Cold day out in Cali I take it?

Nice Finds JJKS, and thanks for giving us a heads up that the basics are leaking into the system.

Time to get off my duff and hit some stores I guess...  Just what I wanna do in sweltering humidity here...  Blah!

I'm all over that Lobot figure though, and Spirit O Ben.

I'm not a big statue/minibust fan myself...  I'm intrigued by Sideshow, a relatively small company, jumping into this though with a Star Wars license, and I'm also curious to see how this:

A) affects Unleashed, as 1/4" statues, to me, would be superior to Unleashed.

&

B) How this is going to be perceived by other lines that are similar, such as the minibusts from GG...  And the die-hard collectors of said lines.

Very curious...  Seems like they've stirred the pot.

I was certainly flabergasted because I, at first, thought it was some secret maneuver that Hasbro had dumped 12" rights to others and that Sideshow picked it up.  Their 1:6 scale action figures are quite amazing.

Out of Sheer Boredom, I bring you Durge Deluxe...  He's been on my to-do shelf, and I just didn't get to many CW figures in general other than the SA Clone so I have decided to do Deluxe Durge here as an unofficial review for the site...

He's one I felt deserved a nod!   So on with the show!

When Hasbro started the modern line publicly in 1995, articulation has always been a less than stellar aspect of the figures.  They were really not the super poseable items their G.I. Joe cousins were, and of course sculpt wasn't the highest quality either.

Flash forward to 2003, and Hasbro totally floors its fans with a deluxe version of a new "enemy" introduced in the Star Wars EU series, Clone Wars, by introducing a figure that gives you every bit of bang for your $10.

To me, Durge is, without a doubt, one of the most financially worthy figures I've ever seen in any toy line...  $10 gets you a speederbike with tons of detail, a trident/lance weapon that attaches to the bike, 2 newly sculpted pistols, a sawed off blaster rifle, and a figure that's so heavily articulated he makes even the most articulated figures in the 1:18 scale look like they suddenly could do some improving for sure.

PROS

Articulation:  First, and by far and away foremost is this figure's amazing articualtion count.  Sporting what on paper appears to be a modest 12 points of articulation, this figure sports the first heavy use of ball/socket articulation points on a Star Wars figure.

What's that mean to you and I?  That means this guy is uber poseable...  Action poses, neutral poses, dancing poses, goofy flamboyant poses...  He does it all!

The count goes something like this:

-2 Ball/Socket Shoulder Joints
-2 Ball/Socket Elbow Joints
-2 Wrist Joionts
-1 Ball/Socket Neck Joint
-1 Ball/Socker (or Double Jointed) Torso Joint
-2 Standard Hip Joints
-2 Ball/Socket Knee Joints

Total: 12 Points of Articulation

12's not a lot really...  X-Treme Detail figures from 21st Century Toys sport upwards of 18 points, and extra sets of arms...  BBI's Elite Force 1:18 also sports 16+ points of articulation.

What BBI and 21st don't have is the aforementioned heavy use of ball/socket joints though, and Durge has that going for him in abundance.  It allows for an impressive range of motion in a single articulation point, to say the least.

All props in articulation on this guy!

Sculpt:  Incerdible Detail Abounds on this figure...  Top to bottom, he's the spitting image of a non-cartoon version of Durge.

I was really against Durge as a character till I saw he was pretty uniqe in the cartoon, but what first began swaying my opinion was the awesome sculpt of the figure.

He has elements of Boba Fett, but they're very muted compared to my intitial impressions.  He doesn't feel like as much of a knock-off now.

The sculpt has lots of dents and dings...  Durge's fingers are made to fit in the trigger guard on his blasters, but they easily hold his trident as well...  His joints are seamlessly hidden within the sculpted armor of the figure too.  Very stealthy.

Overall, you really see a lot of detail on this figure.

A favorite aspect of the sculpt that I noticed is his separate hoses on his torso that go from his body armor to his thigh armor...  They have a very "Star Wars" look to them.  Very unique.

Durge's armor is sculpted so that it screams violence...  Sharp angles to impale enemies upon in hand-to-hand combat, spiked shoes for gripping various terrains, and his helmet has TONS of personality.

It gives an ominous impression that this guy's a bad mofo, don't piss him off!  Very cool looking, and all thanks to a top-notch sculptor.

Whoever at Hasbro worked this magic deserves a hand.

The working holsters on his armor are just the icing on the cake then, so with his plethora of weapons he doesn't have to set them down to use any other one of them.  

Great stuff folks!

Accessories:  For $5 this would be insanely ridiculous.  For $10, it feels like this is everything a Deluxe figure should be, but sadly they aren't all near this good.  As a matter of fact, short of the Ewok w/Glider or Bacta Luke, I can't think of a Deluxe off-hand that really was even near as impressive.

Durge comes armed with:

-Silver Jetpack
-Silver Double Pistols
-Silver Sawed-Off Rifle w/"strap"
-Silver Trident
-Green/Cream decoed Swoop Bike

It'd have only been topped if Durge maybe came with the bolo weapon the carded figure had, and perhaps his second jetpack.

As it stands though, the figure's got a lot going for him.  The "strap" thing on the rifle's nice too because it allows Durge to romp around with his rifle off his bike and not have to put it down to use the Trident.

The bike itself is excellently sculpted, with tons of dents and dings, and it includes a place to mount the trident for jousting Clones, as well as a sheath for the rifle accessory.  

As mentioned above, his pistols fit in his holster on his thighs, and the Jetpack snaps easily into his back.

On top of all this, NONE of these weapons are flimsy.  Not a single one of them is the slightest bit limp, like Amanaman's staff or whatnot.  Why is it this figure can have good stuff, but others cannot?

Again, the limp plastic used isn't for safety reasons.  That's a mere excuse that's been refuted multiple times now.  It's the fact that the limper plastic is less expensive, and they're willing to sacrifice quality at Hasbro sometimes to save a couple pennies on a figure.  That's a real shame.

On Durge though, no expense was spared it seems, and he's come out smelling like roses!

Value:  Again, I cannot stress enough the value you receive with Durge.  He's simply worth every penney of his $10 pricetag.  I'd seen him clearanced because he shipped pretty well, but didn't nab one.  Wish I had, just to have custom fodder that he offers up.

If you see Deluxe Durge, and haven't yet bought one, do so because you've spent $ well so long as you like the character.

CONS

Paint Aps:  Now, don't get me wrong.  Durge is ok as far as paint aps go, but anyone who nabbed the basic carded figure knows that the Deluxe figure was missing something in the paint department.

What paint is there is in the lines, and crisp, but Durge is entirely too clean for a figure so battle worn in sculpt.  The paintjob culd've been miles better...  If there was a place expenses were cut, it was definitely in the paint aps department.

That was somewhat disappointing to me because the sculpt isn't done justice when the paint is skimmed.  Paint applications can really highlight details you otherwise missed on a figure...  For instance, look at the upcming repaint of the Jawas, and Tusken figures...  Or look at the Cantina 3-pack coming to K-Mart.

Paint can make ALL the difference in how a final figure looks, and it can really show what a nice job the sculptor did in the first place.

Hasbro's skimming here is disappointing because it doesn't really show appreciation to the guy/gal that put all the effort into creating the figure.  

Too bad.

No Accessory Paint:  As with the figure, the weapons are lacking in detail from paint as well.  And pure silver weapons stand out like a turd in a punchbowl.

Some detailing on the handles of the weapons, maybe some paint detailing to the barrels...  Something...  Antyhing would've been nice to bring out and highlight details in this figure's accessories.  They're cool, but just not AS cool as they could've been.

The deco on the bike accessory also was wanting, just like the figure.  There was some detail, but not real black highlights to simulate scorching or anything...  Very dinged up sculpt and some paint, but just not enough to really bring out the true details to the bike that it deserved.

OVERALL

What can I say?  Durge is awesome...  Deluxe Durge that is.  The basic carded figure lacks EVERYTHING the the Deluxe figure has except paint aps.

This Durge is everything the Star Wars line should be...  We should be seeing Army Builders like Hoth Rebels, Fleet Troopers, Death Star Troopers, generic Imp. Officers, etc., who are this great...

We should be seeing Jedi figures this poseable for their many action-packed moments in the last film and the next.  

We should see main characters in their various outfits sporting articulation like this for their many moments proving their title of "Hero" in the films.

Instead, we usually get figures with limited articulation...  

Let's hope things are on an upward trend in articulation though.  I'm personally hoping the VOTC sells so well that Hasbro realizes articulation's the route to go in the basic $5 figure line.

Let's hope, because a line of figures as nice as this Durge would just floor me, and would easily be the top toy line in the boys market that is out right now.

Fingers crossed here at least...  Ya reading Hasbro?  You can do it when you want to guys!  And ya can do figures virtually perfectly.  

Way to go on this one!

Every case breakdown I've seen is an assortment of 12...

-1 MB Driver
-1 U.S. Tanker
-1 U.S. Rifleman w/Mackinaw Coat
-1 U.S. BAR Gunner
-1 Patton Dress
-1 Patton Tunisia
-1 Patton Bulge
-1 German Tanker w/reversable winter/autumn fatigues (wish there were 2 of him and no MB Driver myself)
-2 German with open great coat
-2 German with closed great coat

Total: 12 Figures.

That's a pretty good assortment, other than I'd probably (personally) replace the U.S. Tanker and Jeep Driver with an extra German Tanker and U.S. Rifleman.  

Be more for army building, and the MB Driver flat out sucks balls.

On hold...  I talked to a 21st rep and he said they ARE coming, and other reps have said '05 for the Japanese and Marines...

They looked awesome, I mean they really were outstanding, "hardened" looking soldiers...  Though the Japs never did show up, but I imagine they'd have been great looking too, and they've BEEN mentioned so I hope we're getting them too.

I think the modern figures were due out first...  They had 2 Afghan "Freedom Fighters" and some varius U.S. and British SAS figures I think...  Some of those guys have leaked out into mainstream through vehicle pack-ins.

Anyway, there is some news...

The BotB figures are out, and I'm not sure but this may include Patton figures as well...

The FW-190 is out too on the west coast and includes a new German Pilot.  I gotta see it before I buy it.

BotB is only available online, but the German Infantry are already being touted as the "best figures ever", namely the open great-coat soldier.

I want to get a case because individually they're $7, but for a case of 12 (including 1 of each Patton, 1 of each U.S., 1 German Tanker, and 2 of each German infantry) they're $6.  Not sure if cases are in, but individual figures ARE so I'm assuming cases are too.

**Ahem**

In life, 3 things are inevitable.  Paying Taxes, Death, and the Rebel Fleet Trooper is always going to suck.

hehe  

Great pics there Scott, and an early "thanks"...  

I've done the Antilles/Dodonna swap.  I'm thinking of hollowing a head cast out for the Antilles in trenchcoat, only because I don't like seeing him mixed into my generic officer ranks like that, but Dodonna's only needing some red dots on his rank badge and he's finito.

I didn't swap the arms around actually...  I left Antilles arms with the jacket because I felt they didn't match up particularly well.  There's a cuff difference there then, but the fit seemed better with the jackets.

The good thing there is at least sewing's not rocket-science...  It's tough, but doing things by hand can yield good product, and even better than that poncho (which I liked too, at least I liked the deco on it...  very accurate).

I'm working on soft-goods items for customs myself...  Finding the right fabric, and in the right colors, appears to be my biggest barrier.

If youw ant a tip on what fabric to start with CHEWIE, look aat Total Control Mace WIndu sometime.  The fabric is, simply, perfect.  It has texture that's realistic in this scale, it stretches, it's thin, it doesn't need hemmed, just simply cut, and it's easy to work with.

It's a "knit".  That's all I know.  I carry TC Mace with me in my pocket when looking for fabric matches.  Not had a ton of luck, but mostly because fabric stores are things of the past here...  Few and far between, and with limited selection.  I have yet to hit my most likely targets yet though because they're each about an hour away, and in areas I tend not to go too often.  Soon though, and hopefully I'll yield some good fortune.

Make my own damn ponchos then.