“Those aren't Mandalorians.”
The Imperial Armored Commando, as featured in the finale of Season 3 of the Mandalorian, was released as a Star Wars Black Series figure at the back end of 2024. It was part of Wave 19 of the Star Wars Black Series Galaxy Collection, a wave that featured figures from Ahsoka, Andor, The Phantom Menace, and The Mandalorian and whose release dates were staggered from early Autumn onward.
The Imperial Armored Commando is part of The Mandalorian Galaxy Collection, using the established deep orange accent colour on the text and artwork. The figure is number 42 in The Mandalorian collection with the side artwork connecting to release 41, the Deluxe release of Grogu and IG-12. At the time of writing, there is no further corresponding figures announced fully that will continue the montage past the Commando - although it is likely to be Moff Gideon or the Praetorian Guard from the same Season 3 finale. The rear of the box carries some basic information about the Commando and uses the Super Commando title that was established in Rebels but isn’t used on the packaging. The inserted card back, colour coded to The Mandalorian colour scheme, features an embedded image of the Imperial base on Mandalore.
The figure is entirely new in its design but uses the principles established for armoured troopers in that it uses a drab brown undersuit attaching the armour panels cast in gloss white over the top or as connecting parts. Only the thigh panels appear to be painted over the undersuit and these are slightly duller than the other elements and with a minimal level of paint bleed. Paint bleed is also evident if you look carefully at the boots where the brown is painted over the white on the piece just under the knee joint.
Colour is added to the Armoured body by way of red indicators on the chest and wrist gauntlets. These are lit on the actual prop costumes - but a duller red is used on the figure when perhaps a brighter finish might have replicated what should be an illuminated panel. Further controls and components on the upper arms and on the right side of the chest in grey are all neatly painted with a combination of grey, white, and red. The right wrist gauntlet features a sculpted, then painted, mini-rocket in silver and black.
The helmet is, as we see on screen, a variation on the Mandalorian helmet with more angular features and elements of Stormtrooper design including the side vents and mouthpiece. The helmet is cast in gloss white with the lower half coloured a flat grey. There is then a painted black ridge line just above a gloss black visor, and beneath this the black mouth section. Our Commando comes with a jet pack that is also cast in gloss white with grey detailing and black-painted thrusters at the base. It slots into three sockets on the reverse of the Trooper and locks securely in place. While the thrusters look like they feature a socket, this is not particularly deep and it can’t accept the existing thruster effects included with the Darktrooper - a shame for a figure that can be displayed in an in-flight position.
The Armored Commando features two weapons, a small side arm blaster and a larger blaster rifle. The smaller blaster is black cast with a reasonable amount of sculpted detail and a tiny silver painted panel near the barrel. It fits into the holster on the trooper's wrist or into the right trigger finger hand.
The larger blaster rifle is similarly black cast, with sufficient sculpted detailing and silver panels above the trigger and part way down the barrel. It fits into the same right hand where the trigger finger engages into position. The left hand is then shaped in a grip to hold the underside of the barrel for two-handed carry and firing positions.
Articulation is entirely pinless and like most Imperial Troopers the joints are disguised and incorporated around the armour. There are 17 points of articulation in total with the arms inclusive of wrist, elbow, shoulder, and butterfly joints to maximise poses with either blaster. The head is dual-jointed allowing the head to swivel but also for the neck to pivot back and forth extended movement. The legs do lose the thigh swivel, with rotation added into the knee joint. This improves the overall look of the legs without sacrificing any movement and the Trooper can still kneel or sit. The articulation also supports flying poses if you do want to drop the Armored Commando onto a third-party flight stand.
Hasbro is pretty adept now with Imperial Trooper formats and are also experienced with modular Mandalorian figures - both of which has served them well in engineering and assembling this new Mandalorian-inspired Imperial Armored Commando. The white gloss beskar amour is glossy and bright while the undersuit looks duller and padded providing a good contrast. The helmet is angular while Mandalorian in styling, with the white and grey broken up in places by splashes of red indicators and panels. Articulation is as expected and the weaponry is standard fare for a Black Series release.
The figure is of course an Army Builder so we should be thankful for a general release rather than an exclusive. There is also a variant we might expect in the future with two of the Commando sporting red panels on their helmet and wrist gauntlets as assigned guards for Moff Gideon.
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About Me : As a child of the 70's and 80's I grew up in a golden age for action figures and in my youth bought and sold myself through collections of Star Wars, G.I. Joe (Action Force) and M.A.S.K. while also dabbling in He-Man, Transformers and Ghostbusters. Roll forward and I am now reliving that Youth with the action figures of today and am a collector and fan of the larger 6-8 inch figures from my favourite movie and TV licences - including the ones mentioned above, but also the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Doctor Who and the Aliens. I launched The Mephitsu Archives in 2015 with a view of creating a UK focused site or these figures where fans can pick up the latest action figure news, read reviews and get information on where to buy their figures and what is currently on store shelves. I hope I am delivering that to you guys...
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