2000s, which was less than $200? Instead, we’re being asked to pay nearly that much for a smaller ship like an X-Wing or Slave 1.
The $59.99 is somewhat offset by including the rarely-seen Rebel Commando in an Imperial scout trooper disguise. Don’t you remember this guy? Yeah, he shows up briefly after the Rebel’s first attempt to destroy the shield generator fails. He can be seen (from behind) in the background before that posted outside of the bunker.
The Rebel Commando is just a standard scout trooper figure with a swappable head. Everything else about the figure is the same as the one you can find with the speeder bike pack.
Would I suggest picking this up? Unfortunately, the cost-to-value ratio is not something I’d recommend to even hardcore Star Wars collectors, and I was one before the recent unpleasantness with Disney.
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Star Wars: Return of the Jedi Endor Bunker
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