"Iconic"! Along with the
TIE Fighter, The X-Wing has to be the most recognizable vehicle ever created for the Star Wars universe. Like many young Star Wars fans, I had one as a kid. Not surprising since the X-Wing was one of the three vehicles released in the first wave of 1978 (the others were the
TIE Fighter and
Landspeeder).
Although I still have my own childhood X-Wing (seen in the photos below) the Canadian Kenner box it came in is long gone (drat!), since replaced with a Kenner US box obtained from an eBay seller.
The box is rather beaten up but I still like it - the "LP" (Long-Play) logo on the box front denotes a "first-wave" (1978) release - as with other Kenner US releases, the later box versions dispensed with the logo. Of course, once the "Luke Skywalker X-Wing Pilot" was released in the second wave of 21 mini-action figures, the box photo was updated to show that figure in the cockpit rather than the Luke "farmboy".
Naturally, then, I've set up my photo shoot with both versions :-)
Here's my original from 1978. Yellowed canopy (this is common) and dead electronics, but otherwise in good shape and fully functioning. The wing-opening mechanism even works and holds the wings open, which is another item that's prone to fatigue and failure with age and use.
Close-up of the "controls" - from top to bottom: press on Artoo's head to open the wings; slide the switch to close the wings; press the button to activate light and sound feature.
"Kenner Products" copyright info on bottom of fuselage. The ship has been re-released in both PotF2 and "OTC" (Original Trilogy Collection) versions, with some different paint deco and deletion of the light and sound features. At the risk of sounding like a broken record, "original is best!"
