Clone Trooper - SW [TPM 3D] - Movie Heroes (MH11)

Added: February 10th 2012
Category: Star Wars [The Phantom Menace 3D]
Reviewer: Paul Harrison
Score:

Name: Clone Trooper
Collection: Star Wars [The Phantom Menace 3D]
Number: MH11
Source: Clone Wars (Volume 2: Chapter 23)/Revenge Of The Sith
Availability: January 2012
License: Hasbro

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Certain clone troopers are specially trained and outfitted for aerial reconnaissance and battle. Winged backpacks with built-in launchers provide the means for air assaults on the enemy. The troopers take advantage of the maneuverability that the packs give them to attack the enemy with speed and force.

Inflation is counterproductive. While every last action figure’s cost in on the rise, a figure that made its debut as a Deluxe figure in the 2005 Revenge Of The Sith line at $9.99 has been relegated to a basic figure size years later for a dollar cheaper. Granted, the included Clone Trooper has inferior upper body articulation, but it’s a relative steal to get a very articulated figure with an action-featured accessory for a dollar less than it was over a half a decade ago. Perhaps the more beneficial question to ask Hasbro instead is why was this action figure released in the 2012 toy line to begin with, especially in an age where super-articulation is the first concern for all collectors and even many kids. We’re not sure if we can answer that. It would be egregious for us to even pretend we knew the state of Hasbro’s mind. But we can tell you that the Movie Heroes line is starting off very poorly. The entire first wave should have been all-new sculpts and then the 12 initial figures that were actually released first should have been slowly peppered throughout the line in future cases.

Has Hasbro not learned from their mistakes? (That is a rhetorical question.) In 2008 and 2009, Hasbro killed the Evolutions and Comic Packs lines respectively. They expressed that there had been a significant drop off in sales for these products. Do you want to know why? The first wave of the Evolutions line started off pretty well. Then Hasbro reissued all of the 2008 TAC Evolutions sets in revised The Legacy Collection packaging. They also revised their focus on this line and changed its format to include “birds of a feather” rather than focus on the actual evolution of a specific Star Wars character or trooper. For example, 2008’s TAC The Jedi Legacy (while it had its moments) was a motley crew of various Jedi. It didn’t focus on the evolution of one Jedi. The same for the Rebel Pilot Legacy, the Rebel Pilot Legacy (Series II) and the Rebel Pilot Legacy (Series III) set. You get our point. And then in 2009 during the Legacy Collection, out of the first eight Comic Packs set, five were straight repacks. That line already had a smaller group of collectors to support the line.

And it appears the same is going to happen to the Movie Heroes line. Granted, there are some tweaks made and new pack-ins that may interest some collectors, but a line that starts off as straight repacks will not be able to sustain its life on the shelf especially when the MSRP is higher. This Clone Trooper with jetpack just happens to be a rare exception. It has a fine sculpt and aside from swivel shoulders and swivel elbows, it’s definitely one of the better clone trooper sculpts originally released. (Of course much better sculpts exist today.) Pulled from some early Revenge Of The Sith art concepts, this clone trooper with jetpack was never seen in Star Wars Episode III: Revenge Of The Sith. The Clone Trooper (with jetpack) made an obscure appearance in the Clone Wars multimedia event, but they weren’t wearing jetpacks exactly the same as what’s on this figure. As a result, we’re surprised that Hasbro has chosen this particular figure as one of the first for their Movie Heroes assortment. Not only is it not specific to the films, it isn’t even remotely related to Episode I. Obviously Hasbro wants to keep a little bit from every film in the Movie Heroes assortment, but this one is a head scratcher (for us at least) and in all honesty, their focus should be elsewhere, like Episode I.

Collector Notes

Clone Trooper

Status: Clone Trooper is a slight repaint of 2005's ROTS Clone Trooper (With Firing Jet Backpack & Spring Open Wings!) Deluxe figure. It has now for the first time ever been packaged as a basic figure.

Articulation Count: 16 points (12 areas of articulation)

Articulation Details: ball-socket head (1), swivel left shoulder (1), swivel right shoulder (1), swivel left elbow (inhibited movement) (1), swivel right elbow (1), swivel waist (1), swivel left hip (1), swivel right hip (1), ball-jointed left knee (2) ball-jointed right knee (2), ball-jointed left ankle (2), ball-jointed right ankle (2)

Accessory Count: 4

Accessory Details: removable jetpack, 2 projectiles, strapped blaster rifle

Date Stamp: 2005

Assortment Number: 37773/36563

UPC: 65356971903

Retail: $9.99 USD

Market Value: Click here to check the latest prices based on Click here to check the market value on eBay! listings.







Clone Trooper

 

Star Wars [The Phantom Menace 3D] Movie Heroes Wave 1

Shock Trooper (MH01)

Super Battle Droid (MH02)

R2-D2 (MH03)

Battle Droid [TPM] (MH04)

Darth Maul (MH05)

Darth Vader (MH06)

General Grievous (MH07)

Obi-Wan Kenobi (MH08)

Yoda (MH09)

Qui-Gon Jinn (MH10)

Clone Trooper (MH11)

Destroyer Droid (MH12)

 


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