One of the stranger choices by Hasbro in recent times, this 2-figure set has a lot going against it.  It would have been awesome if this set never saw the light of day.  But unfortunately, here we are, having acquired this nonsense at Five Below.  Of course, it was five and not below, but that’s still better than the $14.99 at release. 

First of all, these figures are basically repacks of the TFA basic versions.  You’ll probably notice some slight differences since they were produced in different factories (you can thank the minds at Bantha Skull for planting the seeds of this business decision in the minds of those at Hasbro that make such manufacturing decisions), but for all intents and purposes, the differences are irrelevant (other than Finn’s jacket color, which is strange.).

Second, the character choices are not good, for two reasons.  This pairing would seem to make sense at first, as they had an adversarial relationship and then met each other I close proximity to the climax of the film.  However, they don’t really face off in combat like the set would imply.  Finn merely helps in kidnapping her, briefly enough to have her spill the beans on how to deactivate the shields on the most massive weapon ever built, and then he dumps her in the trash compactor.  This isn’t exactly a Battle Royale for the ages.  Also, both of these characters had multiple releases in this same outfit, in both 5POA and in the Black Series, so getting them again in this format is pretty lame.

Third, this set was released as part of the Rogue One line.  Now, there are, of course, a few examples of figures released in the recent film-linked line looks that are not from that film.  But Rogue One was so woefully underrepresented, that giving a precious 2-pack slot to TFA, just to repack a couple of fairly dull figures, is upsetting.  The set came out in a wave with the much-wanted Baze Malbus (along with a Storm Trooper), which helped round out the Rogue One strike team.  Almost any other pair of figures from Rogue One would have been preferable than Phasma/Finn, even a Tarkin/Vader. 

Finn is Finn. You’ve seen this figure more times than you’d care to at this point.  Not much to add here.  He’s not a bad figure at all, save for the hole in his back to accommodate the accessory with which he was packed for the basic line.  In the case of this version, his jacket is painted a different shade than all the other versions, which I think can be chalked up to the different factory.  Other than that, it is what it is.

Then we have Phasma, a near-straight repack of the TFA basic version.  The figure itself isn’t bad at all.  It looks good, with a very nice sculpt, and some simple but accurately applied paint detailing.  Like FO stormtroopers, Phasma has the “hip-notch” holster, so her weapon can be stowed at her side.  The plastic cape looks nice, and is removable.  The joints are solid, she holds the weapon fairly well (sans THWG), and she looks good on the shelf.  One thing that my sample has an issue with is standing up straight.  She has to be pose hunched over a bit, which is annoying.  I assume this is mostly due to the center of balance needing to accommodate the huge accessory.

Phasma comes with a gigantic back-pack style double rocket launcher as an accessory.  It’s actually fairly impressive, and I even took shots from 4 different angles, so I spent some time on it.  It’s obviously completely off screen, and therefore of little to no use for the collector, but it actually is a pretty impressive piece.  The launchers are button-activated, as opposed to the much more common method of activating by flicking the back of the missile.  Phasma is also well-balanced while carrying the weapon, which may explain why she tends to be a little shaky without it.

I’m not a fan of the set by any stretch.  The figures themselves are not bad, they’re just incredibly boring and over-played.  The accessory is impressive, but it’s just not enough to buy this set if you have these figures already.  I’m dinging the score for lack of originality and for taking up a valuable Rogue One slot.  That’s just a shame.