Clone Trooper - ROTS - Basic (III 6)

Added: July 22nd 2012
Category: Revenge Of The Sith
Reviewer: Paul Harrison
Score:

Name: Clone Trooper
Collection: Revenge Of The Sith
Number: III 6
Source: Revenge Of The Sith
Availability: April 2005
License: Hasbro

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Clone Troopers are the genetically engineered soldiers that are the Grand Army of the Republic. They are sent throughout the galaxy to fight the droid armies that belong to the Separatist forces.

One of the most erroneous assertions made in the collecting part of the Star Wars universe is that the all-white phase II Clone Trooper characters didn’t make an appearance in Episode III. This is indeed very incorrect. Although you cannot see them in their entirety, a couple of them can be seen standing behind Mace Windu and Obi-Wan Kenobi on a Republic gunship as they arrive on Coruscant welcomed by a Battalion of 41st Elite Corps Clone Troopers. Granted, they made a much bigger splash in Tartakovsky’s Clone Wars micro-series and should probably be properly sourced to there instead of Revenge Of The Sith. Knowing that they just couldn’t meet demand when the first phase I Clone Trooper figure was released in 2003’s Clone Wars line, Hasbro knew that one of the figures in the very first wave of figure would have to be an all-white phase II Clone Trooper. And that’s exactly what they did. The Clone Trooper has some good details and the design is decent. But Hasbro took a huge step backwards when they decided to add an action feature to the figure. And it’s a doozey. Most of the figure is the action feature if that makes sense. In other words, the legs need to be pressed together to activate the “Quick-Draw Action!” as the packaging boasts.

Because the figure has this complex action feature, some of the figure’s aesthetics are compromised and look too bulky. In particular, his shoulders and hips bow out too far from the figure. Granted, this disproportion is negligible, but it is present. And if you’re an action figure aficionado, it’s something that’s going to bother you a bit. If you’re a kid who is going to beat the pulp out of it, there isn’t so much to worry about here. On top of the included action feature, Hasbro added another nugget of play value that isn’t movie-specific at all but yet something extra to do with your Clone trooper figure. The left shoulder pad is removable. One is all white and the other has the Galactic Empire logo on it. You’re confused, right? So are we. Although it makes sense from the point of view that Palpatine declared the Republic as his Galactic Empire after the execution of Order 66, none of the Clone Troopers changed their shoulder pads to reflect the insignia of the Galactic Empire on their armor. So that was a bit of a weird move on their part. And we’re shocked it’s something that made it past Lucasfilm, Ltd. (unless they didn’t know that this wouldn’t be in the film either).

Hasbro also released the much more superior Clone Trooper (III 41) figure in the Revenge Of The Sith line as well. Unfortunately they were separated by a month and most collectors had already army built the III 6 figure (although that certainly didn’t stop them from army-building the III 41 figure). Again we have to ask ourselves. Why would Hasbro go through all the work of designing a nearly super-articulated phase II Clone Trooper only to alter it with action features? Instead of the action feature, Hasbro could have added a waist joint and we would have been happy for months and months (until that superior III 41 figure was released). Even so, it would be unfair to say the figure is a piece of garbage because it isn’t. But it pales in comparison to the III 41 figure by a landslide. Expect many different flavors of clones to never stop coming into the Hasbro toy line from this moment forward. They’re a staple and for the most part Hasbro does a fine job making them. They just need to steer clear of action features and all will be right in the world of collecting. The Clone Trooper (III 6) figure is just alright as far as we’re concerned. But it did play an important role to introduce the world to the Revenge Of The Sith toy line!

Collector Notes

Clone Trooper

Status: Clone Trooper is an all-new figure.

Articulation Count: 13 points

Articulation Details: ball-socket head, 2 ball-jointed shoulders, 2 ball-jointed elbows, 2 swivel wrists, 2 swivel hips, 2 ball-jointed knees, 2 ball-jointed ankles

Accessory Count: 4

Accessory Details: DC-15 blaster, DC-15 blaster rifle, removable left shoulder armor (plain), removable left shoulder armor (Galactic Empire logo)

Date Stamp: 2004

Collection: 1

Assortment Number: 85279/85174

UPC: 076930852798

Retail: $5.99 USD

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

 

Revenge Of The Sith Wave 1
Obi-Wan Kenobi (III 1)
Anakin Skywalker (III 2)
Yoda (III 3)
Super Battle Droid (III 4)
Chewbacca (III 5)
Clone Trooper (III 6)
R2-D2 (III 7)
Grievous's Bodyguard (III 8)
General Grievous (III 9)
Mace Windu (III 10)
Darth Vader (III 11)
Emperor Palpatine (III 12)



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