By the way, what’s the deal with those guys? As a kid, I always thought they were different ranks from the same army – “Imperial Guards” united against the filthy Pirates. But based on your heated discussions, I’ve gathered that I must have been wrong… British Armada vs. Spanish Armada?
There’s a bit of a difference 🙂
The Imperial Soldiers (blue coats) are modeled after the French colonial army (or the early American military… at least I used to believe that). The Imperial Guards (red coats) are worthless cowardly dogs, er, I mean they’re modeled after the British colonial army. The brief Armada theme turned back the clock to the time of the Spanish Armada although it, like Spanish power, was short lived.
Interesting note: only the blue coats had an established “sailor” minifig (blue body, red epaulette, tricorn hat). It is possible that the red coat Imperial Flagship is supposed to have one (the guy with the red bandana), but he also looks like a pirate so it’s hard to tell. The red coat sets are also officer-heavy. Most sets only have one soldier and one officer, while some only have an officer. For the most part the blue coats maintained a 2:1 soldier to officer ratio.