Tamashii Nations has turned to the dark side of the force as it revealed its latest exclusive toy, the Taikoyaku Stormtrooper, on Dec. 15. The product will be available by June 2016.
The Taikoyaku Stromtrooper is currently a Japan exclusive item but since Tamashii Nations has a North American partner in Bluefin, there may be a possibility of having the toy available in the United States, perhaps by the end of 2016 or middle of 2017, but it could also just be wishful thinking.
The Samurai inspired design of the Stormtrooper is under the Meisho Movie Realizations project of Tamashii Nations in which the toymaker reimagines the "Star Wars" characters to be Japanese warriors. This particular Stromtrooper is envisioned as a Taikoyaku, or in simpler terms, the drum playing soldier who carries the drums and sets the pace during the march.
It comes with its own removable equipment too in the form of the drum, two drumsticks, a conch shell, and an Empire-themed flag that can be attached behind the Stormtrooper and every little part is incredibly detailed that the reimagining can't even be deemed funny.
It has a height of about 170 millimeters (6.7 inches), made of Polyvinyl chloride (PVC) and Acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS) and will be made available on June 6, 2016 at the price of 8,856円 ($72.55). You can check out more photos of the Taikoyaku Stormtrooper at the Tamashii Nations website.
Tamashii Nations has already reimagined some of the other characters from the Empire and, while the Taikoyaku Stormtrooper has stunning details, the Samurai Taisyo Darth Vader Death Star Armour may just be unbeatable and will take your breath away. It's a little taller than the Stormtrooper at 180 millimeters (7 inches) and costs 9,504円 ($77.86) but it's Samurai Darth Vader with a lightsaber and a Samurai sword so why not?
