Stormtrooper - TBS [P2] - Basic (#08)

Wearing their iconic white armor, these elite Imperial stormtroopers enforce the Emperor's severe will across the Galactic Empire.

The initial assumption was wrong, but it was a good thing to be wrong about because 2015’s TBS [P2] Stormtrooper (#08) is a bittersweet surprise. Most of us had our guard up after the debacle 2013 TBS [P1] Stormtrooper (#13) figure and had presumed that it would be re-released for the “blue” phase portion of The Black Series line. The “new” Stormtrooper isn’t as lazy as the last and we are making incremental progress to reach the pinnacle definitive modern Stormtrooper figure. Instead of just repacking a clean Sandtrooper (and removing its gear), Hasbro actually took the 2004 VOTC Stormtrooper head, slightly retooled it to fit on the slightly larger peg and then repainted it to include some of the details they left off the last time. The final result is a better than average super-articulated Stormtrooper with the helmet flush with the shoulders (no ugly gap of space) and a better silhouette of what an actual Stormtrooper looks like. We still need a definitive Stormtrooper sculpt at this point, and frankly we’re tired of waiting for it. What’s tragic here is that all Hasbro has to do is a simple retool of this “new” figure. Simply fix it up by using a different torso without the slit on the back. They can even revitalize the hand sculpts so that it can accommodate a blaster better, and call it a day.

Some of you may still feel that we’re overreacting a little bit here and maybe we are. But the agony of waiting so many years for the perfect Stormtrooper figure has become unacceptable at this point. How much longer do we have to wait at this point? We are talking about the most basic Imperial in the Star Wars line. We should have had the opportunity dozens of times to purchase a definitive version by now. Hasbro pledged to us at 2013’s NY Toy Fair that The Black Series is undeniably for collectors and that if figures designed for this line weren’t absolutely perfect that they would pull them, retool or repaint them, and ensure that the best possible figure would get released. So far Hasbro hasn’t been keeping their word. Maybe they think they have, but they haven’t. While any number of Star Wars action figures may lack in one way or another, paying $10 for an action figure that should be flawless to the point of never needing a revision again should guarantee collectors that our interests are deeply considered by the makers at Hasbro. Evidently that is far from being the case. Sure, the articulation is fabulous. And the non-removable helmet is a godsend. So, we marching on in a forward motion, but we are still just not there “completely” yet.

Stormtrooper (#08) is a kit-bashed figure that still utilizes most of the Imperial Sandtrooper figure from 2009’s LC Dewback And Imperial Sandtrooper Walmart exclusive as well as the belt from 2007’s TAC Imperial Stormtrooper (30 20) figure. If Hasbro is still unable to switch out the torso, maybe they can just create an all-new version from the ground up. But honestly they don’t have to do that. The lower body on this sculpt is fantastic. An all-new torso would have to be used from another figure or tooled from scratch. Get rid of the slit and incorporate a better functioning ball-jointed torso. Ensure that the figure is designed without a removable helmet. Retool the hand (and even the arms if possible) to incorporate a wide range of poses with or without holding blasters. It’s so easy for them to make these changes that it’s become beyond frustrating now. Stormtrooper (#08) is a big step up from #13, but you have to understand that we’re exhausted with all of the half-baked attempts made on this character in the basic figure line. Before we get too old to collect, we would like there to be an absolute and definitive Stormtrooper action figure. Until there is, your best bet is this one. It definitely beats out 2011’s TVC Stormtrooper (VC41) figure now (the running change version).