Although their costumes are wearable, their target market is not solely the costumer. They even have plans to potentially offer mannequins to display the pieces on as well.
Just how accurate should a licensed mass produced costume/prop be?
I realize that some 'accurate' features are not suited for mass produced props/costumes. It's about having good judgement on where to draw that line. So far, I am not satisfied with the judgement I've seen.
We, not only as prop/costume enthusiasts, but as FANS should demand higher standards for the license holders. Make them work for your hard earned dollar I say. 99% of the time, there is no reason that pieces can't be more accurate without adding any additional cost. It's an issue of personal taste, or lack of knowledge of the subject matter.
I feel that museum replica's heart is in the right place, but have put together the wrong team and using the wrong resources for this endeavor. They believe they have it 'under control' but they don't know what they don't know.
As far as the trooper armor goes, I was told they enlisted help from 501st members which is a laughing stock. People are going to end up paying for steak, and end up getting hamburger.
I think it's going to be sideshow droids all over again when it comes to museum replicas. People will have high expectations, until their product pics hit the web and everyone starts pointing out all over the place where they dropped the ball. The company will look at their own production pieces and think they turned out fantastic, and be completely oblivious. So will a lot of unknowing fans I imagine.
No one wants to be the guy who spends big bucks on these (or any prop) because he was led to believe that they are just like the screen used (because that is an important criteria to him), only to find out later that they aren't.
Problem is, at their planned price points, loyal fans DESERVE accuracy and authenticity as advertised, both of which I feel museum replicas is not in a position to provide with it's current team and resources.
.