An Imperial Officer is a minifigure released for the ClassicStar Warstheme. A total of six different minifigure variants and one microfigure has been released to date, each of the variants being exclusive to one set.
The first Imperial Officer was released in 2002. This minifigure has a plain leg piece in dark grey, a shade of grey which was discontinued in 2003. The torso piece is also dark grey, and printing is present on the front of the piece- black for outlining and detailing of the uniform and belt, silver printing for parts of the belt, backing for the rank plaques and for the code cylinder located in the top-left corner of the torso, and red and blue printing for rectangles on the rank plaques (three red rectangles over three blue ones). The head piece and hands are yellow, with two black dot eyes and a black smiling mouth are printed for the face. One accessory was included with this minifigure- a dark grey hat.
The next Imperial Officer was not released for another three years, two of which were included in the set 7264 Imperial Inspection. This version of the officer had a similar torso print to the original, but the leg and torso colour was changed to dark stone grey. The hands and head piece were changed to a flesh colour, due to the decision to change the general skin tone of minifigures in licensed themes from yellow to this colour in 2004. The face printing for this minifigure was also changed- the mouth was wider and thinner, white pupils were added to the eyes, and brown eyebrows were also present. This minifigure also wore a different hat to the original, which is known to as a kepi, that came in dark stone grey.
An Imperial Officer in combat clothing.
The following year, yet another variant of Imperial Officer was released. The major difference between this version and the previous one is that the head printing was changed back to the same as the one used on the original variant.
An officer in combat gear was released in the first wave of 2010. This variant of the officer once again had plain grey legs, but the torso had a plate of armour printed in a lighter shade of grey. Darker grey and black printing is used for detailing, and small blue, white and red dots appear in one rectangle at the bottom of the armour. The rank plaque is present on the top left of the armour plate, which is once again three red over three blue rectangles. The hands of the minifigure are coloured black, representing gloves, and the minifigure's face was changed, featuring black eyes with white pupils, downward-slanting eyebrows, and a black mouth with the right side turned up at the edge. This minifigure came with a light greyhelmet, and dark grey electrobinoculars.
Another Imperial Officer was released in 2010, this time not in combat attire, but the standard officer's uniform. This minifigure's pieces were once again similar to the previous variants, except the head piece is the same as the other Officer released in 2010.
In 2012, an Imperial Officer was released in the 9492 TIE Fighter. This latest version of the minifigure retains the previous version's head, kepi and leg pieces, but has a redesigned torso. It features similar uniform outlining, however a black strip is used for the belt with a silver buckle. The rank plaques are also moved lower down the torso and outlined in black, and a second code cylinder is present on the right side of the torso. The torso also features some back printing, one black line on each side of the torso for outlining of the uniform, and a black horizontal strip, continuing the belt over to the back. The hands of this minifigure are black to symbolise gloves, as opposed to the skin-coloured hands of the other non-combat officers.
Also released in 2012 will be a new variant of an Imperial Officer in combat gear. The primary differences between this variant and the original officer in combat gear is that the leg joint is changed from grey to black, and a new headpiece will be used. It will feature a grey chinstrap, and brown eyebrows, and a black mouth. At the 2012 New York Toy Fair, the mouth is smiling, however a subsequent image shows the mouth downturned, indicating that the design has changed or a double-sided head will be used.
In 2012, the first Star Warsgame was released, 3866 The Battle of Hoth, which includes one Imperial Officer microfigure. The microfigure has flesh-coloured printing in the head area, with eyes, eyebrows, mouth and a helmet strap also printed. The rest of the microfigure is grey, with black printing detailing the armour plate and belt, and outlining the uniform and red-over-blue rank insignia. A red vertical line is also present on the armour plate.
In the Video Games
The Imperial Officer is a playable character in LEGO Star Wars II: The Original Trilogy, and again in LEGO Star Wars: The Complete Saga. The Officer's appearance is based upon the 2006 variant, and is armed with a grey pistol. He has the ability to single-jump, build, punch enemies at close range, shoot, grapple, and open doors requiring an Imperial character.
Background
Imperial Officers were a high-ranking members of the Imperial military. Wearing distinctive black or grey uniforms, they were commonly found on bridges aboard starships or at command centers on planetary surfaces. Officers were trained to use blaster rifles, but commonly used pistols.
Officers included admirals, generals, and Moffs. Together, they made up high ranking organizations, such as Army Command, Naval Command, Stormtrooper Command, Battle Station Command, Homeworld Security Command, and most importantly the Moff Council. They were often seen on battlefields aboard mobile command centers, but rarely engaged in action themselves.
Notes
The first four non-combat variants all feature three red rectangles over three blue with one code cylinder, giving them what is currently considered as being the rank of Captain in the Star Wars universe, whilst the 2012 variant features two code cylinders, placing him with the higher rank of Commander.[1] Code cylinders are not visible over the armour on the combat variant, so the exact rank cannot be determined.
The 2005 variant had Peter Parker's head and several variants have the 2006 Bruce Wayne head.
