Which reference for RotJ Hero

[Bobanoob]

If I want to follow screenaccurate references for my RotJ Hero build, which gallery or pictures should I use? My first attempt to paint my armor and helmet was a big fail so far.
Are there pictures to use or do I just have to follow the CRL, which I know are not 100% accurate?

 

[lowberg]

I assume since you are mentioning a CRL, you trying to build towards a 501st costume?

I think they updated the CRL with a new model in 2020, and its a pretty good representation of the ROTJ hero costume IMO (Although I'm not a ROTJ Hero expert) so it can't hurt to follow that, as when you apply to the 501st your local Garrison's GML(s) will use those images to compare and review your costume.

Having said that, CRL's are not always accurate so I highly recommend keeping screen accurate reference in mind. This is especially tricky here because there are more than one version of the ROTJ costume that have images floating around (There are stunt scene ones, and exhibit ones which are a mash up of multiple versions). The 501st standard & CRL is exclusively based on the hero costume, and the condition of it at the time of filming.

The gallery here contains a mix of stunt and hero images. All the sail barge scenes are the stunt costume I believe which you don't want to replicate. I believe the hero ones are the images in Jabbas palace, and the greenscreen/black and white promotional pictures at the end of the gallery (But hopefully an ROTJ expert can weigh in and verify)

Boba Fett Return of the Jedi

Boba Fett as seen in promotional material and the film; Return of the Jedi.

www.thedentedhelmet.com

There are some images of the hero helmet here but also be careful because some of the first images in the gallery are the stunt helmet.

Boba Fett Return of the Jedi Helmet

Boba Fett Return of the Jedi Helmet

www.thedentedhelmet.com

 

[Bobanoob]

Thanks for your reply. Yes, I want to get my costume being approved by the 501st.
It's somewhat confusing to find the right pictures for damage and weathering on the gauntlets and even the jetpack. The more I look and research the more unsecure I get, what would be right and what not.
What I understand is that exhibition fotos are not showing the costume as it was in the movie?

 

[lowberg]

Correct the exhibition photos are a mix of ROTJ/Stunt/Special Edition items just a ton of things mixed and interchanged for a sake of display.

Yea its very confusing with ROTJ, There were multiple right gauntlets all with different damage patterns. Of course the one that's the hero costume version, is not featured in any modern reference exhibits to my knowledge (while the stunt one is) so its a common mistake to mis-paint that one with the wrong damage patterns.

My advice would be to follow the CRL images and the few promo ROTJ hero promo photos in the galleries above.

As far as the jetpack goes, there's some reference here on TDH gallery of it freshly painted for ROTJ production but it's missing some details that were damaged and or repaired before filming started:

Neo Fett does a good job explaining that in a post here.

Post in thread 'Jetpack Rotj Help'

Dec 23, 2023

Silver. Some people believe this area marked is white, but I think it’s just silver reflecting light. There’s area of clean and dirty/weathered silver.

I went the silver route.

The area circled in your first image is white. It's the paint naturally chipped off reveling the gelcoat of the fiberglass. The chipping wasn't there earlier in production and it was fixed before filming. You can even confirm this because the tank is slipping out showing the white gelcoat, which it also does in the SE photo shoot - also white. There is a lot of smaller white chipping around the pack too...

• Neo Fett

• 

The actual ROTJ hero jetpack is featured in some of the exhibits, but by that point in time 10+ years after filming it has a ton of additional damage and marks that were sustained over time that you should not include if you are going for the original ROTJ hero look (That would be the special edition promotional version)

 

[Neo Fett]

As far as the jetpack goes, there's some reference here on TDH gallery of it freshly painted for ROTJ production but it's missing some details that were damaged and or repaired before filming started:

Those pictures of the jetpack are not freshly painted for production. Mario painted it at the same time as PP2 and his other parts.
Those pictures with the white background are from around 1980 (is the best community guess anyway) and the jetpack would go through a lot more abuse and damage over the years before filming ROTJ.

 

[lowberg]

See this is why I tagged you, you are a ROTJ expert