See now, to me SOTE is a weaker effort than the Zahn trilogy...  I felt that anything that implied in it what it did (I'm trying not to spoil it for you) was a really bad way to take the story...  I didn't care for that.

That said I thought some of the new characters were interesting, I thought it did fill a gap...  I was mostly irritated with only a single aspect of the story rather than anything overall. 

I found SOTE to be mediocre...  OK, not something you felt ripped off after you read it, but ok...

Some stuff I found good reads...

-X-Wing (Comics & Novels)...  There's a number of these, they're good reads...  If you're really military oriented though may I suggest picking up the strategy guide to the original X-Wing and TIE Fighter PC games.  The guides are also the stories of the main pilot characters in both books (The "Farlander Papers" and "Steele Chronicles" are the actual names of the stories).  They're sort of their own thing, set aside from the X-Wing Rogue Squad books/comics but worth picking up with those IMO.  Hell, play the games, they're part of the story too.   The TIE Fighter story is interesting in particular because it integrates the story of Thrawn and how he goes from Vice Admiral in the Imperial Fleet to Grand Admiral...  You'll like it I think, though he's not a "main" character in the story.  It expounds a little on the "Secret Order" of assassins, and such that work under the Emperor's PERSONAL guidance...  Force adepts are more abundant in the galaxy than you might think, and Mara  isn't the only instrument the Emperor weilds...  I'll leave it at that.

-Kyle Katarn's Story...  Kinda like the above with the games, Katarn's got 3 books dedicated to him and of course his games (Dark Forces and Jedi Knight being the integral parts of his story with 2 latter games and the add-on Mysteries of the Sith also adding to it but later in his life).  The Katarn story is, in my opinion, one of the best EU stories in all of Star Wars.  The story in the games is superior to the books, but you'll have that sometimes.  They're short reads though, very small, so they're worth it.

-Star Wars: Empire...  It's a recent, and still going, comic series.  I buy them when they put them all in one volume (trade paperback?  Graphic Novel?  Whatever they call them), and I found them highly enjoyable.  The one where the Empire are fighting the Amanin (Amanaman's species) is great...  It's like the Michael Caine movie about Rourke's Drift...  Very cool story, and really the whole Empire series is interesting to me.

-Star Wars: Tales...  This was just cancelled I guess but it was great while it was alive.  The comic series was neat because it was a number of short stories in one issue.  I got into it later so there's a lot I didn't read.  I need to buy these when they're all bound in one book or a number of "volumes" like Empire gets.  There were some ****** stories but some were pretty fantastic too.

-Republic Commando...  I haven't read the latest book, and to be honest I haven't read the first book, but I hear nothing but praise for the first with some mixed reviews on the second.  I highly suggest picking up Republic Commando though as it's on my to-read list.

-Tales of _______...  The "Tales of" series (Cantina, Jabba's Palace) is considered pretty good.  It has some flawed stories in it in my opinion.  With some weak attempts to ALWAYS tie main characters and things to basically "nothing", I think it exemplifies some negatives to EU IMO...  At the same time there's some cooler elements worth reading.  Most I know have picked these up.

-New Jedi Order...  It's a big series, and honestly I'm not a huge fan of it but I know others are.  It'd be irresponsible of me to say skip it then.  It's about the only way to read up on what happens to the Solo's and Skywalkers.  Other characters sneak into it too including (drum roll) Kyle Katarn and Keyan Farlander from 2 of the video games I mentioned...  Bit parts though as I understand it.

NJO is filled with some positives (IE: The NJO itself and how Skywalker reforms the Jedi Knights and Academy), and some not-so-positives (IE: Killing Chewbacca as a selling point rather than plot, other random killings to sell books, The Vong which I view as Star Trek rip-offs, etc.).  It's a popular series though so I think it's worth looking into...

I do NOT recommend Splinter of the Mind's Eye, Truce At Bakura, or Courtship...  I've read all 3, all 3 were disappointing to me in many ways.  Also I'd highly suggest not reading Dark Empire II...  Dark Empire I is eh...  Dark Empire II was corny and cheap.

I'm pretty picky though...  I like a lot of EU but for every good bit I enjoy there's probably 5 things I can't stand.  EU has an uncanny knack for trying to tie the main characters to every passer-by seen in the films or made up in books.  It's annoying really...  Add to that dumb stuff like the "Bantha Bar & Grill", or keeping EVERY character alive despite their assumed deaths in the films, and you can get into some annoyi8ng crap.

With that said...  The Boba Fett comics of the 90's aren't bad reads...  To be honest I even have been converted from a guy who HATED the idea of Fett "surviving" the Sarlaac to now actually digging that the Mandalorian one didn't necessarilly die...  if you like EU that is.   Lucas says he died...  Armies of Fett Fanboys say otherwise, so that's the great hting about EU.  YOu can pick and choose what to believe.

I used to hate the notion and now I kind of dig seeing Fett resurface...  As old as he must be at that point, haha.  At some point the guy's gotta hang up the gauntlets though you figure.

Guys, let's keep calm heads in this thread...

First, I have to agree with some of the posters Fritz that either what you said was being taken out of the context you intended it, or you were being a little rude with your wording...

"Lazy" and all that?  I think that's harsh.  I army build, I earn what I obtain too, but at the same time I think people need to keep the frame of mind that collecting isn't a "me me me" hobby if you're involved in communities like here at JediDefender or elsewhere too...  You should try, if possible, to look out for your friends in the hobby and not have the attitude that "You can have the scraps I leave you".  I mean, don't you think the way you worded that comes off a tad bit snobbish at best?  Even if it wasn't directed at anyone in this thread, which as mod here I'm giving you the benefit of the doubt there...

If it was pointed at anyone here, I really don't want to see that in the future.  I didn't agree with the original posters points about army builders...  To me, 95 figures is your right if you find them fair and square, and if you're a part of collecting and not scalping you're a welcome member of the collecting community. 

At the same time, I'd like to think most of the guys around these boards would've found 95 figures and shared some of them with local friends or friends online, whatever... 

Anyway, as noted I'm giving the benefit of the doubt with exactly how Fritzkrieg said what he did...  I don't think anyone in this thread has said they hate army builders or what they do...  Loathe the guy that posted the picture of 95 at Rebelscum perhaps, but not hating anyone IN THIS THREAD, and I don't think Fritzkrieg then was directing his hostility towards anyone.

At the same time I'm asking that we rethink what we're typing sometimes before we hit the "Post" button too...  It's easy to be in the targeted group.  When people can't find one, it's not always because they're lazy or whatnot...  I know that despite my best efforts around here I can't find much of anything nor can my local friends, so that's not laziness on our part, it's simply that this area doesn't have as much right now.  Hell our WM stores dont' even have pegs for figures, so that's a whole outlet gone from Pittsburgh right now...  Hardly lazy then.

And also, I'm an army builder, I build HUGE armies into the hundreds too...  To me it's part of what makes me happy, but at the same time I like to try to help at least a couple people out if I can...  Sometimes I give up something I really would rather keep, sometimes I keep everything I have (I've never sold a VOTC Stormie for instance), but at the end of the day I do like to pay the hobby back and I think everyone should try to do that some too...  Help a friend, help a stranger, whatever, but helping out someone to get ONE of something you have 250+ of isn't necessarilly a bad concept.

And definitely, please, don't gloat when it's obviously bothersome...  It's looking for trouble really.  That's what the guy at Rebelscum did and the point of the thread (to me) more than anything.  He posted the picture as a big middle finger to a LOT of people who aren't having an easy time in the hobby.  That's just not cool beans.  Thoughtfulness is cool and all that crap.

I'm not sure on differences Paul...  I know that Carnor Jax's Stormtroopers are who are pictured on the reference images though and not the Marvel Black Hole Stormtroopers.

Personally, one in the same as far as my EU catalogue goes.

I'm hoping for 4...  4-man team is my standard for these overpriced figures these days.

There's pretty strong collecting market for those figures...  Plus those companies actually listen to, talk to, and deal with their consumer base and EMBRACE etailers...  Tack that onto them having limited brick & mortar retail support (Target doesn't carry them, TRU carries BBI but dumped 21st because of pressure from special interest groups and WM carries 21st but not BBI, and you have limited outlets to pick stuff up really).

Around me, they're backing up with certain things...  Battle of the Bulge never showed here heavily so I had a tough time tracking much down and never got all I wanted.  They repainted the Germans too and I only got one of them.   Never got the grey tankers or the Autumn Tankers.  I'm bummed.

Now my area's backing up with a wave I forgot plus the Japanese Infantry...  They repainted the Paratroopers and re-arranged the headsculpts to make Operation Market Garden U.S. Paratroopers.  It's a lesser-known part of World War two but if you wanna see a great movie about it watch "A Bridge Too Far".  Star-studded, well acted, historically accurate in many ways, and tells the sad facts of a sad story really.

Anyway, those and the Japanese are backing up here on top of the USMC figures which we got in droves.

I WISH I could find Battle of the Bulge.  It's my favorite battle and general piece of the war, and the figures are the best in my opinion.  I'd say the BotB line's best are as good as Hasbro's best basic figures like SA Clones... 

They're awesome fodder, but if you wind up with left-over parts of 21st C. figures because you only wanted the head or whatnot, PM ME HERE!   I can use those parts for my actual 1:18 military habit. 

I'mg onna wager no on that Paul but the idea is the most logical.

Who here wouldn't be racing theirs with friends?  I want to make a Death Star obstacle course for astromechs.    That'd be the ultimate toy to accompany these if you ask me...  lots of ramps, working elevators, tight turns, narrow walkways and such.

The RC-D2's are probably the best gimmick ever in the line...

I haven't read everything in detail here but I'll give my thoughts...

First, army building isn't hoarding...  If you wanna hate someone, hate Hasbro and retail because they're making figures hard to find, not collectors.  Army builders are collectors, nothing more and nothing less.  They buy lots of figures NOBODY gave a **** about and helped you in your collecting life, I guarantee that.  Same with customizers...  They buy up the **** you don't care about and keep the pipes clean, or at least contribute to doing so.

That said...

The guy posted the picture to piss people off IMO, and I don't know how he got them but if it was via unscrupulous means then he's not someone I respect in the slightest.  I coulda gotten a figure at Target free the other day because she just scanned it once but I told her there were two there and she scanned the 2nd.  That's my morality kicking in and while I despise retailers I know stealing is wrong and that outweighs my hate.

Fact is, the guy has them opened so I'm inclined to think he wants them...  Of course, does a loose Utapau Clone sell for any less than a carded one?  I doubt it, so let me see this guy take a new picture of ALL these Cloens 10 years from now, and then I'll believe HE wanted them for himself...  I could easily see him breaking them up into groups and ebaying them to be a twit.  I don't know the guy, don't care either.

I firmly believe the photo was meant to irritate...  Personally I wouldn't post pictures of anything currently shipping to "show off" how many I have while others have none.  Do I want that many Utapau Clones?  You're damn right I do and if I could find (and afford) them you better believe I'd have 90 Utapau Clones all lined up like that too.   Don't hate me because I army build, hate Hasbro and Retail...

If that were even a dedicated army building thread like the "How many ____ do you have?" threads, I'd maybe not feel like this, but the guy started his own thread for that picture if I'm not mistaken, and that's just a middle finger to everyone...  Hell, if I had 90 Utapau Clones right now I'd probably dole out a set number to people on the boards.  One-per to everyone...  I'm sure I'd keep a certain ammount for me and my own collecting happiness but I know if I had 90 I'd be sharing with people a CERTAIN number of them.

Unfortunately, I'm struggling to just get to a number I'm content with...  I've yet to see a UTrooper in stores.  I've gotten mind from incredibly helpful friends.  I still don't even have a "team" though.  Paul knows what I'm saying.

This week's review is, as you can see, the Imperial AT-AT Driver resculpt from the "Hoth Wave".  Clicky the image above for the full review and enjoy!

My brief thoughts...  There's a lot to love with this figure and very little not to.  In 2006 we've seen a severely cut-back level of articulation across the board.  Fewer figures are near super poseable this year than we got in 2005's Revenge of the Sith line.  I for one was quite disappointed seeing that most figure's lacked knee arituclation, including some pretty great potential army builder fodder like Major Derlin and General Veers...  Hell, Bail Organa gets it in 2005 and Derlin and Veers get shorted in 2006?  bull****!

So that brings us to the AT-AT Driver...  The sculpting's fantastic and shows again that what you were happy with from the POTF2 line maybe wasn't as cool as you thought.  The great thing to me though is that, while the TIE Pilot resculpt really put its predecessor to shame, I find that the AT-AT Driver's resculpt blends in better with the POTF2 release figure.  That's a great thing to me though.

The figure comes packed with articulation though, and that is where it truly shines.  Ball/socket knees and shoulders, angle-cut elbow joints, wrists, neck, and waist make for a great poseable army builder.

If Hasbro made the AT-AT Driver's articulation the basic line's MINIMUM standard you'd read a hell of a lot more positive reviews out of me.  The 2004/05 POTC Cantina Wave had that articulation (more or less), and they're great...  Hasbro can make this a standard and if people would voice that they want it enough they'd cave and put out the effort we deserve.

Enjoy your AT-AT Driver people!  He's great, and unfortunately he's not the norm for quality this year, so don't expect too many to rival him for greatness.  Sad, but true.  You'll still get figure's with legs no more articulated than the Han Trenchcoat you bought in 1983...  Sucks ass when you think about it in those terms if you ask me.