Odd Ball (Clone Pilot)
Even though Hasbro has been producing Clone Pilots in the Revenge of the Sith uniform regularly since 2005, It was until now that we are getting an official Odd Ball figure with that attire.
Odd Ball (VC97) is not an entirely new figure. The hip and upper thighs are the exact same mold that was used for the 2005 Clone Pilots, and the torso and arms were taken from the Phase II Clone Pilot included in the Imperial Pilots Legacy Evolutions set from a few years ago. The only new pieces are the head, which strangely enough, sports a face that only vaguely resembles that of Temuera Morrison, and the lower legs that now support articulated ankles.
The level of detail sculpted onto these pieces is still quite good and very consistent, considering that the molds were developed with years of difference. Obviously, this was done to ensure that Odd Ball ended up with the minimal articulation one expects from the Star Wars Vintage Collection, consisting of:
• Pegged hinge shoulders.
• Pegged hinge elbows.
• Swivel wrists.
• Swivel waist.
• Swivel hips.
• Pegged hinge knees.
• Pegged hinge ankles.
Certainly, this is more than enough for a character that presumably will pass the bulk of his time riding on vehicles, but I appreciate the extra effort.
Odd Ball is molded mostly in gray plastic with gloves and boots painted in white and a few smaller details added. The torso is made from white plastic and only has a few black straps painted on. This bring me to the one inconsistency I find in this figure.
You see, in the previous Clone Pilots, the area between the top of the belt and the start of the armored vest has usually been colored in the same gray hue used for the limbs, and the piece is sculpted with folds that match those sculpted on the waist piece. However, looking closely to reference materials, it seems that was a mistake (either that or Hasbro doctored the image on the card to save up on paint apps).
Odd Ball comes with a blaster carbine (a DC-15, I think) and a removable helmet connected to a control box that attaches to a peghole in the figure’s chest.
The helmet is painted bright white and sports Odd Ball’s personalized markings. The placement of such markings isn’t really movie accurate, but it’s still a pretty decent effort. The only drawback I find in this helmet design is that it leaves a rather obvious hole in the chest plate whenever the helmet is removed, but then again, the solution is to leave it on at all times.
In the end, while the Odd Ball isn’t precisely a quantum leap in action figure design, it is a mighty fine example of what can be done by judiciously integrating new and old parts to produce a pretty satisfying figure.
Errex Score: 90/100
Category: Featured, Star Wars, Toy Reviews