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Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review

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Stryker2011


Founding Father
Thanks for the links, Guv. I knew about some of that behind the scenes, original scripts, etc., stuff, but not all of it.

Rogerbee


Founding Father
GubernatorFan wrote:
Good one, Roger. And you should know your countrymen! But aren't they also known for getting "pissed" on beer and eating fish and chips and saying "oy" before mounting double-decker buses and invading France? I may have watched Eurotrip a few too many times. Smile

Oh behave!

CHEERS!

Stryker2011


Founding Father
Thought I'd share some of the great photos that have been popping up of this guy (hope you don't mind, Guv). These are by others, Usernames credited above their photos. As you will see, some folks have figured out a solution to the dangling feet issue by placing the stand in front of the throne:

BuGz:

Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 436de910
Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 Bc26a210

Crazydragonclk:

Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 48375710
Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 48395410
Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 48419210
Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 48423010
Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 48935110

Creighton:

Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 7f5f8c10

Darth Fok:

Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 D19f2e10

davejames:

Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 20190117
Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 20190118
Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 20190119
Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 20190120

drjedisith:

Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 Thumbn11
Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 Thumbn12
Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 Thumbn10
Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 Thumbn13

dukefett:

Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 B54mo710

Earthprimej:

Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 8b115510
Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 93828e10
Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 C59df110

Enzo83:

Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 Bprli210
Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 Bqgl8u10
Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 Csk4kn10
Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 Cxczii10
Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 Fjklxp10
Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 Vgyolu10
Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 Xjy2a310
Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 Zkvptz10

genghisjon:

Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 Ph5uyf10

hrguerra:

Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 1395
Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 2188
Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 3162
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irezumi:

Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 Img_1810
Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 Img_1811
Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 Img_2412
Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 Img_2413

Jazzinc (who made the diorama):

Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 1396
Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 2189
Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 3163
Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 4150

jedi18:

Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 1397
Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 130a3910

Matrix69:

Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 Dsc_0010
Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 Dsc_0110
Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 Dsc_0510
Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 Dsc_0511

Mugatu:

Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 2yxf9110
Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 34rh9310

NDSam:

Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 55f1f710
Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 B81a2510
Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 C943dd10

NoenGaruth:

Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 Palpat12
Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 Palpat10
Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 Palpat11
Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 Palpat13
Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 Palpat14
Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 Palpat15

Pizza:

Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 Bi4s4a10
Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 Ce8y2g10
Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 Jdwwrq10
Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 Pka6qf10

skillerwhale (who seems to have been the first to figure out that if you put his stand in front of the throne, his feet rest comfortably):

Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 Palmpa10

starduster:

Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 Img_6410
Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 Img_6411
Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 Img_6412
Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 Img_6414
Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 Img_6413

TonTon (what an amazing Star Wars collection):

Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 1398
Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 2190
Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 3164
Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 4b76df10

xipotec:

Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 Img_8510
Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 Palps_10
Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 Palps710
Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 Palps810



Who would have thought there'd be so much love for a figure of a character who barely had any screen time... But he is pretty cool.

GubernatorFan


Founding Father
I don't mind at all. Thank you for sharing these photos, which are many, informative, and impressive, with the rest of us. Better lighting and camera do pay off and the proof is in the pudding above (I do have a better camera but too lazy -- and possibly unskilled -- to use it). The base under the feet is a solution, but it is not exactly screen accurate either.

https://onesixthfigures.forumotion.com

Rogerbee

Rogerbee
Founding Father

That is actually one of the best Star Wars figures HT have done. I only hope Figuarts can equal it in 1/12.

CHEERS!

Adeno


Great review! Palpatine looks so awesome and realistic! Just imagine him peering through a window, watching somebody eat their dinner at night. Scary lol Smile


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Ephiane

Ephiane
Wow ! Some Pictures looks like Movie Scenes !

GubernatorFan

GubernatorFan
Founding Father
Rogerbee wrote:That is actually one of the best Star Wars figures HT have done. I only hope Figuarts can equal it in 1/12.

That's quite an endorsement! I think they've done plenty of very nice figures, but yes, I agree, this is among the best, for all its minor limitations.

Adeno wrote:Great review! Palpatine looks so awesome and realistic! Just imagine him peering through a window, watching somebody eat their dinner at night. Scary lol Smile

Thank you very much. I don't think we need to worry too much about him being a peeping Tom. Unless of course you have a genetic predisposition towards using the Force and he is monitoring your progress with great interest... Smile

Ephiane wrote:Wow ! Some Pictures looks like Movie Scenes !

They do, don't they? And I suppose that is the point of these collectibles.


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Rogerbee

Rogerbee
Founding Father

Though good, I still wouldn't get one. I don't think there's a decent enough Luke and Vader to complement them. I have them in 1/12 already so an Emperor wouldn't be an ask.

CHEERS!

GubernatorFan

GubernatorFan
Founding Father
Rogerbee wrote:Though good, I still wouldn't get one. I don't think there's a decent enough Luke and Vader to complement them. I have them in 1/12 already so an Emperor wouldn't be an ask.

You really don't think HT's Vaders and Luke are decent enough? Yes, Vader needed a bit of customizing to maximize articulation range, and his damn tusks are as fragile as they were with the Sideshow figures, but especially the more recent releases have gotten the down very well. I think their ROTJ Luke head sculpt is also a masterpiece, and even the ANH one was already almost there (the Bespin one less so, largely due to the "backwards hair" effect). But except for the ANH Luke figure, I only have those figures in reconstituted form (i.e., I bought the heads and some of the outfit and accessories and put them together as a sort of basic kitbash). Anyway, the only thing really indecent about them seems to be the price. Smile


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Rogerbee

Rogerbee
Founding Father

I've never been able to put my finger on what it is, but, every 1/6 Vader I've seen has just looked off to me. The Hasbro Black Series is the only one that has ever looked like it's Dave Prowse wearing the costume. No HT or SSC body has ever matched it.

CHEERS!

Stryker2011

Stryker2011
Founding Father
I guess I’m not as nuanced when it comes to Vader. I’ve read numerous complaints about little bits and bobs here and there, the shape of the helmet, etc, etc., But aside from the Ralph Macquarie art version, I honestly can’t tell one from the other. If it looks like Darth Vader to me, that’s good enough (though I’m holding out for HT to do Return of the Jedi version with an old Anakin reveal HS — not sure why, since I’d probably never display him that way; I just think it’d be cool to have.

HT Return of the Jedi Luke, I’m not impressed with. Not that it’s a bad sculpt, or that it doesn’t resemble Hamill in many ways; I just think it’s a far more idealized, cutsie version — pre-Star Wars even — then the leaner-faced, more “rough-road” look he had thanks to the car accident by the time he was in Jedi. HT has a tendency of idealizing people who have flaws and imperfections (like Harrison Ford, Hamill, and older Alec Guinness), when it’s those flaws that make or break the likeness. I’m not thrilled at all with the final production of Sideshow’s Return Luke, but, unfortunately, that is the one I POd from Timewalker, so that is the one I’m ending up with — I suppose if I didn’t open it I could try to sell it... But Luke, Vader, Billy Dee Lando, and Slave Leia are the last of the major characters that I want (have Mythos Boba Fett already on PO to fill that gap); anymore SW characters after those would be something else to stick in the Jabba display I’m planning.


_________________
Mark

He who dies with the most toys wins!

Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 C8485110

Rogerbee

Rogerbee
Founding Father

Inigo's ROTJ Luke is nice, if you get someone like Silentsurfer to paint it that is. I know what you mean about HT. Everyone goes nuts over pics of a freshly sculpted prototype, masterfully painted by JC Hong. Even though you tell them till you're blue in the face that the production version won't be as good, they PO in their droves in the hope they can prove you wrong. Then they lose it over crappy phone pics taken in the Secret Base, cancel orders and then see that it maybe wasn't so bad when you see better pics. It's a minefield!

CHEERS!

Stryker2011

Stryker2011
Founding Father
I always expect a certain amount of drop-off from Prototype to Production (anyone expecting these things to turn out like the ONE head JC Hong paints and shows-off on his FB page is naive -- to put it politely). I PO'd -- for the last time -- the Sideshow Luke, mainly because I thought the sculpt reflected Mark's more beat-up look in Jedi (plus it didn't have that silly, mouth-breather thing going on that HT did), but the massive drop-off from Proto to Production is so staggering as to be outside the realm of acceptable. After how good their Mythos Obi-Wan turned out, it is actually surprising that their Luke figure seems to have taken a 10-year backward leap in production quality. They should really stick to robots and aliens in their sixth scale lines, as they clearly cannot do likenesses from real people -- or something is going horribly wrong at the factory end, and they are too cheap to hire a Chinese person to do some quality control.

This is probably the only way I'll be able to display Sideshow's Return of the Jedi Luke and get away with saying "See, I have all three of the major characters represented." (Assuming I don't sell it):

Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 Edd83410
Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 Proxy_28


How did you manage to find Inigo's Luke, Roger? Did someone post a link over at the Freaks somewhere?


_________________
Mark

He who dies with the most toys wins!

Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 C8485110

GubernatorFan

GubernatorFan
Founding Father
I suspect likeness is in the eye of the beholder. I saw a few different images of that Inigo custom sculpt Roger mentioned, and some looked great, some not so great (perhaps it depends on who painted it) -- to me.

As for Hot Toys, I think they not only surpassed any other large-production-run "sixth-scale" likeness of the character, but also got it down very well -- already on the ANH Luke, but even more so on the ROTJ Luke. Of course lighting makes a difference on both the actor's features and the product, and so does facial expression.

Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 Htluke10

While looking around for the Inigo sculpt, I came across the following:

Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 3df537f9262799a9cb762c93302e9a2f


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Stryker2011

Stryker2011
Founding Father
I like that New Hope sculpt better than the current one. How bizarre how close Hamill is to Stan in likeness. I wonder if I shouldn’t try to track down the New Hope figure...


_________________
Mark

He who dies with the most toys wins!

Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 C8485110

GubernatorFan

GubernatorFan
Founding Father
Stryker2011 wrote:I like that New Hope sculpt better than the current one. How bizarre how close Hamill is to Stan in likeness. I wonder if I shouldn’t try to track down the New Hope figure...

If it is not available or indecently expensive, there is a very close knockoff head (and possibly clothes/accessories set) just like there was for ANH Leia.


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Rogerbee

Rogerbee
Founding Father
Stryker2011 wrote:I always expect a certain amount of drop-off from Prototype to Production (anyone expecting these things to turn out like the ONE head JC Hong paints and shows-off on his FB page is naive -- to put it politely). I PO'd -- for the last time -- the Sideshow Luke, mainly because I thought the sculpt reflected Mark's more beat-up look in Jedi (plus it didn't have that silly, mouth-breather thing going on that HT did), but the massive drop-off from Proto to Production is so staggering as to be outside the realm of acceptable. After how good their Mythos Obi-Wan turned out, it is actually surprising that their Luke figure seems to have taken a 10-year backward leap in production quality. They should really stick to robots and aliens in their sixth scale  lines, as they clearly cannot do likenesses from real people -- or something is going horribly wrong at the factory end, and they are too cheap to hire a Chinese person to do some quality control.

This is probably the only way I'll be able to display Sideshow's Return of the Jedi Luke and get away with saying "See, I have all three of the major characters represented." (Assuming I don't sell it):



How did you manage to find Inigo's Luke, Roger? Did someone post a link over at the Freaks somewhere?

I don't have the head, Inigo posts regularly on FB as does Silentsurfer. I have the original SSC Jedi Luke, in my roof! I quite liked it at the time, not now though!

CHEERS!

Rogerbee

Rogerbee
Founding Father

In Gubernator's pics I get it about the idealised likeness. It doesn't look quite haggard enough to be Mark as he was then. They also idealised the NT Leia quite a bit in that they took away Carrie's obvious coke nose. Her septum rotted out so they had to sew the tip of her nose down to hide the hole. HT just aged a young Carrie.

It would be interesting to see if you could put Luke hair on an HT Winter Soldier head to see if a better Luke emerges.

CHEERS!

Stryker2011

Stryker2011
Founding Father
I actually broke down and found a New Hope Luke, not too badly marked up on eBay. I’ll probably keep parts from Sideshow’s ROTJ Luke, and see if I can’t sell off the rest parted out. I’ve heard folks don’t mind the Endor sculpt (since the helmet helps the likeness some), so I’ll probably get rid of that stuff.


_________________
Mark

He who dies with the most toys wins!

Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 C8485110

Rogerbee

Rogerbee
Founding Father

Sounds like a plan!

CHEERS!

GubernatorFan

GubernatorFan
Founding Father
Rogerbee wrote:In Gubernator's pics I get it about the idealised likeness. It doesn't look quite haggard enough to be Mark as he was then. It would be interesting to see if you could put Luke hair on an HT Winter Soldier head to see if a better Luke emerges.

I don't think the HT ROTJ Luke head sculpt is idealized or "cutsie" at all. Yes, he looked more haggard in some scenes, but not every one. You cannot expect a single head sculpt to capture every single expression an actor had while playing a character in any given film (or even scene)! Nor can you expect that a company will necessarily decide to use the sculpt you would have most liked. The most you could expect is for them to be reasonable and to get it as accurate as possible for the look they chose. In this instance they went for a fairly neutral, somewhat pensive and apprehensive expression. It was appropriate enough for the film and it wasn't some unnecessarily specific (and therefore divisive) overly-animated expression. But I suppose people's priorities, tastes, and perceptions will differ. So anyway, here is Luke's secret son, Seb Skywalker.

Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 Htluke11

No, I wasn't going to uproot the hair and paint over his stubble just to see if it will make a better Luke Wink


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Stryker2011

Stryker2011
Founding Father
Yikes! That's hilarious, Guv.

Here's a good comparison shot of Sideshow's Luke, the "real" Luke, and HT's Luke:

Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 Luke10


_________________
Mark

He who dies with the most toys wins!

Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 C8485110

GubernatorFan

GubernatorFan
Founding Father
Hmm, in and of itself, the Sideshow Luke looks quite good. But both head sculpts seem to have made the jaws too square. Of course the Luke movie still in question has him looking up and to the side at Jabba, with arched eyebrows. You were probably meant to look at this:

Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 Mark-hamill-has-a-sexy-theory-about-luke-skywalker-returning-to-star-wars


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Stryker2011

Stryker2011
Founding Father
Overall, the SS Luke sculpt seems to suffer from a certain amount of warpage in the casting, and their usual weak paint apps.


_________________
Mark

He who dies with the most toys wins!

Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 C8485110

Rogerbee

Rogerbee
Founding Father

I do sometimes think that people have their idea of what the actor looks like in their heads, without them actually studying stills. People still rate the SSC TOD Indy sculpt, I think it's dire! Sometimes it's like HT split the difference and hope for the best, then their loyal followers dutifully do the rest.

When they want to they can produce perfection, their Don Corleone still holds up today. They nail Johnny Depp and Robert Downey Jnr. I guess some of us have a better eye than others for what constitutes a great likeness.

CHEERS!

GubernatorFan

GubernatorFan
Founding Father
Rogerbee wrote:I do sometimes think that people have their idea of what the actor looks like in their heads, without them actually studying stills. ... I guess some of us have a better eye than others for what constitutes a great likeness.

In case of doubt, consult Roger. Smile


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Stryker2011

Stryker2011
Founding Father
Rogerbee wrote:
I do sometimes think that people have their idea of what the actor looks like in their heads, without them actually studying stills. People still rate the SSC TOD Indy sculpt, I think it's dire! Sometimes it's like HT split the difference and hope for the best, then their loyal followers dutifully do the rest.

When they want to they can produce perfection, their Don Corleone still holds up today. They nail Johnny Depp and Robert Downey Jnr. I guess some of us have a better eye than others for what constitutes a great likeness.

CHEERS!

I can attest to this, though I understand that people see what they want to see. As a kid who was always in to illustration and art, my focus was primarily on people. Growing up it was my goal to become a comic book writer and illustrator, and I pretty much kept that goal most of my adult life. After my short military run, and in between doing a few dangerous jobs, I even went to two different Art Schools (but ultimately changed my Major to English). In that time, my skill as an illustrator, was constantly practiced and honed. My point is not to brag about how great I am at drawing people, but that it takes a great deal of work to be able to analyze and pick apart the tiniest of details, develop a close relation of eye/hand coordination, and be able to isolate tiny sections of an individual’s face like a puzzle, focus on each piece, the negative space (ie, the overall shape of a thing, or the shape around the thing rather than the thing itself), and to be able to recreate that thing in 2D. Art is a skill, like any skill, that requires years, decades, of never-ending practice (something that I have sadly not done in a very long time), but what was learned through decades of ocular analysis can never be undone (unless one goes blind, of course). Most folks who are excellent at recreating a person’s likeness have an uncanny knack of finding the imperfections in a person’s face (and most people have them) than what makes someone attractive.

I brought up Harrison Ford, Mark Hamill and old Alec Guinness before, because those guys never seem to get done right. Ford was a ruggedly handsome guy when he was younger, but far from perfect (hence “rugged” — he has a slightly crooked nose and mouth, and a scar on his chin; his features are not symmetrical — and the overall shape of his face changed from softer, rounder in SW to more chiseled by Empire). Though HT often get the scar, they make his features too symmetrical. They did pretty much the same thing to Hamill with their ROTJ sculpt. Hamill’s face was more symmetrical when he was in Star Wars, but it was far from it by the time of Jedi.

Ever notice why models (particularly Super Models) are considered Beautiful or Gorgeous...? And why it is often hard for less-skilled people to capture their likeness completely...? It’s because they have nearly perfect symmetrical faces, yet there is still something (there always is) that is just a little different from one side of the face to the other. An interesting technique I learned in school was to cover up one side of a person’s face that is looking straight ahead in a photograph, place a sheet of tracing paper over it and trace over all the details of the exposed side (making sure to lightly trace the line of the paper covering the other side). When finished, remove the covering paper and fold the tracing paper in half along the line running down the middle, then retrace the features that were previously drawn. When you unfold the tracing paper and place it onto a white sheet of paper you will have a complete face — but it won’t look much like the person it is supposed to be. This is what is wrong with HT’s Jedi Hamill — (it is also why the majority of their female sculpts never quite look like the person they are supposed to); it’s as if they looked at one side of the face where he wasn’t as badly damaged, and then flipped it for the other side (after all, he’s the hero — he SHOULD be good looking, or at least cute — like he was in New Hope — but he wasn’t all that cute by Jedi; I remember as a kid how jarring of a difference there was even from SW to Empire — by the time of Jedi, I thought maybe he’d been in another car accident).

Try that technique on a photograph of yourself and you’ll see what I mean. I actually thought the prototype of Hamill that SS made, while still not a perfect likeness, was a lot closer than HT’s prototype. Sadly, production, as is nearly always the case with SS, killed most of what was close. HT’s drop off in production is considerably less in most cases (though their Black Panther 2.0 Bozeman was fairly bad from proto to final), but it’s very, very idealized; it’s the old, the mind not believing what the eyes are telling it sort of thing.

If anyone made it through all of that, congratulations!


_________________
Mark

He who dies with the most toys wins!

Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 C8485110

Rogerbee

Rogerbee
Founding Father
Well put and I do agree,

I have a pretty damn good facial recognition system in my head. I can even recognise people that I haven't seen for more than 30 years. People retain an essence of what they were like when they were young right through their lives and I seem to be able to pick up on that. There were a few people at my school reunion that I picked out that nobody could guess.

I can spot a great likeness a mile off as much as I can a bad one. Even though SSC made it a bit too large, the best sculpt of Indy, and indeed Ford, is Trevor Grove's. He absolutely nails Ford, even on a NECA figure!

Hot Toys Star Wars Emperor Palpatine (Deluxe) Review - Page 3 SYJzJQK

That's a 7" figure by the way.

CHEERS!

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