Imperial Troop Transport - TVC - Vehicles (Exclusive)

It’s reassuring (and heartwarming) for longtime Star Wars collectors when new Star Wars Entertainment defers to the vintage Kenner toy line. This approach is executed by introducing new and old fans to new characters that only existed in toy form, but are now part of the new Star Wars Entertainment. Rebels introduced the Blue Snaggletooth, and Ralph McQuarrie artwork. And now Hasbro is using The Vintage Collection to bridge The Mandalorian on Disney+ and the vintage Kenner Imperial Troop Transport. Out of nowhere and with full surprise, Hasbro announced the addition of a modern update to the Imperial Troop Transport. It was immediately embraced by collectors and fans of The Vintage Collection once again felt like Hasbro cared about them. Designed by genius Mark Boudreaux, the Imperial Troop Transport is bigger than the vintage Kenner vehicle but still on a smaller scale than the vehicle seen in The Mandalorian show. It’s an excellent toy, and fans of both the vintage Kenner era and the modern era of Star Wars collecting should fall in love with it. But we’ll tell you right up front that the Imperial Troop Transport is overpriced. Only $10 less than Imperial Combat Assault Tank, the Imperial Troop Transport has about a third of the detail, mass, and parts than the latter did, and we don’t think, what may be the first time in history, support the outlandish MSRP set for this beautiful vehicle. At best, the Imperial Troop Transport feels no more than a $39.99 vehicle. We’re confident you’ll feel similarly.

There are many features to appreciate on the Imperial Troop Transport. Hasbro developed two “hinge-jointed” slide-out front doors to the cockpit. Yes, there’s a great amount of detail here, but Hasbro also employed pre-applied decals to help bring out some of the finer points. The cockpit is indeed roomy, but it’s a bit of a task to get the pilots into the seats and then their hands on the steering column. If you have man-hands, it’s going to be a frustrating challenge. Another issue for those with man-hands is the E-11 blaster storage rack. We ADORE the inclusion of it here, but we don’t know how anyone would be able to store guns in it because we can’t get our fingers in a position to force them into the gunrack. You may have an easier time with this, so please don’t fret about it until you try it for yourself. With a little bit of patience, the seated pilots look phenomenal. Two of the 'Remnant Stormtrooper' infantry pods come with opening doors (the frontmost positions). We wish the others opened too, but oh well. The core of the vehicle has an infantry seating area. Hasbro unbelievably designed six folded-up seats inside of the bay area, but only four of the chairs fold down. At most, you can only have four Imperial Stormtroopers seated. The good news is that you can add a whole lot more standing next to them. The seats are adjacent to the doorway, which leads them to the outside firing area. There are six pods to put figures. So if you take into account these spots for figures along with the interior bay and the cockpit, we’re talking you’ll need over a baker’s dozen of Imperial Stormtroopers to flesh out this wonderful vehicle.

The Imperial Troop Transport does have a spectacular design. Not a single spot (save for except when they went cheap on the two permanently folded-up seats) seems like Hasbro took any shortcuts here. But, there are fewer areas that have detail than say compared to the Imperial Combat Assault Tank. You cannot fault Hasbro on what they did both with the Imperial Troop Transport’s body design and its paint job. Both are overwhelmingly gorgeous and prove that Hasbro still has energy for products in The Vintage Collection line. What we do take exception with here is the price. And we could very well be off base here, but we’re not sure why Hasbro set the MSRP so high. They’ve essentially encouraged most collectors to wait for clearance. Then again, as a "Fan Channel" exclusive, this won’t make it out to “Big Box” retail, so that may serve as a deterrent we need to preserve the vehicle program for The Vintage Collection. From the Galactic Empire insignia on both front sides to the battle-damage and dirt collection on the vehicle’s exterior, the Imperial Troop Transport is an answer to prayer for us. And we hope you’re equally excited to add it to your collection as well. There are no firing projectiles here. Nor are there any extra pieces or accessories to interact with the vehicle. The Imperial Troop Transport is what it is. And while we find the price bordering on infuriating, we hope that enough collectors will support it so more all-new vehicles will arrive in the line.