Emergence Of The Sith (Darth Sidious/Darth Maul) - SW [TPM 3D] - Movie Heroes (Exclusive)

The Sith emerge from the shadows to begin their assault on the galaxy. The mysterious Darth Sidious sends his deadly apprentice, Darth Maul, to track down Queen Amidala and the Jedi who escaped from the clutches of the Trade Federation forces. The two Sith mark the beginning of the dark times that are coming for this once-peaceful galaxy.

How many times is Hasbro going to try to capitalize on their failed Evolutions line? Seemingly the answer is never. Hasbro has a penchant for releasing and rereleasing the same old figures again and again and it’s exhausting for collectors who have sustained the Hasbro toy line from the beginning. The earliest Evolutions sets brought a congealed theme to a group of Star Wars collectors. If it wasn’t the evolution of a particular Star Wars character through the saga, it was a group of them with a major bond in common. 2005’s ROTS The Sith Evolutions set brought collectors decent sculpts of three of the Prequel Trilogies biggest villains. For the most part, the sculpts were a collector’s dream as they came with 14 points of premium articulation. That is the overriding factor when it comes to what people consider a triumphant action figure. Darth Sidious was one of these said action figures and even though not everyone was completely on board with his head sculpt, this action figure because the basis for countless future Sidious/Palpatine action figures. Despite this being a great figure, do we really need another release of it? We think not.

The TARGET exclusive Emergence Of The Sith (Darth Sidious/Darth Maul) brings together Sith Master and Sith Apprentice in the Movie Heroes line look. The set packaged look great. The set opened is another bowl of wax. Darth Sidious is the only figure that holds up well over time. He’s super-articulated and has ball-joints where we want them. He has been repainted exclusively for this set, so this is a unique release (which should frustrate many collectors who absolutely don’t want the included Darth Maul figure – more on him in a moment). While the paint job is significantly different, the paint operations seems to mirror those utilized on the Emperor Palpatine figure in 2008’s TAC Emperor Palpatine/Commander Vill Order 66 Series 2 (4 of 6) TARGET exclusive. We say that because he has the same bizarre “smudge” (for lack of a better word) on his left hand. But this time his skin has been painted in natural flesh tones whereas the 2008 TAC Order 66 figure looked very ashy and gray. That marking is something we haven’t been able to figure out yet, but it definitely keep this figure interesting.

Darth Maul on the other hand will almost enrage you. Trust when we say that all of us are going to become very sick and tired of the Darth Maul sculpt that has origins to 1999’s EI Sith Speeder And Darth Maul set. Granted, it’s one of the better “pilot” Darth Maul figures for your collection. But it has completely worn out its welcome after countless repacks/repaints of it in the Saga Legends lined that spanned from 2007 through 2011. It’s back again and it’s being used in the 2012 version of the Sith Speeder And Darth Maul Deluxe set as well as this TARGET exclusive. $14.99 is much too high of a price for two figures that collectors have seen overstay their welcome in the toy line. And for this set to be of any value, Hasbro would have had to repack the amazing 2011 TVC Darth Maul (VC86) figure – which would never have happened by the way). It eludes us why a proposed set like the Oochee and Widdle Ewok set has yet to find a home, yet a two-pack riddled with a repack and a repaint gets chosen without the retailer thinking twice about it. Something has got to give. We’re excited for the 3D release of The Phantom Menace, but the toy line is not embracing this event the way it should. And more collectors are throwing in the towel.