Special Ops Clone Trooper And Geonosian Drone - TCW [SOTDS] - Two-Packs (Exclusive)

Clone troopers battle Geonosian drones to stop the production of more battle droids. The special ops clone trooper is a highly skilled marksman. With his DC-15a blaster, he takes aim at the swarms of Geonosian drones that are attacking the Republic forces.

Droid factories and Geonosis are synonymous with the Separatist movement. So it only makes sense that frequent encounters on the planet would be some of the strongest moments in The Clone Wars series. One episode in particular, Landing On Point Rain, focused on one said droid factory on Geonosis and it was one of the best episodes in the entire series. It introduced new and very cool styles of the clone army and created so much interest that Hasbro can barely keep up with getting them out there released for us. The episode was full of intense action and yes, one of our most beloved Jedi gets wounded again, Ki-Adi-Mundi. Anakin Skywalker, Ahsoka Tano and Mundi along with Clone Commander Cody lead a battalion of clone troopers (some are clones we have seen before but in different armor this time, like Waxer for example) on Geonosis to destroy a functioning droid factory and encounter some freaky and bizarre things. Hasbro did their best to get on top of this episode as soon as they can and they released the very cool 2010 TCW [SOTDS] Flamethrower Clone Trooper (CW26) figure (who had an important part in the episode) in 2010. And then the 2010 TCW [SOTDS[ AT-RT With ARF Trooper Boil Deluxe/Class I set was released to similarly happy applause. But now Hasbro steps up to the plate and through TARGET has given us the opportunity to quickly army build even more characters from this fan favorite episode. The final results are something else and it should make you happy to be a The Clone Wars collector.

The Special Ops And Geonosian Drone set is just remarkable. Whether you enjoy the animated series or not, the design of the Special Ops Trooper in particular is one that stands out from amongst the rest and shows that Hasbro has no limits to what they want to bring into the line. He doesn't come with his backpack that was seen in the episode, but it doesn't hamper his awesomeness at all. Perhaps it would have served everyone better had this figure been released in the basic figure line, but the set is an army-builder’s dream as his package mate is a generic Geonosian Drone and we sure know we need lots of these! Interestingly, this is also the first time ever in The Clone Wars line that we are getting a Geonosian Drone [Warrior]. (We’re not counting 2010's TCW [SOTDS] Undead Geonosian (CW34) figure.) So it’s cool to get another Separatist enemy for our clone troopers to battle against. But back to the Special Ops Trooper, this is one fantastic action figure. He has a very wide helmet in the chin area and has “devices” on each ear which could be just some extra armor or maybe some communications device. The figure is primarily that “mauve” color we saw on the Flamethrower Clone Trooper (CW26) figure and there are geometric shapes strewn about the armor is a darker maroon color. His shoulders are painted in mustard yellow and each has an insignia painted on them in yet another shade of red. Aside from the new head, the Special Ops Clone Trooper may have new arms, but most of the body appears to be taken from the standard 2008 TCW Clone Trooper (No. 5) figure that collectors have grown to love despite its inaccuracies.

The Geonosian Drone is awesome, but since he was retooled and repainted from the 2010 TCW [SOTDS] Undead Geonosian (CW34) figure, he has hole where the armor and wings went on the latter. Still, it has a fantastic paint job and comes outfitted with a newly sculpted Geonosian sonic blaster. The Geonosian Drone also comes with a sentry gun on a tripod. Since the Special Ops Trooper comes lightly armed with only a blaster, we kind of prefer him to take it over and easily wipe of the Geonosian Drone. As a set, this is incredible. We don’t think the Geonosian Drone would have faired well at retail by itself (but only if they kept it as is). Hasbro would need to include the wings and other accessories to make it a worthwhile purchase. But the figure suits well in the two-pack so we’re not complaining. It seems as if TARGET loves Star Wars two-packs. And as collectors, we love them just as much. We think the set is priced a little too high, but at least it’s technically all-new product contained within it and that sort of lessens the pain of the $14.99 MSRP. But they nicely complement both the 2010 TCW [SOTDS] Cad Bane And IG-86 Two-Pack set and the 2010 TCW [SOTDS] Senate Commando Captain And Senate Commando Two-Pack set released in the Fall of 2010. If Hasbro can ensure that both figures in the set are “new” to some degree or another, we encourage them to keep this exclusive program alive because they are very enjoyable. But what will ensure the longevity of these exclusives is collector and kid support (which is true for everything).