"General Solo, is your strike team assembled?"
The Star Wars Black Series Rebel Commando, as seen in the Battle of Endor from Return of the Jedi, is a July 2023 release and part of the Return of the Jedi 40th Anniversary. It is released on a Kenner-inspired backing card using the original artwork for the Rebel Commando and replicating other design principles including the coloured nameplate and figure backing, the twin tramlines and even the Kenner logo. The rear of the card also has a checklist of other releases.
The figure is entirely new and is fully pinless with the joints disguised within the sculpt of the figure which vastly improves the overall look. The base body includes a pair of camouflage trousers and brown boots. The camouflage pattern is blended and is impressive although it doesn't carry on into the joints so any bend to the knee shows the grey plastic underneath.
Our Commando is then wearing a simple grey shirt, over which is a separate vest piece in softer plastic. Over this sits a bandoleer and round the waist is a belt with a trio of pouches, yet no holster. While much of the figure is cast in base colour, where paint is used to bring out details such as the vest insignia and the ammunition on the bandoleer it is done so neatly.
The Commando also comes with a separate backpack cast in brown plastic. It also features a piece of rubber tubing and silver painted detailing on the clasp and at the bottom right of the bag. The straps are a softer plastic to fit around the figure, the fit is OK but perhaps a little loose and the straps do tend to slip off the shoulders a bit too easily.
The head of the Commando is wearing the Rebel helmet with a three-tone green finish and silver ‘scratches’ added to create weathering. The helmet is finished with a strap under the chin, framing the face fully which then allows for the face plate to be changed. Getting the younger face off is not easy and I really struggled until I heated up the plastic in some warm water. Once off the face plates are shaped with a socket that then lines up to the head. Both heads are great in terms of likeness, with the older head more recognisable as Nick Sant (or Captain Rex if you subscribe to that ret-con). While I was hopeful the face plates would also work with the Hoth Trooper - sadly Hasbro hasn’t made that work and the two Rebel Troop builders are not compatible.
Weapons include the A280 Blaster Rifle and the DH-17 Blaster, both carried forward from the Hoth Trooper. There are no paint apps on either weapon, they come in the base grey cast plastic only. They fit into the Commando’s hands with left and right-hand options and two-handed poses thanks to the articulation. Neither weapon can be holstered.
Articulation is 19 points in total and comes with all the modern additions including the butterfly shoulder and the dual joint neck. All of the articulation works as it should and allows the Commando to achieve many of the poses you would want including kneeling positions and weapon firing poses. My one issue - and this may be restricted to my figure - but the right leg is a few mm longer than the left giving him a lop-sided pose unless you step the right leg forward.
The figure has been designed to replicate the character of Nick Sant with the grey colouring of the shirt and vest, the bandoleer, and the backpack. While it offers some variant options, it is not as extensive in variation as the Hoth Trooper. Further Rebel Commando’s were wearing a camo shirt or long coat with a different green backpack, so while this is sold as an army builder it only has the two looks with some variation if you leave off the bandoleer and/or backpack. While never named as a Deluxe release, the pricing of the Rebel Commando is that of the larger format figures yet the size or contents do not really reflect that categorisation with the camo paint being talked about as the key reason for the higher price. Had Hasbro included a variant backpack, a soft goods trenchcoat and maybe a different vest then the hefty price tag of £30-£35 would have felt better value for money and reached the standard set 3-years ago by the Hoth Trooper - and had they made the face plates interchangeable with that figure, then this figure would be even more desirable than it already is.
Value for Money aspect aside, this is an awesome figure with excellent sculpt, articulation, paintwork and overall execution of all of these into an impressive Troop Builder. It will be interesting now to see if the Rebel Commando will get a standard Galaxy Collection release, and if we do will that be packaged and priced as a Deluxe, or released as a single standard figure?
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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...