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Review: Star Wars Black Series 'Duel of the Fates' Exclusive 3-Pack of Qui-Gon Jinn, Darth Maul, and Obi-Wan Kenobi from The Phantom Menace



"We'll handle this"


The three main participants from the Duel of the Fates in Star Wars The Phantom Menace have all had Star Wars Black series previously, with Darth Maul’s original figure dating back to the start of the line in 2013. In 2024 it was announced that a new exclusive 3-Pack would be released in the Autumn that brought Qui-Gon Jinn, Obi-Wan Kenobi, and Darth Maul together with small enhancements to each figure vs their prior releases. The set is a Gamestop exclusive in the US, while in the UK and other territories, it is available through Fan Channel retailers with the UK stocks shipping in early November 2024.

The design and production of the packaging pre-dates the recent change to the Hasbro Collector Series boxes and so it still features the slanted side. The box remains the same height and depth as standard packaging but is significantly extended to accommodate the trio within. It uses the accent colour assigned to The Phantom Menace, with the yellow utilised to call out the contents and on the side art. The box is not part of the numbered series so the side art is a standalone montage of all three characters and does not connect to any of the other Phantom Menace sets - which is a sensible choice considering the depth of shelf you would need to display this with its artwork presented forward.

The rear of the box has a repeat of the character art and the briefest of setup for the epic duel without referencing the Duel of the Fates directly anywhere on the packaging. The inner card back for the figures remains the plain grey seen with the initial Galaxy Collection releases - it is here perhaps the fact this set is not in the new packaging is most keenly missed as a deep yellow backdrop inclusive of the Theed Generators or Hanger would have looked lovely for boxed collectors.

Working from left to right, we start with Qui-Gon Jinn. He has been released twice before with the first in 2017 and then a re-release on retro cardback in 2021 which then updated the face with facial printing technology. This 2024 release is the exact same base figure with his sculpted Jedi tunic in a sandy finish over a pair of darker brown trousers and deep brown boots. Qui-Gon’s key decor is around his belt which is part of the lower skirt piece and painted in brown tones with silver and gold details around the buckle, fastenings, and component parts.

vs 2021 Carded Qui-Gon Jinn (right)


The head sculpt is, for me, a further improvement on the 2021 version with a fantastic likeness to Liam Neeson and with that stern look of Qui-Gon ahead of him going into battle. The hair piece is sculpted on the head and painted, followed by a secondary piece that flows down over each side of Qui-Gon’s shoulders. 

The original Qui-Gon was not released with his outer Jedi Robes, a look that he sports for much of the Phantom Menace - although ironically is discarded for his battle with Darth Maul. This new set includes soft goods robes for all three figures, so we do finally get a full outfit for Qui-Gon. The Jedi robes are improving slowly with each release and the are some learnings here from The Acolyte with tailored stitched folds around the hood to allow it to sit much more naturally over Qui-Gon’s head or folded down. The wider robes remain a touch too flat and lacking the heft and folds of the actual robes, but they are a reasonable compromise at this scale. 

Qui-Gon features his lightsaber with the hilt able to clip into a socket on his belt for a slung position. The usual clip-in blade is included in translucent green with a secure and straight fit with no obvious warping or immediate risk of snapped connectors. The saber can be held in either or both hands with the 16 points of articulation supporting some rudimentary poses. I say rudimentary as the base figure is a few years old now and is lacking on a few of the more modern additions particularly the butterfly shoulders which are always beneficial on characters with swords or lightsabers. The neck is also fixed with a marginally visible joint under Qui-Gon’s beard, and there is not a lot of movement in the waist. We do get quite an extensive range of leg articulation - although the knees feature visible pins at the sides - and the skirt piece of the robes is split to allow wider fighting stances. 

The Darth Maul figure in the set is a brand new piece developed for 2024 - replacing the dated 2013 piece - and with three different releases which may cause some saturation. The figure was seen as part of the SDCC 2024 Sith Speeder Exclusive set with that version including a soft goods inner skirt - while this Duel of the Fates version (and the upcoming single release) has the skirt in molded plastic. Maul’s robes are all black plastic with sculpted folds and creases with some minor differentiation in shade at the boots and gloves - although the difference is minimal. 

vs 2024 SDCC Darth Maul (right)


The head sculpt appears to be the same across all three of the 2024 releases, with a strong likeness to Ray Park in full makeup and with the Sith yellow eyes, and red and black markings crisper and more defined - most likely through a printing application. The head is finished with his ring of horns in a bone-white colour. Maul’s outer robes are soft goods, but unlike those of the Jedi, the Sith robes feature a ribbed pleated design which is there on the costume, but not immediately obvious on screen. It therefore doesn’t quite look right at the 6-inch scale where the pleats are more pronounced. The robes feature a tailored hood that will come up and over Maul’s head naturally enough. The sleeves are cut and use longer lengths of hanging material from the elbow as also seen on the costume.

Darth Maul features his duel-bladed saber with a two-part hilt that connects together and two inserted translucent red blades. Maul’s hilt can be slung on a socket on his belt too - but it's a trickier fit than Qui-Gon due to the shape of Maul’s robes and the length of the saber when connected fully. The accessory allows Maul to be posed with the full hilt with one or two blades - or with split sabers. 

As this is a newer format figure, Maul’s articulation is improved to 23 points of articulation all of which are pinless. He has a very expansive range of arm movement thanks to some broad butterfly articulation in the shoulder alongside the usual elbow and wrist joints. The waist has a reasonable amount of movement, while the dual joint neck allows you to pose Maul mimicking some of his onscreen mannerisms such as a cock of the head or a snarling look down his nose. While we do lose the soft goods skirt on this version, the legs remain fairly unrestricted with the skirt being made up of strips of plastic rather than a single piece.

The set is concluded with Padawan Obi-Wan Kenobi, a figure that dates back to 2019 where he was released as a mainline release and then again as a Star Wars Celebration Exclusive on retro card complete with the only inclusion of his pointing two-finger duel-ready pose - making this one of the harder figures to obtain and one of the few I am missing personally in my collection. This 2024 version is a re-release of that 2019 version with no substantial updates other than some minor improvements in the face tech which present a closer likeness to Ewan McGregor and do correct some colour variations in his hair. But the new figure does include some backward steps too with the Padawan braid oddly shaped to stick out and to the side where as the original did arrive with the braid hanging naturally. This should be fixable with some hot water if it bothers you on display.

vs 2019 Obi-Wan Kenobi (right)


Obi-Wan’s outfit is similar to Qui-Gon with a lighter cream set of Jedi Robes and trousers, with painted belt and darker brown boots. The finish on the boots is quite rough with obvious paint bleed in some areas where the cream paint added to the brown plastic around the knee to match the upper joints has leached down over the cut of the boot. The belt is neater with a brown tone and silver, gold, and black component parts painted over the top. Like the original Qui-Gon figure, the original Padawan Kenobi was also devoid of his Jedi Robes - an oversight this set corrects. Obi-Wan’s feature the same fabric as Qui-Gon and other Jedi robes, but the tailoring is not quite as impressive leaving Obi-Wan’s robes uncooperative for both hood up and hood down poses and with some bunching around the back of the figure. This is disappointing when you see a well-executed set of almost identical robes in the same set.

Obi-Wan is also packed with his lightsaber with a removable blue translucent blade. There is also a holstered option for Obi-Wan on his belt off to one side, and he can hold the saber in either hand or both. The original Obi-Wan Kenobi figure was released at a time when articulation was expanding so he is a bit of a mix of joints with pinned double-jointed knees but with butterfly shoulders. There are 18 points of articulation in total and Kenobi is more expansive in his posing options, and in particular lightsaber positions, than Qui-Gon. That being said it's not perfect or to the standard of Maul’s articulation with key issues at the shoulders where the cut of the robes does hold the butterfly joint back by some way - and at the wrists with the voluminous sleeves clashing with each other for two-handed poses at an extended reach.

Many collectors will be hoping to recreate the Duel of the Fates within their displays and I can confirm that some reasonable recreations are possible within the articulation provided on each figure. Maul is definitely the star here with an extremely expansive repertoire of fighting positions with his saber. Qui-Gon is the most restricted but still comes with some positions which range from two-hand ready or defensive to single-handed strikes. His Padawan, Obi-Wan, is someway between the two with a bit more to give in the arm movement thanks to butterfly shoulders but still held in check by the sculpt of the robes. 

As a release, this is a much-needed update for two of the three characters with the addition (finally) of Jedi robes for both Qui-Gon Jinn and Padawan Obi-Wan long overdue. For those not desperate to have the Jedi Robes, or for those that prefer to use after-market soft goods robes, then Padawan Obi-Wan is also a single carded Archive release on shelves currently as an alternative choice to this set - and Maul is of course the same as the upcoming single release, and similar to the SDCC Sith Speeder figure if you already own that release. I do suspect Qui-Gon will see a re-relase as well next year, potentially the Mos Espa market version with the poncho which will fit in nicely with the announced Sebubla (speculation only).

If you do plump for this exclusive 3-Pack then it is good to see the price tag is below that of three single figures, and availability outside of the US has been strong through online Fan Channel retailers. All three figures look great with definite improvements made since the original releases of Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan on facial print technology. The soft goods robes do the job, although Qui-Gon’s robes seem to be better tailored than Obi-Wan’s. And the accessories are as you would expect for two Jedi’s and a Sith. There is an argument that both Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon would benefit from a body update and overhauled articulation - this has worked really well for Maul, although his starting position from the very first wave of 2013 Black Series releases was definitely the priority.





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About Me : As a child of the 70's and 80's I grew up in a golden age for action figures and in my youth bought and sold myself through collections of Star Wars, G.I. Joe (Action Force) and M.A.S.K. while also dabbling in He-Man, Transformers and Ghostbusters. Roll forward and I am now reliving that Youth with the action figures of today and am a collector and fan of the larger 6-8 inch figures from my favourite movie and TV licences - including the ones mentioned above, but also the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Doctor Who and the Aliens. I launched The Mephitsu Archives in 2015 with a view of creating a UK focused site or these figures where fans can pick up the latest action figure news, read reviews and get information on where to buy their figures and what is currently on store shelves. I hope I am delivering that to you guys...

 

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