Stormtrooper Commander - Premium Format Figures

Imperial stormtroopers were regarded as the Empire's finest soldiers, and their commanders were specially trained to be far superior to the common infantry soldier. These elite military officers wore unique blue markings on their armor befitting their elevated rank and position.

There is a direct order from Lucasfilm Ltd. for licensees to stay clear of the current Expanded Universe when coming up with product ideas. There are a few exceptions and even more products already in development that have been spared thankfully. One of these, the Stormtrooper Commander is a stunning release in Sideshow Collectibles’ Premium Format Figures line. We knew that as soon as the Stormtrooper Premium Format Figure was released that we could probably expect plenty more in the lineup as well. And that’s pretty much what happened. A Sideshow Collectible Store Exclusive, the Stormtrooper Commander brings to life the extremely popular character from The Force Unleashed video game into beautiful one-quarter scale. But there is certainly a whole lot more here than meets the eye. Sideshow Collectibles could have taken the cheap route here, but instead the retooled ALL of the parts to bring something new and fresh to the Premium Format Figures line. To recreate the battle-damaged look of these bold soldiers of the Galactic Empire, Sideshow Collectibles are scored three-dimensional cracks and crevices into the armor to give the Stormtrooper Commander a truly lifelike and authentic battle-damaged appearance. Gone is the glossy white finish that covered the Stormtrooper and in its place are dirty washes, blue color flashes and wonderful crevices of texture to give the Stormtrooper Commander a truly unique feel and appearance.

Obviously not too much work had to go into the creation of the Stormtrooper Commander Premium Format Figure. The basis of the sculpt was already completed with the Stormtrooper Premium Format Figure. But the sculptors took that stunning sculpt and tweaked it to make it Stormtrooper Commander specific and we think that this version looks better than the original. Sometimes a collectible really needs to sport that “lived in look” in order to come across as truly authentic or not. And this is exactly where the Stormtrooper Commander shines. We actually got lost staring at this piece for quite a while. The battle-damaged markings are exquisite. It looks exactly like this Stormtrooper Commander has been blasted countless times, or thrown in the air and then dropped by Starkiller countless times. Even if a sculpt isn’t perfect, Sideshow Collectibles excels at decorating the piece so that is looks ripped right out of the respective Star Wars source. Even the blue color flashes have been beautifully hand painted and it’s evident that the artists took their time to ensure that this figure received splendid paint operations that would meet the demands of discriminating eyes (ours included). The Stormtrooper Commander arrives in seven (7) separate pieces and quickly assembles. The environmental display stand is very attractively sculpted and painted as well and finishes off the character perfectly. Sideshow even included a realistic leather holster that hangs down the figure’s thigh. It looks incredible.

One thing we’re not happy about is that the Stormtrooper Commander Premium Format Figure is a Retail Exclusive. We have found this whole process very frustrating. Sideshow Collectibles offers wonderful resources online to find a store near you, but when we called the top five closest locations, all said that they didn’t even carry Sideshow’s products. What is up with that. This has occurred in the past as well and we found that our only option is to have these types of exclusives shipped from far away. While that is a great opportunity, many vendors don’t have return policies as accommodating as Sideshow so those processes have often been rough. We just prefer to see Sideshow Collectibles produce their own exclusive collectibles and sell them directly on the site. Plus, it’s our feeling that the Stormtrooper Commander was produced with too high of an edition size. Judging by the online shops and auctions that have these for sale, the average price is well below the original MSRP of $359.99. (As a side note, we really hope Sideshow Collectibles can ensure that the Premium Format Figures line stays below $400 at all costs.) That makes us a little bit sad. Perhaps the Stormtrooper Commander wasn’t the best choice for an exclusive. The Force Unleashed has indeed run its course. But we’re fans of it and we think that they’ve done a remarkable job with this collectible. If Sideshow is listening however, we’d ask that you make available any exclusive items as a direct purchase through your website.

This sample has been provided to us by Sideshow Collectibles.