Hot Toys - The Mandalorian - Scout Trooper and Speeder Bike Set + The Child

[DioramaMaker]

I mean where are the breaks in the OT? I know there's a difference between the ANH troops and the ROTJ ones, but is ESB more like one than the other? I feel like, to an extent, you have built in variability with new content when the source material has internal variation anyway. Heck, Vader is different film to film, down to the helmet. I won't lie and say I know what those differences are, but they exist.

Now all that to be said, there's only been one canonical, theatrical Scout. So matching that up has more gravity.

But I do like this set. Fair warning: I'm a "does vader look like vader? Good enough" type of guy.

 

[Ramatuelle]

You're referring to the Imperial Military Doctrine of No Retreat, embodied by the armour design which encourages frontal assaults, further aided by the strategically placed blinders on the helmet visor to ensure Absolute Focus.

Perhaps you require re-education. Long live the Empire.

I probably do require it. *sighs*

I have this really annoying habit [even to myself] of expecting things to make sense. It gets me into trouble everywhere, not least at work but nowheres more than anything to do with SW, which much of the time is frankly nonsensical. Don't get me started on those helmet blinders, SW helmets in general are often really cool but make NO SENSE, I am looking at you all Mandalorian helmets. How do you make sense

 

[ZE_501]

I probably do require it. *sighs*

I have this really annoying habit [even to myself] of expecting things to make sense. It gets me into trouble everywhere, not least at work but nowheres more than anything to do with SW, which much of the time is frankly nonsensical. Don't get me started on those helmet blinders, SW helmets in general are often really cool but make NO SENSE, I am looking at you all Mandalorian helmets. How do you make sense

When I think of the thousands of words I've typed debating, defending, critiquing, excoriating, rationalizing...admittedly a really fun pastime for a while, but I recently decided to just drop it. My blood pressure's lower now.

 

[TaliBane]

I dunno, they look like Stormtroopers to me still and this looks like a Scout Trooper to me so I guess I just don't really care that much. Death Watch look different in the Clone Wars and The Mandalorian, but they still look like Death Watch. I don't see it as being any different from them changing a characters outfit between movies, which they always do.

It's fair enough as a persepctive but to me the problem this introduces is you encourage "just okay" accuracy from HT and Sideshow when it's really no more cost, or even to some degree effort, for them to design and manufacture it closer to 100% accurate.

Otherwise we end up with a long stream of 1/6 Vaders that all pass the "meh, looks like Vader to me" test.

As years and 1/6 eras (not to mention rising pricepoints...) go by you'd hope that greater and greater accuracy would be one of the things that would evolve.

 

[ZE_501]

It's fair enough as a persepctive but to me the problem this introduces is you encourage "just okay" accuracy from HT and Sideshow when it's really no more cost, or even to some degree effort, for them to design and manufacture it closer to 100% accurate.

[...]

While my days of leaning into rivet-counting are gone, that really is the most sensible argument, to hold them to a higher standard. But I somehow think that ship has sailed. These companies just do what they do, and it's hit or miss. People buy the product just the same, either to customize or because it's good enough for their shelf.

 

[chrisstbh]

It's fair enough as a persepctive but to me the problem this introduces is you encourage "just okay" accuracy from HT and Sideshow when it's really no more cost, or even to some degree effort, for them to design and manufacture it closer to 100% accurate.

Otherwise we end up with a long stream of 1/6 Vaders that all pass the "meh, looks like Vader to me" test.

As years and 1/6 eras (not to mention rising pricepoints...) go by you'd hope that greater and greater accuracy would be one of the things that would evolve.

Im not talking about figure accuracy though, im referring to the actual costume designs.

 

[ZE_501]

Im not talking about figure accuracy though, im referring to the actual costume designs.

That you were and although I'm inclined to agree, I think it's hilarious that HT fails to completely nail *any* of the iterations so often. ...although a few come to mind. Death Troopers, Mud Troopers ... probably some more in there somewhere.

Fail to nail.

 

[jye4ever]

It also depends which character or vehicle it is I am more forgiving for some than others.

Lack of accessories sometimes pisses me off just as much as accuracy.

Scale obviously matters.

Cost also greatly impacts levels of forgiveness lol

 

[matticus]

To be honest here, the OT built the SW franchise. Everything has branched from it. From all the years of Hot Toys, we are getting background characters cause of new show and not from the OT. I am frustrated too with the collectors that would gobble all of that up. HT is the clear top 1/6th company and people want them to make these figures. I get it. Best way to tell a company what you what is to tell them. The piling on - well it isn't called Sideshow Freaks for nothing.

 

[ridetofight]

Coming from a graphic design background, and having a deep interest in how concept sketches evolve and how they are translated functionally by wardrobe, i know that the mapping for a costume's path to being on screen is as varied as the costume. I WANT to believe that the changes were deliberate and planned for an explicit purpose in the characterisation, narrative, and tonal intentions of their involvement. The chest armor has the silhouette of a tank top for the corys and trevors of the empire - it looks sloppy. The straight lines of the upturned knee pads and shoulder pads make it feel cheap, as if no further cost or thought could be put to the aesthetic of the thing. It feels unfinished and slapped together. But i don't see any of these specific things when i look at it, i just see a scout trooper that feels like a slacker. I don't think there'll be a definitive answer, amongst all the artists involved, as to whether it was intentional or a happy accident or something that was subconscious to those selfsame artists. Or maybe there was some directive intended to evoke this for the scouts, bar none. Even if people can't see the specifics that make up the whole, they come together to paint these guys as slackers, and they've got the sagging pants and stretched out wife-beater chest armor to prove it. I don't like any intentional degradation of the enemy (a hero is only as good as their enemy is bad), i don't like the looks of these guys, but i'll futz and try to overlook, they're the only scouts i have, hillbilly bikers or not. I recognize it, but i'll take it 'til something better comes along.

 

[DakRen]

Yeah, I fall into this camp too - though I think the clean, crisper look of the ROTJ version will always be my fave. There's something that's also cool about seeing a Biker Scout with Sandie type desert weathering.

It's a bonus too that the white bike brings to mind the Hoth versions Hasbro did that Snowtroopers rode. Always thought it was cool and there are pics of the ROTJ props in white from 1982 (before the brown paint was applied.)



These cosplayer/collectible costume items used in Mando were produced long before the show was conceived and were supposed to accurately depict the Scout as seen in ROTJ.

My guess is they (in this case, Walt's and EFX) were either not hugely concerned with accuracy or did these changes for wearer comfort or ease of manufacture.

While in-universe you can imagine it as an explanation, in reality this was not a case of a design "update" (like the RO troopers were) but rather simple inaccuracy to the ROTJ costume parts.

I do think it's kind of funny that somewhat inaccurate cosplayer items have become canon - that's oh-so SW.

 

[Asta]

Coming from a graphic design background, and having a deep interest in how concept sketches evolve and how they are translated functionally by wardrobe, i know that the mapping for a costume's path to being on screen is as varied as the costume. I WANT to believe that the changes were deliberate and planned for an explicit purpose in the characterisation, narrative, and tonal intentions of their involvement. The chest armor has the silhouette of a tank top for the corys and trevors of the empire - it looks sloppy. The straight lines of the upturned knee pads and shoulder pads make it feel cheap, as if no further cost or thought could be put to the aesthetic of the thing. It feels unfinished and slapped together. But i don't see any of these specific things when i look at it, i just see a scout trooper that feels like a slacker. I don't think there'll be a definitive answer, amongst all the artists involved, as to whether it was intentional or a happy accident or something that was subconscious to those selfsame artists. Or maybe there was some directive intended to evoke this for the scouts, bar none. Even if people can't see the specifics that make up the whole, they come together to paint these guys as slackers, and they've got the sagging pants and stretched out wife-beater chest armor to prove it. I don't like any intentional degradation of the enemy (a hero is only as good as their enemy is bad), i don't like the looks of these guys, but i'll futz and try to overlook, they're the only scouts i have, hillbilly bikers or not. I recognize it, but i'll take it 'til something better comes along.

I was in two minds whether to try to make him look less like a 'hillybilly'. However, as it'd take more than futzing to make a silk purse out of a sow's ear I'll just embrace the ridiculous nature of the character instead, as the figure captures it so well. He'll probably look good with the Shore Trooper.

Hopefully HT doesn't follow this new 'canon' and just replicate the Nevarro Scout with clean paintwork and sell him as an Endor Scout.

At least I have the Sideshow figure to represent ROTJ for now.

 

[TaliBane]

Im not talking about figure accuracy though, im referring to the actual costume designs.

Oh, okay - did seem to be shock on the RPF and other boards that Mando dived so deeply into fan-made or made for fans costumes. Someone expressed shock that the inaccuracies everyone complained about on the EFX helmet had now become canon.

On the one hand the decision is cool (and as I said, oh-so SW) and somewhat justified as there is a lot of awesome fan-level stuff and cuts the show budget, but at the same time it takes some of the mystique and also professionalism out of the production. Like those youtube SW fan-made films.

As an example (didn't show this one earlier) here's Mando vs ROTJ knee pads below. Why is it kinda different if they were made - years before Mando - to be a 100% match to ROTJ scouts? Who knows?

 

[choombaz]

Anyway, here's a curiosity. The costume from The Mandalorian was displayed at SDCC in order to represent ROTJ, and whoever assembled it put the knee guards on ROTJ-fashion.

The two names credited as the costume designers are actually the designers who worked on ROTJ, not The Mandalorian:

This reminded me of a terrific recent interview with Nilo Rodis-Jamero:

https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/the-filmumentaries-podcast/id1522552119?i=1000506801554

 

[jkno]

When I think of the thousands of words I've typed debating, defending, critiquing, excoriating, rationalizing...admittedly a really fun pastime for a while, but I recently decided to just drop it. My blood pressure's lower now.

Same here. Done debating too much about this, I'll let others do it, they can have more fun that I do now. Some collectors don't even want our help, they might think you try to impose your views on them. Nah, let them collect what they like, then they can move to other things as their taste changes and maybe evolves. Though is cool that a few times I received thanks from collectors for guiding them into buying good helmets and props, and not some crappy ones available out there...

I'll keep collecting what I like within my OT Imperials focus as I did before, knowing that no statue, figure or bust will ever be 100% accurate, though some being better than the others, which still look like having the accuracy of a banana. I'll enjoy the full size prop replicas that are (reasonably) accurate, as well as the figures or statues that can be more accurate.

BTW is good to see a few good SW prop and behind the scenes groups on Facebook. I left quite a few groups on FB due to crazy admins and troll members, and refused to join others for similar reasons, but these groups I'm talking about are some of the best things FB has.

 

[momaw]

BTW is good to see a few good SW prop and behind the scenes groups on Facebook. I left quite a few groups on FB due to crazy admins and troll members, and refused to join others for similar reasons, but these groups I'm talking about are some of the best things FB has.

The new "society" is pretty good. So many amazing images. Just one instance of drama so far.

 

[jkno]

The new "society" is pretty good. So many amazing images. Just one instance of drama so far.

Yeah, when woke newbies come to impose their views on a group that is completely neutral to such things

 

[momaw]

Yeah, when woke newbies come to impose their views on a group that is completely neutral to such things

Yeah. If a script page triggers you I can't imagine what the movie does... so why are you in a group dedicated to that movie?

 

[jkno]

Yeah. If a script page triggers you I can't imagine what the movie does... so why are you in a group dedicated to that movie?

I guess she came there exactly for the scandal, it was one of the few groups not having such issues.

 

[mediame]

Oh, okay - did seem to be shock on the RPF and other boards that Mando dived so deeply into fan-made or made for fans costumes. Someone expressed shock that the inaccuracies everyone complained about on the EFX helmet had now become canon.

On the one hand the decision is cool (and as I said, oh-so SW) and somewhat justified as there is a lot of awesome fan-level stuff and cuts the show budget, but at the same time it takes some of the mystique and also professionalism out of the production. Like those youtube SW fan-made films.

As an example (didn't show this one earlier) here's Mando vs ROTJ knee pads below. Why is it kinda different if they were made - years before Mando - to be a 100% match to ROTJ scouts? Who knows?

Did they really use fan made costumes for the show? Where do I go to find out more about this? Thanks.