









Packaging - ***

The box was pretty beat up on the one I received, but it's no big deal for me since these are all openers. If you do want to keep the box for later storage or sale, you'll be happy to know it's all very collector friendly, and you won't have to damage anything to get the pieces out. With this big of a box, I'd like more text and graphics of course, but it's a minor nit. Even as beat up as mine was, the figure inside the interior plastic trays was perfectly safe. Sculpting - ***1/2

Like most of Kotobukiya's work, there's a nice realistic level of detail here, not so much as to be busy, but enough to make the Pilot look like an actual character. I wasn't too sure about the pose at first, but it grew on me over time. Koto has given you two sets of arms, so the Pilot can either be posed holding his blaster in both hands, or pointing it at some unlikely individual. There's nice detail work on the helmet and chest plate, although I'm sure that major fans of the films will be able to find inaccuracies. For me, they looked about right, and the proportions of the head, torso and arms are excellent. I do think the thighs are a tad big. This is another minor nit though, and the guy must just be a big Stair Master fan. The Pilot stands about 11" tall in his deep crouch, and he's billed as 1/7th scale. He's pretty damn close to 1/6th scale though, and with the crouched pose, could probably fit in with figures like Medicom Star Wars. Paint - ***1/2

When you go with basic black for your outfit, there really isn't a lot of paint to screw up. Still, you have to find a way to make all that black still look good on your body - or on the shelf. Kotobukiya does that with various finishes for the black outfit. The pieces that would be made from harder materials (the helmet, chest plate, etc.) are a very high gloss black. The softest material would be the clothing, and this is a very matte, lighter black. The boots and gloves fall someplace in between. This gives him some extra pop on the shelf, but there's also a bit of color on the control buttons on his chest. These are fairly clean, with very little slop. Accessories - ***

This might be a statue, but it has accessories too! As I mentioned, Kotobukiya supplied two extra arms. One of these has a permanent hand (left arm) while the right arms shares the hand between them. The arms and hands work great, and you can easily set the statue up in either pose. The supplied blaster works well, and fits in the hands tightly. There's also a base, with a hunk of a beam or support attached. It looks like something right out of the Death Star of course, and there's even a loose droid you can place wherever you see fit. The wheels on the bottom even turn! Fun Factor - **

These are statues, not really toys. A young Star Wars fan that likes collectibles would enjoy it, but it's not really a sandbox sort of thing. Value - **

Back in the day, you could often get Kotobukiya model kits in the $50 - $60 range with a little patience. These days, it's tough to find them for less than $80, and that's a pretty hefty price tag for what amounts to a plastic statue. This price is what keeps me from picking up more, although I have to say that Zuckess and Bossk are looking awfully tempting. Things To Watch Out For -

Take care with the sight on top of the blaster. It an be broken off if you press to hard to the right or left - something you might tend to do while putting the gun in his hands. Overall - ***

If you can pick these guys up at $60 or less, you could add another half star here. They really do look terrific on the shelf, and I enjoy Koto's non-human sculpts quite a bit. The extra arms and accessories help a bit with that high price point, but these aren't something you'll be able to buy without some thought. Score Recap:

Packaging - ***

Sculpting - ***1/2

Paint - ***1/2

Accessories - ***

Fun Factor - **

Value - **

Overall - *** Where to Buy -

There's plenty of options: - Urban Collector has him for just $80. - Alter Ego Comics has him for $85. - Things From Another World has him at $90. - YouBuyNow has him at $95. - or search ebay using the sponsor MyAuctionLinks. Related Links -

I've covered a number of Kotobukiya's models: - the most recent was Indy and his pops. - The last of their statues I covered was the Snowtrooper, but I also reviewed their Boba Fett.



- I had a guest review of the Terminator T-X.

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