stormtrooper

Yes, he has a fist that launches! Yes, he has wheels on his feet! Yes, he's two feet tall! Yes, he signifies the return of a beloved toy line, after an absence of over 25 years!

It's the Super Shogun Star Wars Stormtrooper, a $300 throwback to the days of the 1970's Shogun Warriors action figures with a Star Wars twist. When I was a kid, I had a Shogun Warrior Godzilla and a Goldorak in the larger sized 24-inch variety and a few of their smaller die-cast metal brethren, as well as piles upon piles of Star Wars figures. If I could buy this and then travel back in time to 1979 and hand deliver it to myself, I totally would.

Keep this site bookmarked for the day that Super 7's Super Shogun Star Wars Stormtrooper goes on presale.

(via Figures.com)

Some three years ago, in a court room far, far away (California, actually), George Lucas successfully sued Brit Andrew Ainsworth for $20 million copyright infringement. Ainsworth had been making and selling replicas of the iconic Storm Trooper helmet and armor from Star Wars, which at least sounds pretty illegal, but what holds true in this country isn't necessarily so in another.

The British court system would not enforce the ruling, thus prompting Lucas (via Lucasfilm) to appeal the British decision. On December 14, Lord Justices Rix, Jacob and Patten agreed to dismiss the appeal, citing that the helmets and armor were, according to The Times UK, "'utilitarian' rather than artistic purpose, so 'neither the armour nor the helmet are sculpture'." The ruling also stated that Lucasfilm could not exercise its US copyright in the UK. At least they made it clear that Ainsworth did not actually own copyrights to the helmet or armor (well duh...).

I can't pretend to understand the finer points of US copyright law, let alone those laws as they translate to the UK, but doesn't something about this just seem fundamentally...wrong? Would the ruling have been any different had Ainsworth been making Darth Vader helmets or Boba Fett suits?

(via The Times UK and The Hollywood Reporter's THR, Esq. blog)

By: Peter Martin

To mash up two wildly different movie quotes: I wish I knew how to quit Star Wars, but just when I thought I was out, they pull me back in. This time, it's prompted by a collection posted at online magazine Dark Roasted Blend, which has rounded up a massive amount of links under the all-encompassing theme Star Wars for Your Mind, Heart and Soul.

I knew that SciFi Squad readers had recently voted Star Wars the best sci-fi movie franchise of all time in The Ultimate Sci-Fi Fan Poll, but with all due respect, the true mark of admiration and/or inspiration and/or madness is to spend time and money creating Boba Fett's full-size armor out of LEGO. Or crafting the Millennium Falcon out of a single sheet of paper. Some things are in questionable taste: the charred remains of Uncle Owen and Aunt Beru, packaged in plastic as a toy. Then there are the mash ups, like Snow White and the Seven Stormtroopers. Professional creations are not ignored, like original concept art by the great Ralph McQuarrie, which makes The Empire Strikes Back look like an old Republic Western, or a series of recent theme park advertisements featuring our favorite characters dealing with the logistics of modern travel.

Obviously, we love this kind of stuff. Check out the gallery below to get started, and then head on over to Dark Roasted Blend, where you can find links to all the crazy stuff they've collected together for your perusal. I think I know how I'll be whiling away my next few available hours.