Concept Grievous (Warren J. Fu Signature Series) - TAC - Basic (Exclusive)

In concept artist Warren Fu's artwork of General Grievous, the droid commander has a more humanoid-looking form than the more robotic one that becomes his ultimate design. His cold, calculating efficiency is still clearly captured in the smooth metal casing and skull-like head.

When George Lucas needed some visual representation of what would be the main villain in the final Star Wars chapter, he called upon some of the greatest artists at ILM to visually portray what he was looking for in this character. The winning sketch went to Warren J. Fu and the look of Grievous was forever captured in his illustration. Of course some of the fine nuances of the character changed per George Lucas’ preferences, but the overall shape and spirit of the character was well preserved in that drawing. Because it was the perfect time to introduce concept art versions of Star Wars characters in action figure form during the 30 (77-07), Hasbro thought they would take it a step further and focus on a Prequel trilogy character. And what symbolic character would be more appropriate than General Grievous. Released as a StarWarsShop.com exclusive, the Concept Grievous action figure broke new ground in the basic figure line and set the stage for more Prequel Trilogy characters to be released. Hasbro did an excellent job translating the concept art of Mr. Fu into an action figure. What’s cool is that the Concept Grievous action figure has a lot of “McQuarrie” personality in it. Check out our gallery and you’ll see what we mean.

The Concept Grievous action figure comes with a perfect 22 amazing points of articulation. It has ball-joints in all of the important spots and the rest are swivel including his waist, hips and wrists. The action figure was manufactured using a very pearly white plastic. It has metallic properties in bright light and the white frame is accented with silver details. Concept Grievous also comes with a permanently attached soft-goods silver cape. While it is a little bit too shiny for our liking, it does look pretty fantastic because of its metallic appearance. Concept Grievous has a very humanoid form when compared to his final appearance in Episode III, and Warren J. Fu didn’t neglect the organic parts that are a staple of Grievous’ appearance. Hasbro designed a removable chest plate on the action figure and once you remove it you will be bale to see all of his organs inside. Hasbro also included some color in Concept Grievous’ eyes to also help make that connection that he once was a fully living being. Concept Grievous is nice and tall for an action figure and he has a very aggressive wide stance in his legs which help to reinforce his warrior background.

Concept Grievous comes with a double-barreled blaster that fits perfect in his right hand. And then Hasbro also included the shield that can be seen in the concept art. On the shield and on Grievous’ head you’ll find some Aurebesh-like writing that is totally reminiscent of the language that is found on so many of Ralph McQuarrie’s various paintings. It’s definitely cool to see some influence of Ralph McQuarrie in a Prequel Trilogy character. (Maybe it was just a clever move on Fu’s part.) This action figure is excellent and would accompany/complement the McQuarrie-centric ones very well. Overall, Concept Grievous ranks somewhere between nice to have and must-have. We personally adore it, but we’re unabashed fans of concept based action figures, Original Trilogy or Prequel Trilogy. It isn’t perfect. Despite its many points of articulation, he’s a hard action figure to pose (but not impossible obviously). But despite some of its problems, it will undoubtedly have an important place in your collection. Hasbro says that concept art figures will remain in the basic figure line for years to come, they’ll just come slowly.... but surely. Why not get a key character now though like Concept Grievous. You won’t have any regrets!