13 replies to this topic

[Tortle]

I had quite a time getting this piece. I couldn't find it anywhere for the first week, and I was worried that I might not find one at retail (given the comparitive rarity of some of the other large-scale ships from the prequels, like the AOTC Gunship). I decided to order one from Amazon. Usually, I never order toys online because when I do, I always find them in the store before my order even arrives. And, shore 'nuff, the NEXT FRIGGIN' DAY after I placed my Amazon order, I saw an ARC fighter at Toys R Us. Dammit all. I was Amazowned.

Company: Hasbro
Size: Roughly 18" long
Price: $30 on Amazon.com
Packaging: Boxed (cool box, by the way... the fighter looks great displayed on top of it)
Pics: at GalacticHunter.com (I'll post my own pics later)

Looks: 4.5/5
The ship's big size and sweet look makes it a stand-out in my collection. The sculpt is good, with more details than you'd think from looking at the Galactic Hunter pictures, and the paint apps are clean with a great color combination (although I would like some weathering details). The decals are nifty, appropriate, and, most importantly, easy to put on... except for those MOTHER EFFING COCKPIT STICKERS. Christ, you have to be a neural surgeon to put those on properly.

The proportions are a bit off when you compare it to a shot of the movie ARC fighters, but the problem isn't particularly noticable.

Special Features: 4/5
The ARC has three cockpits for figures: for the pilot, navigator (presumably) and tail gunner. The cockpits are spacious enough for the slightly-bowlegged Clonetroopers, which is good since the Clonepilots look stupid and I don't want to buy them. The S-foils open up into "attack position", and bomb-bay doors open on the bottom, revealing a handle and trigger for dropping bombs. The side guns also shoot missiles.

I would like to have some sort of button or mechanism that makes the wings open, though, since opening them can be a bit difficult. Some sound effects or electronic features would be nice, too.

Value: 4/5
The ship is pretty big, and $30 is a reasonable price. You might be able to find it for $25 at TRU or Walmart.

Coolness: 4.5/5
The ship is big, but not so big that it's difficult to play with (like the Falcon). The ship's design is super-cool. It's reminiscent of the X-Wings, but it's dynamic and interesting in its own right with an unique nose, 3-cockpits for figures, a cool back turret, and huge, honkin' engines. I also like the fact that the R2 unit is better incorporated into the design unlike the two Jedi Starfighters, where it looks like the R2 unit was just plopped into the designs after they were finalized.

Speaking of which, I also like how the R2 unit isn't sculpted into the toy. Although this means you'll have to buy an extra figure to complete the toy (besides the 3 pilots), it's much more fun to have a removable R2. I have the red R2 from the Queen's Starship in mine, but I think it would be cool to have a fleet of ARC fighters with different astromechs, like the Imperial Astromech, R3-T7, or R4-M9.

Overall: 4/5
This is an interesting, eye-catching ship that will be sure to be a prominent display piece with fun play features, all for $30. If you have a few Clonetroopers itching for some piloting action, and a good shelf that needs to be converted into a starfighter hangar, you can't go wrong with this ship.

[SpectreSuperSix5]

How heavy is this bad boy? Too heavy to string with fishing line from the ceiling to display it in "flight"?

Good review.

[Tortle]

It's not all that heavy. The fishing wire can probably hold it, but I'm not so sure that tacks would hold it up. Screws or plant holders as the anchors would most likely work.

Here's some pics! The first pic is an establishing shot. Unfortunately, you can't totally extend the wings and keep it on a shelf, but the box works well for display purposes.

Attached Files

•  arcfighter1.jpg   89.24K   201 downloads

[Tortle]

Here's a shot of the front cockpits. The Clonetroopers look pretty cool as pilots, I think.

Attached Files

•  arcfighter2.jpg   58.08K   199 downloads

[Tortle]

And a shot of the tail gunner. The ball-jointed neck can be craned upwards to make it look like the guy is aiming.

Also, notice the red R2 in the slot. Its color works okay, but it doesn't quite match the red on the ship.

Attached Files

•  arcfighter3.jpg   62.1K   196 downloads

[Rokk]

Excellent review and, as always, nice pics. I agree that not having the R2 a part of the ship sculpt is very cool. I am tempted to get this ship, but the large size and an ever shrinking amount of available space in my toy room will probably stop me.

[Tortle]

Yeah, you need a good amount of space to be able to display it well because of the size and somewhat awkward extended wings. I hadn't bought a vehicle in a few years (probably since the AOTC Jedi Starfighter) so I have the available room.

[Ridureyu]

I don't really buy many vehicles, either. This one is kind of interesting, but I've heard that most of the R2 units can't fit well in it (their feet are too big).

[Tortle]

Many of the R2 units have designs that would probably restrict them from going in the slot (like a non-retractable third leg), but I think that the template mold on which many of them are based will work. I know that the red Queen Starship astromech will work (since I've tried it out), and it's based on that mold. The copper colored one from the preview wave works, too. I'm fairly certain that most of the ones I've mentioned will work, but since I don't have any of them, I can't be sure. Basically, if the third leg is retractable (and if it's relatively recent), I'd say it would work because it's probably based on that mold.

[Tortle]

I think there might be two reasons for the price discrepancy:

1) The AT-RT and BARC Speeder have extra mechanisms that add to the price. The AT-RT has mechanized walking, and the BARC Speeder features the rip-cord scooting action, but the ARC Fighter doesn't have anything. The disproportionate price may be a reflection of their features.

2) Hasbro knows that vehicles and playsets that cost more than $30 are a hard sell to kids and collectors, so they are either taking a hit on the price (unlikely) or they are pricing the toy more reasonably (in contrast to the inflated costs of their other SW products). I think this is probably the reason, since a. there have been only a handful of SW toys that cost more than $30 and they're usually exclusives, i.e., Hasbro can't convince all retailers to pick them up, and b. most SW toys aren't worth the retail prices.

[Knuxman]

Christ, you have to be a neural surgeon to put those on properly.

Actually, I know a general practice surgeon who had torn his hair out over stickers on a toy vehicle

[Tortle]

In this pic, I Photoshopped the ARC Fighter into the space battle.

Spoiler warnings probably apply with this image, but there's little here that you didn't see in the trailer.

Attached Files

•  arcfighterphotoshop.jpg   108.34K   148 downloads

[Soupie]

Excellent!

Is this a new practice you've begun, Tortle: photoshopping your reviewed toys into movie scenes? I hope so, though I imagine it wouldn't work with all toys.