Embrace The Dark Side

As you may have read from my previous entry, I just got into the Lego Star Wars craze and started buying several sets from the theme with the intention of building MOCs for the blog. One thing I've realized, I 'm much more drawn to the villains of the Star Wars universe and find them more interesting than their heroic counterparts. I've always thought that the Sith Lords and the Galactic Empire are cooler than the Jedi and the Rebel Alliance. This is why I've decided to collect minifigs and sets featuring Star Wars villains. That's right, folks! I've gone and chosen the Dark Side of the Force!

My favorite Star Wars character is none other than Emperor Sheev Palpatine, also known as the Sith Lord, Darth Sidious, the most cunning and wicked individual in the entire galaxy. When I was a kid, I thought Emperor Palpatine was a purely evil character, driven only by malice and greed. However, upon reading several fan theories from the Internet and some material from the Expanded Universe, my personal opinion of the shriveled ruler of the Galactic Empire changed. 

There was a fan theory drawn from Expanded Universe material which really made me admire the Emperor and see his character in a different light. The theory proposes the idea that Palpatine was preparing the galaxy for the invasion of a strong and dangerous alien empire known as the Yuuzhan Vong. Palpatine was aware of the Vong's presence and was determined to arm his empire with weapons that could match the Vong's might. This powerful alien race eventually caused the deaths of multitudes of species when they invaded the galaxy during the reign of the New Republic, the governing body established by the Rebel Alliance after the fall of the Galactic Empire. It was clear that the newly formed government was not fully equipped to repel the Vong and there might have been a different outcome if Palpatine's reign did not end.

I really think this theory added depth to Palpatine's character and justified his actions across the Star Wars franchise. This gave me the impression that Palpatine sees the bigger picture and was trying to muster all the strength he needs to prevent the Galaxy's demise. If you come to think of it, the Sith's path of seeking power was more suited for the situation than the Jedi's ways. Anyway, this theory made me want to have my own Palpatine minifig that's why I got Lego's The Dark Side book with the exclusive Palpatine fig.

The book was actually a good read! It has a lot of interesting details about the Dark Side of the Force. In Lego! Most important of all, the Palpatine fig was perfect.

Aside from the Emperor, I think Stormtroopers are pretty darn cool. Yes, they may have missed a lot of shots in the movies but that doesn't mean they're incompetent. I've always wanted to build a Stormtrooper army and for the blog, I'm planning to build a Stormtooper platoon. I got several Stormtrooper Sergeant polybags which will serve as the platoon's officers.

Here are the bag's contents. The most significant piece is the white pauldron, which denotes a sergeant's rank. Also, the torso's fig has a more detailed print compared to the figs that come in the Star Wars Rebels sets. The fig really looks amazing when you put it all together.

I'm really glad I got these figs. These look great on their own. They look even better when you put them all together. I can see now why a lot of people are into collecting Star Wars figs. Stay tuned for more of these guys soon!

By the way, if you're interested in reading about the Palpatine theory I was talking about, just click here. Weekend's almost here, folks! Hang in there!