First Order Special Forces TIE Fighter - SW [TLJ] - Vehicles (Exclusive)

The elite of the First Order starfighter pilots have access to specialized craft, such as two-seater TIE craft outfitted with enhanced weapons and sensor systems.

What a piece of junk! With Force Link! Let's face it, folks. Vehicles are hit and mostly miss anymore. But when it comes to the Walmart exclusive First Order Special Forces TIE Fighter, we feel Hasbro has been made well aware of this vehicle's issues. So why did they just add Force Link technology to the label and call it a day without addressing those issues? We're not sure, but something has got to give at this point. For the third time now, the First Order Special Forces TIE Fighter is a huge disappointment thanks to Hasbro using shoddy materials to cast it. Sure, the First Order Special Forces TIE Fighter has a seemingly great sculpt, but the quality of the craftsmanship is going to have you very disappointed. For reasons unknown, Hasbro continues to utilize a very rubbery plastic to cast the wings of this vehicle. Right out of the box, it looks like our wings have melted in the sun. What's more, they can barely hold up the weight of the cockpit and bow very quickly when displayed. This was never an issue for vehicles in any line previous to the Disney takeover that we can think of to date. Sure, there were a few soft parts here and there to prevent injury or breakage, but this is just purely offensive. What’s worse, the First Order Special Forces TIE Fighter sells for an expensive $39.99 and old-timers like most of us know what $39.99 bought just a few short years ago.

For the most part, the Star Wars [The Last Jedi] line has taken significant strides to offer better quality products than its predecessors like The Force Awakens and Rogue One line looks. Like so many other pieces of merchandise in the recent in the recent past, the release of the First Order Special Forces TIE Fighter is more frustrating than anything else. It’s a beautiful design on paper, but between the reduced scale and the inferior materials used, collectors are going to have problems with this release. Thankfully, the vehicle is decorated beautifully. The red color flashes on the very dark body of the First Order Special Forces TIE Fighter are a nice touch. And because this is a “special forces” TIE fighter, the cockpit houses two pilots, something that is a first for the Star Wars universe. Had this been cast in tougher plastic, the vehicle would have resonated more strongly with collectors (despite its small scale). Even methods to fix the bowing of the wings last only temporarily. Whether you utilize hot water or hot air, the wings will once again collapse under the pressure, and we find it so disappointing that it isn’t remotely funny. Why must things look so incredibly only to be diminished by inferior final products? There is some major breakdown, and disconnect Hasbro is having with the collecting community. And it saddens us greatly. Keep mistakes like this in the past is what we'd suggest.

Included with the First Order Special Forces TIE Fighter is a First Order TIE Fighter Pilot pack-in figure, same as before. But this time the figure comes with Force Link technology as well. As you know, this version comes with a removable helmet and the pilot has a very generic human face. The face is so generic that it almost doesn't feel like a Star Wars character. We’re not exactly sure what that means either, so we’ll just say that the figure looks much better with the helmet on and in place anyway. The pack-in figure is essentially all-new, but it is clear that they relied on the legs of the regular 2015 TFA First Order TIE Fighter Pilot Build A Weapon (Space) figure, but may have tweaked them in one or two places here and there. But also remember this is just a repack of the previous pack-in figure, now with Force Link technology. You can consider the pack-in figure all-new. We're not too sure what's completely involved with making Force Link figures, but new tooling has to be part of the equation somewhere. The great news is that the First Order TIE Fighter Pilot fits like a glove in the cockpit seat. It could not fit better in our estimation, and we are quite impressed that the tooling accommodates the figures so well. It’s hard to get excited about things like this anymore. Far from perfect, wait for clearance for this one.