Republic Trooper (The Old Republic) - TVC - Basic (VC113)

The Old Republic trailers introduced Jace Malcolm to Star Wars fans. But other than that, we only know what the internet tells us about the character or through the role played in The Old Republic video game. We conclusively know that Hasbro has crafted another great character based on this video game as an action figure in the last wave of [the first phase of] The Vintage Collection. Released in a great group of varied Star Wars characters, the Republic Trooper (The Old Republic) is a tremendous effort by the sculptors at Hasbro. Hasbro has reissued the figure with updated paint operations and a few changes to make it the best version released. There is a bit of newness here with Photo Real, new facial scarring, a painted neck post, and new emblems on the shoulder armor. They faithfully recreated this character from the ground up in 2012, and the action figure is all-new in every way. The figure has its faults, however. For example, the deco isn’t perfect (on any version released), is a tad anemic, and could benefit from a final wash. But surprisingly, these issues aren't that important when gauged against other more critical aspects. We feel that the Republic Trooper looks too clean. Although the armor has lovely deco thanks to alternating orange and dark gray color flashes, the bright white underneath is too much and inaccurate compared to the character's appearance in the video game. Very clean-looking armor is a dead giveaway that a trooper may be too green for battle. Sadly, that has always been a setback with “clone-type” characters, and it’s not too much different here. Hasbro must find an affordable way to "dirty up" these characters. Besides looking a little too clean, that’s where we stop finding fault with this incredible action figure. Are you ready to learn more about the Republic Trooper?

Republic Trooper comes with 23 points of articulation. For the most part, the figure comes with standard articulation, but Hasbro has added a ball-jointed torso which gives the figure more versatility. Army-building characters need this point of articulation, so we’re incredibly thankful. Hasbro generously added incredible play value to this figure by adding seven individual parts as accessories. The figure comes with a removable helmet, a removable bandolier/shoulder armor combination piece, a removable ammo cartridge, a removable sheath and knife, a blaster pistol, and a heavy cannon. The sheath and the ammo cartridge attach to the figure with fragile plastic pins. However, they must be placed in their respective exact spots because their pin sizes are different lengths. The included weapons are what add an incredible amount of interchangeability, though. You can position the figure into a wide range of configurations. The heavy cannon is almost as tall as the action figure. As you can imagine, its awkward size makes it hard to place into the figure's hands without it toppling to the ground. But you can make it work with patience and clever manipulation of the articulated joints. The figure’s center of gravity couldn’t be better (except when holding the cannon). The reissued packaging also comes unpunched, which isn't too familiar in the second run of The Vintage Collection. Republic Trooper also has a stunning head sculpt. The size of the head looks too small (it’s about the size of a pea, it seems), but perhaps more relevant than this detail is that the helmet isn’t oversized at all, which has been problematic in The Vintage Collection on many past figures, namely the phase II clone troopers.

There is no “bucket head” issue here, which makes us particularly happy. We guess we have to trade one less-than-ideal situation for another. Initially, the Republic Trooper (The Old Republic) was part of a fantastic wave of figures that offer an excellent way to send The Vintage Collection into hibernation. And the online-only case assortment is the perfect coda to conclude this facet of the line. But Hasbro released the figure twice since then, the most recent as a Shop Disney exclusive in 2022. But every time Hasbro releases the figure, it sells out in seconds. Collectors can be proud to own three brilliant characters based on The Old Republic video game. The Republic Trooper (The Old Republic) joins Darth Malgus (VC96) and Shae Vizla [(The Old Republic Bounty Hunter)] (VC101) as characters from The Old Republic video game in The Vintage Collection. You should probably expect a few more to be made from this visually stunning video game. Also, expect the Republic Trooper to be a highly sought-after army-building action figure. There is a reason it piques the interest of the collecting community and why we all want to own multiples of it. This character creates more demand than the average TVC figure. The Republic Trooper is an Expanded Universe character, which always means the value increases with time. With an obscure, international re-release in The Black Series [Phase I] line as Republic Trooper (The Old Republic) (#31), the figure sees another re-release nearly a decade later as a Shop Disney exclusive with some changes this time. But the latest reissue will set you back $13.99, but it sold out almost instantly and is already going for a premium.

Editor's Note: Hasbro re-released The Vintage Collection Republic Trooper (The Old Republic) (VC113) figure in July 2022 with a significant number of changes. Updates include: (1) new paint operations/deco including Photo Real updating, (2) painted neck post (3) new insignia on shoulder armor, (4) slightly different color palette of camouflage patternt, (5) refreshed 2022 packaging with different graphics and Gaming Greats logo, and (6) different placement of action figure and accessories in bubble

Review Status Update: The original publication date of this review is October 3, 2012. It was subsequently updated with a new Photo Gallery and revised General Analysis and republished on August 22, 2023 after Hasbro reissued the figure.