A is for AT-AT and AT-ST from Galoob, Kenner, Hasbro

I'm not some Klingon learning died-in-the-wool sci-fi fanatic, but I do have a soft spot for the "Increasingly inaccurately named" (to quote Douglas Adams) Star Wars Trilogy, and like most aficionados; The second film (The Empire Strikes Back) with it's set piece arctic battle on the frozen ice-planet 'Hoth'.

The AT-AT is the main mode of transport for the ground troops, a sort of mechanical horse/APC, and here are the three main versions of the 'Action Fleet' AT-AT. On the left is the first issue, then a motorised version (which needs the flattest of surfaces to move an inch!) which was by Tiger Electronics - if memory serves. Finally the re-issue by Hasbro with it's daft snow 'weathering'.

One of the Micro-Machine play-sets by Galoob had this 'dead' AT-AT, I've cut a couple out and given them a bit of work. The one on the left is a work in progress, the one on the right is as good as finished. I had to pare-down the blobs of snow that were all over them, and with the earlier one went on to fill some of the seams on the roof, I wish I hadn't now, but like tanks today, there would be many variants, so; hey ho!

Galoob 'Walker' behind, with the Tombola 'prize-egg' premium in front. Sandwiched between the two is the Pizza-Hut premium.


In the final film (The Return of the Jedi) we met AT-ST's, smaller two-man reconnaissance 'Walkers', and it's likely a few of them would have been operating as a screening force on the flanks of the main snow troop attack. Indeed, I think George Lucas retro-fitted a AT-ST into the re-mastered version of the original Star Wars movie during the huge hype when the new films were announced and various boxed sets of the old films were issued on VHS, just as it became obsolete. Lucas may be a good film maker, but he's far better at getting the pounds out of peoples pockets

In front of the Action Fleet ST, is the standard Micro-Machine version, and the two Micro-Machine AT-AT's to the right. One of the things I hate about these series are the complete inconsistency of scale, adherence to scale or compatibility. It's visually OK to use the wider range of figures in the Micro-Machine range with the Action Fleet vehicles, but for a realistic AT-AT you would have to use the 6" Palitoy/Hasbro Action figure AT-AT for true accuracy, remember the Land Speeders flew among the legs of these things.

Or...You could get the far more accurate Wizards of the Coast AT-AT, but get a credit card first, you'll need it, And that range is for another day!