Kenner successfully planned to ensure that their ROTJ line was its most ambitious launch of vehicles, action figures, and playsets to date.
At the centerpiece of their first year of product, was the large scale Ewok Village which was their biggest playset since their 1978 Death Star. It eschewed the mid size ESB era playsets entirely, most notably the cardboard backdrop driven, re-tooled outings from that same era
The entirely new, sculpted in wax aesthetic of the Ewok Village is captured here emphatically in this non-production colored, first shot of the toy. The tree portion of the playset is unpainted, and the many PVC accessory parts that snap into the base and trees are all shot in a non-production light brown.
They are crisper in detail, and distinct in appearance from the reddish brown production versions.
First shots for playsets of this scale are relatively non existent from the Star Wars era. Even the smaller outings such as the Imperial Attack base and Dagobah playset are not widely known to exist, with just 1-2 known for each. There is no known first shot for the previous large playset release, the 1978 Death Star.
Like all larger Star Wars toys from the vintage era, this item was made in the USA at Kenner's Cincinnati Ohio location.
The Ewok Village launched as the marquee item from 1983, alongside the Y-Wing and Jabba The Hut playset. Also released to launch the new line the same year were the Speeder Bike, ISP-6 and AST-5 mini-rigs, and the large C-3PO case and Chewbacca themed bandolier strap.