The Star Wars Identities Exhibition (Sydney, Australia)

A few months ago my wife and I moved to Sydney, Australia - just in time to catch the Star Wars Identities Exhibition at the Powerhouse Museum. Unlike the Power of Costume display we caught in Florida (which focussed exclusively on screen-used costumes) this exhibit features an additional range of concept art, maquettes, and - most exciting for me - model starships.

As the name suggests, the exhibition centres around the many influences that comprise our personal identities. Guests use an electronic wristband to interact with ten digital stations throughout the exhibit - each of which invites them to make decisions about what kind of person (or alien) they'd be in that galaxy far, far away. At the end of the tour, each guest's Star Wars alter-ego is projected on a screen for all to see.

Unfortunately, the 'identities' activity was a little underwhelming. Each guest's final character really ends up being a combination of only two choices - the costume (of which there were about a dozen options) and head type (of which there were around the same number). It would have been great if some of the other identity choices had an effect, making for a more unique avatar - but lets be honest, no-one came to this exhibition for the interactive component. The real attraction here were the gorgeous, screen-used costumes and props. And these certainly didn't fail to disappoint.

The Star Wars: Identities exhibition will next be at Warehouse TERRADA in Tokyo, Japan from August 8, 2018 to January 13, 2020. More locations and dates are expected to be announced after this, and can be found on the official website of the exhibition.

Loose Vintage Collection and Black Series 3 3/4" Figures

As of late, it's been slow going as a Star Wars collector. The last few years saw the return - then ultimate demise - of my favourite line of Star Wars collectibles. My wife and I have tried to dabble in some newer lines, specifically Micro Force and the Xcavations Creature Crates. Sadly, the first of these proved impossible to find after the first two waves, while the latter was cancelled outright only shortly after hitting stores. There's always been the stalwart 3 3/4" line, however - at least, until recently. Apart from one lucky sighting of a single case of Wave 4 figure in my New Zealand hometown, I've seen nothing but racks of Wave 1 figures since the line's relaunch fourteen months ago. This same glut of stock also meant we never saw the third (and arguably most interesting) wave of Solo figures. With nothing new in stores, then, my attention has instead turned to filling gaps in my collection - specifically, super-articulated Original Trilogy figures from the Vintage Collection and Black Series 3 3/4" lines.

 

In recent weeks, I've managed to stumble across some great deals on eBay, picking up the Vintage Collection VC04 Luke Skywalker (Bespin Fatigues), VC55 Logray (Ewok Medicine Man), VC57 Dr. Evazan (Cantina Patron), VC88 Princess Leia (Sandstorm Outfit), VC111 Princess Leia, VC 112 Sandtrooper, Stemzee (from the Ewok Assault Catapult set), as well as the Black Series Princess Leia Organa. I also managed to scoop a Power of the Force IT-O Interrogation Droid to complement my cadre of Imperials.

Here's hoping that Hasbro will soon fix its distribution issues. In the meantime, however, I'm incredibly grateful to have the secondary market as a way of scratching my collecting itch!