Clone Trooper - SW [S - P3] - Exclusives

More than 25 years after we saw the Star Destroyer enter the screen at the beginning of A New Hope, Star Wars continues to both inspire and fascinate. Much more than just a series of films, Star Wars is a total experience. Essential components of that experience are the toys that we grew (and continue to grow) up with and the sense of community that brings us together to discuss, debate, and share all things Star Wars.

May the Force be with you!

Early in 2004, rumors started leaking out that Hasbro had plans to release additional “Silver Saga Edition” figures in the same standard packaging as the three previous releases: Darth Vader (2002 New York Toy Fair), R2-D2 and Boba Fett. They realized that in this series they overlooked all of the characters from Star Wars Episode II: Attack Of The Clones. So what better time than to make the fourth release in this series centered on that film? With that in mind they chose the Clone Trooper which arguably is the symbol of Episode II. Utilizing the sculpt of 2002’s POTJ Clone Trooper Sneak Preview release, Hasbro retooled a new version of this figure and then cast it in metallic silver plastic. These “Silver Saga Edition” figures aren’t meant to be functional action figures. Instead, they’re really display pieces meant to be commemorative and celebratory than anything else. The Clone Trooper really does just this.

Clone Trooper is a retool and recast of 2002’s POTJ Clone Trooper Sneak Preview figure. This time the DC-15 blaster rifle has been permanently affixed into his hands. It cannot be removed. This also means that his swivel shoulders only move in tandem with each other since both are holding onto the DC-15 blaster rifle. Thankfully, this figure has a deceptive and solid center of gravity. The figure can stand unassisted very easily despite its seemingly unbalanced pose. The Clone Trooper comes with six points of articulation. These include a swivel head, two swivel shoulders, a swivel waist and two swivel hips. We personally find it unfortunate that the figures in the “Silver Saga Edition” line don’t have separate accessories, but if you think of them as trophies of your collection, then you really don’t have much to dislike here. The silver metallic styled plastic that Hasbro used works quite well. We think this Clone Trooper looks pretty cool in all honesty.

Although information leaked early on in late 2003/early 2004 that this figure was coming, we soon learned after that the Clone Trooper was going to be a Toys R Us exclusive released in April of 2004. And it wasn’t assigned an MSRP initially. It was to be a free gift with the purchase of eligible Star Wars products. Later however, collectors who didn’t meet promotion requirements could buy this figure for $9.99 plus tax. The Clone Trooper must have experienced some unknown delay as well. Its packaging sports a 2003 year sticker on it. But it wasn’t released until April of the following year. The Star Wars “Saga” line in general experienced some bottlenecking at different times, but why an exclusive experienced this issue is not something we fully understand. Either way, it was indeed eventually released and became a figure that collectors wanted to ensure they added to the ever-growing Star Wars collections.