Commander Gree - TAC - Basic (08 03)

Like all clones, Gree never questions his loyalty to the Republic. When told the Jedi are a threat, he immediately moves to eliminate Yoda. But he underestimates Yoda, who instantly becomes aware of the attack and acts swiftly to stop the commander.

What a difference a few years can make, huh? 2005 marked the first year that Hasbro started treating us (nearly annually) to the cleverly thought out "Repack & Repaint" waves and gave us twelve "new" figures that really weren't new at all. One of these figures was a repaint of the 2005 ROTS Clone Trooper (III 41) figure that Hasbro converted into the Commander Gree (III 59) figure. We were so desperate for him back then that we didn't really care (well, most of us didn't) how authentic he was to the film. But as time moved on, most of us really started to care and clamored for an all-new sculpt. Our wishes came true in the beginning of 2008 as the 30 (77-07) was on its way out and Hasbro gave us an amazingly new Commander Gree action figure that was new from head to toe. Commander Gree was well worth the wait and it was a figure that changed our expectations for all future clone trooper action figures. We wonder if Hasbro knew what can of worms they were opening by releasing this figure. Interestingly, there were instant criticisms of wrong color assignments and the shapes of the patterns on his helmet, but overall, it is without a doubt the best Commander Gree figure to date. (And one of the best action figures Hasbro has ever released, period.) And if perhaps Hasbro decides to correct a few of the paint applications, it will indeed make for an incredibly authentic action figure. But probably the most important thing to note is that if the line died tomorrow, this version of the character would be all the Gree you need.

Commander Gree is super-articulated, but what sets him apart from the rest are his ball-jointed wrists and hips. These two enhancements make this figure absolutely unbelievable. And you can imagine that the array of movement he can perform is so impressive, you will likely like to add multiples of him into your collections. And we believe some of the best customizers already have to make new artistic interpretations of various clones. If you recall, the original 2005 ROTS Commander Gree (III 59) figure came with painted-on suspenders. That has been remedied (thank you Hasbro) this time around with textured suspenders you can feel as well as newly styled chest armor which has a different pattern than the standard clone. Hasbro also paid attention to the character's garter belt on his left thigh too and it looks fantastic although it is not a functioning one. His antenna/backpack is a new sculpt and attaches to the back via a plug. Unfortunately if you choose to pose him without it, you'll have a big hole, but it attaches very snuggly against his back and looks awesome when in attached mode. We think Commander Gree's coloring is stunning, but we have read a few times that it looks a little too yellow. We don't see this. Gree is green and camouflaged where needed and once again, we think his palette is spot on for the most part. The dark silver-gray boots look absolutely phenomenal and while his ankle joints are the wrong color (in black), we don't think it is an egregious error and actually blends in fairly well for not being an exact match. Commander Gree's helmet looks pretty darn good and even though he has a removable helmet, it looks quite proportional to the rest of his body. The bonus to this is that he doesn't have a pea head as a result.

Commander Gree is a figure that will deserve release and rerelease in the basic figure line year after year. It of course will be gravy should Hasbro decide to improve some of the little decorating issues, but he passes with flying colors in our books. The paint job alone on him is pure beauty and will be one of the most impressive ones we'll see on an action figure. Sure his visor looks a little light, but does that really matter in the grand scheme of this action figure when he excels in every other area? We respect your opinion if you answered that question with a resounding "yes" but there is no denying that there are exponential positives to the very few and miniscule negatives. Just even considering that Gree's macrobinoculars are painted beautifully and the attention Hasbro gave them is mind-boggling. Yes, all action figures should be hailed to this level of superiority, but we do need to express gratitude when they make there way into our collections. Decorated at a level that only high-end collectibles really see, you actually have to spend a few moments looking at Gree's armor and accessories to appreciate how much effort went into finishing them off. As part of the 2008 phase of the 30 (77-07) line, the coins were abandoned in favor of the more collector-friendly action figure stands. We are a bit saddened that we will probably never have a Commander Gree coin to add into our collections, but the coins had to come to an end at some point. No matter what line your purchase Commader Gree, we just recommend purchasing him period. One of the best action figures released by Hasbro yet, we don't expect the quality of action figures by Hasbro to exceed much more than what this figure has already brought us. Commander Gree has it all: one of the best sculpts yet, a stunning paint job and fantastic accessories. And Gree is a figure that really should already be in your collection.