JediDefender.com Forums
Collecting => Toy Reviews => Topic started by: Reid on November 30, 2006, 07:53 PM
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Clicky For Full Review (http://www.jedidefender.com/reviews/saga050.php)
This week JJ reviews what is arguably one of the best figures in the TSC line, second to the Death Star Gunner and Biker Scout. I still have yet to see this fig in stores, which is quite a shame, considering how good it is.
Good review JJ.
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The reviews are back this week... I kick off the Naboo Wave as you can see.
Though guys, I honestly can post these myself in here too, I don't need a hand. ;) I'll get to it when I have the time, but thanks for the urgent reading. Dont' worry though I will get these posted when I get a chance in here.
This week's review is for the
(http://www.jedidefender.com/reviews/saga/saga050.jpg) (http://www.jedidefender.com/reviews/saga050.php)
Naboo Soldier (Or Flight Crewman)
The Naboo guy's a figure that certainly has been of some debate... First, what is he? Hasbro dubbed him a soldier, but source books call them flight crewman for the Naboo Royal Fighters and other vessels... I still call him a flight dude, but whatever.
Anyway, the figure has his fine qualities... For instnace, the sculpt isn't nearly as bad as originally thought by many people, which is good but not exactly glowing praise here either. He's pretty dandy custom fodder actually due to the plainness of his costume... That is a plus really. His articulation isn't substandard, especially in 2006 when ANY knee articulation was a blessing. The figure comes with a removable helmet and a rifle too, not bad accessories, and he is a decent presentation overall.
Now, that said, the figure lacks ball/socket knees and instead has a pin-swivel joint. It was an odd choice... The sculpt is certainly not Hasbro's best work either, and it looks like something out of a past collection in the modern line. A hold-over of some sort. There's definitely flaws.
So is this a figure your collection won't live without? I can't really say one way or the other. As figures go, he's average... he's not fantastic, and as a character he's dull for sure. He adds diversity though retardless of how you dislike the character, and he isn't bad to have 2 or 3 standing around...
He ain't no Death Star Gunner though, that's for sure, so don't expect this guy to be too hard to find. He hasn't been for me.
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(http://www.jedidefender.com/reviews/saga/saga050.jpg)
Clicky For Full Review (http://www.jedidefender.com/reviews/saga050.php)
This week JJ reviews what is arguably one of the best figures in the TSC line, second to the Death Star Gunner and Biker Scout.
lol, ur so full of it! ::)
i really hated this fig at first, but JJ did single out some of the (very few) finer aspects of it really well, and i am reconsidering. as always, great review. :)
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Thanks Snaggletooth... I really do think owning one is not bad, but owning multiples is a tough sell for me really. It's still better articulated than most figures in '07 but yet the knees were a disappointing feature ultimately. Kind of a double-edged sword.
Still, I say nabbing one, two... perhaps 3 if you're an army builder, is in some order. 1's not bad anyway.
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I´ll have two.
One for the carded wall an another...well somewhere in the Naboo section, hidden I think, or filling some empty space.
A very objetive (i´m not sure of this word) review.
Well done!
And as far as the movies goes, I think AOTC is the worst of all
TPM has very good moments like....uhmmm....well...it´s better...isn't?
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I preferred AOTC myself, but (and I'm a HUGE Star Wars fan so it pains me to say this even) I have to admit that I cringe during moments of dialogue in both AOTC and TPM... TPM's brought down tremendously by Jake Lloyd and to a lesser extent (but still a good bit) Jar Jar... I feel both characters could've been dealt with differently.
AOTC it's Padme and Anakin, but fortunately at least their trist ends and the action starts right around the point they leave Naboo. :) Plus the moments leading up to Naboo aren't bad either...
That's getting off-topic though... I'm sure somewhere on the boards are my myriad of reasons that TPM should never have been and the Prequals should've started with AOTC, filled in E2 with the Clone Wars Cartoons in a live-action story-driven thing, and ended with E3... TPM was a waste of film.
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Can't really argue against anything said. I think the biggest complaint though is that despite the great articulation, the figure is just ho-hum. Bland sculpt and bland character.
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Yeah, that certainly didn't help him, and I'd take that a step further even Anton...
Bland film.
Episode 1 didn't have a lot in it that says "wow" to me. We have Gragra now, the one alien I really wanted. The Pod Racers interest some more than they do me... Short of resculpts (and I'd love great resculpts of many figs from this film), E1's a tapped out resource in my book...
I'd love some SA Jedi resculpts of course, even Jar Jar, Amidala, and what the hell I'll include Anakin... But new stuff from E1 is really not on my want list these days. I just don't care about the film enough I guess, and I know some kids that don't care for it like the latter 2 PT films. It just doesn't feel like it belongs.
The Naboo Dude has a counterpart in the Original Trilogy... a couple actually. The Yavin Hangar Technician (Also on Home 1, but with boots over their pantlegs), the Scanner Techs (or even the POTJ Imp. "Officer" which is just a black suited scanner tech when you get right to it, and just as interesting to Joe Consumer), and well basically those two are "flight crew" for the Empire and Alliance... bland white guys in coveralls is all they were in the OT too, but the fact is the POTJ Imp. Officer IS this Naboo guy (with less "quality" in terms of poseability to boot!) and yet he sold out steadily any time I saw him. He was the only figure from his wave to sell out steadily actually, as I recall.
The Naboo guy... I think his film hurt him. You make a somewhat SA Yavin Tech though and I bet he sells. You put out a new scanner guy, and I bet he sells in DROVES. The Naboo guy is as boring as those other two, but his film hurts him as much as who he is, and that's a pegwarmer waiting to happen. He's easily found here for sure!
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Yeah, that certainly didn't help him, and I'd take that a step further even Anton...
Bland film.
True. Yet, I consider TPM the best of the PT. So what does that make the other two? ;)
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True. Yet, I consider TPM the best of the PT. So what does that make the other two? ;)
eh, all the PT movies suck and rock in their own way. i did like TPM for the podracing and it was the first glance at the diverse Jedi Council, which at the time I found VERY cool. gragra is the best alien in the PT, followed by graxol kelvyyyn. cant wait for JJ's gragra review. ;D
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Yeah, that certainly didn't help him, and I'd take that a step further even Anton...
Bland film.
True. Yet, I consider TPM the best of the PT. So what does that make the other two? ;)
I'm struggling to still respect you in the morning. ;)
Seriously though I think you're in the minority on that, but that's me... I rank them much differently (PT that is) with being the best, 2 in the middle, and 1 being completely ditchable, haha. I could be wrong though, I just never get much love for E1 from people. I was kind of surprised you said that actually, haha.
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i liked episode one i just hated the kid they got for ani.i can only see him in jingle all the way :). if they got a different ani the movie could have been better.
on this figure though. i think it looks ok. if it was in red im sure it wouldnt be a peg warmer. i guess the yellow just doesnt make an intimidating army builder figure.
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my favorites:
6. AOTC
5. TPM
4. ROTJ
3. ANH
2. ROTS
1. ESB
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i liked episode one i just hated the kid they got for ani.i can only see him in jingle all the way :). if they got a different ani the movie could have been better.
on this figure though. i think it looks ok. if it was in red im sure it wouldnt be a peg warmer. i guess the yellow just doesnt make an intimidating army builder figure.
good point. red is a bit more intimidating and would have looked better on this figure.
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my favorites:
6. AOTC
5. TPM
4. ROTJ
3. ANH
2. ROTS
1. ESB
Switch ANH & ROTJ then that would be my exact list.
AOTC sucked the first half of the movie until Geonosis, the only light side was Obi's investigation.
I agree w/ you Jesse why they would give this guy near SA when he appeared in one shot while thye have Bren who appeared in a couple who gets a crappy figure. They blow my mind. ::)
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I agree w/ you Jesse why they would give this guy near SA when he appeared in one shot while thye have Bren who appeared in a couple who gets a crappy figure. They blow my mind. ::)
Dont' get me wrong on that Artoo... I'm all for the figure's articulation. I just found it a bit odd was all. It's a major plus on this figure though, no doubt, that he's got pseudo-great articulation. The knees were a dropped ball (why not just ball/socket joints instead of the lame pin-swivel? I have no clue why they did that), but still it's knee articulation which is better than no knee articulation *cough*Momaw Nadon & countless other '06 figures*cough*.
Still though, for such a background (and not even a soldier supposedly) figure, the articulation seemed actually above average. Good for this figure, but it made all those others (Derlin, Veers, Scorch, etc., etc.) sting a bit more, ya know?