Clone Commander Cody - SW [TPM 3D] - The Clone Wars (CW7)

Commander Cody takes on battle droids wherever the Clone Wars rage, even in the deep space or orbital battles. He straps on a rocket pack and propulsion pack when the fighting takes place in the vacuum of space. Cody's flight pack has built-in weapons that swivel to blast battle droids in any direction.

Murphy’s Law strikes the Hasbro Star Wars basic figure line again. Just as The Clone Wars television show started reaching and captivating those who were only interested in the films, the toy line has begun to wane. It may be too early to make that assessment, but a big chunk of the collecting community is in mourning and are hoping that Hasbro has plans for many more action figures in that style. For 2012, much of that can be blamed on the all-new multimedia event: The Phantom Menace in 3D. Hasbro heavily relies on media events to help sell their products. And to be fair, it’s something that has to happen because any press is good press. While many of us are skeptical on whether another screening of Episode I will be a hit or not, there is no denying that there is a niche younger audience who embraces the film as their favorite film. That may be hard to swallow for the people who grew up with the Original Trilogy, but it’s true and it is what it is. The 2012 Star Wars [The Phantom Menace] 3D toy line is quite a mess as far as organization is concerned. The Clone Wars line as its own line is now defunct as it’s been demoted and absorbed into the mainline. It’s only set apart by a separate numbering convention and a small The Clone Wars logo at the bottom and back of the packaging. (The Clone Wars name now functions like a source from the Star Wars universe instead of a separate line of its own.) But while things are chaotic and messy in the line, there are a few gems you mustn’t overlook. In the midst of a ton of repacks and repaints, be sure not to overlook the all-new figures. And perhaps specifically the most important one to make a mental note over is Clone Commander Cody. It may just be the nicest action based on Filoni’s The Clone Wars television show Hasbro has ever produced. Complete with a Galactic Battle Game card, stand and die, Cody is absolutely a must-have figure.

Season 4 introduced fans to the phase II clone look for the first time. Obviously it’s time to start connecting the dots because The Clone Wars won’t be on television forever. As with most action figures, it’s hard to quantify Clone Commander Cody as perfect. It does have a few issues but we bet you’ll find that they ultimately won’t matter to you, nor affect your decision to place this figure on your wish list. As a side note, we’ve learned quickly that by weighing the positives versus the negatives, most of the time there is significantly more to enjoy than to criticize. This applies to this figure. Clone Commander Cody is a spectacular all-new figure. While we imagine that Hasbro sought some of their most recent clone trooper parts to begin bringing him to life, we have been hard pressed to find any reused parts. This could change as we come across things in our collection. He comes with a brilliant 14 points of articulation, but before you get excited about that, you’ll need to know that it isn’t all premium articulation. Clone Commander Cody looks absolutely stunning visually. And he does have some impressive articulation, but we have found that ever since Hasbro abandoned ball-jointed wrists and waists that they are two points desperately needed for the animated figures. So they need to bring them back quickly. We've noted immediately a technological advancement with the ball-jointed ankles. This enhancement gives the ankles the smoothest and most versatile mobility ever. The ankles move vertically, horizontally and circular. Cody is a perfect animated version of how we saw him in Star Wars Episode III: Revenge Of The Sith and that’s something we’re particularly fond of because we’d love to get animated versions of many more characters from the Star Wars films. Cody is so pleasing to the eye. As with many clones, his armor is mostly white, but Hasbro stepped it up this time. Cody’s orange color flashes are cleanly applied and (thank the Maker) Hasbro has given the figure battle-damaged markings and scratches which make the action figure look phenomenal. His ranking is a silkscreened on the chest and not molded. And believe it or not, it’s probably the best ranking badge we have seen yet on a Star Wars figure.

It should interest you that Clone Commander Cody has an all-new head sculpt too. It’s excellently sculpted and we think Hasbro has finally nailed the proper likeness for the character. As you’re well aware, Cody has a unique and long scare running down the left side of his face. You can feel the texture of it as there is an actual groove there and not just painted. The removable phase II helmet looks incredible. If we had to complain, we wished it would sit lower and closer to the neck. It doesn’t have enough room to go as low as it should, but it’s not nearly as bad as other figures we have received in the past where the chin in completely hanging below the bucket. This issue is negligible and you would have to look for it in order to take notice. But more importantly, it’s certainly worth mentioning that it perfectly painted and the antenna and rangefinder are thin and not obtrusive in the least. Frustrated fans of 2009’s LC Clone Commander Cody (BD44) – and subsequently 2010’s TVC Clone Commander Cody (VC19) figures will be elated to know that Hasbro has remedied the jetpack. If you don’t recall, the realistic figures’ jetpack would fall off the figure if you blinked too hard. For this figure, Cody's jetpack attached so tightly that you have to use some force to get it to plug in and attach. This is wonderful! For the kids, Hasbro included a repaint of the propulsion pack that came with 2011’s TCW Captain Rex (CW62) figure. And Cody’s smaller jetpack attached to the center of it just like Rex’s did. The only other accessory he comes with is a standard DC-15 blaster rifle. It looks all-new to us, but it’s quite possible it could have been included with some of the 2011 The Clone Wars figures. Clone Commander Cody may seem like a misfit in the Star Wars [The Phantom Menace 3D] line with Darth Maul on the packaging, but this is the way it’s going to be for a bit, so don’t let the packaging ruin your enjoyment of this figure. It’s beyond excellent.