eBay – “Rare” Kenner ALIEN for Sale – But Are You Sure?

UPDATE: This listing is no longer available, presumed sold for US$650.

Here’s a clear case of “know what you are buying”. This ALIEN action figure currently for sale on eBay for US$650 may look like a vintage 1979 Kenner ALIEN toy; but it’s not. This item is only five years old and was made by Gentle Giant. It’s still a great piece but the description provided by the vendor in this listing is incorrect in almost every detail. Almost.Back in 2014, Gentle Giant started releasing a series of four large scale tribute items inspired by Kenner’s original 1979 toy. Gentle Giant’s products were similar in many ways, mimicking the older toy, the box it was sold in and also featured a facsimile poster inside the box – just like the original Kenner item. This particular product on offer here was the 2nd item released in Gentle Giant’s range of oversized tribute ALIEN figures; and that was in 2015.

There’s absolutely nothing wrong with the Gentle Giant item. It’s a faithful recreation of the Kenner toy and a fully licenced product and emulates the older Kenner toy and its package almost to the last detail, with minor variations. At 24 inches tall, this brute is 25% larger than the older 18 inch item it is based upon. It’s a fantastic piece. Unfortunately, it’s not an original Kenner item and is more of an official reproduction piece, celebrating the Kenner toy. There is a big difference and it’s not just in the scale of the item. …and it’s important.

While being a reproduction item made in the last five years and not a vintage toy from last century, this substantially more recent Gentle Giant tribute figure was released in small numbers. Certainly nothing near the abundance of the older Kenner toy. It was also very expensive, at US$495 upon release, it boasted a price tag only dedicated collectors would embrace. Since then, Gentle Giant ran out of stock years ago and it has icreased in value. A US$650 price tag is quite reasonable to expect on one of these oversized tribute figures.

It’s interesting to note there are currently an equal number of these large scale 2014-15 Gentle Giant ALIEN figures (that includes all four GG variants) available on eBay right now as there are original 1979 Kenner ALIEN toys on which it is based. Gentle Giant made sure the price will climb by releasing these items in a low, restricted production run. As such, the US$650 price tag is a reasonably good price what you can expect to pay for one of these reproduction pieces today. They can – and do – sell for in excess of US$700 – so a price tag of US$650 is about right for one now.

The important take home point here is simple. This isn’t a vintage Kenner ALIEN toy. It’s a reproduction piece. A replica, scaled up to give it even greater sense of presence. That being said, it’s still worth the US$650 being asked for despite being a facsimile and it’s really a matter of getting what you’re paying for. At the same time, for a Gentle Giant figure, this is about what you would expect to pay, anyway. But Kenner? It is not.

If you want to know more about Gentle Giant ALIEN reproduction figures; along with the entire array of action figures inspired and derived from the original 1979 Kenner ALIEN toy, then we have you covered with our comprehensive listing of tribute and derivative versions of the Kenner ALIEN toy, ranging from 1979 to 2019. Have fun with those!

For your edification, here is the original 1979 Kenner ALIEN toy compared to Gentle Giant’s 2015 replica figure: