Tag Archives: The Black Series

#0580: Chewbacca

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

CHEWBACCA

STAR WARS: THE BLACK SERIES

Chewbacca1

Once a line of figures gets a few series in, there will inevitably crop up one or two characters that are noticeably absent. Following the first three series of Star Wars: The Black Series, it was quite obvious that these two characters were Darth Vader and Chewbacca. Then, both found their way into the 5th series of the line. And there was much rejoicing! Yay! Except for one small issue: they weren’t exactly easy to find. See, there were two things that led to this. The first was that stores were sitting on lots of unsold stock of the first four series, so they under-ordered Series 5. In addition, while the series was all new figures, two of the four were variants of previously released characters. Obviously, this made the two new characters even more desirable, causing quite a bit of scarcity. I myself missed out on Chewbacca the first time around, but, fortunately for me, he got a rerelease!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Chewbacca2Chewbacca was originally part of Series 5 of Star Wars: The Black Series, however he eventually found his way into Series 7 cases as well. He’s figure number 04 in the second round of numbering for the line. The figure has 27 points of articulation and stands a whopping 8 inches tall. He’s actually so tall that he was pushed back to Series 5 from Series 4 so that Hasbro would have time to re-design the packaging so that poor Chewy wouldn’t have to be crammed in some contorted pose in order to be properly seen. Dude’s really big.  Chewbacca is one of the handful of characters who essentially look the same in all of the Star Wars films they appear in. That being said, you can sort of tell which movie he’s from by what his “bangs” are doing. For this figure, they’ve gone with the slicked back A New Hope look, which works fine with me. Given Chewbacca’s unique look, it’s no surprise that he makes use of an entirely new set of sculpted pieces. To be totally honest, it isn’t one of my favorites that the line has produced. It’s certainly not bad, and in fact, they’ve done an admirable job of translating a design that doesn’t work very well on an articulated figure to…umm…an articulated figure. The fur is all pretty well textured, but the breaks for articulation are rather obvious and obtrusive. Not sure it could have been any better, but it looks off. The head was actually the part of the figure I liked the least at first, but my opinion has changed over time and now I think it might be my favorite part of the figure. I’m still not 100% sold on the decision for the mouth to be open, but it looks perfectly fine in person. The sculpt being a little on the wonky side is not at all helped by an iffy paint job. Now, to be fair, this paint isn’t poorly applied or messy. It’s all exactly where it should be. It’s just not as…subtle as it could be. There are two different shades of brown: one dark and one light. The problem is that there’s no shade between, so the change from one to another is rather sudden. It really doesn’t help that many of these changes occur at the connections of joints, which are already a bit jarring to begin with. Chewbacca is armed only with his trusty bowcaster. It might have been nice to get another Stormtrooper rifle or maybe a set of handcuffs, but the lighter accessory load is excusable given the figure’s size.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

When Series 5 was announced, I knew I wanted to get a Chewbacca figure. However, when I ended up finding the series, I could only find Luke and Vader, with no sign of Chewbacca. That bummed me out quite a bit. I mentioned it to my dad, who kept an eye out for Chewbacca for several months. He finally came across one while getting lunch from Wegman’s one day, much to my excitement. I know I was a little down on this guy in my actual review. I stand by that, but I will say that just having the figure in hand improves my personal opinion of the figure, even if the actual quality could be a bit better. I think part of it is just that Chewy is an important piece of the films and a collection wouldn’t be complete without him.

Chewbacca4

#0579: Bossk

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

BOSSK

STAR WARS: THE BLACK SERIES

Bossk1

After going a fair bit of time with no new Black Series figures, I’ve actually managed to pick up a few of them in a relatively short span of time. And, as an added bonus, I didn’t actually have to resort to breaking my “no prequel figures” rule again. Yay? Empire Strikes Back is a lot of people’s favorite film of the original trilogy, due in no small part to the introduction of a rather memorable selection of bounty hunters. Now, they certainly can’t all be Boba Fett when it comes to popularity, but today’s focus, Bossk, is certainly up there.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Bossk2Bossk was released as part of Series 7 of Star Wars: The Black Series. He’s figure number 10 in the line, though it is important to note that he’s number 10 of the second batch of numbers. Because Hasbro enjoys confusing people. The figure stands just over 6 inches in height and sports 30 points of articulation. His jaw moves, guys. His jaw moves. That’s pretty cool. Bossk features a sculpt that is all-new to this figure. Simply put, the sculpt is nothing short of amazing. The design from the movies has been translated quite nicely. The figure is also just covered in texturing, which makes him quite interesting to look at and shows that Hasbro definitely didn’t phone things in on this guy. Bossk’s paintwork is decent, though not quite up to par with the sculpt. This is Hasbro we’re dealing with here. On the plus side, the base color work is all very well-matched to the film look, and the colors are nice and clean. He also has a nice wash over his head, hands, and feet, which really brings out the smaller details of the sculpt. So, what’s the bad with the paint? Well, you’d be hard-pressed to find an edge on this figure that doesn’t have any bleed over, and you’d be just as hard-pressed to find a surface devoid of any stray marks of incorrect colors. From a few feet away, it’s hardly noticeable, but up close, the figure looks pretty rough. Not terrible, but rough. Bossk’s lone accessory is his blaster rifle. It’s a little difficult to get into his hands, but it’s well sculpted, and once it’s in place it looks great.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Bossk was purchased for me by my Dad. He was grabbing lunch at Wegman’s of all places and they had a case of this series. Here I was sitting in Political Science and in comes a text asking if I want Bossk and Chewbacca. Bossk was something of a slow-burn figure for me. I knew I wanted to see him made when the line began, and I was certainly happy to see the prototype, but I just never got really excited about him. That did change a little, but not as much as I would have hoped. The figure probably has the best sculpt in the line so far, but he’s really pulled back by the less than stellar paint. I really wish that Hasbro would put some more work into the paint on their figures, because so many fantastic sculpts are being hidden by lackluster paint.

Bossk4

#0572: Clone Sergeant

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

CLONE SERGEANT

STAR WARS: THE BLACK SERIES

CloneSWB1

It’s been a whole seven months since I’ve looked at a Star Wars: The Black Series figure. That kind of surprised me. I double-checked a few times, but, yep, Darth Vader was the last one I looked at, back on October 6th of last year. It’s odd, because I was pretty sold on this line when it launched. However, the remnants of the first few series have hung around in my area, so finding the newer figures has been few and far between. Evidently, I was so desperate to get something from the line that I was willing to break my one rule going in: No prequel figures. Yeah, bad Ethan. Just go with it, okay?

THE FIGURE ITSELF

CloneSWB2The Clone Sergeant was released as part of the sixth series of Star Wars: The Black Series. He’s figure #07, though it’s worth noting that the numbering restarted for 2014, so he’s a little higher in the actual numbering. The figure is roughly 6 inches tall and he has 29 points of articulation. He’s a Phase I-style Clone Trooper, which technically means he’s from Attack of the Clones, although, as I noted in my last Clone Sergeant review, I’m fairly certain the no Sergeants actually appear in that film, making this figure technically a Clone Wars figure. But I could be wrong. This being a Phase I Clone, it’s not really a surprise that the sculpt is identical to that of the Series 4 Clone Trooper, and will be the same as the soon-to-be-released Clone Lieutenant. In Hasbro’s defense, this is completely film accurate and totally to be expected. The additional Clone ranks are here to get more use out of the completely unique tooling of the first Clone. It’s worth noting that this sculpt is a really great piece of work. Everything is nice and clean, and there’s lots of symmetry. The armor is appropriately smooth and the underlying body suit has some wonderful texture work. There is one issue, and I’m not sure entirely how to classify it. Simply put, the figure has a rather obvious set of serial numbers etched into his left thigh. Well, I say etched, but they almost look as if someone chewed them in. It’s strange looking. Clearly, this isn’t meant to be part of the sculpt, but it’s there and it’s rather distracting. The paint is somewhat important on this figure, since it is the one thing that differentiates it from the normal Clone Trooper. It’s okay, but not great. The colors are well chosen, and everything is pretty much correctly placed, but the green areas in particular are rather rough around the edges, looking almost as if the green hasn’t been fully mixed together. It’s only really noticeable up close, but it certainly could be better. The Clone Sergeant is packed with two rifles: one large and one small. These are the same ones included with the normal Trooper, and they are nice translations of the film designs.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

It’s kind of Super Awesome Girlfriend’s fault. See, I was visiting her at school and we went to Toys R Us, because that’s what we do, and they had this figure there. I’ve been resisting the urge to buy a Black Series Clone Trooper for a while now, and so far I’ve managed to do pretty well. But she was standing there with me and she said three words that meant I couldn’t turn the figure down: “It has green!” Damn. So, I bought the Clone Sergeant. And now I totally have a prequel figure, even though I swore I wouldn’t buy any. To be fair, he’s a decent figure. Sure, the paint could be better, but that’s hardly a surprise when dealing with Hasbro. So, has this figure shattered the glass wall preventing me from buying prequel stuff? Will I be tracking down a Darth Maul on eBay? Nah, probably not. He’s cool and all, but I don’t see this being anything but a one off.

#0350: Darth Vader

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

DARTH VADER

STAR WARS: THE BLACK SERIES

Okay, so right off the bat, I’m sure my loyal readers are a little confused by today’s Figure in Question. I’m at another 50 mark with no High End review? Well, for the first 300 reviews, getting through another 50 was noteworthy. Past 300, it’s far too frequent. So, from here on out I’ll be saving those reviews for the every hundred. Okay, on to the actual review stuff.

Since the beginning of Star Wars: The Black Series, there’s been one key player obviously missing: Darth Vader. His absence from the line was a bit shocking to see, given he’s one of the signature characters of the series and he’s generally been Hasbro’s bread and butter. The prevailing rumor was that Hasbro was holding off on Vader until they had gotten a few series in, so they could get him right. Well, here we are, five series in, and we’ve finally gotten a Vader figure. So, did they get him right? The results are…mixed.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Darth Vader was released in the fifth series of Star Wars: The Black Series. Just like Luke, Vader’s number shows that Hasbro has reset the numbering on the figures. He’s figure #02, a number previously held by the X-Wing Pilot Luke from the first series. If I’m correct in my thinking, this is meant to be Vader from Return of the Jedi, though it’s possible he’s an amalgamation of the Empire and Jedi looks. That’s what Sideshow did with their Vader, so there’s precedent. Regardless, the differences are minor, so only a die-hard fan will really notice. The figure is about 6 ½ inches in height and features 26 points of articulation. The figure features a mix of sculpted pieces and cloth goods to convey his design. Let’s look at the sculpt first. Overall, the sculpted work on this figure is pretty good. The proportions of the body look right for the character, and there’s some very nice stitched ribbing on his arms, legs and torso. There have been some complaints about the pose of the left hand, but I think it looks really great, and it adds a bit more uniqueness to Vader. The figure has been given a two-piece, removable helmet, like in the movie. The underlying head sculpt is a pretty good approximation of Sebastian Shaw. The eyebrows aren’t painted, so it’s technically Special Edition-ed , but they’re sculpted, so you could paint them if you so desire. The helmet is really the sculpt’s downfall. It’s not bad, per say, but it’s just off enough to fall short of what Vader should look like. To their credit, the helmet pieces snap together really well, and the assembled helmet has no trouble staying on the head. If you don’t want to take the helmet off, you never have to. However, the shape of the assembled helmet is just off enough to throw the whole figure off-kilter. The real issue is that the helmet is just too short and squat for Vader’s helmet in the movie. It’s minor, but when you’re dealing with a design this distinctive you can’t afford to be even the slightest bit off. It’s kinda like messing up Mickey Mouse’s ears, or Superman’s shorts (okay, bad example). If the helmet is the downfall of the sculpt, the cloth goods are the downfall of the figure as a whole. Cloth goods on smaller scale figures are something of a polarizing issue. I don’t mind them when they’re done right, but that’s not here. The major issue here is that the pieces have just been cut WAY too big. The skirt hangs too far in front of his legs, going past the sculpted slot by a good ¼ inch on either side. It also is far too long, leading to it dragging at his feet. The cape isn’t quite as bad. It’s still too long, and it sits too low on his shoulders, but it does have a nice chain clasp, and it looks okay with some good futzing. The paint on Vader is nothing too exciting. It’s clean. Some people dislike the red eyes, but they aren’t that noticeable in person. Vader’s sole accessory is his red lightsaber. It’s well sculpted, and it fits nicely in his right hand, but the blade in mine has trouble staying attached.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Vader was acquired from the same Walgreens where I got Luke, which I was taken to while visiting my Super Awesome Girlfriend (love you!). Vader is a confusing figure. Honestly, he’s not that bad. Were this quality applied to any other character from the franchise, it’d be fine. But this is Vader. This is the guy you have to get right! If he’s not right, it throws the whole collection off. I understand that Hasbro wanted to bring their A-game to this figure, which is why he was pushed to a later series. But, the issue that seems to be cropping up here is that the quality of the line is falling, rather than rising, with each subsequent series. Vader and Luke aren’t bad figures at all, and I don’t regret getting them. I’m incredibly happy have both of them. Still, they could have been better, and that’s a shame.

Well, I said I wasn’t doing a Deluxe review, but I’ve actually written a regular review that’s about the same length. How about that?

#0349: Luke Skywalker

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

LUKE SKYWALKER

STAR WARS: THE BLACK SERIES

I’d be lying if I said my interest in Hasbro’s Star Wars: The Black Series hadn’t waned a bit. Following the first and second series, I was incredibly excited for the line and eager to see what more the line would offer. However, with the long waiting periods between each series, as well as some cuts in the accessories included with each figure, plus a lack of interest in any of the figures in the fourth series on my part, I’ve become more… moderate in my interest. Still, the more recent Speeder Bike did reinvigorate my interest a bit. In an odd turn of events, Walgreens has begun carrying their own action figure exclusives, and in addition to one exclusive figure, they are also getting the newest series of The Black Series before other stores. Today, I’ll be looking at the most recent figure of Luke Skywalker.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Luke was released in the fifth series of Star Wars: The Black Series. It looks as though Hasbro has reset the numbering on the figures, as Luke is listed as #03, which was previously the number given to the Sandtrooper from series one. He’s based on Luke’s Jedi master look from Return of the Jedi, specifically from the second half of the film, after he’s lost the vest. It’s an important look for Luke, so we were bound to get him sooner or later. The figure is a little shy of 6 inches in height and he features 27 points of articulation. I’m glad to see they’ve gone back to the usual mix of one forward/back and one left/right joint for his wrists, rather than the two forward back we saw on Bespin Luke. The figure is has no boot cuts, which is a bit limiting, but not terrible. The figure’s sculpt is all-new, and it’s not bad. At first glance, it seems he’s too skinny, but a quick look at some pictures of Hamill from the film show it’s accurate. There’s a lot of great detail work in his uniform, with lots of folds and wrinkles for texture, which is great. The likeness on this figure is better than that of Bespin Luke, but I can’t help but feel the actually quality of the sculpt isn’t quite as good. It feels like the details aren’t as sharp on this one. But, it’s hard to tell because of: The Paint! Yeah, the paint on this figure is definitely a step down from previous releases. The colors are a lot flatter, the hair doesn’t quite stay in the sculpted lines, and then there are the pupils. Apparently, this figure is meant to depict Luke shortly after a trip to the eye doctor, because those pupils are seriously dilated. With some slight improvements to the paint, the sculpt would probably be shown off much better. Luke includes his green lightsaber from Jedi and an alternate front to his torso with the flap folded down. The lightsaber is nice, but the package has left it slightly warped. The alternate flap is a nice touch, and it allows for some variance in the display options.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

So, as you probably figured out from the intro, I got this Luke figure from Walgreens. There are actually no Walgreens nearby, so I figured I’d just wait till the proper release. However, I was visiting my Super Awesome Girlfriend for the weekend, and I noticed a Walgreens not far from her campus. Living up to her name, she insisted we go there. So, I found Luke and Vader there, which was definitely cool. The figure isn’t flawless, and I’m beginning to grow weary of the endless Luke variants, but he’s not bad overall. It’s an important look for the character, and it’s a decent enough figure. If Hasbro could work on improving the paint work and perhaps start giving the figures a few more accessories, he’d be even better!

#0322: Biker Scout

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

BIKER SCOUT

STAR WARS: THE BLACK SERIES

BikerScoutSmall1

To make matters of confusion worse in regards to the two separate scales for Hasbro’s Star Wars: The Black Series, I’ve opted to go through with reviewing the lone figure that I own in both scales. The key difference here is that this time around, it’s an Original Trilogy character. But, wait, wasn’t I sticking to the larger scale for OT characters? Quiet you! Today’s figure is the Star Wars equivalent of George of the Jungle, the Biker Scout. Watch out for that tree!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

BikerScoutSmallWilsonThe Biker Scout was released as figure #07 in the first assortment of the 3 ¾ inch scale Star Wars: The Black Series. Like the Clone Sergeant and the Clone Pilot before him, this isn’t any particular character, but rather one of the basic Scout Troopers, seen in Return of the Jedi. The Biker Scout is roughly 3 ¾ inches tall and has 25 points of articulation. At first glance, I thought this figure might just be a straight rerelease of the Saga Legends version of this design, but it looks like Hasbro’s given this one a pretty thorough re-work. The articulation isn’t quite there just yet, but Hasbro’s definitely making some serious strides. The Biker Scout’s sculpt appears to be all-new [EDIT: A little bit of looking around shows that this figure is the same sculpt as the Biker Scout included with the 2012 Toys R Us exclusive Speeder Bike. Since I don’t have that set, this sculpt is still new to me]. There are quite a few similarities to previous versions, but that’s to be expected. On its own, it’s not a bad sculpt, and does a pretty decent job capturing the various elements of the design. The only real negative of the figure is the helmet. The Goggles seem to be too small in relation to the helmet, and the helmet itself seems too small in relation to the rest of the body, which makes the figure look like a bit of a pin-head. The paint work on the Biker Scout is mostly straight forward, but there are a few issues. There are a few areas with some small scrapes and smudges, as well as a decent bit of bleed over on the elbow and knee pads. Also, the shoulder and ankle joints have been molded in black plastic, which makes them stand out unnecessarily. Had they been molded in white plastic, this could have been avoided. Lastly, the pouches on his mid-section, while cleanly painted, have been painted a solid tan, which seems like just a bit too much of a contrast from the surrounding areas. The Biker Scout is armed with a small blaster pistol.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

The Biker Scout was gotten at the same time as the Clone Pilot and the Clone Sergeant. As I mentioned in my review of his larger scaled counterpart, the Biker Scout is my favorite Trooper design from Star Wars. That being said, I think this figure would have been better served had I gotten it before the 6-inch version. It’s not a bad figure on its own, but it pales in comparison to the truly impressive Biker Scout from the larger line. The point is, this is a good figure. It’s probably the best version of the Biker Scout in the 3 ¾ inch scale. If you prefer that scale, than this is the figure for you!

BikerScoutSmall2

#0285: Biker Scout & Speeder Bike

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

BIKER SCOUT & SPEEDER BIKE

STAR WARS: THE BLACK SERIES

BikerScout1

We interrupt the regularly scheduled “Birthday Stuff” reviews for a quick little venture into a galaxy far, far away. You might notice that there are two reviews today. Yeah, they’re both by me, I just screwed up the scheduling. See, I originally intended to publish the Green Ranger review today, just like I did, but I decided I wanted to take a break from the birthday things to review something I was very excited about. Sadly, the day got away from me, so I didn’t get a chance to stop the Green Ranger from auto posting. My bad! Anyway, that means there will be two reviews today, just cuz.

The subject of this review comes from Hasbro’s Star Wars: The Black Series, their very popular 6-inch scaled line of Star Wars figures. So far, they’ve put out three series of figures with another three planned. In addition to that, they’ve also started offering a line of Deluxe figures and vehicles, starting with Jabba the Hutt and today’s focus, the Biker Scout and Speeder bike!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

BikerScout2The Biker Scout stands about 6 inches tall and features 31 points of articulation. He’s based on the basic scout design from the final battle on the forest moon of Endor in Return of the Jedi. The Biker Scout features an all new sculpt. No re-use from any of the previous figures, and not even any upscaling of pieces from the 3 ¾ inch Biker Scouts. The sculpt is probably the most accurate take on the design over the years. All of the proportions look just right, especially on the helmet, which is a really key area of the design. Do be mindful if you pick one up in person: the helmet is made of softer plastic and it gets pressed up against the packaging in such a way that might warp it a bit. The arms might be just a tad too long, mostly due to the elbow joints, and the hands might be slightly too small, but it doesn’t look too bad with the right pose. The uniform features some pretty great texture work to differentiate the armor from the cloth parts of the costume, which gives the figure a nice bit of dimension. The paint work on the Biker Scout is pretty good, by Hasbro standards at least. The basic paint work is pretty clean, though the visor is a bit fuzzy on the edges. He has a wash over a few of the white areas. It brings out some of the details well, but it might be better if it were just a little bit more subtle. The Scout includes a blaster pistol, which is nice, but mine broke putting it in his hand, so be careful.

BikerScoutWilson BikerScout3

THE VEHICLE ITSELF

BikerScout4The Speeder Bike is effectively the title half of this set, even if the Biker Scout may have gotten more of the tooling put towards him. The bike is about 10 inches long, and about 2 inches tall at its tallest, with articulated back flaps and a rotating gun on the underside. The sculpt is really quite intricate, with lots of really cool details hidden in the various nooks of the sculpt. It looks to be really accurate to the movie, which is cool, and I’m glad to see a speeder bike that is mucked up by an exploding feature. The paint work is pretty good overall, but it is a bit varied. The metal under-workings have some really nice dry-brushed silver details, which is pretty cool, but the silver details on the main body are a bit more solid, which makes them look a bit too placed. Otherwise, the paint is nice, with no slop or bleed over. The Speeder Bike includes a clear(ish) stand that plugs in via ball joint, allowing the bike to be posed in mid-flight.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I found this set at my local Target yesterday. I actually found it completely by accident, since I wasn’t expecting it to be released just yet. I was there looking for a couple of other things, and came across this bad boy, which was very exciting! The Biker Scout is my favorite Trooper design from Star Wars, so I’ve been patiently awaiting his release since the beginning of the Black Series. I am thrilled to finally have this set, and it’s hands down my favorite item from the line!

BikerScout7

#0211: Stormtroopers

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

STORMTROOPERS

STAR WARS: THE BLACK SERIES

Stormtroopers

THE FIGURE IN QUESTION

EPISODE 211

It was a dark time for the FIGURE IN QUESTION. Negotiations have broken down following the disappointment of the Slave Leia figure. The rebellion has recovered from this blow with the release of the Bespin Luke Skywalker figure. The rebels quietly celebrate their victory. Little do they know that the evil Galactic Empire has plans for an awesome figure of their own. If only the collectors could find that figure….

Yep, Star Wars: The Black Series is a pretty cool line, but I can’t help but feel that it’s a bit short on representing the Empire. Sure, we got a pretty cool Sandtrooper back in series one, but that’s just a Sandtrooper. It can’t even find the droids it’s looking for! But then, Hasbro announced the Stormtrooper! Everyone loves the Stormtroopers! And you can buy a bunch, meaning that your Empire’s ranks could quickly grow, right? Yeah, in theory anyway. But then Hasbro decided to pack him one per case. So…that didn’t go so well. After a few months I finally tracked a couple, but man…

THE FIGURE ITSELF

The Stormtrooper was released in the third series of Star Wars: The Black Series. His number is #09. The Stormtrooper is pretty much the same in every movie (I know there are some differences that a die-hard fan could point out, but I don’t know them.), so they’ve gone with the one look.  The figure is a little over 6 inches tall and has 29 points of articulation. In a first for the line, the Stormtrooper’s sculpt is mostly re-use. The figure shares everything but the belt and left shin with series one’s Sandtrooper. The head might also be a new sculpt, but I can’t tell. The difference might just be paint releated. Anyway, the sculpt was nice to begin with, so it works really nicely here. The big difference between this figure and the Sandtrooper is the paint. The Stormtrooper is much cleaner, which makes the figures sculpt look a bit bolder. The figure is mostly molded in the appropriate white, but he has some black detailing, which is mostly clean. I did notice a few areas of slop, but they seem to vary from figure to figure, so check them if you have the opportunity. The Stormtrooper includes two accessories: his basic rifle, which is reused from both the Sandtrooper and Han Solo, as well as a larger rifle, which is speculated to see a re-use with robot assassin IG-88. Once again, this is a bit of a step down from earlier series, but I can’t really think of anything else to give the troopers.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

After a while of searching, I finally caught the Stormtrooper while it was in stock on Amazon. I was able to get two of them, because you can’t just have one Stormtrooper, that would be wrong. I had enjoyed the Sandtrooper quite a bit, and was eager to see how the sculpt would look when used for the main trooper. Aside from the issues finding the figures, they really didn’t disappoint!

StormTrooperswbubble

#0210: Luke Skywalker – Bespin

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

LUKE SKYWALKER – BESPIN

STAR WARS: THE BLACK SERIES

Luke(Bespin)

I’m just a moderate Star Wars fan, but I am an action figure fan (in case the site hadn’t already clued you in on that…), and that means I frequently find myself venturing into the galaxy far, far away for my purchases. Hasbro recently brought the characters into the 6 inch scale with their new Star Wars: The Black Series. The line boasts improved sculpts, better articulation, and a greater selection of accessories. It’s also quickly become one of my favorite lines. The third series proved to be a bit difficult to procure at first, but I’ve finally tracked a set down and I’ll be reviewing them today and tomorrow (It’s only a three figure assortment and I don’t need prequel Obi Wan, so just the two for me.)

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Luke comes from the third series of Star Wars: The Black Series. Each figure in the line gets a number, and Luke is #011. He’s presented here in his main gear from The Empire Strikes Back, generally referred to as his Bespin look. It’s generally see as one of the character’s definitive looks, so it’s great to see it in the line. The figure stands just shy of 6 inches tall and features 29 points of articulation. All of the articulation seems to work pretty well, though I am slightly annoyed by the choice to give both hands a forward/back joint instead of the usual mix of one forward/back, one left/right. It’s a minor issue, but it limits the pose-ability a bit. Luke features an entirely new sculpt, which is great all-around. It’s well proportioned, nicely detailed, and the head has more than a passing resemblance to Mark Hamill. He also features an add-on belt piece, which could probably be removed if you so desired, but isn’t meant to be. On the paint side, he’s not quite as good as previous waves, but he’s not bad, and seems a lot better than I’d heard from other reviews. My figure seems to have received a decent paint job with no slop or bleed over. He’s got a decent wash on his body-suit, which does an excellent job bringing out the details in the sculpt. Luke is accessorized with a blaster and a lightsaber, both of which are reused from the previous LightsabersLuke. This is a bit of a letdown, given the larger selection featured with the rest of the line. Heck, the previous Luke even included a helmet in addition to these two pieces. I’d have liked to at least get a few extra hands, or at bare minimum that his right hand was removable to recreate the Bespin duel. Alas, he just gets the two pieces. Oh well.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I got Luke from Amazon. He’s been in stock there for a little while, but I wanted to wait until they got in the Stormtrooper at a reasonable price before ordering him. Initially, I wasn’t sure I was going to get this figure. I already had the pilot version of the character from series one, and that’s a really cool figure. However, once I saw some pictures of this figure, I knew I couldn’t miss out on him. Plus, he’s Bespin Luke. What kind of a fan would I be if I didn’t have him? Anyway, I’m really glad I got this figure, and I’m going to have a lot of trouble picking which of the two Lukes will be my default.

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#0046: Greedo

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

GREEDO

STAR WARS: THE BLACK SERIES

Today, I’ll be looking at the final figure from the second series of Star Wars: The Black Series.  Okay, technically, going by the numbering on the figures, he’s the second to last, and Han, who I reviewed yesterday, is the last.  But this is Greedo, and every good Star Wars fan knows, he does NOT get a shot at a review first.  So, yeah, I’ll be looking at Greedo, punching bag of the Star Wars universe.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

As I said above, Greedo is part of the second series of Star Wars: The Black Series.  He’s #007, and he’s based on the only possible look to base Greedo on, the jumpsuit/vest combo he wears during his fatal encounter with Solo.  Greedo is the tallest figure in the series, standing just over 6 inches, and he features about 20 points of articulation.  Like everybody else in the wave, he’s got a brand new sculpt.  It looks good, and seems to be accurate to Greedo’s look from the film.  The vest is a separate sculpted piece, with a fairy basic jumpsuit sculpt underneath.  I wouldn’t be surprised to see Hasbro reuse parts of this figure in future waves.  Greedo’s head and hands are his most distinctive parts, and they’re rendered well.  I don’t know if they’re 100% screen accurate, but they’re certainly close enough for me.  The paint on Greedo is actually a bit better than the rest of the wave.  He’s got a little bit of slop on the yellow stripe on one arm, but other than that everything looks pretty sharp.  I was most impressed by the fact that the yellow detailing continues under the vest, where it’s rendered virtually invisible.  It’s a nice touch that most companies would over look.  Greedo is topped off by a blaster pistol.  This is a bit light when compared to the others in the series, but there are very few things one can give a character who appears for less than five minutes.  Unless the wanted to throw in an alternate torso with a hole in it, but that seems a bit morbid.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Greedo is a surprisingly cool figure.  I wasn’t sure I really wanted him, but I bought a full set in order to get Han and Boba.  Having Greedo in hand, he’s become one of my favorites.  I hope that Hasbro puts this much effort into some of the more important characters.