Toy Review: Outland TIE Fighter from Star Wars: Micro Galaxy Squadron by Jazwares

 

   While Galoob's Star Wars Micro Machines line is still one of my favorite toylines ever, I did like Action Fleet as well. I've always been more of a "figure" guy than a vehicle" guy, so I ended up with more of the Action Fleet playsets and figure packs than the vehicle sets, but I still have a decent collection of them from when they first came out. Jazwares' new Star Wars: Micro Galaxy Squadron line definitely had me excited as this truly seemed like a return to what made the 1990s Action Fleet series so fantastic and I was excited to see them in stores. When I finally ran into them, though, I wasn't as taken with them as I thought I would be. I examined all of the ones that I came across but I always ended up passing on them. The character selection seemed a bit limited (a minimum of two figures per vehicle would have been more ideal) and some of the sales methods like blind boxed speeders and chase variants sort of killed my enthusiasm. While out with my family at Target one day I stumbled across the chase Outland TIE Fighter and had to pick it up. The Outland TIE Fighter, flown by Moff Gideon in The Mandalorian, is a cool ship, but knowing that I stumbled upon a chase variant sold me on this one. I believe it's the "chase variant" of Darth Vader's TIE Advanced but there seems to be no rhyme or reason to the distribution of these in terms of case packs, etc. Was it worth it? Let's take a look at the Outland TIE Fighter after the break and find out...

The Facts:

Dimensions: 3 7/8ths inches tall, 2 7/8ths inches wide

Articulation: Button on bottom raises seat, hinged cockpit, hinged upper and lower wings.

Accessories: 2 wings, Moff Gideon minifigure, cape for Moff Gideon.

Non-Scalper Price: $17 dollars

The Positives:

* The Outland TIE Fighter has the ability to fold the wings up and down so, when unfolded, it looks like a standard TIE Fighter. The ships are smaller than the standard Action Fleet ships but they all do seem to be more in scale with one another than Action Fleet (which often had large ships like the Millennium Falcon the same size as an A-Wing). The sculpt and paint details are excellent and this is a pretty satisfying TIE Fighter. 

* The wings are hinged in two places to allow the wings to fold up and down. The idea behind the Outland TIE Fighter is that the Empire designed them later in the Galactic Civil War in order to allow TIE Fighters to land in places where there weren't designated Imperial facilities or ships. The wings fold up and down easily and it's kind of fun to mess around with them and try different configurations. 

* The wings are removable as well. So many classic Star Wars TIE Fighter toys have had this feature so it's kind of cool to see it here, too. Battle damage!

* The cockpit looks really nice. You can see the lasers below the window (which is transparent) and there are lots of other little details present. 

* The rear of the TIE shows off the engine and more of the sculpted details on the ship. 

* The canopy opens, allowing you to place the included figure inside. There is a seat inside the cockpit and the figure can stay inside quite securely. There's even a button you can press on the underside of the cockpit which pushes the seat up, releasing a figure stuck too tightly inside. 

* The Outland TIE Fighter actually has landing gear. Rather than actually built it into the ship, though, Jazwares included a stand with the three landing legs attached. The ship's cockpit cradles inside the landing legs. 

* This set includes Moff Gideon. He's a small figure but the sculpt is pretty decent for the size. The paint applications are neat and clean, too. He even has a removable cape. 

* The microfigure has hinged legs and shoulders which move together (the legs move as one, the arms move as one, etc.). To get Moff Gideon to sit you'll have to remove his cape.


The Negatives:

* The joints are kind of rubbery and on my figure they were really stuck. So stuck on the legs that at first I wasn't sure if they actually were supposed to move. 

* The landing gear as a separate stand is a neat idea but the legs are all out of whack on mine. They're either bent or the base isn't glued straight into the plastic base. 

      The Outland TIE Fighter with Moff Gideon is a pretty solid set. Considering the price, around $16-$17 dollars, it's not a bad value. The sculpt is excellent, there are some functional features like the folding wings, removable wings, opening cockpit, plus the little stand and the miniature Moff Gideon. It doesn't feel as solid as an Action Fleet vehicle but I think the sculpt is definitely more accurate. Overall, I'm giving this one a Great rating. It's a lot of fun and definitely a vehicle we haven't seen multiple times in other Star Wars toy lines. I'm not sure that I plan on grabbing many more but I did grab one other vehicle. I'll get around to reviewing it in the next week or two, so stay tuned!

   For more TIE Fighters I've reviewed out a few Micro Machines versions such as the launching version of Vader's TIE Fighter from Galoob's Star Destroyer/ Space Fortress Transforming Action Set, a TIE Striker from the Assault on Scariff set, a Battle Damaged First Order TIE Fighter from the First Order Star Destroyer playset, a TIE Bomber from the Mandalorian Melee set, and the Black Series First Order TIE Fighter, and the Micro Force Millennium Falcon vs. TIE Fighter set. 

   If you're looking for more of Moff Gideon check out my review of the Black Series Moff Gideon and the Retro Collection Moff Gideon.