Sandtrooper [Sergeant - Version 2] - TAC - Saga Legends

Jedi mind tricks often work on the weak-minded. Such is the case when a squad of sandtroopers asks Jedi Maser Obi-Wan Kenobi about the two droids that are with him in a landspeeder. Obi-Wan tricks them into concluding, "These aren't the droids we're looking for."

Does Hasbro release pristine white Sandtrooper action figure to drive us insane, or is this done so that we can add another stormtrooper action figure to collections with a little more versatility? These questions may never receive answers, but however you feel about them there is no denying that the Sandtrooper [Sergeant – Version 2] figure split and divided the collecting community in various ways. Skim through Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope and try to find a sterling white sandtrooper on Tatooine. Consider it a challenge. So why would it ever be alright for Hasbro to bring us a Sandtrooper action figure without any dirt or grim, especially since they’ve been coming to us battered and dirty since the first released in 1996’s The Power Of The Force line? Well, perhaps we shouldn’t be so deterred by this because at the very least, the clean Sandtroope in the Saga Legends line can be converted to a Stormtrooper very easily. Maybe we should consider these figures as Stormtroopers with extra gear instead of actual Sandtroopers because this figure’s cleanliness alone makes it very difficult that he’s been looking for droids on Tatooine.

Sandtrooper [Sergeant - Version 2] is a clean repaint of the first version released in the Saga Legends line. I other words, Sandtrooper [Sergeant - Version 2] is a repaint of Sandtrooper [Sergeant - Version 1]. For some collectors this action figure will be hard to swallow because of the filthy brilliance Hasbro brought forth to the first version. The figures look like night and day to each other which is a shame because it would have been nice to have multiple sand-blasted Sandtroopers with unique paint jobs with respect to their filthiness. The same exact articulation and accessories have been carried forward, so we wonder why the paint job was left in the dust. But the figure comes with a vibro lance, BlasTech E-11 blaster rifle, thermal detonator, removable pauldron and survival backpack. This is certainly a healthy dose of accessories, although we imagine most will be placed in storage as you decide to convert this action figure into a Stormtrooper instead. Even though this figure may function best as a Stormtrooper in your collection, you may want to take note about a few of the issues this particular sculpt presents.

We have commented on this multiple times already, but while the figure has an aptly articulated upper body, we couldn’t be more disappointed with the lower body. Swivel hips are a given in this collecting era, but the Sandtrooper really needs lateral ball-jointed hips to be of any real use. Plus, the legs are so close together that it’s almost impossible to get any real useful movement out of the figure as it, and that’s including any position of the legs outside of being side by side at attention to each other. What is the purpose of an Imperial soldier that can do pretty much “anything” above the waist but has his hips locked in one position? We find it maddening. This sculpt is the same as 2006’s TSC Sandtrooper (SAGA 037) figure. That figure looked great but had its own share of issues. So those issues arise once again for the multiple Saga Legends releases that also utilize it. When there is a lack of articulation, Hasbro should make up for that with a great paint job (and that’s exactly what they did with Version 1). Sadly they didn’t here, so you’re better off pretending that this is another Stormtrooper for your ranks (yes – we have said this 100 times already here) because that is your only real option.