IG Lancer Droid - TLC - Basic (BD 13)

IG Lancer droids are deployed by the InterGalactic Banking Clan on the planet Muunilinst to serve as a homeworld security force. Durge leads an army of IG lancers into battle against Obi-Wan Kenobi and his clone troopers during the Clone Wars.

The original Tartakovsky Clone Wars micro-series holds a very special and fond place in many collectors' hearts. There are more than a few EU sources in the Star Wars universe, but rarely does one hold its own as well as these animated shorts have. The IG Lancer Droid is one character from Volume 1 of this remarkable series. And although we are huge fans of the Clone Wars (and possess a biased opinion as a result), we have to be honest and admit that this wasn't one of the best action figures based from it (and it should have been because it is a high quality sculpt and has a beautiful and realistic paint job). While this droid looks cool from a distance, further inspection may disappoint you. It is a retool of the fabulous 2007 VTSC IG-88 (Bounty Hunter) figure but this time comes with a new head, torso and shoulders and is rubbery. He also has slightly repositioned legs (maybe for better placement on a swoop/speeder bike), but it is barely noticeable. We claim that he is in danger of disappointing you because he unfortunately is cast (especially his legs) in a soft plastic. Hasbro decided to use a plastic with more elasticity for some reason and gravity is a little harsh to it over time. The droid will bow and bend and our sample has even fallen over with the right amount of time. Temperature has a lot to do with it too so if you keep yours displayed in a cooler room, your sample should be less likely to have similar issues as ours did. Despite temperature control, ultimately, it is not the best constructed (materials it is cast from we mean) action figure we have received and this is really a shame because IG Lancer Droid really is beautifully tooled.

IG Lancer Droid is hyper-articulated with more than what collectors consider makes up the standard super articulation. (This is almost unheard of for a Hasbro Star Wars figure and certainly a rarity in the modern line.) To prove this nearly unbelievable sculpting feat, we will take a moment and list them here. They include: head, left shoulder, right shoulder, ball-hinged torso, swivel left arm, swivel right arm, left ball-hinged elbow, right ball-hinged elbow, swivel waist, swivel left hip, swivel right hip, swivel left thigh, swivel right thigh, ball-hinged left knee, ball-hinged right knee, ball-jointed left foot, and ball-jointed right foot. This is no small task and we applaud Hasbro for the matchless articulation they have given our realistic IG droids. The more you play with this droid, the more you will be impressed about how much engineering and attention to detail went into this figure to make him as impressive it could be (and is). We just have to reiterate that it is just a small shame that it is so rubbery. It does unfortunately detract from its awesome sculpt and we are still unsure why Hasbro opts for inferior plastics on some of their figures that really need strength and strong stature. No sacrifice should be taken on a figure of this caliber, it really is a bummer. Interestingly, his lance is made of a tougher and stiffer plastic than his frame (but still not ideal). This is quite backwards, isn't this? We have come to expect wimpy weapons, but we will certainly never cave in to this being applied to our action figures!

IG Lancer Droid was intended to make its first appearance at retail in a canceled third wave for 2008's 30 (77-07) line. Hasbro announced that TAC was being put to rest and the last two waves were bumped as the first two in The Legacy Collection to avoid "last wave syndrome". Hasbro's plans worked very well and we received multiple opportunities to get our hands on this splendid group of action figures. Unfortunately, we would have loved to get these figures on the awesome TAC card backs, one of our favorite packaging styles in quite some time. Hasbro even announced that production had started for these card backs (we don't know to what degree) but we may never see them or know how they turned out. While we knew what the action figure of IG Lancer Droid was going to look like for some time before its release, we were all thrilled to see him on the pegs. The tribute given to the Clone Wars in the form of eight beautiful and long wanted action figures was a late, but very nice gift from Hasbro to us, and a nice official way to say "goodbye" to action figures based on the original Clone Wars. (We hope Hasbro decides to throw more bones our way, but we will have to wait and see.) He is a great army builder, but you will need a lot of swoop bikes to accurately recreate that scene in your dioramas, a cost that might be too expensive for most collectors. He looks great when interacting with 2008's TLC Obi-Wan Kenobi (BD 9) as well as Durge from the 2003 Clone Wars line. Check IG Lancer Droid out some time because you will be impressed.