Post by Garvy on Aug 11, 2005 16:43:02 GMT 8
To commemorate GT's brining in two of my favorite vehicles from the SW prequels, I'm posting these toy reviews that I made.
Here is the first:
Hasbro SW ROTS ARC-170 Fighter
Boxed ARC-170
To date, Hasbro’s Star Wars ROTS ARC-170 remains to be one of the locally rarer vehicles.
The vehicle itself required some assembly and decal application but that was not much of a problem. However, if you intend to buy this for a kid, I suggest that an adult supervise the assembly and sticker application as that can be a bit tricky.
Once assembled, at first glance, the ARC-170 looks so much like a futuristic WWII fighter bomber. Such a resemblance is most likely intentional given the shape of the thingypit and the inclusion of a gunner compartment to man a rear turret. Even the shape of the wings look to be very retro. Based on several sources, I’m told that the ARC-170 gets its design elements from Northrop’s P-61 Black Widow.
Overhead shot
Similarly, the ARC-170 clearly has design elements of the X-Wing fighter given the large engines by the fuselage as well as the x-shaped attack foils. Apparently, the designers of the ARC-170 break away eventually and form Incom, the company that manufactures the X-Wing for the Rebel Alliance.
Appearance-wise, it looks great but on one side of the ship, holes where the factory assembled screws go in are immediately visible! I think Hasbro could have rectified this by providing decals to “plug” the holes. As time goes by, you get used to the holes and from a certain distance, they’re hardly noticeable.
Notice the screw holes on the right side of the ship
The paint job of the ARC-170 is very similar to the AOTC Republic Gunship. This one though is quite pristine, lacking the “carbon scoring” and weathering details that we’ve come to expect from most Star Wars toy vehicles.
Referring to the attack foils, I don't recommend fooling around with this too much as the plastic tends to be a bit "bendy" and the foils on the ventral portion of the wings seem to overextend downwards. Taking a look at the preliminary reference pics I've seen in books and on the net, this shouldn't be so.
Ventral attack foils overextending downward
I first thought that I may have gotten a dud and that such a problem was specific to the unit I got. After getting a second one, it seems that all the ARCs share this fate.
For "action" features, it also has two large laser cannons at the end of each wing that fire one missile each. Other playbility factors include a gunbutt-like handle that folds out from the bottom of the ship. It actually helps one grip the ship with one hand! The handle is quite small, most likely meant to fit a child’s hand. The handle also has a trigger which in turn deploys 2 bombs. If you don’t like it, just push it back up and close the two ventral doors and its totally hidden from view.
ventral doors closed
handle with trigger deployed
I would still suggest holding this baby with two hands as its fairly sizeable and heavy. Size wise, its comparable to the Republic gunship.
It would have been a great touch if this had some electronic effects, but alas, they’re lacking this time around. Hasbro was most likely trying to keep the price point down.
Personally, what blew me away with this toy is that it actually fits 3 clone trooper pilots and when fully manned, the vehicle looks gorgeous! Put it alongside a republic gunship which shares similar colors, and you'll fall in love with it all the more.
forward crew thingypit (2 pilots)
rear gunner compartment
If Hasbro remains true to form, we may one day see a repainted version of this, either with “weathered” detailing or in different squadron colors or a combination of both.
Until then, I maintain that this is a great ship, bottom line, a great toy! I highly recommend it.
Here is the first:
Hasbro SW ROTS ARC-170 Fighter
Boxed ARC-170
To date, Hasbro’s Star Wars ROTS ARC-170 remains to be one of the locally rarer vehicles.
The vehicle itself required some assembly and decal application but that was not much of a problem. However, if you intend to buy this for a kid, I suggest that an adult supervise the assembly and sticker application as that can be a bit tricky.
Once assembled, at first glance, the ARC-170 looks so much like a futuristic WWII fighter bomber. Such a resemblance is most likely intentional given the shape of the thingypit and the inclusion of a gunner compartment to man a rear turret. Even the shape of the wings look to be very retro. Based on several sources, I’m told that the ARC-170 gets its design elements from Northrop’s P-61 Black Widow.
Overhead shot
Similarly, the ARC-170 clearly has design elements of the X-Wing fighter given the large engines by the fuselage as well as the x-shaped attack foils. Apparently, the designers of the ARC-170 break away eventually and form Incom, the company that manufactures the X-Wing for the Rebel Alliance.
Appearance-wise, it looks great but on one side of the ship, holes where the factory assembled screws go in are immediately visible! I think Hasbro could have rectified this by providing decals to “plug” the holes. As time goes by, you get used to the holes and from a certain distance, they’re hardly noticeable.
Notice the screw holes on the right side of the ship
The paint job of the ARC-170 is very similar to the AOTC Republic Gunship. This one though is quite pristine, lacking the “carbon scoring” and weathering details that we’ve come to expect from most Star Wars toy vehicles.
Referring to the attack foils, I don't recommend fooling around with this too much as the plastic tends to be a bit "bendy" and the foils on the ventral portion of the wings seem to overextend downwards. Taking a look at the preliminary reference pics I've seen in books and on the net, this shouldn't be so.
Ventral attack foils overextending downward
I first thought that I may have gotten a dud and that such a problem was specific to the unit I got. After getting a second one, it seems that all the ARCs share this fate.
For "action" features, it also has two large laser cannons at the end of each wing that fire one missile each. Other playbility factors include a gunbutt-like handle that folds out from the bottom of the ship. It actually helps one grip the ship with one hand! The handle is quite small, most likely meant to fit a child’s hand. The handle also has a trigger which in turn deploys 2 bombs. If you don’t like it, just push it back up and close the two ventral doors and its totally hidden from view.
ventral doors closed
handle with trigger deployed
I would still suggest holding this baby with two hands as its fairly sizeable and heavy. Size wise, its comparable to the Republic gunship.
It would have been a great touch if this had some electronic effects, but alas, they’re lacking this time around. Hasbro was most likely trying to keep the price point down.
Personally, what blew me away with this toy is that it actually fits 3 clone trooper pilots and when fully manned, the vehicle looks gorgeous! Put it alongside a republic gunship which shares similar colors, and you'll fall in love with it all the more.
forward crew thingypit (2 pilots)
rear gunner compartment
If Hasbro remains true to form, we may one day see a repainted version of this, either with “weathered” detailing or in different squadron colors or a combination of both.
Until then, I maintain that this is a great ship, bottom line, a great toy! I highly recommend it.
keeping the site active as a place to dump info for easier backtracking. 