Figure of the Day: Day 235: Heavy Gunner Clone Trooper

HEAVY GUNNER CLONE TROOPER The Hunt for Grievous
The Saga Collection Hunt for General Grievous Battle Pack
Item No.: No. 87116
Number: n/a
Includes: Heavy blaster cannon, removable kama
Action Feature: n/a
Retail: $24.99
Availability: Summer 2006
Appearances: The Clone Wars

Bio: Captain Fordo orders his heavy gunner to take out the super battle droids that are threatening the remaining Jedi. Knowing that the torso is the weakest part of the super battle droid's construction, this heavy gunner takes careful aim and wastes little ammunition. (Taken from the figure's box.)

Image: The tables of Adam Pawlus.

Commentary: Fans love head swaps. Fans hate head swaps. Make up your minds, will you? But seriously folks, any Clone is a good Clone, and the Heavy Gunner Clone Trooper is pretty great despite being made from old parts and having the wrong weapon. In the cartoon, he had a crazy quad-blaster thing that was absolutely huge and awesome. This one comes with a dinky little Heavy Blaster Cannon, which is actually a reuse of a G.I. Joe accessory. Still, it's cool enough-- just take a look at it.

The figure itself comes from a few other existing products. The head is the same as the AT-RT Driver. The body is the Clone Commander from Episode III. And the kama (skirt) is from Commander Bacara. Add some new paint, and presto-- new Clone! It's a great trooper, and despite having the wrong weapon, it's quite awesome. Hasbro, if you're reading: the demand is there. Rerelease it, but on a regular package and with the right gun and I'm sure you can sell another bazillion units. Toys based on the Clone Wars project are exceedingly popular with kids and adults, and I'm hoping that we continue to see many more in the coming year.

Collector's Notes: This figure has the dubious honor of being one of the toughest to get in 2006, despite being produced in fairly large numbers. (While we have no hard data, looking at numbers we've seen leaked from various forums and whatnot would put this in the ballpark of probably 60,000-75,000 or so-- keep in mind, I have no solid evidence of this.) Fans swept in and bought every last unit, and I myself picked up three (one to leave in the box as it's an unusually awesome box, one to open, and one to, well, maybe customize Fordo properly.) When released, I hit Toys "R" Us stores daily for about a month until I found mine, and I did see some on other, regular visits after the fact. But of all the Battle Packs in 2006, this was easily the most popular. Due to this popularity, the item is impossible to get on the secondary market for anywhere near its original price, so hopefully a reissue is in order.

Day 235: December 27, 2006