Clone Trooper - R - 12-Inch Figures

This Clone Trooper is part of a huge Clone Trooper army that fights to save the Republic during the Clone Wars.

Goodness gracious how times have changed. The 3.75” action figure line is spiraling downward. Figures are getting minimalistic treatment, basic figures lines are altogether canceled and now 12-Inch Figures have made a return, but in a horrific manner. Is the Star Wars line suffering a fate that is will not be able to return from, or is this the way it’s going to be from here on out? We all know that the Legacy Collection [2] got the axe, but the 2013 Star Wars [Yoda/Attack Of The Clones] Mission Series and The Clone Wars lines have also been denied to USA markets. (They have been released everywhere else around the globe.) Most frightening for us however is the newly interpreted 12-Inch Figures line. These figures come with very little articulation, permanently affixed weapons and incorrect paint operations (or just missing paint operations in general). We don’t know why the decision has been made to make these for the Star Wars brand, but apparently they have big plans for these things.

Clone Trooper has been chosen as one of the first two figures planned for the newly approached 12-Inch Figure line. At first glance, the figure doesn’t look all that bad. It’s proportionately accurate, doesn’t look too boxy and has a fairly decent silhouette. The Clone Trooper however has a very odd pink hue to his white armor. We held the figure in different types of natural and artificial light, and the pinkness of the plastic doesn’t seem to dissipate at all. Interestingly, the Clone Trooper looks as bright as white can be inside of his package. That is something we are unable to explain. The lower half of his body is completely unpainted. What makes this so bad is that parts of his body glove can be seen, but they appear white instead of black because Hasbro neglected to paint any portion of the legs at all. We have no problems admitting that the sculpt of the Clone Trooper is actually quite good, but the limited articulated and the stiffness of the posture just seems completely opposite to how these characters appeared in Episode II.

The worse thing about the Clone Trooper is that his DC-15 blaster is permanently attached to his right hand. We had actually asked Hasbro about this detail at Toy Fair through our Q&A. They had actually explained to us that there is great theft in certain countries for all accessories in the 12” scale. In order to prevent these parts from getting stolen, Hasbro had to take this route to ensure that these figures had some sort of weaponry. Until they can find a way to prevent the theft,weapons will absolutely be a permanent part of the figure. Sadly, it greatly affects our appreciation of this line. At the very least having a removable weapon should be a basic option. Because of the minimal articulation, the Clone Trooper really can’t be displayed in too many ways. This also makes us disappointed. But if you’re just looking for display pieces, then this new 12-Inch Figure line may be just enough for your tastes. We however, want to see more from larger Star Wars action figures. Bigger should mean better, but that’s the furthest thing from the truth here.