General Grievous - Elite Series

General Grievous was a brilliant Separatist military strategist and a feared Jedi hunter, known for his ruthlessness and hacking cough. His body itself was a weapon, allowing him lightning quick strikes and devastating blows. But he was also quick to run from a fight, a tactic that worked until one final meeting with Obi-Wan Kenobi.

Well, like it or not there is another scale of highly collectible figures to purchase. And they seem to be doing very, very well. Disney Store enters the world of premiere Star Wars collecting with their launch of Elite Series figures and for the most part these figures are really looking nice. These die cast metal (with other mediums used as well) figures have been quickly gaining popularity amongst Star Wars fans and we feel it is with good cause. Quality is a big deal these days and with major companies taking shortcuts left and right, it’s nice to know that Disney Store is holding the bar higher than others. It’s important to note that while these figures are highly detailed and come with nice amount of articulation for metal figures, these are more likely meant to be display pieces that you don’t touch. There are already some early complaints that the figures can easily fall apart and that deco has been hit or miss and we’ve found this to be true here and there. After a huge launch of characters based from The Force Awakens, Disney Store has begun to attack the Prequel Trilogy next. After the initial Darth Maul for Episode I and then Anakin Skywalker for Episode II, General Grievous was the chosen character for an Episode III representation. And inside the package you’ll find what appears to be a pretty remarkable interpretation of this fan-favorite character. And it is. But its craftsmanship leaves something to be desired and one piece after another fell off of our sample. These figures are clearly not meant for kids, and if they are, well Disney customer service better get ready for some hefty whining.

It’s important to note that the Elite Series are not intended to be the high-end version of The Black Series 6” line because the two lines are in completely different scales and textures. With a rough ratio of about 7.5” for Elite Series to 6” for The Black Series, these metal figures are clearly not even close to each other in size and scale and they rightfully look unrelated next to each other. In other words, the two lines aren’t going to be interacting well. Even a figure like General Grievous appears too large and menacing next to The Black Series 6” Obi-Wan Kenobi. But that gives up hope that Hasbro will be under pressure to get their own General Grievous 6” right when that figures is timed for release. (This doesn’t mean that the Elite Series figures don’t make nice looking collectibles however.) Admittedly, we were quite frustrated photographing General Grievous. It is nearly impossible for him to stand upright unassisted without the included display stand and if you are successful he will only maintain that position for seconds. His center of gravity is all over place thanks to his weighty and unbalanced metal frame. We personally find that to be a design flaw as all figures great and small should be able to stand unassisted. It’s a shame. His four separately sculpted arms are all connected by ball-socket joints, but some of the friction isn’t that great and the arms will fall off with barely a bump. We see this as another design flaw.

On a positive note, General Grievous looks amazing. Disney Store did a fabulous job on his likeness and posture. The figure is loaded with an impressive 18 points of articulation, but you have to keep in mind that this Elite Series figure doesn’t behave like a super-articulated figure. There aren’t any ball-jointed points of articulation. This figure has only ball-socket and swivel articulation. But sculpting and paint operations are topnotch here. We’re honestly impressed. Sadly, General Grievous looks a great deal nicer displayed in a box with twist ties than out of the package relying on a display stand to hold him up. Included with General Grievous is a rubbery plastic cape which doesn’t really fit too well around his neck. It still looks alright in our opinion. And for us the most impressive aspect of the figure are the four unique lightsaber included. Disney Store could have decided to be lazy here, but the each hilt is different from the next. And you get two blue lightsabers and two green lightsabers (all attached to the hilts). The best part about this figure however is the way Disney was able to hide the screws. Because of General Grievous’ back plating, the screws are nearly invisible. This is a big deal for many as the screws on most of these figures leave collectors a bit cold with this line. A nice effort, but certainly not ready for mass production yet, General Grievous could have been better served with a few enhancements.