When the Star Wars franchise returned to cinemas in 1999 with the first of George Lucas’ ‘prequel’ trilogy, it brought with it a veritable shit ton of merchandise.
It was a mad scramble to get enough product onto shelves to match the demand when Star Wars made its debut in 1977. Lucasfilm and its licensees had since been determined not to make the same mistake twice. With The Phantom Menace, they might have made a whole new error.
It certainly didn’t feel it at the time, as the news reports in the video above can attest. The extent of the merchandising coverage only added to the, already incomparable, hype for the film.
That said, even if The Phantom Menace had met the astronomical expectations of audiences, there was still a good chance these branded collectables would be occupying shelf space, right through to Attack Of The Clones (the second instalment of the trilogy in 2002) and beyond.
This was certainly my own experience of the time. By 2000 / 2001, I was able to pick up items from the ‘Episode I’ collection from every toy shop and discount store for a fraction of the price. As such, and because I keep EVERYTHING, I still have a lot of the pieces bought during this time.
Also worth noting, is that most of it has little to no value (because so much of it was made), so even if I did want to part with any of it, it’s unlikely to be worth my time even trying to do so. I’m not convinced I’d be able to give most of it away.
So, why is it, that in the past few years I’ve bought more of the stuff?
I can answer this one easily. I am, like the merchandise itself, clearly mad.
The more detailed answer is this: At a time when collectables are rising in price (and the quality often moving in the opposite direction), the hobby of collecting is being pushed closer to the realm of irresponsible. In some cases, the flirtation with responsibility adds to the excitement, other times the overwhelming sense of responsibility kills the fun of collecting dead in the water.
What to do in response to this? Collect in the groove where there’s a lower cost, but not necessarily for the low hanging fruit. Where best to find this space? Well, the phrase “one person’s junk is another person’s treasure” comes to mind.
Folks seem to be parting with products from this era knowing that the 25th anniversary this year is the best time to capitalise on a renewed interest (Lucasfilm re-released The Phantom Menace back in May) and finally clear some storage space in the garage or loft. The reality is that ‘capitalise’ in this case doesn’t mean extra zeros on the price point, it may not even mean double figures. This is just a rare opportunity when items that buyers have long lost hope on “being worth something one day” might actually sell at all.
Enter me. 11 years old at time of release, my first Star Wars film seen in a cinema during the summer holidays ‘99 with my Mum and brother, at the cinema where I’ve seen every subsequent film in the franchise since. By 12, my Star Wars collection had gained momentum, cycling into town with my friends, picking up last year’s products at bargain, pocket money prices.
I am the prime target audience for selling your unwanted items, with their two and half decades worth of dust adding somewhat to the charm (although ideally not).
Here are 5 pieces from 25 years ago that I’ve purchased in the past 25 months.
Queen Amidala Compact Phone
The older I get, the more I grow to appreciate the character of Padme Naberrie a.k.a Queen Amidala. The Clone Wars animated series helped to further develop the child monarch, turned senator and reinforced the importance of her politics in attempting to prevent the galaxy from its slide into Imperialism.
That’s a heavy point to make when trying to justify to you why I felt the need to buy this Amidala themed house phone from a Facebook collectors group, almost two decades since I last had any need for a landline at home.
Maybe it’s a deep seated heritage of demonstrating one’s patriotism by adorning the home with products featuring royalty? I’m thinking of my late Nan’s Charles and Diana tea towel specifically here.
Watto’s Box
This is my most recent addition from The Phantom Menace back catalogue. I picked it up at the July edition of Totton Toy Fair. I now have around 550 Star Wars figures in the classic 3.75” ‘Kenner’ scale. I didn’t collect between 2002 and 2016, so there’s plenty out there for me hunt down. This set is from the era that I originally collected the figures, I don’t remember ever seeing one though.
It’s a wild concept. A ‘cinema scene’ set that may as well be called a ‘frame’ as I’m not sure these three characters appear in the film for any more than a split second, and for two of the three characters, that is their only appearance in the film, let alone the saga. One of the three, Graxol Kelvyyn, is almost twice the size of the standard figures in this line.
It was set back on the seller’s stand, removed from the piles of different toys on the front table. I assumed it would have a higher price tag than the answer I got when I enquired. “£15?” – Done deal. “It still has the CommTech chip in the box” he added. If that term rings a bell, I wrote about them in my recent article on NFC.
Jar Jar Binks Pez Handler
Of all the Jar Jar related products that formed the Episode I collection, the line was drawn at a standalone Pez dispenser. Instead, they actually went a step further and produced an elaborate scene, which, like the Watto’s box, is brief in its screen time, that dispenses Pez in a far less conventional way.
A year or two earlier, third party partner Cap Candy produced two similar Looney Toons items, so this wasn’t a total outlier in the wider Pez range of products. Despite the unusual pieces that make up my own Pez collection, I was without this piece (only released in the US) until I stumbled upon it at The Vintage Toy Monster in Portsmouth. Sam had bought a couple of robots and I was almost out of the door empty handed, for a change, before I spotted this last minute near the till. I was equal parts amazed and elated.
At £30 it cost me a bit more than some of the other items listed here. It’s an important addition to my flagship collection though and this was a fraction of the cost I would’ve paid had I tried to ship one from a US eBayer. Amazingly, less than a year later I saw a second of these (“you wait 25 years for a bus..”), it wasn’t for sale though. It was on display, in a museum, where it belongs!
Destroyer Droid Room Alarm
The Destroyer Droid fills me with dread. Not quite the “hide behind the sofa” level of fear prior generations traumatised the Daleks experienced, but not far from it. Mine stems from video game adaption of The Phantom Menace rather than the film itself. These guys were a bastard to contend with. Their haunting mechanical roll and the jarring abrasive sound of them firing lasers still makes my head feel like it’s splitting sideways.
Which is why it’s unusual that I chose to buy a room guard based around the droid, unless I’m trying defend part of my house against my own entry? The truth is, I bought this at Sandown Toy Fair in May, because it falls into the sprawling category of “things I used to own”, proven in this case, by the fact I still have the box.
Given up on the chance that some day the former contents of the box would show up (that would be weird, not to mention terrifying) I saw one of these for sale, on the floor under a table with a £8 price tag. I wasn’t sure if this was the original retail sticker baked into the packaging and I’m still not if I’m honest. All I know is that when I asked if it was £8 the seller said yes. Half hour later a different seller spotted me awkwardly carrying this and asked if I wanted another unboxed one for a fiver. I dealt too soon clearly.
Destroyer Droid Yo-Yo
Continuing my unlikely fandom of the Destroyer Droid, I picked up this Yo-Yo from The Retro Stash, in Port Talbot, Wales. It creatively features the ‘character’ in its rolling formation to fit the circular shape.
If The Phantom Menace merchandise flood and the renewed Yo-Yo craze of the late 90s was a Venn diagram, this is the product in the centre. I would’ve loved this in 1999. I’d fully fallen for the Yo-Yo’s brief return to the limelight, splashing my limited cash on ProYos, Duncans and the ‘X-Brain’ despite little to no skill at spinning the things and even less desire to learn the art.
That makes purchasing this for £5, not taking it out of the packaging and instead displaying it on a shelf for the past year or so perfect poetry. As George Lucas would say “it rhymes…”.
Now, full disclaimer, this is far from an exhaustive list of the weird and wonderful products that make up Episode I range. I can say with some confidence that it doesn’t scratch the surface and I know this to be true because I haven’t even included Walkers’ Jar Jar Binks Sticky Tongue Toy (‘Glow in the Dark’ edition or otherwise), although I am looking at them on eBay now..
Liam Toms 