Blocks takes to the skies and examines the history of LEGO Star Wars Clone Trooper Pilot minifigures.
There’s more to the Grand Army of the Republic than just the ground troops. Pilots make up the Republic Navy and played a crucial role in many battles throughout the Clone Wars, including at Geonosis and Coruscant. Clone Pilots made their on-screen debut alongside their infantry counterparts in 2002’s Star Wars: Attack of the Clones but would have to wait until 2005 to arrive in the brick.
The first Clone Pilot minifigure was part of the popular Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith wave of sets in 2005, and in the following years received various redesigns and updates. The Clone Pilot minifigure has plenty of distinct variants, and Blocks, the monthly LEGO magazine, is visiting the flight deck ato explore the history of the LEGO Star Wars Clone Trooper Pilot.
2005 — First Flight
At first glance, the original Clone Pilot minifigure seems to be, simply put, terribly inaccurate. The figure appeared in sets tied to Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith, yet looks nothing like the pilots that appear in the thrilling opening of the film. While this is true, the minifigure isn’t quite as inaccurate as it seems. It’s actually based on the Phase II pilots seen in the 2D Star Wars: Clone Wars cartoon. Viewing it in this context, it’s a pretty accurate representation of the source material. It definitely feels a little dated by modern standards, but it has that classic LEGO charm that just can’t be beat. This figure only ever appeared in two sets — 7259 ARC-170 Starfighter and 6205 V-wing Fighter.
2008 — Phase I Debut
Even though the Phase I Pilot first appeared in 2002, it had to wait until 2008 to arrive in the brick, as part of a wave of sets based on the Star Wars: The Clone Wars cartoon. The figure is very similar to the standard Phase I Clone Wars Clone Trooper, simply adding some yellow detailing and Republic emblems to the helmet and breathing tubes to the torso. It’s a respectable adaptation of the Clone Pilot, although the in-universe design has a smoothed down fin, while the minifigure has the full fin like the standard trooper. The Clone Wars Pilot flew a few different ships from 2008 to 2009, including 7674 V-19 Torrent and 8019 Republic Attack Shuttle.
2010 — Helmet Upgrades
In 8088 ARC-170 Starfighter, the Phase II Clone Pilot got itself a helmet accurate to its appearance in Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith. The helmet features an open front just like in the film, revealing the pilot’s face. No new face print was given to the pilots in 8088, as they instead reused a common rebel pilot face print to achieve the look of the orange flight visor. Two versions of this pilot appeared in 8088. One had a simple black stripe on the helmet while the other featured blue detailing to represent Captain Jag. This helmet mould would go on to be used in a handful of different Clone Pilot minifigures, including 2014’s 75039 V-Wing Starfighter and 2015’s ARC-170 Starfighter.
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2013 — 501st Pilot
A unique Clone Pilot variant came in 2013’s 75004 Z-95 Headhunter — the 501st Clone Pilot. The eye-catching helmet design was used in later seasons of Star Wars: The Clone Wars, including during the Battle of Umbara, on which 75004 is based. The minifigure itself has a rather plain torso but more than makes up for it with its impressive helmet — both the mould and the printing are simply excellent. The 501st Pilot and its special helmet remain exclusive to 75004, making this minifigure highly desirable among LEGO Clone Trooper collectors.
2013 — Return to Geonosis
Eleven years after Star Wars: Attack of the Clones hit theatres, the Clone Pilot finally had a minifigure representing the live action Phase I design. Much like the 2008 Clone Wars Pilot, the 2013 figure uses the standard trooper design as a base and adds the pilot detailing on top. However, the different style of printing compared to the Clone Wars variant gives the live-action Pilot a much sleeker appearance. The pictured minifigure is exclusive to the beloved 75021 Republic Gunship, while a version with leg printing released in 2015’s 75076 Republic Gunship.
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