Packaging: Carded clothing & gear set which does not have much art or graphics, but still has an eye-catching combination of black, red, yellow, and blue on the card.
The Clothing: For an Ignite Viking (similar to a Dragon figure), these pants were a bit wide. However, once the shirt and web-belt were put on the figure, he actually looked pretty good. The shirt fit nice and loose but it was not oversized. The Flak Jacket was a snug fit. It was constructed similar to the quality of the 21st Century Ultimate Soldier Flak Jackets. Unlike some Ultimate Soldier & Formative Jackets, Blue Box's Elite Force has velcro snaps that are sewn on tightly, and close properly. However, the Flak Jacket had a generic look and it was not up to the sewing or detail standard of Dragon or the higher priced Blue Box Elite or other custom brands. For the price, it was pretty good.
Clothing Comparisons: Many collectors have complained on the various e-lists about the quality of these clothes. At the price of $7.99 per set, the only similarly priced clothing sets are by Formative Soldiers of the World. Other competitors such as Ultimate Soldier, Power Team, and G.I.Joe include an action figure with the clothing and gear at the $7.99 to $9.99 price range.
Head-to-Head Clothing Showdown: In a side by side comparison, the most recent Formative sets & the Elite Force sets are almost even. The boots are exactly the same, in my humble opinion. The outfits are similar in quality. As far as gear is concerned, Formative usually includes at least two grenades and two flash grenades in each set, and their handguns usually include rubber holsters. The gas masks that are included by Elite Force, Formative, and Power Team seem to be exactly the same. For all practical purposes, at this price-point the choice depends on what particular military outfits a collector is interested in for the display of his or her figures.
The Gear: Aside from what has been already mentioned, the rest of the gear stands out as follows: The handgun is die cast metal, and I like it a lot. It is detailed & heavy, and it provides a feeling of realism that plastic handguns lack. The Fritz style helmet is also die cast metal, and on the outside it looks nice, but the foam interior without any chin-strap looks a bit incomplete. The rubber canteen and ammo pouch definitely looked rubbery and not very realistic. The clip-on hook was a soft rubber which usually means that they will fall off of the display figure very easily and are also usually harder to clip onto the web belt.
Overall: Most of these sets can be kitbashed with loose parts from other sets, and thus a nice and complete display figure can be put together. For $7.99, it is a pretty good set, but nothing special considering all the other options that exist in the $7.99 to $9.99 price range.
Grade: B
