Review – Star Wars Dark Trooper

Line: Star Wars * Manufacturer: Kenner * Year: 1998 * Ages: 5+

“In the wake of the destruction of the Death Star, General Rom Mohc got the go-ahead to move forward with his brain child, the dark trooper project. A decorated Imperial officer who was obsessed with personal combat, Mohc opposed the construction of the Death Star. He believed that all soldiers should have the opportunity to face their opponents in one-on-one combat. To this end, Mohc led the Empire’s ambitious attempt to create ‘super stormtroopers.'”
— from the Star Wars Rebellion Era Sourcebook

Released in 1998, this Phase Three Dark Trooper is a perfect match for the character who first appeared in 1995’s Dark Forces computer game. A fantastic 3d shooter game, Dark Forces is still to this day one of my favorite Star Wars computer (or even console) games. As a fan of stormtroopers of all types (I fell in love with the Mighty Mugg stormtroopers and clone troopers and have one of each that has been released so far, not to mention several varieties of stormtrooper and clone trooper action figures), I grabbed this figure the minute I first saw it in a Target over a decade ago.

The Dark Trooper was released as a carded figure but, like the other figures released in this “Expanded Universe” line, the card was designed to be cut and opened up to create a small display; this particular display (shown above) with graphics to make it look similar to the Dark Forces game screen. It’s a pretty cheap piece of cardboard but, as you can tell in the photo, it has managed to survive many, many years and is relatively intact and still display-worthy. I’m not sure what it is about cheap cardboard displays but I still love them.

The figure itself is beautiful, standing a head taller than standard stormtrooper figures and almost a dead match for the character in the Dark Forces computer game. As you can see in the photo above, the basic design of the figure is based on the stormtrooper with all of the proportions enlarged and exaggerated; think of it as a stormtrooper mixed with the Hulk and you’ve got a pretty good idea of just how mean and nasty these Phase Three troopers are. There were earlier stages of the Dark Trooper but those (to the best of my knowledge) have never found their way to toy shelves.

The figure’s articulation, as with most Star Wars figures of the time, is very limited, with the figure moving only at the arms, legs, neck, and waist. This limits the poses you can display the figure in but, fortunately for us, it’s such a larger and intimidating piece that a basic standing pose looks pretty good.

For more photos of the Dark Trooper, including shots of the packaging, check out www.rebelscum.com. The site also provides some basic information on the figure’s role in the Star Wars universe, but the best locations I’ve found for information on the Dark Trooper project are the
— from the Star Wars Rebellion Era Sourcebook and The Force Unleashed Campaign Guide roleplaying game supplements. The Force Unleashed Campaign Guide, the newer of the two books, rewrites the Dark Trooper history to tie in the prequels, but the basic concept isn’t harmed (and may even be improved). Of course, none of this is important to simply enjoying the toy.

Closing Thoughts

Though it’s quite expensive these days, the 1998 Dark Trooper is a great addition to any stormtrooper fan’s collection. I’m very happy that I bought this when it was released — especially after poking around and seeing what some people want for this toy today — because I doubt I would pay even half of what I see MOC Dark Troopers selling for. If you can find a loose one at a good price, though, I say grab him. If I see one for $10 or less I’m gonna snatch him up just to bulk-up my Imperial forces.

There is a newer Dark Trooper figure out there but I’ve never seen it so I’m not sure how it compares to this version of the figure. Photos I’ve seen online make me think that the two figures are identical, but without holding the two at once that’s just an assumption on my part and not concrete information. Does anyone out there own both?

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Philip Reed spent the summer of 1996 playing way too much Dark Forces. What’s worse, though, is the fact that he played the game through multiple times. Geek!