Tag Archives: Clone Trooper

#0321: Clone Pilot

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Reviews and tagged with , , ,

CLONE PILOT

STAR WARS: THE BLACK SERIES

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Sure, having two different scales of Star Wars: The Black Series operating under the same name is a bit confusing, but you have to admit they both have their merits. While I still prefer the larger scale figures for the Original Trilogy characters, I don’t mind picking up the few Prequel figures here and there at the smaller scale, and by extension, the smaller price point. In particular, I’m a decent fan of the Clone Troopers, which has led me to pick up a few of the line’s offerings on that front. Today, I’ll be looking at the Clone Pilot.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

ClonePilotWilsonThe Clone Pilot is figure #08 in the first assortment of 3 ¾ inch-scale Star Wars: The Black Series. The figure is based on the “phase I” version of the pilot, initially seen in Attack of the Clones. The Clone Pilot is 3 ¾ inches in height and features 26 points of articulation. From a sculpt standpoint, the Clone Pilot is the exact same figure as the Clone Sergeant in all areas but the helmet. Aside from the un-helmeted head being a bit on the small side, it’s a really well sculpted figure and it captures the basic clone look quite nicely. Hasbro obviously wants to get their mileage out of this new clone mold and I can’t blame them. The figure’s new helmet is in keeping with the quality of the rest of the figure. It’s got nice, crisp detail lines, and all the proportions and such look right on the mark. The paintwork on the Clone Pilot isn’t quite as nice as that on the Sergeant. For starters, there’s no accent work on the body, which is less interesting. It’s true to the design, but it’s a bit bland. The figure also has some odd red staining on his left shoulder and right knee, which is distracting. The skin tone on the face is also a lot paler and makes him look lifeless. That being said, the rest of the paintwork is nice and clean, and this figure doesn’t have the same eye issues as the Sergeant. The Clone Pilot’s only accessory is a small blaster rifle, which is a bit disappointing after seeing the two rifles with the Sergeant.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I got the Clone Pilot at the same time I purchased the Clone Sergeant. It’s not as good a figure as the Sergeant, but it’s still a pretty great figure in its own right. I’m glad to see Hasbro making strides to improve the smaller scale Star Wars line. I’m sure we’ll be seeing more clones appearing on the new base body as well. All in all, not a bad figure!

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#0320: Clone Sergeant

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Reviews and tagged with , , , ,

CLONE SERGEANT

STAR WARS: THE BLACK SERIES

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So, remember how Star Wars: The Black Series was supposed to be a deluxe 6-inch line of figures, sort of as Hasbro’s big move to please the fans? Yeah, well apparently, that was just a little too un-Hasbro of them. It was a move that wasn’t confusing at all, and that didn’t work. So, to make up for this, they decided to simultaneously release a 3 ¾ inch line under the exact same name, to the detriment of fans and ill-informed retail workers everywhere. On the plus side, the line does promise a more diverse line-up than the larger scale figures, as well as some improvements over the previous 3 ¾ inch figures. Today, I’ll be taking a look at the line’s version of the Clone Sergeant, who interestingly enough was just announced for the 6-inch line as well. Prepare for the confusion everybody!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

CloneSergeantWilsonThe Clone Sergeant is part of the first assortment of the 3 ¾ inch scale Star Wars: The Black Series. The figure is just a basic Clone Sergeant, not any character in particular, and the figure is in the clone’s original “Phase I” armor. If I recall correctly, the Sergeant rank is not seen in Attack of Clones, so this is officially a Clone wars figure. The Sergeant is about 3 ¾ inches in height and features 26 points of articulation. While the articulation is still a little bit stilted in a few areas, the level present in these new figures is incredibly impressive. Hasbro’s done quite a few Clone Troopers over the years, with lots of shared parts between them, but I think that the newly engineered articulation means this figure sports an all-new sculpt. The details of the sculpt are nice and sharp, and the figure’s proportions look pretty good. The helmet is removable. The helmet is properly scaled, but in order to make it fit properly, the head had to be a tad under-scaled. The underlying head also bears little resemblance to actor Temuera Morrison, which is too bad. However, I can’t see many people leaving the helmet off, so it’s not much of a loss. The paint work is basic, but also key in differentiating the Sergeant from the other Clones. The Sergeant has an olive green accent on his armor, which looks really great, and definitely makes the figure stand out. The paintwork is all nice and cleanly applied. The unmasked head has some slightly odd eyes, but they aren’t horrible for the scale. The Sergeant includes both long and short blaster rifles, which allows you to add just a touch of customization.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

The Clone Sergeant was purchased at a Walmart, nearby my girlfriend’s college campus. I don’t usually shop at Walmart, but she needed to get a few things and I went with her. Me being me, I took a look in the action figure aisle, where I found this guy and a few other SW:TBS figures. I hadn’t initially planned on getting any of them, but Super Awesome Girlfriend is a terrible influence on me (okay, not really. She’s just incredibly supportive!) So, I ended up getting a few figures from the line. I really like the Sergeant, mostly due to the green accents, which are just really cool!

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