Darth Sidious - ROTS - 12 Inch Figures

Remaining in office long after his term has expired, the Supreme Chancellor continues to preside over the Galactic Senate. He tightens his grip on the Republic and seizes ever-greater power by declaring himself Emperor, leading the Jedi to suspect Palpatine’s darkest secret – that he is the Sith Lord, Darth Sidious.

We see the venerable Chancellor Palpatine turn into the villainous and battle-worn Darth Sidious in Star Wars Episode III: Revenge Of The Sith. Sure, we saw elements of Darth Sidious in both The Phantom Menace and Attack Of The Clones, but that version of the character was only Chancellor Palpatine in Sith Master attire. It is Darth Sidious’ battle with Mace Windu in their climactic duel together where Darth Sidious’ Force lightning is deflected back at him, burning his face and hands and permanently disfiguring himself in the skirmish. It’s arguable that if Anakin Skywalker didn’t interrupt their battle, that Mace Windu might have won, and Darth Sidious would be dead forever. That didn’t happen. And instead, the Darth Sidious converts his name to Emperor Palpatine and forms the first Galactic Empire of the galaxy. For Hasbro’s Revenge Of The Sith 12 Inch Figures line, they designed the figure based on Darth Sidious’ battle-damaged likeness, including the burns sustained from Force lightning frying the character’s skin. Also, for trivia lovers, this is the ONLY Revenge Of The Sith figure called "Darth Sidious." The 12 Inch Figure works and doesn’t work. Darth Sidious has an odd and bizarre likeness. The figure looks goofy, almost drunk. But with the hood over its head, it hides much of the likeness and only lets the important parts show through, like the eerie profile. We’re not making excuses for the head sculpt, but it’s rare when we won’t let it affect our appreciation of the figure.

Aside from its portrait/head sculpt (which is hugely important), the Darth Sidious 12 Inch Figure might be the best of the lot in the Revenge Of The Sith line. Barriss Offee and Shaak Ti might also rival Darth Sidious for first place too, but they function more like dolls than 12 Inch Figures whereas Darth Sidious is a true 12 Inch “Action” Figure. The Darth Sidious 12 Inch Figure is based on the outfit when Yoda enters Palpatine’s chambers and the climatic Senate duel, after learning that Anakin Skywalker had turned to the dark side. While it’s one of Darth Sidious’ more luxurious outfits, it’s used for a small portion of the film. But collectors will have to utilize it for every Episode III Darth Sidious interaction because it’s the only one we’re getting in the Revenge Of The Sith line. It would have been fantastic if Hasbro produced a “deluxe” version of Darth Sidious like they did for Anakin Skywalker/Darth Vader (Ultimate Villain). This way, we would have had both the “good looking” and “battle-damaged” head sculpts of Darth Sidious along with the all-black cloak to change things up a bit for our collections. That didn’t happen, and we’re stuck with this one. No worries, it’s a beautifully executed 12 Inch Figure for the Revenge Of The Sith lineup. Again, we wish they made a less goofy-looking head sculpt, but the figure isn’t without merit. We don’t get too many Palpatine/Sidious 12 Inch Figures, so you should give this one a chance.

Underneath Darth Sidious’ gown, you’ll find a pair of pants and boots. And instead of weaving a full-length shirt, Hasbro added a dickey underneath to cover up the “flesh” not covered around the neckline of the cloak. Hasbro added a beautiful fuzzy and soft faux fur shoulder cape that accents the diamond-patterned cloak in a contrasting fashion. All of the fabric used here have wonderful drapes and hang naturally on Darth Sidious. All of the clothing parts fasten together with Velcro. The hood on the cloak is a little bit stubborn, but with patience, you can make it hang the way you want it to hang. For accessories, Darth Sidious comes with a lightsaber hilt and a red lightsaber blade. The hilt is beautifully designed and imitates the on-screen prop perfectly. It’s gold and silver and fits into the figure's right hand without issue. The left hand doesn’t come with any finger articulation, so your only option to have it hold the lit lightsaber of the lightsaber hilt is the right hand. For reasons unknown, Hasbro chose the give the articulated fingers a black pin. It stands out something awful. We’re not sure why they would have done something so foolish. Darth Sidious’ likeness will turn off many collectors, but we feel that it offers too much to the 12 Inch Figures line to ignore it completely. Besides, look at how the other 12 Inch Figures in the line make it look better!