TIE Fighter Pilot - POTF2 [R/G] - Basic

HEIGHT: 1.7 meters
STATUS: Imperial Pilot
CLASSIFICATION: Human
AFFILIATION: Galactic Empire
WEAPON OF CHOICE: Imperial Issue Blaster Pistol
VEHICLE OF CHOICE: Twin Ion Engine (TIE) Fighter

With its vast space fleet, the Imperial Navy is a model of military efficiency. The best pilots in its ranks are rigorously trained to use highly maneuverable and heavily armed Twin Ion Engine (TIE) fighters. The small ships are used to both attack – and defend against – Rebel forces.

Unlike the stormtroopers, TIE pilots wear black plastisteel protective armor over an insulated high-gravity body glove. Their reinforced helmet features polarized lenses, a navigational computer link-up screen, a vocoder, and breathing filters. Two gas transfer hoses connect from the helmet to a chestplate control unit, which contains an emergency atmospheric unit and control switches for the armor functions. Tightly sealed wrist gauntlets allow dexterity in handling TIE Fighter controls, while positive-gravity pressure boots keep the pilot well anchored even in zero-gravity situations.

TIE fighter pilots are often brash and cocky, believing they hold tremendous power in their hands each time they take control of their craft. Taught to be the best, many believe they are the best. That overconfidence has ended more than a few careers, as Rebel pilots have proven them wrong in battles above the Death Star battle station and elsewhere. Despite their elite ranking within the Navy, TIE Fighter pilots are seen as a replaceable resource by the Empire. Their ships are not equipped with ejection systems, nor much life-support equipment. As with all servants of the Empire, fighter squads are trained to willingly offer their lives in support of Emperor Palpatine's commands and decrees.

After getting the line off to a rough start with bulky physiques and poor likenesses in 1995, Kenner stepped things up in 1996 as they delved into making some of the “not so” main characters in the Star Wars saga. TIE Fighter Pilot was one of the earliest offerings in 1996, and the figure quickly became a collector favorite. While still showing signs of muscularity, TIE Fighter Pilot showed us that Kenner was able to create streamlined Star Wars action figures that looked modern and updated without looking ridiculous. As you might imagine, TIE Fighter Pilot became one of the biggest army builders of 1996 because the figure was a tremendous step up from other Imperial characters they made to date. 1995’s POTF2 [R/G] Stormtrooper stands out as one of the greatest misfortunes in the rebooting of the line. But the good news is that the TIE Fighter Pilot’s approach is like night and day from the Stormtrooper’s approach. That is a great thing! With incredible attention to detail and correctly designed features (for the first time), the TIE Fighter Pilot was a sign that great things would come.

Like the Stormtrooper, the greatest significant update is the inclusion of an articulated head. But in the case of the TIE Fighter Pilot, the hoses and chest box have been sculpted freely from the body of the figure and move when you articulate the head as well. This new feature is a nice update to a figure that had only four points of articulation in the vintage Kenner era. 1982's ESB Imperial TIE Fighter Pilot figure was a popular figure, but it was far from screen-accuracy. On top of the enhanced articulation, TIE Fighter Pilot also has carefully replicated features. In all honesty, as awesome as the 1982 vintage Kenner figure is, it looks nothing like a TIE Fighter Pilot. The figure is too bulky and has a unique look of its own. Now we have an interpretation of a TIE Fighter Pilot that resembles what we saw in Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope (as well as the other Original Trilogy films). It’s a type of relief to have a figure like this finally. The entire sculpt of the TIE Fighter Pilot is excellent. And it’s quite refreshing to see all of the detail Kenner was unable to capture years ago. It’s like looking at the character for the first time in 3.75” scale.

The TIE Fighter Pilot comes with two accessories. Once again, Kenner adds what we assume would be screen-accurate if we could see them in the films clearly. But the other larger blaster rifle was added for extra play value. The larger blaster rifle is so big that he can barely hold it, but admittedly it looks pretty cool when resting close to the body. But we have to wonder how easily these heavy blaster rifles would fit in the cockpits of Imperial TIE fighter vehicles. Or are these guns meant for ground battles when they’re not fighting? We’re not sure. Expect to see the TIE Fighter Pilot get carried forward in future case assortments in The Power Of The Force “2” line. The demand for all things Imperial related is always higher than normal, and this is a well-done figure that deserves the attention. With a great sculpt and extremely nice paint operations, the TIE Fighter Pilot is sure to make an impact on all collectors. We hope Kenner keeps up this strong trend of well-made action figures.