To be honest with you, my first impression of the Royal Guard was to buy one as soon as the figure would come out. That said, I did feel a little hesitant later on after seeing some pictures of him I did not like around the Web. I didn't feel comfortable with the gap between the shoulders and helmet, which made him look like he had a long neck, and also the top part of the helmet that, when pointed up, made him look like having a long nose or beak. Nonetheless I went ahead and bought one sample to see for myself if these issues could be disguised. Indeed. I notice the trick was to push up on his shoulders and shoulder pads to keep them close to the helmet. This gave the whole area a more unified look and minimized the long neck effect. I also realized that by keeping the movable top part of the head down, flushed with the rest of the helmet, that took away the beak appearance and made it all look like one piece, especially when looking at the figure from the sides. So for me, I like the results I got doing this.The Stormtrooper variants in this line are superb! Next i want the Archer & Spear man. I'm still on the fence with the Royal Guards, but your pics are swaying me to a purchase.
I sold my Ronin Fett, felt he just didn't fit in with my display...I'm totally digging my V1 Vader & various Stormies though.
Are you still sticking to the one of each figure "plan"?
As far as upcoming releases, I want the Archer and Spear man badly. I also love the drawings you posted of future figures for the line. I can't wait to get that Gamorrean guard. I am sticking to getting just one of each figure, save for the second Vader that while having a different face plate and helmet decor than his predecessor, I found the rest of the sculpting to be quite similar and not worthy of spending $70.00 - $90.00 on him. So that's the only one I won't be getting.
I remember you saying you did not like much the vibrant colors of the Boba Fett figure, and I can see why he is a figure that could not appeal to everyone. The color of his armor does clash a bit with the more subtle look of other figures and kind of washes off some of the uniformed look of the line so far.