Shoretrooper - RO - Basic

Specialist Stormtroopers stationed at the top secret Imperial military headquarters on Scarif, Shoretroopers patrol the beaches and bunkers of the planetary facility.

Is anyone else out there slightly confused how Hasbro names the figures in the current Star Wars lines? After a rather steady moniker of Scarif Stormtrooper, Hasbro out of the blue decides to use the shorter Shoretooper to describe this character in wave 3 of the Rogue One line. Something so trivial as this really has no bearing on us at all, but when characters like Sergeant Jyn Erso (Jedha) or Captain Cassian Adnor (Eadu) are used over and over and over again, we’re just surprised they changed things up a big for this action figure. OK, let’s get it out of the way. Hasbro is unnecessarily competing with themselves. There was no reason to tool a separate 5POA action figure of the Shoretooper when they delivered the unbelievably gorgeous Scarif Stormtrooper Squad Leader (yes, the Walmart exclusive figure is incorrectly named) in The Black Series [Phase III] 3.75” lineup. This is where Hasbro needs to reconsider how to approach the line. If they could incorporate action figures that need super-articulation into the 5POA mainline, they’d probably have a more successful action figure line. Not all figures need super-articulation. We have WAY too many action figures where super-articulation has been totally wasted. If they save it for troopers and other characters that need complete movement, then they could save on tooling while giving the collecting community a much fairer shake.

So that brings us to the Shoretooper. While nice, this unneeded action figure has been added to the 5POA Rogue One format for reasons unknown. It’s definitely an army builder action figure, but collectors are going to stock up on the Walmart exclusive figure again. The figure isn’t terrible. But all it can do is stand in your collection. It cannot add any dimension to your dioramas where action is involved. Based on the figure from the Moroff/Scarif Stormtrooper Squad Leader Two-Packs, Hasbro tooled an all-new torso. But in actuality, this figure is a repaint of the Imperial AT-ACT Driver from the Rapid Fire Imperial AT-ACT vehicle. This new torso was required because the general Shoretooper has different armor and accessories than the Scarif Stormtrooper Squad Leader. The other parts like the limbs look a tad different here and there too, but we’re not confident stating that all the parts are new. There is definitely redundancy here, albeit a little less black and white than other figures we have seen Hasbro reuse in the past perhaps. With an all-new torso and a new paint job, the Shoretrooper does indeed look pretty nice. Hasbro has absolutely cleaned up the way they approach deco. As we always state, things aren’t perfect, but they’re a whole lot better. The Shoretrooper falls under “a whole lot better” for us. It seems that this figure should have been released in the first wave along with the Imperial Stormtrooper in retrospect. After all, they fought together on Scarif.

Like the Scarif Stormtrooper Squad Leader, the Shoretooper is visually beautiful. As a standalone figure, we’re confident that you’ll be impressed. There are different colors, stripes, lines, insignias and other small details that have been replicated here with such precision and care. But again, with a ball-socket head and swivel shoulders and hips there isn’t much you can do with this figure. This of course is a shame. But dang if the Shoretrooper doesn’t look fantastic despite this. The Shoretrooper comes with a blaster rifle from the film. It fits well in his hands. And the weapon itself is very nice as well. And as with all 5POA figures in the basic Rogue One line, the Shoretrooper also comes with a play accessory. In this case it is a blaster cannon/zip line or rappel line. It’s an odd accessory and you get basic instructions on how to utilize it, but overall it seems like an unnecessary addition. You may feel differently about this and that’s fine too. Overall, we’re glad to see more troopers get added to the Star Wars line. But Hasbro should be thinking about making a hybrid basic figure line that contains super-articulated characters when warranted, and then save on tooling costs for figures that don’t need the extra articulation. We suggest passing on this one and going for the Walmart exclusive version instead. But that would ultimately be your call.