The Dark Times Imperial Officer from Andor is a Walmart Exclusive in the US, and sold via the Fan Channel here in the UK, including at Game where it received a hefty discount. The addition of the Dark Times wording is likely to avoid confusion with the Target Exclusive also labelled as an Imperial Officer from Ferrix - but who is actually more accurately an Imperial Riot Trooper. The Dark Times Imperial Officer comes in a window box with the deep orange accent colour of the Andor figures. He is number 02 in the line.
Out of the box and the Imperial Officer is an almost entirely black cast figure with paint apps added on the belt, rank badge, and information canisters. The body borrows heavily from existing Imperial Officers like Tarkin with the legs and arms a direct reuse. The torso and skirt piece appear new, despite being very similar to the existing Officer body. This new chest piece is a glossier finish with stitching sculpted down the sides and a panel on the torso that looks like it should hold the Insignia. That rank insignia is displayed on the included rain cape which is another new piece. It is cast in a softer black rubber and entirely covers the neck & shoulders of the figure, around both arms and around the back of the legs. It can only be removed if you popped off the head.
The head is a new sculpt and is cast complete with an officer's cap. The moustachioed officer is based on one of the Andor Imperials and photo-real technology is utilised to enhance the likeness. The glossy skin tone persists.
Articulation runs in at 17 points with the legs carrying over the double-joint knees from the older figure. The new torso also benefits from the dual joint neck. Articulation itself is restricted by the heavy cape although you can move the arms out from beneath it, and work the legs within the width of its base. The officer is armed with a single blaster, an SE-14R, as used by the Deathtroopers from Rogue One. Like most Black Series weapons at the moment it is cast in its base black colour, with no added paint detail.
While it is always nice to add more Imperials to a collection, an officer in a big cape to stop him from getting wet was perhaps not the immediate choice for collectors when they watched Andor and considering we are still (at the time of writing) missing key Imperial characters like Dedra Meero and Major Partagaz. The figure feels OK for an exclusive considering it won't be for everyone, but the fact it is hitting major deep discounts shows that it was perhaps not the best choice as part of the launch batch of the Andor collection.
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About Me : As a child of the 70's and 80's I grew up in a golden age for action figures and in my youth bought and sold myself through collections of Star Wars, G.I. Joe (Action Force) and M.A.S.K. while also dabbling in He-Man, Transformers and Ghostbusters. Roll forward and I am now reliving that Youth with the action figures of today and am a collector and fan of the larger 6-8 inch figures from my favourite movie and TV licences - including the ones mentioned above, but also the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Doctor Who and the Aliens. I launched The Mephitsu Archives in 2015 with a view of creating a UK focused site or these figures where fans can pick up the latest action figure news, read reviews and get information on where to buy their figures and what is currently on store shelves. I hope I am delivering that to you guys...