Darth Vader - Premium Format Figures

Tall and menacing, Darth Vader is the most potent icon of the Galactic Empires might. The protege of the Emperor himself, Vader answers to only the highest in the Imperial command structure and is granted great leeway in the work he conducts on his masters behalf. Once a Jedi, Vader possesses absolute command over the Force, and through him it is directed to terrible and often fatal effect. As a Lord of the Sith, The dark side flows through him, and it can be channeled to kill with a single thought or to subdue his detractors, enemies, and sometimes even subordinates. Feared by Rebels and Imperials alike, Darth Vader is a terrifying union of man and machine hidden beneath black robes and forbidding armor. Determined to hunt down and extinguish the Rebel Alliance, Vader commands the massive Imperial fleet and rules his forces through unquestionable terror.

Sideshow Collectibles wasted no time at all developing Darth Vader for their highly respected Premium Format Figures line. After a warm welcome from collectors with their Luke Skywalker and Han Solo pieces, they jumped right in with an Episode IV inspired version of Darth Vader. For many collectors, this was an elated event for Star Wars collectors because they had been waiting for a premier Darth Vader collectible from Sideshow, but comments were audible and questioned why Sideshow didn’t pursue a version of Darth Vader based on his appearance from The Empire Strikes Back instead. It’s a generally accepted fact that most collectors prefer the later version of Darth Vader over the Episode IV version. No matter your stance, the fact is that A New Hope won the vote and they’ve done a remarkable job on so many levels with this piece that collectors are going to be hard pressed to find issues with it. In a forward-thinking manner, Darth Vader was developed in advance to interact with Obi-Wan Kenobi who shipped after Darth Vader. The nice thing about Darth Vader (and Obi-Wan Kenobi for that matter) is that they’re also standalone pieces which is really nice if you’re not interested in collecting the complete line. Darth Vader is indeed a piece that many Star Wars fans will be interested in acquiring, although, with a price tag of nearly $350 that is will make it an unattainable purchase for many collectors. However, we believe that this collectible is done so well that collectors will be making exceptions to their Star Wars collectible budget to allow it into their collections.

Darth Vader comes without articulation and we are actually happy about this. While some Premium Format Figures do come with some sort of articulation, we think they are best served when they function more like glorified statues (with clothing) than action figure wannabes (loaded with articulation). Darth Vader obviously fits the bill perfectly based on our definition. A large 4500 total pieces were made of Darth Vader with 2000 of them reserved as Sideshow Exclusives (the remaining 2500 pieces were regular edition). For the Sideshow Exclusive version, a Mouse Droid complete with its own base has been added. It’s a very nice accessory and helps to soften the blow of the expensive MSRP. Most collectors probably didn’t think that they would ever own a one-quarter scale Mouse Droid, but now they can. It is a splendid work of art that come with four rolling wheels and detail that will impress the socks off of your feet. We’re definitely very impressed with how it came out and we love how it gives this Darth Vader Premium Format Figure it’s very unique exclusivity. A little known fact that you may or may not know is that StarWarsShop.com was granted shared exclusivity with Sideshow Collectibles for the Darth Vader Premium Format Figures. This was an excellent second source for collectors to secure this piece because it sold out in moments when it went up for pre-order at Sideshow Collectibles. StarWarsShop.com also sold out of this collectible rather quickly too. With a stunning pose and a brilliant accessory, the Darth Vader Premium Format Figure is as perfect a collectible as you could want.

The details of Darth Vader are very impressive. As a mixed media Premium Format Figure, you’ll find that cloth, polystone, fiberglass, plastic and metal are often used on these pieces and it’s without question that many of them were used for Darth Vader. Darth Vader is a solid collectible. He is weighty and in perfect scale to the other Premium Format Figures already produced in the line. If you love light-up features, that you’ll be thrilled to know that Darth Vader’s chest box, belt boxes and lightsaber blade light-up simultaneously together with either batteries or an AC adapter power cord. They don’t light-up independently of each other. They’re either “on” or “off” which may be a detriment to how much people enjoy this feature. You’ll probably be surprised to learn that the lightsaber blade isn’t removable. This is a dangerous move on Sideshow’s part. A separately sculpted piece will often prevent unexpected breakage, so Sideshow needs to revisit this on future pieces. What we’re most impressed with is how tailored his ribbed body globe looks. It has been adhered to his resin body very closely and then the additional layers of clothing have been laid on top to give his appearance depth and texture. This “fitted” look sadly cannot be achieved on smaller scale collectibles, so it’s great to know that Sideshow can make it happen for collectors in this scale. Darth Vader’s helmet is gorgeous too, but we’re suckers for his cape. It is beautiful. It’s double-layered and has the most gorgeous drape we have ever seen on a collectible. We don’t know what else to say other than get this collectible. It’s beautiful.