FLOSI
Nerf Herder
Sideshow 1/6th Snowtrooper – Standard Release
If you twist my arm just enough I’ll admit that The Empire Strikes Back is my favorite movie ever, though twisting would be minimal. Ever since seeing it for the first time as a five year old I’ve been head-over-heels in love. ESB has it all; Bounty Hunters, Yoda, Lando, Han frozen in Carbonite and perhaps the most haunting five word sentence in cinematic history: “No, I am your father.” I still remember walking out of the theatre asking my old man “is he really Luke’s dad??”
As much as those memories have stuck with me for the last 30 plus years, it’s the battle of Hoth that remains my favorite part of my favorite movie. Much to my excitement, Sideshow Collectables has finally dipped their proverbial toe in the chilly 1/6th water of Hoth with the release of the Imperial Snowtrooper!
Initial Reaction:
When you first take the Snowtrooper out of the box there’s a bit of heft to him that I more often associate with a Hot Toys release. This is a solid figure. The armor has a nice shine to it that was absent from the Imperial Stormtrooper release, much to the delight of the makers of Pledge with Future, SC Johnson. There are nice clean paint apps on the buttons and doodads that adorn the chest armor and backpack. The mask is a rubbery/pliable material; more on this later. Also included are a standard E-11 blaster, Sideshow Stand with the new, though it’s most likely the desert cover painted white, snow cover and a couple sets of additional hands.
What Flosi digs:
The overall weathering is really well done. Great choice of material for the under suit as it really sells the illusion of a larger scale while taking the weathering in a very natural way. As I mentioned previously, the armor is well painted, and I really like the way it's made to look battle worn through random nicks and chips that are nothing more than strategically applied dabs of silver paint. The two piece boot design really brings the entire figure up a notch or two. The break at the ankle gives the figure a full range of articulation that would otherwise not be achieved with a one piece boot design. Weathered to perfection with a dirty yellow color, I could not be any more pleased. Fine detail like the straps and buckles that hold the armor in place should also be mentioned, as they’re really easy to miss when looking at the figure for the first time.
The mask… I just needed to hit on this part of the figure because SS has taken some criticism because of it. I like it!! I like it a lot! Now in support of those who may not, I do understand that this style of sculpted mask can make army building a little difficult. We always seem to fixate on the negative in our hobby. Any veteran of the 1/6th game is familiar with the panic that ensues on toy and statue forums whenever something is less than perfect. Well, for those naysayers I ask you this: What would have been a better solution, thin plastic? No, this looks and works great in my humble opinion. Great job, SS!
No Bueno:
There’s not much I don’t like about the Snowtrooper. This has instantly catapulted to the upper echelons of my Star Wars 1/6th collection, but that doesn’t mean it is completely without fault.
Let’s just say it, the big ugly hands are way out of scale. I understand that there’s a desire to make them look as if big, padded cold weather gloves are being worn over human hands, but they’re so big they fail to even hold the blaster tightly. This is a huge knit pick on my part as the piece is very nice overall but after sometime posing and futzing the figure it does start to get a little annoying. I mean, hands on a 1/6th scale figure are for one thing, holding 1/6th scale accessories. So, to the Snowtrooper’s hands I say “no bueno!”
Overall:
Hoth is coming, and Sideshow is bringing it. If you’re looking for a reason not to buy, other than disliking Star Wars altogether, you’re not going to find one. The Snowtrooper along with the E-Web Cannon are simply phase one of Sideshow’s mission to bring a whole lotta Hoth to your collection. Jump on the Snowtrooper now before Han, Luke, Tauntaun and Probe Droid hit in 2014. If after market value of the Stormtrooper and four Sandtrooper variations are any indicator, the Snowtrooper could be considerably more expensive to add down the line. GO GET ONE!!
Thanks for reading,
Flosi
If you twist my arm just enough I’ll admit that The Empire Strikes Back is my favorite movie ever, though twisting would be minimal. Ever since seeing it for the first time as a five year old I’ve been head-over-heels in love. ESB has it all; Bounty Hunters, Yoda, Lando, Han frozen in Carbonite and perhaps the most haunting five word sentence in cinematic history: “No, I am your father.” I still remember walking out of the theatre asking my old man “is he really Luke’s dad??”
As much as those memories have stuck with me for the last 30 plus years, it’s the battle of Hoth that remains my favorite part of my favorite movie. Much to my excitement, Sideshow Collectables has finally dipped their proverbial toe in the chilly 1/6th water of Hoth with the release of the Imperial Snowtrooper!
Initial Reaction:
When you first take the Snowtrooper out of the box there’s a bit of heft to him that I more often associate with a Hot Toys release. This is a solid figure. The armor has a nice shine to it that was absent from the Imperial Stormtrooper release, much to the delight of the makers of Pledge with Future, SC Johnson. There are nice clean paint apps on the buttons and doodads that adorn the chest armor and backpack. The mask is a rubbery/pliable material; more on this later. Also included are a standard E-11 blaster, Sideshow Stand with the new, though it’s most likely the desert cover painted white, snow cover and a couple sets of additional hands.
What Flosi digs:
The overall weathering is really well done. Great choice of material for the under suit as it really sells the illusion of a larger scale while taking the weathering in a very natural way. As I mentioned previously, the armor is well painted, and I really like the way it's made to look battle worn through random nicks and chips that are nothing more than strategically applied dabs of silver paint. The two piece boot design really brings the entire figure up a notch or two. The break at the ankle gives the figure a full range of articulation that would otherwise not be achieved with a one piece boot design. Weathered to perfection with a dirty yellow color, I could not be any more pleased. Fine detail like the straps and buckles that hold the armor in place should also be mentioned, as they’re really easy to miss when looking at the figure for the first time.
The mask… I just needed to hit on this part of the figure because SS has taken some criticism because of it. I like it!! I like it a lot! Now in support of those who may not, I do understand that this style of sculpted mask can make army building a little difficult. We always seem to fixate on the negative in our hobby. Any veteran of the 1/6th game is familiar with the panic that ensues on toy and statue forums whenever something is less than perfect. Well, for those naysayers I ask you this: What would have been a better solution, thin plastic? No, this looks and works great in my humble opinion. Great job, SS!
No Bueno:
There’s not much I don’t like about the Snowtrooper. This has instantly catapulted to the upper echelons of my Star Wars 1/6th collection, but that doesn’t mean it is completely without fault.
Let’s just say it, the big ugly hands are way out of scale. I understand that there’s a desire to make them look as if big, padded cold weather gloves are being worn over human hands, but they’re so big they fail to even hold the blaster tightly. This is a huge knit pick on my part as the piece is very nice overall but after sometime posing and futzing the figure it does start to get a little annoying. I mean, hands on a 1/6th scale figure are for one thing, holding 1/6th scale accessories. So, to the Snowtrooper’s hands I say “no bueno!”
Overall:
Hoth is coming, and Sideshow is bringing it. If you’re looking for a reason not to buy, other than disliking Star Wars altogether, you’re not going to find one. The Snowtrooper along with the E-Web Cannon are simply phase one of Sideshow’s mission to bring a whole lotta Hoth to your collection. Jump on the Snowtrooper now before Han, Luke, Tauntaun and Probe Droid hit in 2014. If after market value of the Stormtrooper and four Sandtrooper variations are any indicator, the Snowtrooper could be considerably more expensive to add down the line. GO GET ONE!!
Thanks for reading,
Flosi
Such a nice figure. Sideshow did a very nice job and will look great in any star wars collection and the upcoming Hoth releases which won't come any sooner. 
