Quality of Star Wars vehicles: are they worth it?

[pud333]

So I've lately started to obsess over the Clone Wars Animated show, trying to army build and everything. I see the vehicles at TRU, like the ARC-170 and V-Wing, etc. While they look cool, I have a hard time justifying the price points even with the 25% off sale. The ARC comes in at $75, and the V-wing at $45, and so on. Are these worth it? Or should I just focus on the basic figures? I've never bought vehicles for Joes or any other toy line, but these things look so cool, it's hard to resist...

[jacobot]

They are very nice... But wait until a major sale around Xmas... They aren't going anywhere fast ;) Build your troops first!

[lars573]

Pick your targets. I have the AT-TE, and though it drips with awesome. It's huge, I even 19 troopers in it. I also have a AT-AP. And if the fates are kind and I can get a Christophsis battle pack I'll have 2 AT-AP's. Me being me I won't mix walkers and wheeled/repulsor tanks (Star Wars empire at war taught me that). So no turbo tank or the new hover tank. But if I were I'd have a turbo tank and 2 hover tanks. :D

For the clankers I have a spider droid, want to add a snail tank, trade-fed tank. Commerce guild tank.

On fighters I want the clone wars Y-wing. Despite $100 price tag. Grevious fighter, at least 1 Magna guard fighter.

That said the $30 vehicles are fairly basic. While they are larger than a voyager TF in terms of size they use less plastic and don't have many features. A missile launcher or two, and you can stick a figure in it. And there are decals (Joe vehicles too).

[pud333]

Cool, thanks for the feedback guys. I guess what I'm concerned with are paint apps, etc. For example, when I see the leader class TF's, I just see large plates of boring plastic with not much detail. I know some of these vehicles have weathering paint apps, and they look great in pictures, but I guess I was curious about up close as well. At the same time, I don't feel like getting any models. I really want good looking toys so even my nephew can play with it. I only have a small 8 ft x 9 ft den to house my toys, so space is at a premium. If I'm gonna buy a couple of these, I'll really have to pick and choose.

[Robimus]

I bumped my Millennium Falcon thread for ya :)

http://www.actionfigurenews.ca/boards/showthread.php?t=361

Largely my answer to this is no. The basic $30 line of vehicles are weak in many respects, most notably the lack of electronic sounds and lights.

If an $8 R2D2 can come with sounds and lights there is no reason Hasbro can't make that same effort for a $30 toy.

I have the Sith Infiltrator and am quite dissapointed with it overall. It's too small for one and has lame action features which add little to either the play or display value of the toy.

I also have Mace Windu's Jedi Starfighter which can't even hold his astromech properly(just the false top of one they provide fits snuggly).

Obi-Wan's Episode 2 Fighter from a few years back is a little better but still has no removable astromech.

The B-Wing Mold that has been re-used over and over since the last few years is a solid mold with some pretty accurate features like the rotating cockpit and fold out wings. No lights or sounds of course:rolleyes:

The 501st Tie Interceptor suffers from some of the same issues despite being at an even higher price point when it was available. The cockpit opens and closes in an awkward manner and despite a great paint job the lack of sounds and lights stinks as well.

How come every toy in the 80's came with the sounds and lights, but most of the new ones don"t? I'm sure Hasbro's response would be about money...whatever.

The Exclusive Sandcrawler is a vehicle from a few years back that I do like, but still no lights and sounds(I'm just repeating the same complaint I know but its big to me.)

In anycase the Sandcrawler is pretty cool, allowing one to recreate scenes from the films and whatnot. The elevator is cool as is the cockpit. Get an army of Jawa's and droids and you've got a really cool display.

The $200 Millennium Falcon delivers in every way even if it is expensive. Lots of action features, lots of cool lights and sounds, lots of everything really. Check my review.:D

I have an AT-At circa 1996 which is really cool as well. Tons of cool features and sounds. When you operate the front canons you get the AT-AT canon sounds. It also makes the lumbering, walking noise from the films as well as several lines from General Veers and whatnot. Awesome toy I picked up on clearance for $50 back in the day.:)

I don't know how the new AT-TE Walkers compare. If they have the sound and light features I'm sure they are cool as well. But if they have no sounds and no lights then I'd probably find them a bit lacking as well.

One last Light and sound rant and then I'll shut up. The frick'in Clone Wars Animated McDonalds toys came with these features. Some with sounds, some with light up features. If its affordable to put on a McD's toy I don't see why its so hard to incorporate them into the main vehicle lines.:mad:

[pud333]

I bumped my Millennium Falcon thread for ya :)

http://www.actionfigurenews.ca/boards/showthread.php?t=361


Yeah, I just saw your review. That thing does look pretty sweet. I saw it at TRU when it first came out and I nearly crapped myself just looking at the huge box!

Thanks for the insight. It's looking like more and more I'll just wait for the blowout prices and sales that normally show up around Christmas time, which is fine, cause there are so many Clone Wars figures I still need.

I also agree with you on the lights and sounds. If I'm gonna pay 50 or 100 bucks for a plastic toy, I want it packed to the gills!

[Scrapper6]

I only ever had one largeish vehicle, the Naboo Fighter from Episode 1, before I went clearance crazy and cleared out my Star Wars collection. I love the movies and the books, but after a while I just got tired of the toys. I still have a few from Episode III and a couple of the Coin Clones, along with what I believe is the perfect Mace Windu. But for most of all my collection is pretty much gone... anyway.

As far as the vehicles are concerned I did enjoy my Speeder Bike and my Stap and even the 'Creatures' Ronto and whatever Jar-Jar came with, but that Naboo fighter was awkward as hell to store or disply because of its sheer size.

I decided to avoid getting any more large vehicles after that, but oddly enough that doesn't include Lego Star Wars vehicles, which I plan to have tons of one day. Go figure. Probably because they're deconstructable for easy storage.

The Naboo fighter was an interesting vehicle though, it could fit one figure and had a missile launcher as well as lights and sounds, but suffers from probably every single Starfighter with an Astromech in that you can't use actual Astromechs. Just the toppers included with the vehicles.

I say if you like them enough and don't mind certain facts you should definitely get them. Otherwise, if space is an issue definitely avoid any awkward looking vehicles.

By the way, why the hell is it that Wal-Mart sticks the vehicles in the Lego section with the Lego sets? At one point I picked up Grievous's Starfighter saying, oh I have this set but this looks different, then I realized... Hey this isn't Lego.

[lars573]

New starfighters can store astromech droids in them. If they are shown as having such a port anyway.