Darth Vader/Grand Moff Trachta - TLC - Comic Packs (10)

Emperor Palpatine may have control of the galaxy after the Clone Wars, but others want that power themselves. There are Imperial officers who are not pleased wth the current regime, and are plotting to eliminate the Emperor and Darth Vader. Grand Moff Trachta is at the center of this plot, but he also has some personal ambitions of his own. It's a tale of secrets, double crosses and betrayals in the early days of the Empire.

If you follow the Expanded Universe Star Wars: Empire comic book series, then you know that Grand Moff Trachta was essentially a fancy bodyguard for Grand Moff Tarkin during his transport throughout the many reaches of space. He then piously offers his opinion about what resolution may be in place for the many problems the Sith are having. (Don’t get us started, please.) There are many sub-plots as well, including Trachta being considered to supersede Tarkin as the overseer for the construction of the Death Star and a disturbance in the Force that could potentially be one of Vader’s offspring. Many factors come into play and Trachta ends up going to Coruscant to serve closer to Emperor Palpatine and the story goes on and on. Hasbro thought the character stood out enough to base a Comic Packs set on him and the focus of the set came out very well. Grand Moff Trachta gets his first appearance in the toy line and he should be a welcomed addition to Expanded Universe fans. To boot, collectors get a comic replica of the story in which he appeared.

The Comic Packs set based on the Star Wars: Empire (Betrayal) series is a decent set, but be prepared because you’ll be getting another Darth Vader figure. But the reason to consider this set’s purchase is for the Grand Moff Trachta figure. History explains that he is a human male that was severely injured during the Clone Wars by a thermal detonator. Rendering him with prosthetic eyes, respiratory system and arms, Trachta is not much different than most of the hybrid Star Wars characters we love like Darth Vader and General Grievous. But Grand Moff Trachta has more of a Universal Monsters feel to him than Star Wars for some reason. While he indeed looks like a human male, something is quite manufactured about him and almost Frankenstein like. Of course, any character that hides behind a mask comes across as more ominous that those that don’t, but Trachta is creepy. And we love that about him. An all-new figure, Grand Moff Trachta has decent articulation. Lacking knee joints, Trachta makes up for it by having an awesome paint job and an overall cool presence. The red centers of his goggles are a very nice touch to making him even eerier. He comes with a blaster pistol.

Darth Vader is nothing new at all, literally. He is a repack of the 2006 TSC Darth Vader (SAGA 038) figure (also known as the Bespin Confession Darth Vader), lightsaber and all. We can’t even find paint difference between the two figures so we are confident calling it a straight repack. The figure shouldn’t be criticized because it is a great figure and one that is worthy of repack after repack. We would have like to see some different paint operations on him though because there should be some benefit to a collector who buys one for everything and a simple change in paint application would make the purchase that more worthwhile. This set is full of Imperials and the main color is black. As a set, it stand out from the rest and looks just as good packaged as it does loose. Grand Moff Trachta is at the center of the plot to try and eliminate Darth Vader and the Emperor. (Ha! Fat chance!) The spirit behind the story is admirable, but this is one of the reasons why so many Expanded Universe stories will always rank weaker than the films. Sometimes the writers need to take a step back and see what hasn’t been done instead of reinventing the wheel (or using the wheel in the opposite direction). But we digress. This Comic Packs set is a great two-pack and we are happy having it in our collections.