AMT/ERTL Star Wars AT-AT Imperial Walker Kit First Look

By Michael Benolkin

First Look

Out on the remote planet of Hoth, the Rebel Alliance was re-grouping while trying to adapt their equipment to operate on this icy world. Darth Vader's forces were in hot pursuit, searching the region system by system using every resource available - starships, bounty hunters, and 'droids.

One such droid discovered signs of life on Hoth and 'phoned home' with the information before being destroyed by rebel scouts. Knowing the location of the new rebel base, the Imperial Fleet entered the system and launched a ground assault on the rebel base.

One of the principal conveyances of the Imperial Storm Troopers is the AT-AT 'Imperial Walker' which is Lucas-speak for Armored Personnel Carrier (APC). While troop capacity of the AT-AT is not readily known, it does possess impressive firepower for suppressing enemy defenses.

AMT/ERTL has re-released a number of Star War kits in conjunction with "Revenge of the Sith", the final installment in prequel trilogy. I am quite pleased to see that these molds have withstood the test of time!

We first saw the AT-AT in "The Empire Strikes Back" on the planet Hoth, with another appearance in "Return of the Jedi" on the planet Endor. In both cases, the vehicle was a light gray in color with no distinguishable markings.

The kit is presented in a light gray styrene and presented on six parts trees. No clear parts are required in this kit as the cockpit windows are too small to make any difference.

Assembly is very simple, with many of the parts simply snapped together to allow for movement of the cockpit section and the walker's legs.

The cockpit is attached to the main shell of the transporter via a flexible 'neck'. In this kit, it is held in place with a rubber band (included) to allow for the cockpit to be posable.

The front legs of the walker have articulating knees, whereas the rear legs are 'stiff' (non-articulating). This allows for the AT-AT to be posed in whatever position you desire. Unless you want to fiddle with the pose of the completed model, I would suggest posing it once and gluing it in place so is will be more stable.

This reissue is as nice as I remember it long ago in a galaxy far away...never mind. It still is great to see these kits back on the shelf, but don't wait to long to snag your favorites as I don't expect them to stay on the market too long. This kit is recommended!

My sincere thanks to RC2 for this review sample!