TIE Pilot - TBS [P2] - Six Inch Figures (#05)

TIE fighter pilots battle Rebel starfighters during the Battle of Yavin. These elite Imperial pilots deploy from the Death Star battle station and blast the Rebel fighters with laser cannon fire.

"Look out!"

Well, whether or not we’re easily impressed by anything Hasbro makes from the Original Trilogy or not, we are certainly blown away by the TIE Pilot released in The Black Series [Phase II] 6” lineup. Hasbro has had their fair share of issues with the TBS6 line. Between sloppy paint operations ruining human likenesses to issues of scale, it’s evident that many collectors aren’t patient enough to see the line calibrate itself naturally and wait to see the day when these figures become spectacular works of art. But those of us who are supporting this scale hook, line and sinker get all giddy when we see gems like the TIE Pilot. And before we revel in the joy this figure brings, we’d like to get one complaint out in the open. That complaint is that we wish Hasbro would give us a definitive 3.75” TIE Pilot immediately. Loaded with articulation and stunning yet simple paint operations, the TIE Pilot figure in The Black Series 6” line will be a highly sought after collectible to most Star Wars fans. The figure can attain a wide array of dynamic poses thank most importantly to the “rocker” ankles. No matter how you decide to pose the legs and arms or even the wait, the ankles are the areas of this figure which give it its incredible balance. The double hinge-jointed knees are still a bit much to swallow, but they really aid the figure in achieving some incredible kneeling and kicking poses, so they’re at best bittersweet for us.

The TIE Pilot has some interesting features. For example, the chest box cannot be articulated or removed from the figure (like it can on the 3.75" scaled version) yet the tubes can be removed from the helmet. Original Trilogy purists will be thrilled to know that the helmet is not removable so Hasbro didn't have to worry about creating any controversy by including a clone or generic head sculpt underneath the helmet. Some may argue that the helmet is too small, but we think the figure looks perfect as is. The belt is a separately sculpted "accessory" but it cannot be removed from the figure without breakage. What's interesting with the belt is that it can be rotated easily 360 degrees around the figure's waist. We also have noticed that the holster hangs on the left side of The Black Series 6" figure while the holster hangs on the right side of the 3.75" versions. This is another reason why we need a completely new re-sculpt of the 3.75 scaled figure. The included E-11 blaster fits perfectly into the holster and we love the way it hangs. With all of the different TIE Fighter Pilot versions in Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope, Hasbro opted to go with the most generic version without any fancy detailing which is odd since Black Three is the most seen character in Episode IV. We hope this doesn’t open up a can of worms for Hasbro to produce all of the various TIE Pilots from the films into this scale. That could mean quite a few extra purchases for this same sculpt with different paint operations. Or maybe that’s Hasbro’s plan!

This is hardly a big deal, but we’re curious why Hasbro has decided to call this figure a TIE Pilot instead of a TIE Fighter Pilot. It’s honestly not a big deal at all, but it’s rare when “fighter” isn’t part of the title of these characters. We just found it slightly odd. The way this figure is named certainly doesn’t hamper the quality of the figure, so it’s probably not even worth mentioning this detail. Now that Hasbro has released the TIE Pilot in 6” scale, it makes us very curious to wonder if Hasbro has plans to make the TIE Fighter one of the first vehicles to attack in the toy line (in this elevated scale). It’s certainly a simple enough vehicle to tool first. And now that Hasbro is determined to make The Black Series 6” line a mainstay, we’re sure that they’re going to be thinking about going outside of the box to keep this line more interesting. But will they have time to beat everything out before reaching the distractions of The Force Awakens? It will be very interesting to see where all of this goes. We’re probably as excited about the TIE Pilot as much as we were for the Stormtrooper (#09) figure. This is a fine action figure that is extremely well tooled. And it’s shiny where it needs to be shiny and dull where it needs to be dull. We just hope that they continue making key Imperial soldier like the Snowtrooper and the AT-AT Driver because we think the helmeted and alien characters come out the best in this scale. We still want to see more accessories as well. It will be interesting to see how all this unfolds.