Im not sure about the frame, but the fork is most likely an 08/09. When i bought the fork it was rebuilt with brand new uppers (uncut steer tube) since then ive gone on 5 rides and it has never seen any drops and about 10 jumps.
I think I'm going to get an Imperial with super monsters and 3" wide tires just to piss you guys off. I can already predict the comments: "ur gay" "ur bike is ugly" "..." "what the f*ck is that"
All of you ignorant children need to do some research before bashing the Imperial. Dave Weagle, designer of the Imperial, owner of e.13 and ex-owner of Evil Bikes is also the design-engineer behind something called the DW-Link. The DW-Link suspension is the heart and soul of a DH frame called the Sunday, by Iron Horse...a bike many of you ten year olds are very fond of. The Evil Revolt and its problematic "Delta-Link" are not creations of Dave Weagle, as he sold the company a few years ago. The Evil Imperial has more thought, design-time, CAD and FEA into it than your run of the mill Kona or Specialized frames have had combined.
On what ground was your opinion based? I take it you too have ridden an Imp. You know how it rides and why it was built the way it was. Although it can be a beast of a street machine when outfitted with a 4" travel single crown, the geometry of the bike when ridden in the rearmost dropout favours 6"-7" travel forks. The Evil Imperial, Banshee Morphine and .243 DH were in their own league AND provided riders with quality frames for HARDTAIL DH.
Is THIS bike the ultimate slopestyle machine? Not for everyone. Is THIS bike the most controllable DH race rig? Not for everyone. Is THIS bike the best dirt jumping/trails bike? Not for everyone.
Could THIS bike out-ride YOU? In MY OPINION, yes.
Judging by what you have said so far, you have the most time in the cockpit of the Imperial, so MY OPINION may be irrelevant.