Lego Star Wars Minifigures Old vs New

[Darth_Bane13]

Do you guys prefer the more modern detailed designs of Star Wars figures or the older simplistic designs? Personally I tend to prefer the older figures as I think they feel more like Lego and they aren't trying to be totally accurate which gives them a lot of charm and personality. I think trying to make them as realistic as possible just looks weird as they can never be proportionally accurate like an action figure would be, it creates an almost uncanny valley effect especially when their faces are packed with detail. For the example the old Darth Vader helmet while less accurate, fits better proportionally and looks more like Lego to me. The new Vader helmet feels like it almost belongs to a different toy than Lego, the eyes are also always looking up. With all that said I can appreciate detailed figures when they actually pay attention to said details and actually get them correct. My problem with modern figures is they just look like cheap customs or knockoffs due to having so many incorrect details. The Fives figure for example has a lot of detail (arm printing, leg, toe), yet the helmet can't even get the printing in the right place. I think the figures from 2014-2019 were respectable as they paid close attention to smaller details and actually strived to make sure all the printing they were adding was correct. I'm curious to hear others thoughts on this. 

[TeddytheSpoon]

I don't think minifigs need a lot of small details. To me, the bizarre proportions of minifigures means they should be treated as approximations of the source material, not faithful down to every last tiny detail. Of course what's there needs to be done right, but even arm printing for me seems unnecessary for minifigures. They are fundamentally toys, after all.

[Calanon]

Largely the new ones. But I dislike the new stormtrooper helmets and the hybrid realistic/animation style print for clone trooper torsos and helmets.

[Lordhelmet]

I prefer the newer ones, I like the detail and think they still have the Lego/cartoonish look.  The simpler ones ones are a bit nostalgic as are the yellow ones, but the newer ones are much better.  (I also think some customs go too far with details, I think what Lego is making currently - minus there mistakes and the family guy helmets is a good middle ground that keeps the Lego look)

[Mandalorianknight]

I would say with the exception of the removal of pupils on characters with colored eyes, and some QC issues, the current style of minifigure design is the best. Obviously the classic yellows have their own charm, but I don't think anybody's going to be advocating for the cursed TCW faces of the sets released during that show's run, or saying the 2006-2008 pupiless designs are better than what we have now. The modern designs are the best mix of detail (in general, the most detailed minifigures we've ever had) and keeping that sort of lego stylization. They've experimented with hyperdetailed designs before- most notably their 2014 design scheme, which worked fine for armored or alien characters but was awful on characters with human faces like Luke and Han- and it just ends up feeling like someone's custom more than a minifigure in the lego style.

[Darth_Bane13]

6 hours ago, Mandalorianknight said:

but I don't think anybody's going to be advocating for the cursed TCW faces of the sets released during that show's run, or saying the 2006-2008 pupiless designs are better than what we have now. 

I would have to disagree I think the flesh tone skin, pupiless designs from 04-09 were peak LSW minifigures. The new ones are objectively more accurate but that doesn't necessarily make them better imo.

 

12 hours ago, Calanon said:

Largely the new ones. But I dislike the new stormtrooper helmets and the hybrid realistic/animation style print for clone trooper torsos and helmets.

12 hours ago, Lordhelmet said:

I prefer the newer ones, I like the detail and think they still have the Lego/cartoonish look.  The simpler ones ones are a bit nostalgic as are the yellow ones, but the newer ones are much better.  (I also think some customs go too far with details, I think what Lego is making currently - minus there mistakes and the family guy helmets is a good middle ground that keeps the Lego look)

The family guy helmet is such a bizarre choice they've stuck to, it's probably the most common complaint besides clone troopers.

[Samppu]

The more details, the better works for me. I even prefer the hyper realism in faces like in Count Dooku of 2014 or the old Indiana Jones' father.

The limit goes in the requirement of versatility and customizability. That is, the parts and prints must be compatible with each other and Lego in general.

So for example this would go overboard in my mind, because it is no longer possible to swap the torso to another etc.

But wrap-around printing, detailed alien molds (love the new keldor/Plo Koon mold!) and double-molds in legs and helmets? (stormie helmet was a gooď idea with a bad result as was the updated rebel pilot helmet - please try both again Lego) Yes please!

 

Edited September 15 by Samppu

[JVM]

I'll always feel a nostalgia for the older designs (1998 - 2007) as it felt like everything fit together fairly consistently and they retained the simple LEGO charm. I used to mix and match my licensed and non-licensed characters a lot in the yellow skin era, too. Customization was really peak in this era as the less detailed designs could more easily be reused and switch around without feeling jarring besides the flesh change. The lack of detail also allowed for some cool LEGO-ifying of things - ninja hood Dengar was one of my favorite minifigures as a kid. LEGO SW: TVG worked in some ways because it acted as a love letter to the entire line as it existed at that point and brought everything together. There was no questions about using outdated minifigures etc.

The transition period is a low point. Some figures had TCW designs which didn't gel with everything else, OT figures were the original pupilless look but in flesh - lacking the vintage charm of their older counterparts but also not really updated enough to feel fresh and different - and then newer, detailed figures only just starting to trickle in, so you have a lot of style clash between what feels like three simultaneous competing styles of mini-figure. This is also when OT sets started getting feeling a bit more recycled and feeling samey; a lot of vehicles saw huge leaps between their first and second variations and then the third would be 80% the same as the second. PT sets that weren't TCW-based also really dropped off for a while since they used the same rough crop of characters.

Now there is a very solid roster of detailed modern minifigure designs so style clash is no longer an issue, although it does still feel like some changes are being done pointlessly at times (adding lines to faces, changing the shading of pockets, that stuff) while other appropriate changes are not made. The level of detail has improved considerably but it has harmed customization and smart reuse. Obi-Wan and Anakin got Mustfar detail for an appropriate set but then those designs were reused and felt out of place for example ,and you wouldn't reuse those to make new Jedi. It does feel like 'style creep' is becoming a problem. I've never felt like most character needed back, leg and arm printing, but it feels like some people think every character needs all of them.