Garazeb "Zeb" Orrelios/Stormtrooper - R - Mission Series (MS01)

Garazeb "Zeb" Orrelios and the crew of the Ghost go on a rescue mission that entangles them with the Galactic Empire's Stormtroopers.

There isn’t a whole lot of newness in the first wave of the Rebels Mission Series lineup, but one of the new sets stands out from among the rest. The Garazeb "Zeb" Orrelios/Stormtrooper Mission Series (MS01) two-pack is a sight for sore eyes. Imagine a beautifully colorful new character paired with an animated version of a classic Stormtrooper. And then imagine that they’ll battle each other to the finish (with a very unfair advantage on one side). That’s what the Garazeb "Zeb" Orrelios/Stormtrooper Mission Series set brings to the table. It’s not like we haven’t seen either of these characters before in some way in the basic figure line in the past. We did. Hasbro gave us the stunning 2007 TAC Concept Chewbacca (Ralph McQuarrie Signature Series) (30 21) figure which presented us with the first action figure interpretation of the Lasat species. Now the Rebels television show features a Lasat main character with the same brawn as Chewbacca, but with the ability to speak in the English language (with much thanks to the creators of the show). And then, of course, we have received more Stormtrooper action figures than we could probably count. And now both characters are presented side by side in eye-catching new packaging, and nice sculpts that should satisfy collectors of all ages.

Garazeb "Zeb" Orrelios is already one of our most favorite figures in the Rebels lineup. Colorful, well-designed and large are all perfectly chosen adjectives to describe this likable action figure. And although as of late the Hasbro line has been plagued with bad paint operations, we’re happy to report that for the most part Zeb is beautifully decorated. We approve of the paint operations. His base color is purple, but he is wearing many armored pieces and has dark zebra-like striped tattoos on his skin which gives him the perfect amount of personality. His head sculpt is awesome. His eye color may be slightly off, but Hasbro did a great job at recreating Zeb’s wary expression and the concern in his face satisfyingly. He has a bright yellow jumper, and Hasbro did an excellent job of painting this part of the figure. The sculpting of Zeb’s feet initially alarmed us (in a good way). They look very reminiscent of Hammerhead’s feet from the 1979 Kenner line. Fellow collectors have already commented on this detail because his feet stand out. Zeb comes with a very complex blaster rifle, but it fits perfectly in his squarely cupped hands. And his hands are open enough to grasp onto the hand and feet of the included Stormtrooper to throw him around a little bit.

The Stormtrooper is borderline controversial. It’s going to be tough for longtime Star Wars collectors to get used to the animated look of them. The have pudgy cheek areas, and the five points of articulation make them essentially useless as action figures. And we have to be honest and say that our sample didn’t come with the cleanest paint operations. But with that being said, we bet that it will be hard for many collectors to pass on them because Stormtroopers just go over big no matter how they look. For the Rebels line, the Stormtrooper has a decent look, and the sculpt is faithful to the show. He comes with an E-11 blaster pistol, but with the limited range of motion, there aren’t too many exciting poses you can attain because of this. Together, the set is a blast. Zeb (or with the much clumsier name Garazeb "Zeb" Orrelios) towers over the Stormtrooper, and they interact beautifully with each other. But even better, Garazeb "Zeb" Orrelios looks great with Kanan and Ezra from the Reveal The Rebels: Jedi Reveal set. We’re quickly gathering the new team of heroes that make up the show. For $10, this set is a deal, but Hasbro must upkeep the paint operations in this satisfactory manner, or most will lose patience with the quality of the line. We’re happy to say that things are going well so far.