While I have a pretty broad focus when it comes to 3 3/4" figures, I've always been a sucker for trooper variants. Given this, I was incredibly excited to hear that Target would be stocking an exclusive trooper pack featuring half-a-dozen Imperial soldiers from Solo: A Star Wars Story. Mine finally arrived this week, and has quickly become one of my favourite offerings from Hasbro in the modern era.
Featuring six figures in total (including four new brand new figures - three of which are character debuts) this pack is every army-builder's dream come true. The clear highlight of the pack is Mudtrooper Han - a wonderfully sculpted figure that features a cape, blaster rifle, removable goggles, and a breathing mask that clips ever-so-pleasingly onto Han's face. In fact, the goggles and mask fit so well that the figure can easily (once its face is covered) double as a generic Mudtrooper - perfect for those planning on purchasing more than one of these sets. In fact, the additional Imperial Mudtrooper that comes with the pack appears to be exactly this: the Han figure with the goggles and breathing mask permanently glued into place, along with a slightly different paint scheme and a modified rifle.
The third character debut in this pack is the Imperial Patrol Trooper. While only a blink-and-you'll-miss-him character from the film, he's still a highly desirable addition for any Star Wars military completionist like myself. Though not posed in a particularly dynamic way, he still comes with a sidearm that slips nicely into the working holster at his hip.
Also included is a repack of the Mimban Stormtrooper from Wave 1 of the Force Link 2.0 line. Like the Rangetrooper in the "Mission on Vandor-1" pack, this is an excellent choice of repack - being a character that many collectors struggled to find during its single-carded release. In fact, since managing to nab one straight off the shelf-stockers trolley on release day, I've yet to see another Mimban Stormtrooper in the wild.
While technically a new figure, the fifth addition to the pack - the Stormtrooper Squad Leader - is a clever kitbash of the body of the Mimban Stormtrooper and the head and pauldron from the Rogue One Stormtrooper. What this gives us, however, is possibly the nicest, crispest sculpt of a stormtrooper that we've ever seen in the 3 3/4" line. Sure, he only has seven points-of-articulation (POA) - but as a display piece, he's second-to-none.
Rounding out the pack is a simple 5POA TIE pilot. He doesn't have a whole lot going for him, and most collectors will already own this character in a much more highly-articulated form. That being said, he features a heightened level of detailing that sets him apart from previous releases, and still makes him incredibly useful as diorama filler.
My hope is that this pack sells well (at least, much better than Target's last straight-to-clearance 3 3/4" exclusive) and sends the right kind of message to Hasbro that we need plenty more packs like this!
