| Return of the Jedi 45-Back Princess Leia | |
| The Meccano �Retour du Jedi� (Return of the Jedi) original Princess Leia has been a chimera since the early days of the collecting hobby. From the start, the only evidence it could have existed was a tiny 1-inch square picture of the blister on the back cover of a pocket-size PIF Poche magazine promoting a contest to win an AT-ST vehicle and action figures in 1983. Prior to that, the figure was part of the few ones that made it since the beginning of the line, previously on 12-back and 20-back square cards, from 1978 to 1982. In addition, the Leia was released only on 45-backs card, which are quite scarce to find since they were released during a very short timeframe in France, only a few months, before switching to the true ROTJ new products and the following Trilogos. But the card on the right is really special - can you spot the differences? The card from the left is the regular 45-backs, the figure is packed using a Meccano square-card type blister. The card on the right is packed with a French TRILOGO bubble... it was packed circa late 1985 / early 1986 when Meccano packed overstock to be sold on the infamous French 'Retour DE Jedi' 3-packs (also featured on the SWCA). This particular variant is even more scarce, as hybrid Meccano / Trilogo cards had never been referenced until a former Meccano employee find late 2015. Only a handfull of those particular combinations were found, including 3 Leias, 2 Han Solo, and 2 IG-88 - making them quite special to collectors. For more details about the Meccano 45-backs Leia and their find, read our excellent article on the SWCA BLOG. |
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| Description by: | Stephane Faucourt |
| Photo: | Stephane Faucourt |
| From the collection of: | Stephane Faucourt |
| Country: | France |
| Film: | Return of the Jedi |
| Licensee: | Meccano |
| Year: | 1983 |
| Category: | Toys / Action Figure Related / Small Action Figures (Licensed) |