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INTRODUCTION
For those of us who remember the first time they ever saw the Scout
Trooper with Speeder Bike it’s pretty easy to say it was love at
first site. For me, it was a brief clip on the Today show and I was
in elementary school in the fifth grade. They played a few minutes
of the Endor Speeder Bike scene and after a few frames of Luke and
Leia zooming through the forest I was instantly captivated. I can
only remember wishing to kick the TV like R2-D2 in an attempt to get
the idiot box to “play back the entire message”!
The crew at Sideshow took advantage of a clause in their licensing
agreement and brought this Star Wars icon to a whole new level
altogether. This mammoth beast is just a tad under 3 feet long and
without question leaves your jaw dropped. One of the things that
might generate a frown is the black support rod between the base and
the bike. Even with such a price tag, gravity could not be defied.
It was a good thing this was recognized and there is very little
environment one the base, therefore the excessive black around the
edges assists in helping the support blend in a bit. To say this
thing isn’t a step above the 12-inch Speeder or even the Gentle
Giant rendition could be highly inaccurate.
The fact they label these figures is interesting because as I’ve
mentioned they are very much like a statue. However with the Scout
Trooper they implemented a bit of bend to the ankles and the arm for
positioning on the bike, as movement is something none of the other
“figures” do. Another point of movement is the flaps on the rear end
of the bike, but you can’t really adjust them but simply have them
up or down. After you’ve transported it to the shelf or wherever you
end up displaying, you can carefully rotate the bike to show off
both sides of it. This by far is one of the most impressive pieces
Sideshow has produced to date. Another aspect to point out is the
handle on the left hand that connects the figure to the bike, as it
would be my best guess to be very careful with taking the Scout on
and off because it seems like a small peg that could be easily
broken.
With so much good comes a tad bit of bad and in this case it’s the
absurd price tag that comes with owning this item. I’ve been an avid
supporter of Sideshow but I really think they should try to stay
within a respectable budget for the collector. The fact of the
matter is I have a real hard time justifying the price tag and I can
really hope this is not the beginning of a trend of any sorts. To
sum it up I love everything about it besides what only appears to be
an over-excessive price tag. The scary side to this equation is this
piece is near sold-out and according to many online retailers been a
fast mover. In what is an uncertain economy, we can hope Sideshow
continues to listen to the voices of collectors. The quality and
detail is all there, you’ve never seen a nicer Speeder Bike and
without a doubt something worth owing if you can make the room in
your collection and wallet.
SPECIFICATIONS
Star Wars Premium Format Figures (Item No. 0533)
Retail price is $799.99
Edition Size of the Speeder and Biker Scout is 1500 Worldwide
PHOTOS
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