Sunday, October 1, 2017

Road to the Last Jedi: Admiral Ackbar & First Order Officer from Star Wars: The Black Series Phase III by Hasbro

   It's very difficult for me to be 100% certain when it comes to Star Wars characters but I'm pretty sure that Admiral Ackbar is my favorite Star Wars character. I've been looking forward to his appearance in the Black Series for a long time, although I have been hoping that we would see a Return of the Jedi version first. Due to Hasbro's strong marketing of the Sequel Trilogy, though (which makes perfect sense) we have the Admiral in his outfit from the upcoming The Last Jedi. Yes, Ackbar's outfit in the Last Jedi does indeed differ from his The Force Awakens outfit. In this new Toys R Us exclusive 2-pack we not only get Admiral Gial Ackbar but also a generic First Order Officer. While some people have tried to identify this figure as Lt. Dopheld Mitaka from TFA, this doesn't seem to be the case. The headsculpt seems different and the armband rank identifies this as a Captain, so this is either truly just a generic officer or a character we will see in The Last Jedi. Let's take a closer look at this very cool new 2-pack after the break...



 The Facts: Admiral Ackbar

Height: 6 1/4 inches

Articulation:  Swivel/hinge ankles, double hinged knees, swivel thighs, balljointed hips, balljointed mid-torso, swivel/hinge shoulders, swivel/hinge elbows, swivel/hinge wrists, and a hinged neck w/ opening jaw.


Accessories: Blaster pistol




 The Facts: First Order Officer

Height: 6 inches

 Articulation: Swivel/hinge ankles, double hinged knees, swivel thighs, balljointed hips, balljointed mid-torso, swivel/hinge shoulders, swivel/hinge elbows, swivel/hinge wrists, hinged neck, and a balljointed head.


Accessories: Cap and blaster pistol.


Non-Scalper Price: $40 for the set.

 The Positives:

* Both Admiral Ackbar and the First Order Officer have some excellent articulation. Since the First Order Officer is a simple head swap of the Finn in First Order Disguise figure, his articulation works just as well here as it does on that figure. Admiral Ackbar is a completely new figure and his articulation is incredible, too. You'll have no trouble in putting this Mon Calamari master of disaster into plenty of First Order crushing poses. I imagine that when it comes down to it, Ackbar probably can take fools out left and right with his superior hand to hand combat skills. These are two very durable and well made action figures.


* Ackbar has a very traditional military looking uniform that does differ from his appearance in both ROTJ and TFA. The tunic seems to have a strip of cloth that covers over his belt, making for an interesting look. He's also sporting a Resistance badge, clearly denoting him as an admiral.


* The headsculpt is excellent. Hasbro does an incredible job on their non-human portraits and Ackbar is one of the best. The paintwork accents the details perfectly, too.

* Admiral Ackbar features something fairly unique for this line: An articulated jaw. While it limits the head movement (there is no real left or right movement here) it works great and makes this a much more fun figure to pose and display.


* The detail work on Ackbar's arms and hands are incredible, too. This is some of the best work in the Black Series.


 * Admiral Ackbar includes what appears to be a modified DH-17 blaster. The handle seems to be angled back further while the barrel has a slightly different shape. It's a great looking blaster and fits in Ackbar's right hand perfectly.


* The First Order Officer does indeed appear to be a generic First Order captain rather than any specific character. The figure's body exactly the same as Finn in First Order Disguise but features a slightly different uniform color. All of the details present on Finn's costume are included here including the code cylinders on the chest and the holster attached to the belt. 

* The head sculpt on the First Order Officer is unique with some very sharp features. He definitely has the look of what you might imagine as a stereotypical First Order officer: Pale and gaunt with a very short haircut, thick eyebrows, and a sour expression. Something about him makes me think of a younger, scrawnier Vinnie Jones.


*  Similar to Finn, the First Order Officer includes a removal officer's cap. It's appropriately sized, nicely painted, and fits right on top of his head.


* The First Order Captains wear the name of an Imperial hero, Dillon, on their uniforms. Written in aurebesh, the writing is very neat and clean. This serves, presumably, as both a source of inspiration and a rank insignia for the First Order officers.

* The figure also inclues a silver and black SE-44C blaster pistol. This is a slightly modified version of the pistol the First Order Stromtroopers carry. It looks great and can be stowed away in the holster on the figure's belt. The sculpt definitely is a bit different from the blaster that comes with Finn, too.
 The Negatives:


* Like with Finn (since the two figures share a body sculpt) these code cylinders on the officer's chest look a bit under-detailed. The sculpt is too soft and the paintwork seems a bit sloppy.


 * There is also a really messy neckline here. The paint just doesn't seem like it was applied very cleanly.
On his own the First Order officer might be a bit underwhelming (if not still a decent figure) but, paired together with Admiral Ackbar Hasbro has delivered us a very cool two-pack. This set managed to stay a secret right up until Force Friday II, something that rarely happens with new Star Wars merchandise. This is a Great set and while I know some folks will disappointed to have to buy another figure to get Ackbar (or that they'll have to end up with multiple Ackbars to army build the officers), hopefully things will even themselves out and folks can just be happy with two pretty nice figures.

There haven't been too many Admiral Ackbar releases lately. The only other review on the site I've done is the Hero Mashers Admiral Ackbar.
This is the first generic First Order Officer figure I've looked at, too!


If you're looking for more Star Wars: The Black Series action figures, check out the following:

442nd Siege Battalion Clone Trooper, 212th Attack Battalion Utapau Trooper, Coruscant Guard ---(Phase II), and 501st Legion Clone Trooper 4 pack
Ahsoka Tano 
AT-AT Pilot 
Baze Malbus
Captain Cassian Andor (Eadu) 
Captain Poe Dameron
C-3PO
C-3PO (Resistance Base)
Captain Phasma
Chewbacca
Chirrut Imwe 
Clone Captain Rex (HasCon Exclusive)
Clone Commander Gree
Constable Zuvio
Darth Revan 
Darth Vader (Emperor's Wrath)
Director Krennic
Finn (First Order Disguise)
Finn (FN-2187)
Finn (Jakku)
First Order Flametrooper
First Order General Hux
First Order Snowtrooper
First Order Snowtrooper Officer
First Order Special Forces TIE Fighter
First Order Stormtrooper
First Order Stormtrooper Executioner 
First Order TIE Fighter Pilot
General Leia Organa
Grand Admiral Thrawn (SDCC Exclusive)
Guavian Enforcer
Han Solo 
Hera Syndulla
Imperial AT-ACT Driver
Imperial Death Trooper
Imperial Death Trooper, Captain Cassian Andor, and Sergeant Jyn Erso (Jedha) 3 pack
Imperial Hovertank Pilot 
Imperial Shock Trooper 
Imperial Royal Guard
Jango Fett
K-2SO
Kanan Jarrus
Kylo Ren 
Kylo Ren (SDCC 2016)
Kylo Ren (The Last Jedi) 
Kylo Ren (Starkiller Base)
Lando Calrissian
Luke Skywalker 
Luke Skywalker (Jedi Master) 
Maz Kanata
Obi-Wan Kenobi (SDCC 2016)
Phase 1 Clone Trooper Commander, Phase II Clone Trooper, Imperial Stormtrooper, and First Order ---Stormtrooper Officer four pack
Poe Dameron
Poe Dameron and First Order Riot Control Stormtrooper
Princess Leia Organa 
Qui-Gon Jinn
R2-A3, R5-K6, and R2-F2
Resistance Trooper
Rey (Jakku) & BB-8 
Rey (Jedi Training)
Rey (Starkiller Base) 
Rey's Speeder (Jakku)
Sabine Wren
Sandtrooper Sergeant, Crimson Stormtrooper, Lieutenant OXIXO, and R2-Q5
Scarif Stormtrooper
Scarif Stormtrooper Squad Leader 
Sergeant Jyn Erso (Eadu)
Sergeant Jyn Erso (Jedha)
Snowtrooper 
Tusken Raider 
X-34 Landspeeder & Luke Skywalker (SDCC Exclusive) 
X-Wing Pilot Asty 

4 comments:

  1. I don't think it's Mitaka. Mitaka had more hair.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I don't, either. I'm really curious if this is indeed a "generic" officer or if we will see this guy in TLJ. Will we actually see Admiral Ackbar engaged in ground combat or even hand to fin combat? Let's hope!

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  2. We do see this officer in The Last Jedi. Without spoiling anything, he's seen briefly with Hux and another, older officer on the Finalizer's bridge at the beginning. I believe he's played by Patrick O'Kane.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I noticed this too! He even has a name in the Visual Dictionary. I may try to add a few updates into this review.

      Delete

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