Darth Vader (A New Hope) — Star Wars The Black Series #ANH 06
The Black Series Darth Vader in A New Hope configuration — Phase 4 ANH Collection #06, 2024. The original trilogy's iconic black armour with red lightsaber. 17 joints. The Phase 4 ANH-specific Vader.
Overview
Phase 4 ANH Collection #06 is Darth Vader in his A New Hope configuration — the most specific Phase 4 version of the franchise’s most produced character, distinguished from the ESB and ROTJ Vader configurations by ANH-specific armour details that the Phase 4 collection is designed to preserve. Red lightsaber. 17 joints. $24.99. 2024.
The ANH-Specific Vader Configuration
ANH Darth Vader has specific visual differences from the ESB and ROTJ configurations that the Phase 4 ANH Collection’s #06 slot preserves: the specific chest panel button layout, the helmet’s slightly different proportions, and details that distinguish the 1977 Vader from the 1980 and 1983 versions. For collectors who want era-accurate Vader display configurations rather than a single generic Vader, the ANH-specific release is the relevant purchase.
Vader is the most-produced character in the Black Series catalogue — seventeen releases in the JSON alone. The ANH Collection #06 is the ANH-specific Phase 4 version, distinguishing itself through configuration specificity rather than general character updates.
ANH Vader’s Specific Narrative Role
Darth Vader in A New Hope is the franchise’s introduction to the character — the black armour, the breathing, the presence that fills the Tantive IV corridor in the film’s opening minutes. He hasn’t yet been revealed as Luke’s father; he is simply the villain, the Empire’s dark enforcer, the man who will kill Obi-Wan Kenobi on the Death Star and then watch from his TIE Advanced as Luke destroys it.
The ANH configuration covers Vader before the father revelation — the antagonist, not the father, at the specific moment the franchise began.
17 Joints
The 17-joint count is lower than most Phase 4 figures — reflecting the armoured construction that limits certain articulation ranges. The Vader suit’s specific joint constraints are inherent to the design: full elbow bend creates armour collision, which the design addresses with reduced range rather than additional engineering.
Secondary Market
Above-retail secondary market prices — the most-produced character in the line at its ANH-specific configuration. No production variants documented.
Verdict
The ANH-specific Phase 4 Vader. Buy for the era-accurate ANH Vader display or ANH Collection completion.
Seventeen Darth Vader Releases
Seventeen Black Series Darth Vader releases make him the most-produced character in the line’s history — more than Luke Skywalker, more than Obi-Wan Kenobi, the character who appears in every trilogy and whose iconic design sustains production across every era. The ANH #06 is the ANH Collection’s film-era specific release, joining the ESB, ROTJ, and Rogue One configurations that exist elsewhere in the Phase 4 catalogue.
The specific value of the ANH configuration for collectors who already own Vader figures: the ANH-specific chest panel and armour details distinguish it from the other Phase 4 Vader releases enough to justify the collection slot. For collectors who want the most accurate ANH Vader representation at Phase 4 quality, this is the correct purchase.
Vader’s ANH Function vs His Saga Function
ANH Darth Vader is the purest villain version of the character — the Imperial enforcer who exists before the father revelation, before the son confrontation, before the redemption. He serves the Emperor’s will, hunts the Rebellion, kills Obi-Wan without hesitation, and then watches from his TIE Advanced as his prey escapes. He is wrong about the battle’s outcome and right about the pilot’s skill.
The ANH configuration is the Darth Vader who doesn’t know what the next two films will reveal. The figure displays that Vader — the fully formed villain at the franchise’s beginning.
The ANH Collection’s Antagonist Anchor
Darth Vader at #ANH 06 closes the ANH Collection’s first six figures by establishing the collection’s villain. The opening six cover the Rebellion’s victory (#01), the cantina’s criminals (#02-#03), the cantina’s band (#04-#05), and now the Empire’s enforcer (#06). The collection has covered the film’s social world; the antagonist arrives last.
No production variants documented. Standard retail. 2024 release. Verify lightsaber on secondary market purchases.
Darth Vader at #ANH 06 closes the ANH Collection’s first six figures with the character who has more Black Series releases than any other. The ANH-specific configuration earns its place in the collection by covering the specific 1977 armour details that make it distinct from the ESB and ROTJ versions.
Darth Vader ANH at #06 alongside Leia Yavin at #01 creates the ANH Collection’s narrative bookends — the villain who imprisoned the princess at the film’s start, the princess who gave the medals at the film’s end. The collection opens and closes with the film’s two most significant figures for the Rebellion’s arc.
The Phase 4 ANH Collection through Darth Vader at #06 is the most comprehensive single-film Phase 4 collection the Black Series has produced for ANH. The remaining six figures (#07-#12) will add Momaw Nadon, Leia ANH, Luke ANH, Han ANH, Chewbacca, and a Sandtrooper — a complete principal cast plus background characters, the full ANH world in plastic.
Seventeen Vader releases and counting. The ANH configuration is the one that started it all — 1977, the black armour, the breathing, the presence. The Phase 4 ANH Collection closes its first six figures where the franchise began.
The ANH Collection through #06 ends with the villain. The Phase 4 ANH Collection’s second half (#07-#12) will close with the heroes and the supporting cast. Darth Vader at #06 is the midpoint — the film’s antagonist between the cantina and the principals.
One Phase 4 ANH-specific Vader. Seventeen releases across the catalogue; this one covers 1977 at Phase 4 production quality.
The ANH Collection’s villain arrives at #06. The first six figures of the collection are complete.
Darth Vader ANH at #06 is the figure the ANH Collection’s villain slot has been waiting for. The Phase 4 ANH-specific configuration at current production quality. The franchise started here.
The ANH Collection is not yet complete — six more figures to come through #12. But through #06, the collection has established its identity: the cantina, the ceremony, and the villain. The heroes come next.
Part of Star Wars The Black Series | Phase 4 ANH Collection. Related: Princess Leia Yavin P4-ANH-01 | All Darth Vader figures | A New Hope.