When the 12” Republic Clone Trooper (Phase I Armor) got officially announced during 2009’s San Diego Comic Con, collectors knew that it was only a matter of time before the rest of the clone officers got released into the line as well. It happened rather quickly! The first released was the Republic Clone Lieutenant (Phase I Armor) (the blue one) and interestingly it was a 2010 San Diego Comic Con exclusive. (The lieutenant has a fascinating history of being released as an exclusive in almost every collectible format.) Up next was the Clone Sergeant (Phase I Armor) and he was released second as a general release item. And now the Clone Commander gets its day in the sun shining gloriously in yellow color flashes and it, like its cohort the Republic Clone Lieutenant happens to be exclusive, but for 2011 San Diego Comic Con instead. (We wonder where that leaves the clone captain and would bet that announcement will be forthcoming shortly. But we digress.) If you have the blue and green flavors of the clone officers already, you pretty much know what to exactly expect from the Clone Commander. It’s excellently done as you’d expect it to be. The clone officers (with the color flashes) just look so much more striking than the all-white generic clone troopers for reasons unknown. But something about the addition of color makes them look sleeker and more agile and overall so much more natural-looking in the 12” line than other more generic clones. The Clone Commander is no exception and it’s wonderful to finally get him added to the long list of 12” figures Sideshow Collectibles has already produced. The Clone Commander comes as no stranger in the12” scaled figure line. Interestingly, it was an exclusive in both of its previous incarnations. In 2002, Hasbro released the Clone Commander exclusively to Kay-Bee toys. Honestly, it was an awful rendering a character that is athletic and agile. Hasbro’s version looked very stumpy and portly. Due to the limits of technology at the time, the armor was very soft and much too bulky because Hasbro utilized a very thick G.I Joes body at the time. In 2008, Medicom Toy came to the rescue of collectors and released the Clone Trooper Commander (Attack Of The Clones ver.) to StarWarsShop.com exclusively. It was a tremendous update, but quickly aged due to the awkward placement of the armor and limited mobility of the figure in general. Isn’t it interesting how every 12” Clone Commander to date has been some sort of exclusive?! The Real Action Hero version was a significant step up from the Hasbro version of course, but soft vinyl was still used to create the armor. And while the figure was significantly streamlined in comparison to the Hasbro silhouette, it still looked a little bit too chunky in spots. The armor was also extraordinarily too glossy as well. Enter Sideshow Collectibles’ amazing interpretation of the 12” Clone Commander and it guaranteed to put a smile on every 12” collectors’ faces! Sideshow Collectibles, to no one’s surprise, reused the awesome armored body type to make the Clone Commander. And as with the last couple of Phase I clones they’ve produced, the joints have been significantly tightened up to allow for maximum posing and maintaining of the poses you choose. The yellow is not overly shiny and there is the perfect balance of scratches and carbon scoring marks to add the “lived in” look to these magnificent 12” action figures. The Clone Commander also comes with a very healthy supply of various hand and boot attachments for extra display variety. You get 11 extra hand and two extra boot attachments to add into the mix. And the standard DC-15 blaster rifle and DC-15A blaster come with the figure as well. The paint job on the figure is really beautifully done and it artistically mars the purity of the yellow color flashes. And something about this shade of yellow they’ve used on this figure just pops against the dirty eggshell colored armored in which he’s adorned. Sideshow is usually overtly proud about their exclusives, but interestingly, the box is not decorated with any callout that this is the 2011 San Diego Comic Con exclusive. We’re done to one clone officer left to make! The captain should be announced shortly. It hopefully will be a standard release just like the Clone Sergeant was. But until it is, enjoy the trio we do have. They are incredible crafted clone trooper action figures in one-sixth scale.
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