Yeah, I'm not saying Fett didn't have his niche by 1983, but it was nothing like what happened in the early 1990s, the fact that Lucas sort of tossed him aside is a good indicator that it clearly was not a pressing concern. While by 1984, Boba Fett had been resurrected from the Sarlac in the Star Wars comic series, by 1996, Boba Fett had his very own comic series. Looking at merch is a good way to guage popularity, and in 1980 there were a few Fett things but by 1995 he was the poster boy for Star Wars Chic where his status was cemented, I mean it almost seemed like his image was more popular that Darth Vader, which is amazing considering he's barely even in the films. Lucas tried to win some major cool points with the fans when he revealed at this time that Fett would be in the prequels.