The Force Awakens

TFAARMORUP

First Order Flametrooper

Info and Stats
Year:  
2015
MSRP:  
$14.99
Grade:  
3/10 Bantha Skulls
 
Review by: Bret
Review date: 12/12/2017

Here’s a figure that I expected to be a pile of crap.  To be fair, it’s 5POA, so it doesn’t have much going for it.  Frankly, I’m not a fan of paying $5.00 extra for a silly “armor” accessory.  It didn’t work for the Poe Dameron figure, which I reviewed recently.  In this case, I can’t say it’s as bad, but I still think the cost is outrageous.

The Flametrooper was seen at the beginning of the film when Kylo Ren and Phasma led the First Order raid on Jakku.  The flame troopers did what flame troopers do in that scene, so hooray for them.  Hasbro released a basic carded version of the figure, and then did this armor-up version, which looks to be a straight repack, but with the armor thing instead of the build-a-weapon part. 

The figure isn’t bad.  Pretty basic.  An almost all white trooper.  The lack of articulation is a bummer, but the sculpt and shiny bright white armor look pretty good.  The “real” accessories are what make this figure decent.  The backpack fuel tank is removable (leaving a hole in the trooper’s back), while the flamethrower gun hose is also detachable from the tank.  The hose is flexible, allowing for it to work in several positions, although the lack of elbows and wrists on the figure don’t take much advantage of this.  Kind of a cool look is the ability of the trooper to hold the tank in one hand while using the torch in the other.  It reminds me of something an Arnold Schwarzenegger character might do.  It’s a cool figure.  Nothing amazing, but it’s pretty good looking.

The problem with the figure is that you’re paying extra for the same figure, with an extra accessory.  Now this accessory works better with the figure than the gimmick did for Poe Dameron.  That was just dumb.  While not exactly smart, this time at least it can make some kind of sense.  The bright red armor piece looks like it could be an actual thing that a flame trooper might wear to do his thing.  It’s not stealthy, but it seems to give off a kind of warning to others, like bright colors on a poisonous tree frog.  “Hey you, Resistance scum!  I’m here, and I’m gonna burn ya!”  In any case, it’s totally not worth it.  If you like this figure, stick to the basic version.  But if you find this on clearance somewhere, it’s not a bad pickup.

I’d give the figure a 4 or 5, but the extra $5 for the armor piece kills the rating.  It gets a 3.

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