The Kenner toy series for Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back, a collection of vintage items, was available from 1980 through 1982. This followed the success of Kenner's initial Star Wars toy offerings. The line included numerous figures and vehicles inspired by the 1980 movie, Star Wars: Episode V The Empire Strikes Back. In 1983, it was succeeded by Kenner's classic Return of the Jedi toy series.
Many of the toys initially released in the original Star Wars line were re-released in Kenner's The Empire Strikes Back line, but the packaging was updated to feature the new film's logo.
Stephen J. Sansweet, the author of Star Wars, stated in his 1999 publication, Star Wars: The Action Figure Archive, that Kenner's The Empire Strikes Back product line spanned from 1980 to 1982. However, he later revised this in his 2012 book, Star Wars: The Ultimate Action Figure Collection, extending the line's duration until 1983. In reality, the final The Empire Strikes Back toys were released in 1982, before Kenner transitioned to the Return of the Jedi series in 1983.
The Empire line's conclusion featured a special mail-in promotion for the Admiral Ackbar action figure, serving as a preview for the upcoming movie and toy line, which was then titled Revenge of the Jedi.
The 4-LOM action figure was incorrectly labeled as "Zuckuss" in the toy line, while the Zuckuss figure was labeled as "4-LOM." Since these names were not spoken in the film, many people believed the names were correct for a long time. West End Games corrected Kenner's error in their 1989 publication, Galaxy Guide 3: The Empire Strikes Back. Prior to its official release, the 4-LOM figure was initially offered as a special mail-away item.
A deleted scene from The Empire Strikes Back planned to show Sate Pestage appearing as a hologram to warn Darth Vader about the Emperor's upcoming transmission. He was referred to as the "Grand Vizier." Hints of this scene can be seen on the box for Kenner's "Darth Vader's Star Destroyer" playset, which explains that the image on the red plastic viewing screen is the Grand Vizier. Some toy catalog advertisements for the toy changed the title to "Grand Emperor."
The figure based on General Veers was marketed under the generic title "AT-AT Commander," although his actual name was included in special action figure sets sold by Sears Canada in 1981. While the toy catalogs for these sets referred to the figure as "AT-AT Commander Veers," the toy packaging itself used "General Veers."
A 1980 Sears Canada catalog advertised sets that included the Ugnaught figure (based on the character later named Yoxgit), referring to him as "Tusk from Ugnaught." This name apparently came from a Lucasfilm reference photo with handwritten notes identifying the Ugnaught as "Tusk." The final toy packaging used the same generic name as the US version.
Although the majority of the line featured toys based on the film, a few original items were also produced. The Imperial Troop Transporter, which was re-released in this line as the "Imperial Cruiser," had already appeared in fiction in the Star Wars Marvel Comics series. To keep costs down when creating large vehicles for the line, the small Mini-Rigs vehicles were created, which did not originate in the films. Many of these later appeared in both the Legends and later canon continuities.
The details provided on the cards that accompanied each action figure upon its initial release are the basis for the following table. Specifications on packaging, the action figure's design, and its name were all subject to change after its initial release. The list is not determined by any single characteristic (name, shape, or product number); rather, it is determined by all of the characteristics taken together.
Two action figures share the same name: "Bespin Security Guard." The first figure (No. 39810) is white, while the second figure (No. 69640) is black. Although the two Bespin Security Guards are displayed separately on the card backs, they are both identified by the same name.
Kenner also produced "Large Size Action Figure" versions of certain characters, which were approximately twelve inches tall, similar to other larger action figure toy lines. While several were released for the original Star Wars toy line, only IG-88 was released in 1980 for The Empire Strikes Back toy line. Earlier ones could have been released in Empire branded packaging. Although prototypes were created for additional large-sized figures from the movie, they were never manufactured.