Stormtrooper - TFA - 12-Inch Figures

Equipped with sleek armor and powerful weapons, Stormtroopers enforce the will of the Empire.

Hasbro has decided that the 12-Inch Stormtrooper was a wise choice for re-release in The Force Awakens line, but isn't it going to compete with the First Order Stormtrooper instead? Time will certainly tell. It’s no secret that Hasbro is utilizing the blueprints of the 3.75” scaled Saga Legends and Mission Series figures to bring them into the 12-Inch Figures line. The Stormtrooper looks like a giant version of 2013’s SW [DV/ROTS] Stormtrooper (SL11) figure because, well, technically it is. But just like the 3.75” scaled version, the 12-Inch version of the Stormtrooper is incomplete (especially with deco) and not sculpted with precise screen accuracy. There are some positive points to the Imperial Stormtrooper 12-Inch Figure, however. The head sculpt looks much better in the larger size. This noticeable difference beckons us to question whether what came first: the chicken or the egg. Are the 12-Inch Figures planned first, and then converted to 3.75” scale, or is it the other way around. Perhaps it’s the former is true. The helmet isn’t too rounded and wonky like the Saga Legends figures is. It also appears that the shoulders are in better proportionate as well. Whatever the process, it’s interesting and makes us ponder what the true methods/correct order of operations is for these figures. But the bottom line here? Well, the Stormtrooper isn’t too hot.

So why isn’t the Stormtrooper 12-Inch Figure nearly as good as it could or should be? Aside from the aesthetically displeasing stature (he arms are way too close to his side), this figure severely lacks much-needed paint operations. The Stormtrooper looks as if he is wearing a nude body glove. It just doesn't look right. The lack of black detailing in between the armor pieces is very disheartening to see, and these missing details give the Stormtrooper an otherworldly feel. You know it’s a Stormtrooper obviously, but then you think something is very off about him because you’re right about that. He is off because Hasbro’s saved pennies of the paint operations makes him look odd. With all of the budget figures, there seems to be some saving grace. For the Imperial Stormtrooper, it’s the separately sculpted gun. (It’s hard to believe that a separately sculpted gun needs to be considered a “benefit” in the budget line.) Hasbro decided not to permanently mold the E-11 blaster file to his hands, thankfully. The detailed gun is very nice, and it’s great that kids and collectors have options with how to pose him with it. But sadly his arms are so stinking close together that it makes attaining any realistic pose with the gun nearly impossible.

We can’t fully discount the sculpt of the Stormtrooper 12-Inch Figure, for it has some very nicely sculpted parts. The abdomen area of the armor is especially impressive, as is the cod section and back. But despite the good-looking parts, the functionality of the figure is quite disappointing. We know these aren’t super-articulated figures, but the points of articulation they do have should at least fully function in our opinion. But that’s not the case for the Stormtrooper. His arms are so close and come into his body that you have to force them to his core to tuck his arms behind his back. What’s more, his legs don’t bend backward in the slightest because of the way his “butt” armor has been sculpted. They almost possess a blocking feature when the legs bend any direction backward. This makes posing the figure quite frustrating. But we still don’t think that’s the biggest weakness of the Stormtrooper 12-Inch Figure. If you look at the back of the figure, it looks like an empty white canvas. That isn’t an unfair assessment. We know these figures don’t get full paint operations. But the reverse side of the Stormtrooper is so bland and boring; it feels like it’s been left unpainted; which it has. Not Hasbro’s best, we’re sure some kid will find it somewhat interesting. It’s just that we think it’s a lazy effort generally speaking.