Review of Death Trooper Specialist
Star Wars Rogue One Sixth Scale Action Figure

Introduction

There are certain job titles that just kick butt.  I'd have to say that 'Death Trooper Specialist' is one of those.  C'mon, how cool is that? You're not just a stormtrooper, you're a DEATH Trooper! And you're so damn good at death, they named you a specialist! I'd love to have business cards that say that.

There are three versions of this particular Trooper available from Hot Toys. There's a basic version, the 'specialist' (which I'm reviewing tonight), and the deluxe specialist. Here's the breakdown of differences, as far as I can tell based on the early marketing materials:

- the basic figure includes a basic stand, standard armor, three lights on the helmet, and three blasters (two rifles, one pistol). This guy retails for around $220.

- the Specialist (the guy I'm reviewing) upgrades to the fancier Rogue One display stand, includes the chest rigging with pouches and explosives along with the shoulder pouches, but does not include the largest blaster rifle or the third light at the side of the helmet. He retails for around $235.

- the Specialist Deluxe upgrades the display base further to a rocky diorama style, does include all three lights AND the chest rigging with the explosives AND the shoulder pouches, but only has two of the three blasters. He is missing the blaster that comes with the regular specialist, of course.  He also has one extra no one else has: the cute little Stormtrooper doll. As the most outfitted, he costs the most, coming in around $250.

What does all that mean? You can't buy any one of these and get everything, as they are all unique to some degree. Obviously, the Specialist Deluxe gives you the most bang for your buck overall, but whether the extras are worth the cash will be up to you.

As I said, I'm covering the guy in the middle tonight, the Death Trooper Specialist. I also have the deluxe on order, so I may do a comparison review when he ships.

Packaging - ***
Nothing too exciting here, but certainly a serviceable package. It's the standard shoe box design, with a single plastic tray holding the accessories and figure, covered inside by a slip card with additional artwork. It's all collector friendly of course, and it includes the new 'cigar band' style wrap around name on the cover.

Sculpting - ***
This is largely a new look for a Trooper, taking the basic Imperial design and adding quite a bit in terms of highlighting and details. It's a unique look, and certainly sets itself apart from the rest on the shelf.

The helmet has a smooth gloss dome, while the area around the face is more matte and textured. There's lots of detail in the vents and the edges are sharp and distinct. It's the kind of helmet that says "I'm a bad ass dude and you don't want to mess with me".

However, this same helmet is awfully small for the body. By angling the shoulders you can reduce the effect in photos, but in hand he's a quite a pinhead. Combine the slightly smaller head size with the larger shoulders (with the pauldron on one side and the pouches on the other) and the extra girth around the middle thanks to the chest rigging, and you get some weird looking proportions.

The armor itself looks terrific, with nifty etched lines giving it far more detail then a standard Trooper. The back of the torso armor has additional detail as well, and there are lots of unique features - from the ribbed tops of the feet to the silver 'tubes' on the left gauntlet - that really make it pop.

This guy is a big boy, coming in at almost 12 1/2" tall. While he's no where near Vader's height, he'll certainly make other troopers seem a little puny.

Paint - ***1/2
Most Troopers sport few paint operations. The majority of the figure is the shiny armor color - in this case, black - with only a handful of details.

This guy has quite a few more, thanks to those etched lines I was discussing in the previous section. These are highlighted in color, adding more menace to an already deadly looking character. Unfortunately, this is also where some slop creeps in, as some of the lines are wavy and uneven. Still, it's a nice change of pace to see a little more color in the sea of black.

Of course, there are still other small details here and there, and these are all clean and well done. They've also done a great job of combining both gloss and matte finishes to differentiate various areas of the armor.

Articulation - ***
The armor is restrictive of course, but perhaps not as much as you expect.

The underlying ribbed body suit is fairly flexible, although not quite as much as the standard fabric suit we see with characters like the Jedha Patrol Trooper. The leg and arm armor is designed to allow for good posing, but the torso armor, combined with the rigging on the chest, cuts way back on the movement there.

The helmet sits up fairly high on the body, allowing good tilt and lean action. Overall, the majority of the joints have a solid range of movement.

However, I have a big nit here as well.  It's those damn wrists again. These are the same short pegs that you have seen for years, so there's no surprise there. But because of the gauntlets, and because of a loose fit in the hands, they pop off much too easily when posing. They really need to go back to the drawing board on the wrists at some point and give us longer pegs inside the hands to avoid this issue.

Accessories - ***
The Specialist does better than the regular Death Trooper here, but not quite as good as the deluxe version.

He has a total of 9 hands: a set of fists, a set of relaxed grips, a set of gun grips, a set of tight grips, and an additional splayed left.  There's a couple extra wrist pegs, too.  These swap easily - too easily.  As I mentioned in the Articulation section, the hands pop off with very little effort.

That doesn't mean they are soft, however. In fact, fitting the grips of the guns into the hands intended to hold them is quite difficult, and the grip itself isn't particularly well sculpted. It's not the perfect fit we've come to expect.

There are two guns with this Trooper, the smaller blaster pistol and the slightly larger rifle.  They both have terrific sculpts, and I love the paint job on the rifle, where the end is worn back. There's also a fabric strap on the rifle and a short extending stock.

This guy also includes the separate ammo pouches for his upper left shoulder. They slip on and off easily enough.

Technically they aren't listed as accessories, but the three explosives that come inserted in the front of the rigging are all removable, and like those we saw with the Jedha Patrol Trooper, can be 'opened' slightly.

Finally, there's the display base, which is similar to the version we got with the Vader and Jedha Trooper. It has the fancy removable card for the top, as well as the extra wrap around piece for the front. The name plate is specific to the Specialist as well.

Light Feature - ***
This figure has two lights on the lower face, but lacks the light on the left side of the helmet that the other two Death Troopers sport.

In the photo below, you'll see these turned on. They aren't particularly bright, and seeing them in a fully lit room can be difficult.

The battery compartment and switch are under the crown of the helmet. The crown is held in place with a magnet, and it's quite easy to lift off. Inserting the batteries was relatively easy (and yes, they are included), but the magnet that holds the top piece in place can also be pretty damn annoying when working with the batteries. Once in place, you can flip them on with a small switch. You have to remove the crown of the helmet to turn the lights on or off, but as I said, it's quite easy.

This is a reasonable light feature, easy enough to use with well hidden mechanics. It's not one I expect a lot of people to use regularly, and it might be tough to justify the need, but it is executed properly.

Outfit - ***
I've already discussed much of the Outfit features, from the armor sculpt to the detailed paint. There's a couple additional points worth making, however.

The outfit also includes the chest rigging, with pouches in front for various devices.  The squares are not removable, but the cylinders are, as noted in the Accessories section. They all look great, and the rig fits tight (and remains so), but it does give him a very bulky look.

The belt looks great, and also includes several sculpted pouches.  It also has what is supposed to be a holster for the smaller blaster, but I haven't quite got it to work right yet. It's really just a thin loop of pleather, and it's not very sturdy.  I'd avoid using it a lot, and once you have the blaster in place, leave it be. It's a pretty cheap look for a Hot Toys figure, and a big ding in this category.

My other issue that I've withheld to discuss here is with the shoes and greaves. The top of the shoes are ribbed, but it doesn't appear as though the fit or design of the greaves was adjusted to compensate for the extra height these ribs create. The bottom lip rubs on the top of the foot, and in some poses could even damage the softer material.

Fun Factor - ***
This is a fairly posable figure with some interesting display possibilities with a number of other characters. Picking up all three versions really improves the look, but also murders your wallet. You won't change up the poses a lot, but there's enough potential here to have a decent good time.

Value - **
At $235, this guy falls directly in between the basic and deluxe versions. He's sort of a compromise, adding in some extras and leaving others out.  I dropped a half star off average here because I think the compromise is a mistake, and you should either go with the cheaper version, or splurge and pick up the deluxe. Either of those would have garnered the extra half star in Value.

Things to Watch Out For -
When placing the guns in the hand, be very careful about squeezing them too hard or in the wrong spot. Breaking a sight or other protruding detail is very possible. I'd also take a lot of care with the holster - it's not particularly sturdy.

Overall - ***
It's always great to get a Trooper in shiny black - the Shadow Troopers have been the only option in the past. But the Death Troopers add more than a new color, with plenty of other changes to the armor and look.

Let's be honest - you're a psycho Star Wars collector. The question isn't whether or not you want a Death Trooper, but which Death Trooper. Assuming of course you can hold yourself to one.

If I could only have one, I have to say the deluxe seems to be the best overall.  With more goodies, all three lights, and the two blasters I like the best, it's an easy choice. While he's $30 more than the basic model, you can see where that $30 went in all the additional extras.

But if that price point is too much to swallow, I'd step all the way back to the basic version. While he lacks the rigging and additional pouches, he does have all three lights and all three blasters, which are more visually interesting to me.  At $220, he's also more in line with the average price point these days.

This guy is a compromise between those two, and I think (like most compromises) he doesn't offer a greater value over either. Hey, if you're going to get a second or third, then go for it - but if you're only getting one, go big or go home.

Score Recap (out of ****):
Packaging - ***
Sculpting - ***
Paint - ***1/2
Articulation - ***
Accessories - ***
Light Feature - ***
Outfit - ***
Fun Factor - ***
Value - **
Overall - ***

Where to Buy 
Online options include these site sponsors:

- Sideshow has the regular version for $220, the Specialist for $235, and the deluxe Specialist for $250.

- or you can search ebay for a deal.

Related Links -
Other Rogue One Hot Toys figures include the recent Darth Vader, as well as the Jedha Patrol Trooper. Just prior to that, I covered the Resistance Outfit Rey and the regular Rey with BB-8, a fantastic set.

I've covered lots of other Hot Toys Star Wars figures, including the Battlefront Shock Trooper, Finn and Riot Control Trooper, Captain Phasma, the FO Flametrooper, the FO Snowtroopers, and the First Order Shock Trooper, and of course their regular Imperial Stormtroopers. Other Hot Toys Star Wars figures include Kylo Ren, Darth Vader, C-3PO, Tatooine Luke Skywalker, Luke in his Stormtrooper Disguise, Obi-Wan Kenobi, and Han and Chewbacca from ANH. If you'd like a bit more of a regular Shock Trooper, they've done him as well, along with a Blackhole version.

You should also hit the Search Reviews page, in case any other applicable reviews were done after this one was published.

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