Clone
Gunner (Republic Fighter Tank)
The Clone Gunner's vehicle
mode is a Republic Fighter Tank. As with most Star Wars Transformers, this
mode is practically flawless in its construction-- no mech mode extra parts
anywhere, and the proportions are great. Everything clips together quite
well too, so no problems there, and small wheels on the bottom allow you
to roll this puppy alongpretty well. All three of his guns can move-- his
small middle gun can move side-to-side, while his side guns can move up-and-down
(and fire a spring-loaded missile, as well). His mold detailing is pretty
standard fare for a SWTF-- has some pretty techy details here and there,
but generally of moderately good quality. The color scheme is also par
for the course for SWTFs-- white with dark maroon, and a little pea green
and silver as accents. Yawn-- though really, if you're buying SWTFs it's
not for the color variety.
In mech mode, the Clone
Gunner resembles your typical clone trooper, but bulkier and stockier,
as befitting a tank. There is one major thing about this mode that bothers
me proportionally; the legs hang off at the hips in a fery odd manner,
with small little pieces connecting them to the waist. It makes his hips
way too wide, and because his hips come OUT from the waist instead of DOWN,
it makes them look a bit too short and, because of this, the arms look
a tad long as well. However, otherwise he's pretty good for a SWTF when
it comes to proportions, with a bulky chest and nice bulky appendages,
unlike many SWTF where the limbs are too skinny. I like how small pieces
of the tank mode form "shoulder pads", but most of the rest of his vehicle
mode just hangs off his back, unfortunately, not really pegging any place
firmly. The good side to this, though, is that it doesn't ruin his overall
silouhette much and doesn't get in the way of articulation. His head sculpt
is extremely well-done, with finer, crisper details such as circuitry than
on the rest of the figure-- it's really, really impressive, one of the
most impressive in the SWTF line. What's also cool is that the two main
guns in tank mode detach and can be held as missile launchers in this mode,
and the tiny central gun can fit in a peg to pop up over the Clone Gunner's
head (or also be handheld), so he still has a pretty decent amount of firepower
in this mode. As far as articulation goes, he can move at the neck, shoulders
(at two points), elbows (three points), wrists, and at the waist, hips
(at four points, though as mentioned before, it's an odd connection), knees
(at two points), and ankles. So he's pretty posable, though his bulk does
eliminate him from quite as many poses as you'd think.
The Clone Gunner SWTF
has some extraordinarily odd and odd-looking hip/waist joints, but otherwise
he's a very solid (though not exactly mind-blowing) addition to the line.
Great alt mode, pretty good mech mode... if you aren't totally turned off
by SWTFs, I'd mildly recommend this one.
Review by Beastbot