My Reactions To Yesterday’s May The Fourth Vintage Collection Reveals

Posted by Chris on 05/05/22 at 07:05 AM Category: Vintage Collection

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It seems a lot of people are generally down on yesterday's Vintage Collection reveals. With Hasbro confirming their presence at Celebration later in the month, it's natural that some of the juicier items will be saved for that convention. Having said that, I'm pretty happy overall with yesterday's reveals. Let's get to them.

Mandalorian Super Commando

Okay, after the last round of reveals I said I was starting to get a little "Mando-ed out". We've had so many different figures in Mandalorian armor recently that fans were starting to lose track. This is especially true since, of the four, there are two pairs of similar figures, but i have to say I love this one. I can just picture the shelf display with VC201 - Darth Maul being flanked by the recently announced Mandalorian Super Commando Captain and a squad of these guys. I might get a case.

Anakin Skywalker (Padawan)

This is a repack of 2013's Black Series 3.75" #03 - Anakin Skywalker except that it adds Photo Real paint applications and Anakin's Episode II cloak. This is a serious lesson in how important paint applications are. I thought it was the head sculpt on the 2013 release that was terrible, but it turns out that it was the paint apps. These Photo Real paint apps make a world of difference. It looks great. I'm going to get a couple extras as I always do with definitive versions of core characters.

332nd Ahsoka's Clone Trooper

Meh. I'm officially over removable-helmet Phase II clones based on the VC45 - Clone Trooper sculpt. The oversized buckets on this spindly buck are reminiscent of Maurice Tillet, after whom Shrek is rumored to be modeled. I'll get a couple for photo gallery purposes, but I'm not going to go crazy on this one, but everyone else will. This is going to be an easy sell out.

Stormtrooper Commander

I don't know what's not to like here. This is an update to 2007's Thirtieth Anniversary Collection Stormtrooper Commander which was a GameStop exclusive (that usually required a bribe to acquire). This time it comes on the definitive VC140 - Stormtrooper buck with rocker ankles. I'm good for three of four. What is most noteworthy about this release is the somewhat paradigm-busting way in which the logo is represented on the card. I would say that I would love it if Hasbro updated VC100 - Starkiller and VC194 - Shadow Stormtrooper to this card look for a consistent display, but, oh yeah, they don't consider the package to be part of the product anymore.

Heavy Assault Stormtrooper

The press photos that were released yesterday showed a prototype using the old pre-rocker ankle VC140 mold. It has been confirmed that the production Heavy Assault Stormtrooper will have rocker ankles (thank goodness). I'm definitely thrilled this figure is getting released, but I'm a little disappointed in the shield. It should be further back on the cannon near the foregrip, and it shouldn't be concave, but it's far from a deal breaker for me. Plus if I get adventurous, I think I can customize a more accurate placement for the shield.

Clone Trooper 4-Pack

Once again, this is like getting socks for Christmas. I never would have campaigned for this troop builder set, but the line needs it. It's good for fans to have access to these army builders, but I'm a little perplexed by the inclusion of the Lieutenant. Both the Lieutenant and Sergeant have been previously released on the VC45 buck, but the Captain and Commander have not. It feels like we should have gotten one of the latter two instead of a second crack at the LT. Also, while the gruff head sculpt on the Lieutenant is cool, it's actually more befitting of a Sergeant and not a latte-sipping officer. [Editor’s Note: I prefer cappuccino.]

Be sure to check back at 1PM ET today when we will have the preorder links for yesterday's reveals posted.