Death Squad Commander — Star Wars The Black Series 40th Anniversary

Overview

Death Squad Commander at #DS2 in the broader 40th Anniversary lineup is the Black Series tribute release of the Imperial Death Star command staff — the grey-uniformed Imperial officers seen across A New Hope’s Death Star sequences, distinct from the more familiar Stormtrooper and Imperial officer character classes. Released May 2017 in Hasbro’s Black Series 40th Anniversary Collection on Kenner vintage-inspired packaging. Mainline non-exclusive at $19.99. 19-joint articulation — high count for the line. Two accessories: a blaster and a removable helmet with chin strap detail. The figure captures the specific Imperial officer character class that appears throughout A New Hope’s Death Star scenes — a deeper-cut character pull than the more obvious Luke/Vader/Leia/Han choices, reflecting the line’s commitment to A New Hope’s full character roster rather than just the headline names.

The Death Squad Commander Character Class

“Death Squad Commander” is the Kenner-era 1977 character classification for the grey-uniformed Imperial officers visible across A New Hope’s Death Star scenes — a slightly archaic name preserved from the original Kenner 1978 figure release. The character class includes the various Imperial officers seen on the Death Star bridge during the Princess Leia interrogation scenes, the conference room sequences, and the various command-deck moments throughout the film. In subsequent Star Wars classification, these characters are more commonly called Imperial Officers or Death Star Troopers; the “Death Squad Commander” name is a deliberate Kenner-era nostalgia callback for the 40th Anniversary release.

For collectors who collect by Kenner-era character classifications, this figure is essential — it’s the only contemporary Black Series 6-inch release using the original Death Squad Commander naming. For collectors familiar with the Imperial officer character class through more recent Star Wars storytelling (the Disney-era Imperial Officer figures, the Andor-era senior Imperial officials at #AND 12 Dedra Meero etc.), the Death Squad Commander represents the original-trilogy Imperial command-staff configuration in plastic form.

The Helmet and Chin Strap Engineering

The figure came with a blaster and a removable helmet. The helmet is a good fit so that the chin strap can be placed onto the chin — a specific engineering positive worth flagging. Most Black Series helmet-with-chin-strap configurations either use moulded chin straps that don’t articulate or have the strap as a fixed sculpt detail. The Death Squad Commander’s helmet engineering supports the chin strap correctly engaging with the head sculpt’s chin geometry, capturing the screen-accurate Imperial officer headgear configuration.

For collectors who want both the with-helmet (canonical Imperial officer combat configuration) and without-helmet (alternative reveal showing the underlying head sculpt) display options, the removable design supports both states cleanly. The helmet is sized correctly to the head sculpt and removes/replaces without disrupting the figure’s overall visual reading.

The Blaster and Trigger Finger

The Death Squad Commander is able to hold the blaster very well in the right hand — the index finger can even be placed onto the trigger. This is the trigger-finger engineering detail that distinguishes the better-tier Black Series releases (the Andor-era figures at #AND 06 Luthen, #AND 10 Cassian, #AND 12 Dedra all carry the same engineering). For a 2017-era Phase 3 release, the trigger-finger detail is meaningfully ahead of the line’s typical baseline.

The blaster fits well into the holster, supporting the stowed-weapon configuration alongside the deployed-combat configuration. The dual-state weapon display flexibility is the figure’s primary accessory engineering value proposition.

The 19-Joint Articulation

19 joints. Ball-jointed top neck, swivel-jointed lower neck, ball-jointed shoulders, ball-jointed elbows, ball-jointed wrists, ball-jointed waist, ball-jointed hips, swivel-jointed thighs, swivel joints above knees, swivel joints below knees, ball-jointed ankles. The high joint count for a Phase 3 mainline release — substantially above the standard 17-joint baseline that most Phase 3 figures carry. The dual-axis knee articulation (above-knee swivel + below-knee swivel) provides additional posing flexibility for the figure’s combat configurations.

For collectors evaluating articulation across the Phase 3 line, 19 joints is meaningfully strong. The figure handles dynamic combat-pose configurations cleanly — the trigger-finger blaster grip combined with the deeper knee articulation supports the screen-accurate Imperial officer firing-stance display.

The Permanent Costume Configuration

There are no removable pieces on the outfit. Standard Black Series design pattern for Imperial officer character classes — the costume is sculpted as a single integrated body unit with the helmet as the only meaningful removable component. For collectors who want kitbashing flexibility across costume variants, this is restrictive; for collectors who want a screen-accurate Imperial officer at the canonical command-staff configuration, the integrated approach is appropriate.

The Sculpt and Paint

The head sculpt looks nice and the entire figure was painted well. The Death Squad Commander’s uniform was translated well into the figure — even the buckles on the gloves are present. The sculpted detail extends down to small components that most Phase 3 figures undershoot — the glove buckle detail specifically is the kind of attention-to-source-material detail that elevates the figure above generic-Imperial-officer territory.

For collectors comparing Phase 3 paint quality across the line, the Death Squad Commander reads as competent without being exceptional. The figure ships with appropriate uniform-tone application, sharp paint definition on small components, and the standard clean-versus-weathered Phase 3 baseline. No major paint critiques to flag — this is one of the better-painted 40th Anniversary individual figure releases.

Our review figure had no balancing issues — the figure stands reliably across multiple combat-pose configurations without joint drift or ankle weakness affecting display stability.

Distribution and Mural Position

Standard mainline 40th Anniversary release at $19.99 through wide retail channels — Target, Walmart, Toys R Us (still operating in May 2017), Amazon, hobby shops. The mainline distribution and the standard pricing make the Death Squad Commander accessible despite the deeper-cut character pull. Aftermarket pricing on the secondary market has remained reasonable due to broad initial availability.

The Death Squad Commander sits in the broader 40th Anniversary lineup as one of the secondary character class releases — the line’s primary anchor figures (Luke, Vader, Leia, Han, Chewie, Threepio, Artoo, Obi-Wan) cover the headline characters, and the Death Squad Commander joins the secondary roster (Tusken Raider, Jawa, Stormtrooper, the various Imperial classes) that round out the A New Hope ensemble. For collectors building Imperial Death Star bridge displays, the figure is essential — there are no other 6-inch Black Series Death Squad Commander releases at the original-trilogy era.

Other Death Squad Commander Figures

The character class has been a recurring Hasbro release subject across multiple lines despite the relatively obscure on-screen presence. Other notable Death Squad Commander / Death Star Trooper figures include the Power of the Force 2 release (figure id=1271), the Vintage Collection Villain Set I 3-Pack version (figure id=1385), the 30th Anniversary Collection release (figure id=1678), the original Vintage release (figure id=1925), the Saga Collection Death Star Accessory Set version (figure id=2163), and the standalone re-release that followed in March 2018 as Black Series #61 (figure id=9101 — different from the 40th Anniversary release, which is figure id=4961). For Death Squad Commander completionists, the 40th Anniversary version is the dedicated 6-inch Black Series flagship release.

Secondary Market

Single-carded mainline release on Kenner vintage cardback, May 2017. Available at MSRP through standard retail and the secondary market with broad availability. Verify the blaster and the removable helmet are both included. The helmet is the small component most likely to be lost during transit. No production variants documented.

Verdict

Death Squad Commander at #DS2 in the 2017 40th Anniversary line is one of the better-engineered secondary character releases. The 19-joint articulation count is meaningfully above the Phase 3 baseline, the trigger-finger blaster grip engineering is ahead of its release era, the helmet’s chin-strap engagement captures the screen-accurate Imperial officer configuration, the sculpted glove buckle detail demonstrates Hasbro’s commitment to small-component accuracy, and the figure stands reliably on display.

The integrated permanent costume limits kitbashing flexibility. The character class itself is a deeper-cut pull that mainstream collectors might overlook in favour of the more obvious headline figures. No major engineering or paint critiques to flag — this is a competent, well-tooled secondary character release at the standard mainline price point.

Buy this figure if you collect the 40th Anniversary line as a complete set, if you build Imperial Death Star bridge displays, if you appreciate the Kenner-era “Death Squad Commander” character classification, or if you want a well-engineered Phase 3 Imperial officer figure at standard pricing.

The deep-cut Imperial officer with the high joint count. The figure with the screen-accurate chin strap engagement and the trigger-finger blaster grip. The Kenner-era character class preserved in 6-inch Black Series form. Mainline distribution, May 2017.

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Part of Star Wars The Black Series | Phase 4 40th Anniversary Collection. Related: Luke Skywalker (40th ANH) P3-40A-01 | Darth Vader Legacy Pack P4-40A-00 | Stormtrooper P4-40A-ST2.