AT-RT DRIVER Order 66
30th Anniversary Collection Target Exclusive
Item No.: Asst. 87356 No. 87360
Number: 4 of 6
Includes: Blaster, damaged armor (and Obi-Wan Kenobi)
Action Feature: n/a
Retail: $9.99
Availability: March 2007
Appearances: n/a

Bio: Obi-Wan's leadership during the Clone Wars earns him a well-deserved reputation as an outstanding general. He battles the Separatist forces with the help of clone troopers who operate AT-RT vehicles in the thick of battle. (Taken from the set's packaging.)

Image: Adam Pawlus' living room.

Commentary: Take one AT-RT Driver, mix in some Utapau-specific squad deco, make it exclusive, and bake for 30 minutes. The end result is this guy, a neat but still odd figure. Sure, it matches the supremely popular squad colors of Commander Cody, but it also has these bizarre white dots which Hasbro used for "damage" marks for a few figures around early 2007. This process has been seemingly dropped, but not before fans were put off by the weird dotted marks on at least two figures. What purpose do they serve? Should I care? I don't know. What I do know is that I basically like this figure despite having no real home in the Star Wars saga. Like the mini-rigs of old, this figure was designed to look like it was just off-camera in the movies. With hundreds of figures in circulation this year, though, many fans who aren't clone specialists are getting a bit put off by the concept. It sold fairly well in most markets, but its eBay price of roughly retail is enough to let you know that it could've stood to be more popular. It's colorful, has 14 points of articulation, and includes a retooled gun missing the weird "strap" on other releases of the AT-RT Driver. The chest armor accessory with damage markings is pretty forgettable and I expect in the long term it will be commonly lost-- it makes the figure look bulky without looking better, and I would bet money that most of you are either storing it on the figure or in a junk drawer you haven't examined in months. It's fun, I like the concept, and I'd buy it again-- I don't feel like a sucker for paying full price for the two I got.

Collector's Notes: Starting with this batch of exclusives, fans got the distinct idea that "Pantone" Troopers were inevitable-- every legion would probably, eventually, be fully explored with their own pilots, AT-RT Drivers, and so forth. It's still likely to happen, but it seems like we got a bit of a break from the onslaught of early 2007 and late 2006. More are on the way, we're told, but Clone fanatics should get a bit of a breather for a while. Also, the AT-RT Driver has been made in multiple flavors: Kashyyyk (2005), White (2006), Utapau (2007, pictured) and Kashyyyk Camo (2007.) As such we expect a Shadow AT-RT Driver and a 501st AT-RT Driver are mere months away from being announced.

Day 579: December 6, 2007