Count Dooku - Premium Format Figures

Once a member of the Jedi Order, Count Dooku's strong political ideals challenged the views of the Council. The strong-willed Dooku felt that the Jedi were weakened by serving an institution as corrupt as the Republic and eventually left the Order, disappearing for years. Dooku re-emerged as a political firebrand fanning the flames of rebellion in the galaxy and supporting the Separatist movement.

Dooku rallied thousands of systems to his cause, building a growing Separatist movement that threatened to split the Republic. Opportunists working in his name would start flashpoints of violence, and it was all the Jedi could do to maintain order in these turbulent times. For all the strife, the Jedi Council refused to believe that Dooku was personally responsible for the worst of the conflicts, insisting that his Jedi training elevated him above such acts.

But behind a veneer of elegant charisma and well-tabled political arguments, Count Dooku had been corrupted by the power of the dark side, seduced by Darth Sidious, the Dark Lord of the Sith. Dooku began recruiting agents for what would eventually amount to the death of the Old Republic. Working as a Sith agent, he contacted the notorious bounty hunter Jango Fett to become the template for a hidden clone army on Kamino, an act that would eventually lead to the Clone Wars and threaten to destroy the Republic.

Sideshow Collectibles’ ever-growing Premium Format line enters the 2010 calendar year with a wonderful representation of the duplicitous Count Dooku. Star Wars fans absolutely adore Sith lords and we have gone without one in this scale for quite some time. Entering the line with open arms by collectors, the Count Dooku Premium Format figure is one whose final production piece has outdone the prototype (again). When this figure was announced, the prototype left quite a bit to be desired (even during the pre-order process). The portrait didn’t favor Christopher Lee that much and it was hard to tell how his stature stacked up to the attitude of the character. We can advise you that both issues have been remedied and what the collector is left with is a spectacular sculpture of a character you absolutely love to hate. The Count Dooku Premium Format figure has exceeded our expectations by a long shot and we are thrilled to have him in the ranks of the others populating our collections. From the paint effects in the face to the expertly tailored Sith lord costume, Count Dooku is a quarter-scaled collectibles that will impress you for years to come and is indeed the premier and definitive collectible version of he character we saw in Star Wars Episode II: Attack Of The Clones. The Premium Format line affords Sideshow to work with a much large array of mediums and produce a museum quality piece for your collections. While the price tags of this works of art blow right by the budgets of many collectors, we can say that they are among some of the finest high end Star Wars collectibles on the market today. They barely age over time and edge out any competition in comparable (and smaller) scales as well.

There were some initial concerns to how the final Count Dooku Premium Format figure would turn out. We are thrilled to report that the final head sculpt has been perfected. The prototype had a poor likeness to the onscreen character and it is our opinion that Sideshow heard a great deal of whining and complaining from fans (and deservedly so) about this. They clearly listened and made a masterpiece that will stand the test of time in your collections. Your fears on how the piece turned out can be alleviated because it is one of the best likenesses we have seen for this character. Sideshow caught Count Dooku in a perfect expression and while you can only guess what he is thinking inside of his head, you are left with the thought that he has some dirty tricks up his sleeves. His lips have the slightest quiver to them and his brow is ever so tense. Whether he is in conversation with Darth Sidious or about to kick the butt of an unassuming Jedi Knight, Dooku has an attitude that is brilliantly captured on this figure. We congratulate Sideshow on grabbing the best expression possible for Count Dooku. The portraits can make or break the quarter scale figures and it is a joy that there is total success here. And the goodness doesn’t stop there. The artisans at Sideshow managed to capture the small liver spots accented across his face and hand and well as the dark circles around his eyes. The shadowing in the ears is marvelous and his white hair and beard are colored with contrasting details to effortlessly bring out the texture of the beard and mustache. In his right arm is his trademark lightsaber hilt ready to hold an ignited blade that lights up with batteries. His left hand has been designed in an open position to hold back his beautifully tailored cape. His posture is alert and foreboding and we think that the overall display of the piece is simply stunning.

Count Dooku has one of the most carefully designed outfits we have seen on a Premium Format figure in some time. Hasbro went the extra mile to provide this figure with as many soft-goods as possible. His uniform has been woven like a fine wool suit. His fitted pants appropriately bunch up at the knees where the tops of his fine Rancor leather boots meet. The top half of his uniform hangs low to the middle of his thighs by way of a skirt and gathered in the center by a real leather belt that has rather simple detailing. Again, it is so well-fitted it is remarkable he would be able to move in the clothing. The icing on the cake is his double-layered cape. The inside layer is a silky and smooth glistening tan color that works in harmony with the outer dark fabric. The back of his cape also captured every detail of the original costume. It is sewn with equidistant ribbing in a pentagonal shape. This sits atop the long smooth section of the cape tailored with darts and pleats to also complement the silhouette of his body frame. Perhaps the neatest part to the cape is the real chain utilized to hold it closed. It really unhooks from the figure and then can be put back in its original state. It looks beautiful! There are so many details that words are incapable of describing but we can express that this is one fine figure indeed. Count Dooku can be ordered at Sideshow Collectibles, but like all of their Premium Format figures, they sell through quite quickly. We suggest getting on the Wait List if there is one available. Episode II fans should “count” themselves very lucky that Sideshow has given this character some attention. We hope a 1:6 scale version is in the works, but while we wait, this figure will bring you plenty of joy for now.