The Good: Good sculpt, Decent accessories, Good balance
The Bad: Low collectibility, Esoteric subject
The Basics: A reasonable approximation of one of the Imperial officers with a speaking part in The Empire Strikes Back, the Captain Piett figure still is average.
When it comes to Star Wars action figures, one can seldom go wrong with having a slew of Imperials. Even so, while one's rebel forces might be hopelessly outnumbered by Imperial forces and aliens, there are some toys that are clearly made for the geeky fans who know all of the minutia about the series (as I am fortunate enough to suggest I am!). So if your child asks for the Captain Piett figure, you should ask them what is going on. Piett is hardly an indispensable character or action figure and given the legions of other figures on the market, it is hard to not wonder who this figure is actually for.
For those unfamiliar with Captain Piett, he is the Imperial officer aboard the star destroyer Executor, throughout The Empire Strikes Back (reviewed here!). Captain Piett is promoted to Admiral when Admiral Ozzel approaches Hoth too closely and the Rebels are alerted to the presence of the imperial armada. Managing to survive the pursuit of the Millennium Falcon, Piett actually makes it to The Return Of The Jedi, where he is seen briefly before his star destroyer is obliterated.
The 4" Captain Piett figure is decent and fleshes out the overall Star Wars universe, but it is hardly an indispensable or even exciting action figure.
Basics
Captain Piett is a human Imperial officer, seen on the command deck of the Executor throughout The Empire Strikes Back. The figure stands 3 7/8" tall to the top of his hatted head. Captain Piett is dressed in a gray Imperial uniform with the usual rank adornments. The outfit is clean, which makes sense because Captain Piett is an Imperial officer who delegates much to subordinates. It is almost surprising he bothers with wearing gloves as he does nothing in the film that even insinuates getting his hands dirty! The Captain Piett figure is cast in monotonal white fleshtones, lacking realistic shading, but with impressive-enough sculpting details. The figure is made entirely of hard plastic.
This toy is a decent sculpt, looking precisely like the imperial officer, despite lacking strong facial detailing. Captain Piett is fairly bland in his coloring detail, as far as the skin tones go. There is no sense of shading to face, including the lips which are uncolored. The fingers are molded to hold either of his accessories in either hand. The figure has enough detailing to make it worthwhile. The uniform has the imperial cylinders that Piett had tucked into the chest of his uniform present as well as the rank insignias. The silver accents on the top of Piett's hat is a nice touch as well.
Accessories
Captain Piett, simple officer rising up the ranks quickly, comes packed with two accessories, despite the fact that he was shown with none in the film. Captain Piett comes with a baton and blaster pistol. The baton is unique to Captain Piett and the blaster pistol was the same that was used with the Grand Moff Tarkin figure that was released at the same time. Piett's baton is a simple stick with a pointed end that it two inches long and made of black plastic. It is light on surface details, but given that it is not meant to bear any resemblance to anything in the film, it looks fine and authoritarian.
As well, Captain Piett also comes with a little blaster pistol. The three-quarter inch long choking hazard fits in either of Captain Piett's hands. This is a monolithically molded black plastic blaster that is simple and looks a little large for his hand. Still, the surface detailings, like the scope and ribbing on the barrel are pretty cool and this looks wicked in Captain Piett's hand!
As part of the Power Of The Force toy line, Captain Piett was given a Freeze Frame action slide. This is a very simple slide (like for a slide projector) which features a frame of Captain Piett on the command deck of the Executor!
Playability
The four inch toy line was designed for play and Captain Piett is fair in that regard. The figure is poorly articulated, but he does have decent balance. Captain Piett lacks significant articulation to make him a big fighter, but he is accurate for the officer who appeared in the film! When the figure is posed flatfooted, he is solid as far as the balance goes! He comes with only six points of articulation, all of which are simple swivel joints. He has joints at the groin socket, shoulders, neck, and waist. The elbows do not extend, so all arm posing is straight-armed. In addition to standing fine when flatfooted, he may be posed in more outlandish poses on playsets because of the holes in the soles of his feet. They may be stuck in pegs on various playsets. With those, he may stand even better.
Collectibility
Captain Piett is part of the Power Of The Force four-inch series, a series of Star Wars action figures that was incredibly common. Captain Piett was overproduced, though he appeared on only one card. Still it seems to be one of the harder Power Of The Force figures to find. Even so, probably because the figure is so esoteric, Captain Piett is a poor investment and it may often be found inexpensively and might well be better for fans looking to play than make money eventually off it.
Overview
Captain Piett is a decent action figure despite the fact that Piett was a bit role in the film and a fairly inactive one at that. But given that this is the only way to get Captain Piett on his own, it remains a decent Star Wars action figure and one that those looking to complete their Empire are going to want.
For other Power Of The Force figures from The Empire Strikes Back, please check out my reviews of:
Hoth Luke Skywalker
Yoda
Luke Skywalker In Dagobah Fatigues
4-LOM
Hoth Han Solo
Dengar
Deluxe Hoth Rebel Soldier
Mynock Hunt 3-pack
Deluxe Probe Droid
R2-D2
5.5/10
For other toy reviews, please be sure to visit my index page by clicking here!
© 2011, 2009 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
| | |
No comments:
Post a Comment