SSC 1:6 STAP

[darthgordon]

Like the new payment plan as well, they should have been doing this all along, that way your final payment with shipping isn't over $100. think this will help items sell out faster with fewer cancels.

[draven29]

Looks like this is shipping in September now.

[deathstar1000]

Edition size: 2500

[shoptoylife]

not bad for an edition size. From what I understand, billing happens on Monday with these shipping out on Monday.

[shoptoylife]

got mine in today and I gotta say, this thing is freakin' awesome!!!

[jedibearvt]

C'mon, shoptoylife! Pictures, please!

Still got some waiting to do before this thing buzzes into my collection...

[Co_Jo_Dai]

Got mine today, amazing piece...

[jedibearvt]

Looks cool! Thanks for the comprehensive look there, Co_Jo_Dai!

[Law]

Got mine and have now had some time to mess around with it. A few thoughts:

While overall I very much like this, it's tough for me to resist going over the small things that I don't like. This is going to probably come off as a more negative review than it should -- I really like this a lot and there's a lot they got right. But having said that . . .

The pivoting pedals and gun/handle mechanism are very nice touches -- but the pedals on mine were VERY tight, and I was afraid I'd break the very thin rudder if I pushed too hard. Eventually I got them to work, but it was a tense moment.

The base needs to be big for stability's sake, and needs to be deep, so the hemisphere approach was probably the best solution. But it still feels obtrusive to me. Maybe it would be better if the STAP rode a little higher off the base so you could get a better look at the STAP "hovering" all by itself -- but then, of course, it would be much harder to allow for the ball-jointed base and the display options would be more limited (or more prone to breakage). So I am not sure what the solution is. Nonetheless, I feel like the base creeps up so high against the actual STAP it diminishes the impact of the STAP itself. One possible solution - don't use the grey steel deco on the base. Maybe in the Clone Wars these things are often in that environment, but in the prequels, they were primarily on Naboo. Put this thing on a grass base and I'd be happier.

The weathering is a bit disappointing. TBH, it feels like Hasbro detailing -- little flecks of silver and black paint. They're applied well enough, but at this price point, that feels like a cop-out. This should look more like beaten metal and less like a plastic toy with silver flecks of paint on it.

The turbines in the base don't appear to be seperately sculpted pieces, they look to be just one solid piece painted a different color in places. It doesn't feel super-detailed as a result.

The cannons feel VERY thin and breakable to me. Very weak plastic, just super fragile.

All of this adds up to it being a very nice toy for what it is -- but not a really special departure, not taking it up to a much higher level. To be fair to Sideshow, while this was an expensive item, it could have been a lot MORE expensive. We got a whole extra battle droid with it, and it didn't cost a ton more than recent figures, so maybe this was just meant to be a little "freebie" -- a cute, somewhat "cheaply" done ("modestly" might be more fair) vehicle rather than a break-the-bank masterpiece (a la the Hot Toys Batman tumbler). I'd rather have a STAP like this, at this price point, than have to choose between no STAP at all or a $500 perfect STAP. So that's why I say my review is coming off way more negative than I intend it to -- I really do like this and I accept it was probably the best route to take. But I also wanted to flag the things that made me kind of lower my enthusiasm as I opened it and thought "Oh, I see.... ah... yeah, I understand now."

Overall, it's still a very cool piece, and with two other droids in front of it, having it bear down on Obi-Wan and Qui-Gonn is going to be a lot of fun. PLUS, the ball jointed base is pretty awesome, having this thing come tearing down at an obscene angle is a pretty exciting display.

[Invictus_Sol]

Great review, Law. Not a PT collector but all your points make sense. For me the biggest obstacle (er, if I collected PT) would be the base. Totally agree a grass base (maybe change the shape to a flat disc) and a longer support rod to give more of a floating appearance would've helped this piece a lot.