Time for some more Black Series to start the year! This currently semi-rare figure was a Christmas gift from my loving fiance, and it’s easily one of my favorite recent figures. The new body mold gives me hope that some more Imperial officers (and their weird space riding pants) will join Hasbro’s figure line.
Pictured here with his faithful Death Troopers (who are possibly surgically-altered cyborg stormtroopers) Orson Krennic is the director of advanced weapons research, a division of the Imperial military. A former architect, he worked his way up through the ranks of the Empire and coerced his lifelong friend Galen Erso into betraying his peaceful ideals, luring him into working on the Empire’s ultimate weapon – the Death Star.
I hope we see more of this character on Rebels or in a comic or something, because I love him. It’s rare you find a character that both repulses you (because really, he’s pretty despicable) yet also enthralls and entertains (he is a master manipulator, isn’t he?)
Krennic is a very good figure, and an officer is a welcome addition to my primarily Imperial villains collection of figures. His white tunic is marked with his rank insignia. The black ‘riding pants’ that officers wear are a new mold, as is his removable cape. Part of me wanted the cape to be a soft goods piece, yet the fact that it’s plastic doesn’t bother me half as much as the fact that this wasn’t in the movie. . .
The hype was so real when I saw this shot. Am I right? Anyway, Krennic’s face is a good likeness as far as the Black Series is concerned. He wears a black belt around his tunic with the signature silver belt buckle of Imperial officers. Attached to the belt is a left-handed holster, which holds Krennic’s custom sidearm. He features good articulation at the neck and waist, and the usual articulated knees and swiveling ankles. He could’ve been articulated better in the elbows though. The paint apps are clean and the uniform is the perfect shade of sterile white.
No matter how he’s posed, Krennic looks good. Cape, no cape. Gun out, gun holstered. He commands a presence even in plastic form. And now that these molds for the tunic and pants exist, I’d love to see plenty of other officers join the collection. Thrawn and Tarkin are obvious ones I’d like to see, but the possibilities are endless. What about Grand Admiral Rae Sloane? Or Moff Panaka? (I was surprised he was a thing too) They could even make a collectible set of the Death Star meeting room!
So for the final verdict, I would recommend Krennic to anyone who enjoyed Rogue One or enjoys collecting villains. Currently he is unique in that he is the only non-combat officer available (i.e. he isn’t a ranked clone or stormtrooper) and the only named villain available from Rogue One. The lack of soft goods doesn’t hinder the quality of the figure overall, even if it would’ve been a nice add-on. If you can’t find him in stores, buying online isn’t too pricey right now. At the time I write this review, he’s about $23 – so just a smidge above retail.
As always, thanks for reading! Enjoy your toys and have a good 2017!
-David
TheEmpiresElite.com 