plasticfetish
09-30-2006, 03:29 PM
Now with New and Improved Force Hat!
Though the latest wave of The Saga Collection figures (#044-#052) has a few decent figures in it, there's still a big focus on revisiting past ideas and tweaking them just a little. The new (#045) Darth Vader is a classic example of how Hasbro seems to love working and reworking old ideas.
Here's a quick review...
How's the packaging? Nothing special here, but it's nice. Typical TSC design, with a great background image, etc. (It's always hard to stay excited about the current design when you're being fed images of the next "big thing.")
So, how does the figure look? The older POTJ "Emperor's Wrath" figure is one of my favorites. When I saw that Hasbro would be taking another crack at this idea, part of me just yawned (*yawn*), but another part was happy, because it is such a cool figure, and it's nice to give others that missed out the first time a shot at owning one.
So... it looks great. The main idea from the older figure is still there -- the transparent helmet that reveals the skull, the transparent arms, and what is basically a good solid neutrally posed Darth Vader figure. What's a little new, is the color of Vader's skull under the helmet -- this time it's silver-ish, instead of white (glow-in-the-dark looking), which I'll admit, I don't like nearly as much. Another new idea is the removable right hand that reveals some mechanical bits. I's a nice touch, and it looks great.
Vader also comes with a lightsaber, which I still think is pointless for this figure (but, whatever), and some force lightning that tangles around his head. The purple plastic Force mess ends up looking more like a kind of Silly String prank gone wrong, but it's not that big of a deal.
How does the toy feel? It's a good solid figure, made just as nicely as the older Emperor's Wrath Vader. The plastic is solid, the joints are nice and tight. It's a good toy.
How about play value? Given that this figure has incorporated some new features, (the wires when you remove the right hand), I'd say that this version is perhaps even a little better as far as play value goes. Which means, yes, I'm actually saying that Hasbro managed to improve on a great idea.
Would I recommend that you buy it? If you have the older POTJ version, then you may not be terribly interested in this one. Frankly, I love the older version, and though this one is slightly "improved," it's not so different to really warrant a purchase. If you're a big fan of Vader figures, and need every version of the Dark Lord of the Sith in plastic form, then this will be a worthy addition to your collection. If you weren't lucky enough to get this figure the first time around, and don't want to hunt down the POTJ version on the secondary market, then you are exactly who this figure was made for.
As a matter of fact, I bought this Vader so that I could hand it over to my son, who's been begging me for years to find him an "Emperor's Wrath" Vader. Now he's got one, and say what you will, but Hasbro isn't completely wrong when they do these reissues of older ideas.
Photos of Darth Vader (TSC #045) can be found >> here (http://photos.sirstevesguide.com/showgallery.php?cat=4850) in the Database.
Though the latest wave of The Saga Collection figures (#044-#052) has a few decent figures in it, there's still a big focus on revisiting past ideas and tweaking them just a little. The new (#045) Darth Vader is a classic example of how Hasbro seems to love working and reworking old ideas.
Here's a quick review...
How's the packaging? Nothing special here, but it's nice. Typical TSC design, with a great background image, etc. (It's always hard to stay excited about the current design when you're being fed images of the next "big thing.")
So, how does the figure look? The older POTJ "Emperor's Wrath" figure is one of my favorites. When I saw that Hasbro would be taking another crack at this idea, part of me just yawned (*yawn*), but another part was happy, because it is such a cool figure, and it's nice to give others that missed out the first time a shot at owning one.
So... it looks great. The main idea from the older figure is still there -- the transparent helmet that reveals the skull, the transparent arms, and what is basically a good solid neutrally posed Darth Vader figure. What's a little new, is the color of Vader's skull under the helmet -- this time it's silver-ish, instead of white (glow-in-the-dark looking), which I'll admit, I don't like nearly as much. Another new idea is the removable right hand that reveals some mechanical bits. I's a nice touch, and it looks great.
Vader also comes with a lightsaber, which I still think is pointless for this figure (but, whatever), and some force lightning that tangles around his head. The purple plastic Force mess ends up looking more like a kind of Silly String prank gone wrong, but it's not that big of a deal.
How does the toy feel? It's a good solid figure, made just as nicely as the older Emperor's Wrath Vader. The plastic is solid, the joints are nice and tight. It's a good toy.
How about play value? Given that this figure has incorporated some new features, (the wires when you remove the right hand), I'd say that this version is perhaps even a little better as far as play value goes. Which means, yes, I'm actually saying that Hasbro managed to improve on a great idea.
Would I recommend that you buy it? If you have the older POTJ version, then you may not be terribly interested in this one. Frankly, I love the older version, and though this one is slightly "improved," it's not so different to really warrant a purchase. If you're a big fan of Vader figures, and need every version of the Dark Lord of the Sith in plastic form, then this will be a worthy addition to your collection. If you weren't lucky enough to get this figure the first time around, and don't want to hunt down the POTJ version on the secondary market, then you are exactly who this figure was made for.
As a matter of fact, I bought this Vader so that I could hand it over to my son, who's been begging me for years to find him an "Emperor's Wrath" Vader. Now he's got one, and say what you will, but Hasbro isn't completely wrong when they do these reissues of older ideas.
Photos of Darth Vader (TSC #045) can be found >> here (http://photos.sirstevesguide.com/showgallery.php?cat=4850) in the Database.