Stormtrooper Commander - TVC - Basic (VC254)

Added: August 18th 2022
Category: Vintage Collection, The
Reviewer: Paul Harrison
Score:

Name: Stormtrooper Commander
Collection: The Vintage Collection
Number: VC254
Source: The Force Unleashed
Availability: August 2022
License: Hasbro

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If you asked us a decade ago, a half-decade ago, or even a year ago that we’d see the Stormtrooper Commander from The Force Unleashed added as part of The Vintage Collection, we probably would have lost the bet. Seeing a symbolic video game character updated after fifteen years is a joy. Now it’s part of the Gaming Greats sub-line and includes new lower legs to get rid of the "flare" on 2019's TVC Imperial Stormtrooper (VC140) figure when released as a Rogue One character. We’ll make a long story short about this character’s history in the Hasbro Star Wars line, but it’s worth explaining some of the bullet points because the Stormtrooper Commander has traditionally been a “fly in the ointment” for longtime Star Wars collectors. In 2007, Lucasfilm announced plans for a brand new video game coming later that year called The Force Unleashed. Hasbro dedicated an entire wave of action figures based on the video game to help celebrate the 30th Anniversary of Star Wars in the 30 (77-07) lineup. Until this point, the themed waves focused on major Star Wars sources, notably the Original Trilogy and Prequel Trilogy. Hasbro anchored each wave with a concept figure based on the artwork of Ralph McQuarrie, the one exception being The Force Unleashed wave. Plans fell apart, and Lucasfilm pushed the video game out to 2008. Hasbro was at a temporary loss at what to do because they had to pull The Force Unleashed wave and push it out to 2008 too.

Long story short, Hasbro added a last-minute repack and repaint wave to fill the holes of The Force Unleashed figures, but that wasn’t the end of the dramatic saga. Plans for the video game took a turn for the worse and the game got pushed out even further than anticipated. But Hasbro needed to get these figures out to the collecting community, and The Force Unleashed figures made it out in the first quarter of 2008. Collectors were happy, but as images of the seven action figures that made up the wave leaked and surfaced on websites, there was also an eighth figure, the Stormtrooper Commander, mixed up in the shuffle with the other figures. Once we discovered it wasn’t part of the wave of new figures, everyone began panicking about how they would acquire it. What Hasbro decided may go down as one of the worst treatments to collectors. It still feels painful to talk about it a decade and a half later. Hasbro decided that the 30th Anniversary Stormtrooper Commander would be a GameStop exclusive but ONLY available with the purchase of the video game. And quantities were limited. Collectors who weren’t gamers became outraged. The TAC Stormtrooper Commander, with its gorgeous navy blue color flashes, became the most sought-after action figure of 2008. Quantities dried up instantly on the aftermarket, and the cry for Hasbro to re-release the Stormtrooper Commander became palpable. After enough browbeating, Hasbro relented and announced that they’d re-release it as a San Diego Comic-Con exclusive in 2009. Collectors were relieved for about five minutes.

Much to our chagrin, Hasbro did re-release the "new" Stormtrooper Commander action figure in updated Legacy Collection packaging. They retired the gorgeous 30th Anniversary packaging and, in its place, changed it to be fresh with the current line look design. But it didn’t work, and collectors became outraged at the mediocre replacement Hasbro gave us in its place. Over time, the Stormtrooper Commander lost its luster. Hasbro used a terrible base figure to repaint, with a removable helmet and an awful “clone” portrait underneath the removable helmet. But we waited years for Hasbro to update the character with better tooling, but it never came until now. We’re happy to report that we finally have our definitive Stormtrooper Commander, and we’d be lying if it didn’t bring a tear to our eyes. We feel love and vindication from Hasbro. They did collectors right here. Hasbro took the stunning 2019 TVC Imperial Stormtrooper (VC140) figure and updated it with those classic blue color flashes and some battle damage to recreate the character’s look from The Force Unleashed video game. You know this buck comes with an incredible articulation system and has gorgeous proportions already, so we’re not going into this detail here. Besides, we think the history of this character was more important here. But The Vintage Collection Stormtrooper Commander is a fantastic action figure, and both the figure and the card art are a pure joy to enjoy. It also beats The Black Series [Phase III] Stormtrooper Commander release!

Collector Notes

Stormtrooper Commander

Status: Stormtrooper Commander is a retool and rework of 2019's TVC Imperial Stormtrooper (VC140) figure. This time Hasbro added all-new lower legs and feet. They have also completely repainted the figure to imitate the character from The Force Unleashed video game.

Articulation Count: 30 points (17 areas of articulation)

Articulation Details: ball-socket head (1), reverse ball-socket neck (1), ball-jointed left shoulder (2), ball-jointed right shoulder (2), ball-jointed left elbow (2), ball-jointed right elbow (2), ball-jointed left wrist (2), ball-jointed right wrist (2), ball-jointed torso (2), ball-jointed left hip (2), ball-jointed right hip (2), swivel left thigh (1), swivel right thigh (1), ball-jointed left knee (2), ball-jointed right knee (2), ball-jointed/"rocker" left ankle (2), ball-jointed/"rocker" right ankle (2)

Accessory Count: 2

Accessory Details: E-11 blaster, blaster rifle

Date Stamp: N/A

Assortment Number: F5559

UPC: 5010993967858

Retail: $15.99 USD

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

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