This Week In Your Plastic Crack, Action Figures and Toy Collection 26 26

[srezvan]

I finally went through all my recent GI Joe figure and accessory purchases. I didn't take pictures of everything, but these are two of my favorites. I randomly had the Sky Hook and a broken Tomax from a garage sale purchase maybe 10 years ago (the guy had crazy expensive figures and a super cheap bag of accessories, so I bought the cheap bag of accessories). I picked up both figures in a local purchase last month, then the 2 guns this week for only $7.50 shipped! What a random journey to get these guys! I also have the packaging from a purchase from about 6 years ago, but it's stored away in a box.

 

I also collect comic shop promo items. I got this off eBay a few weeks ago, but never got around to it after the initial cleaning I had to do. Guy had some stuff that showed up on my saved searches, and this was a nice add on. It's a promo card dispenser and it came with a stack of those cards. Next time I set up at a show, I'm thinking about taking a random stack of Marvel cards and putting them in there for 2/$1 and see how it goes. But the dispenser is a keeper.

[BabaLament]

@wombatVery nice! Know anyone with a Hive Playset they're willing to part with? I have the Queen figure, but the Hive was lost at some point during one of our moves. I'd like to find one that's reasonably priced; just he hive part(s). I have a gigantic PC chassis that I'd like to build the playset/figures into for an Alien themed build.

[Buzzetta]

@Brandon Shepherd

No minifigs though.. posted on FB

https://www.facebook.com/groups/1420253131340542/?hoisted_section_header_type=recently_seen&multi_permalinks=4444454525587039

[followtheleader]

Latest purchase and may be one of my last.

Really an impressive behemoth.  IMO, one of the better designed vehicles in the later years.

Patrick

[Buzzetta]

Let's see what this is all about today. 

https://www.walmart.com/cp/collectibles/5967908?irgwc=1&sourceid=imp_T4JwgSV2LxyLWkNwUx0Mo37iUkBy-2wRwXYAzQ0&

[fantastic_four]

On 7/22/2021 at 9:48 AM, Buzzetta said:

Let's see what this is all about today. 

https://www.walmart.com/cp/collectibles/5967908?irgwc=1&sourceid=imp_T4JwgSV2LxyLWkNwUx0Mo37iUkBy-2wRwXYAzQ0&

I'm three or four figures past tired of the Marvel Legends Hulk mold they've now repainted for this Walmart event.  This is the lamest of all of those re-paints, but hey, I'm sure there are a few hundred people who enjoyed that specific storyline enough to want a rainbow-colored Hulk.  

I guess this is supposed to be some weird mix of Hulk (Bruce Banner) and Red Hulk (General Ross) created by the Impossible Man.  Zany idea, definitely don't need a figure of it myself.

[Buzzetta]

While I am glad that Hasbro is finally addressing the issue of sold out store exclusives it is a little too late.  There is a difference between a store exclusive and a limited edition.  I get that a limited edition will sell out and is not available to everyone.  I also get that it is determined by the retailer how much their purchase order is in terms of quantity.  However, every time there is a store exclusive, there are people that are shut out that would have bought it.  It's good for an item to sell out but an item should try to satisfy demand at the original offering price.  

Walmart and Hasbro continuously lose sales because Walmart does not order enough.  What happens is that people miss out on product and there is nothing to be excited about.  Those people stop buying all together or start to fade away. 

Hasbro is trying to address this by offering limited quantities of store exclusives on their website and pushing retailers like Amazon (Bad Batch VC Set) and Target (Joe Classified) to offer more but the more it becomes frustrating for the consumer, the more the consumer looks to spend their money elsewhere.  

[Cat]

So Galactus is up for preorder for Aussies at Eb Games (your Gamestop) toy and pop culture spinoff for $800AU, or about $590US. That's more than an Xbox One X or PS5. 

[STORMSHADOW_80]

On 7/21/2021 at 3:49 PM, followtheleader said:

Latest purchase and may be one of my last.

Really an impressive behemoth.  IMO, one of the better designed vehicles in the later years.

Patrick

I love the rolling thunder! Definitely one of the better made later vehicles. Congrats on the addition to your collection.

[fantastic_four]

On 7/22/2021 at 10:24 AM, Buzzetta said:

While I am glad that Hasbro is finally addressing the issue of sold out store exclusives it is a little too late.

Are they?  Apparently they listed three new Star Wars Black Series figures today--an ARC trooper, Mace Windu, and General Grievous--all of which sold out within moments.  But that's not the best part...the best part is they never even posted pictures of what the action figures look like, they just showed cartoon images of the characters.    So I had a minute or two to decide whether or not to buy some action figures that I just had to hope would end up being something I might like. 

I could already list about 20 reasons why Hasbro's Star Wars team pales in comparison to the Marvel Legends team, but all of what I would have listed until this is relatively minor.  This is a new low for that team, and the biggest WTF moment I've seen from them.  

  

[Buzzetta]

On 7/22/2021 at 1:10 PM, fantastic_four said:

Are they?  Apparently they listed three new Star Wars Black Series figures today--an ARC trooper, Mace Windu, and General Grievous--all of which sold out within moments.  But that's not the best part...the best part is they never even posted pictures of what the action figures look like, they just showed cartoon images of the characters.    So I had a minute or two to decide whether or not to buy some action figures that I just had to hope would end up being something I might like. 

I could already list about 20 reasons why Hasbro's Star Wars team pales in comparison to the Marvel Legends team, but all of what I would have listed until this is relatively minor.  This is a new low for that team, and the biggest WTF moment I've seen from them.  

  

Hasbro had said that they were to be reissues of previous releases so I assumed that it would just be the previous Mace Windu with the Photo Real technology but on the new card.   Again though, that is Walmart's purchasing department.  They ordered the quantity that they wanted.  So hopefully Hasbro will convince them to order more or Hasbro will put some up on the HasbroPulse site. 

I agree with you though that Hasbro should have a picture of the image that they want to sell and that is the direct responsibility of the team.  Hasbro's Star Wars team dropped the ball on that aspect of the offering. 

But, I have said it for years, the SW fanbase has been the biggest problem for any Hasbro team.  The majority of issues stem from the wait until it hits clearance culture that developed in the SW collecting community. 

[fantastic_four]

On 7/22/2021 at 3:25 PM, Buzzetta said:

Hasbro had said that they were to be reissues of previous releases so I assumed that it would just be the previous Mace Windu with the Photo Real technology but on the new card. 

The listings claimed they were "Clone Wars" versions which implies something new since the previous iterations of these three characters didn't mention that.  Walmart didn't create those images, did they?  It looks like Hasbro did, and it explicitly says in those three images I posted "Entertainment image only.  Product not yet final."  If they're re-issues of existing figures why not give Walmart promo shots of the previous releases?

[SeanYork]

On 7/22/2021 at 10:24 AM, Buzzetta said:

While I am glad that Hasbro is finally addressing the issue of sold out store exclusives it is a little too late.  There is a difference between a store exclusive and a limited edition.  I get that a limited edition will sell out and is not available to everyone.  I also get that it is determined by the retailer how much their purchase order is in terms of quantity.  However, every time there is a store exclusive, there are people that are shut out that would have bought it.  It's good for an item to sell out but an item should try to satisfy demand at the original offering price.  

Walmart and Hasbro continuously lose sales because Walmart does not order enough.  What happens is that people miss out on product and there is nothing to be excited about.  Those people stop buying all together or start to fade away. 

Hasbro is trying to address this by offering limited quantities of store exclusives on their website and pushing retailers like Amazon (Bad Batch VC Set) and Target (Joe Classified) to offer more but the more it becomes frustrating for the consumer, the more the consumer looks to spend their money elsewhere.  

The biggest problem with Amazon and Walmart exclusives is the scalpers that clean out the stock the first minute they go on sale.  This has been an issue with Transformers for years now.

[Buzzetta]

On 7/22/2021 at 4:00 PM, fantastic_four said:

The listings claimed they were "Clone Wars" versions which implies something new since the previous iterations of these three characters didn't mention that.  Walmart didn't create those images, did they?  It looks like Hasbro did, and it explicitly says in those three images I posted "Entertainment image only.  Product not yet final."  If they're re-issues of existing figures why not give Walmart promo shots of the previous releases?

From the press release: 

Quote

The characters making the jump to the Black Series include ARC Trooper, Mace Windu, and General Grievous, while Aayla Secura, Luminara Unduli, Barriss Offee, ARC Trooper Captain, ARC Trooper, and Battle Droid join the Vintage Collection; all come from existing releases that have new decos inspired by the vibrant style of the series, and the Vintage Collection packaging also incorporates the show’s beautiful artwork. In contrast, the packaging for the Black Series items will celebrate the original packaging of these toys from the early 2000s, continuing the throwback theme seen in other Lucasfilm 50th programs including the previously-revealed The Clone Wars, Star Wars: The Phantom Menace, and Original Kenner Deco programs. Look for these figures to arrive spring 2022 exclusively at Walmart, and get a sneak peek at the Vintage Collection additions below! (Plus, remember to check out Walmart Collector Con on Thursday, July 22, for even more Star Wars reveals.)

Walmart should have mentioned that because they had access to that information but you are correct that Hasbro should have had a better representation of the product prior to pre-order.   The previous versions did not utilize the photo-real technology so that might be why.  However, they have actually utilized images of original 2010 releases when reissuing figures for 2019-2021 with photo real.  I think both sides screwed up here. 

 

[Namtak]

[Cat]

On 7/25/2021 at 5:50 AM, Namtak said:

Oh man i loved this line, and the JLA line that followed, especially the box sets. Still our only Connor Hawke figure ever made, sadly. Kind of an odd aesthetic to it though, the figures sometimes looked as though they'd been flayed, like they were missing layers of flesh. Weird sculpting quirk they'd chosen. Now it's just a part of their charm. 

[Buzzetta]

It saddens me to say that the train loop is going to have to come down to do some urban redesign to accommodate the biggest modular on the block. 

 

Edited July 28, 2021 by Buzzetta

[BigLeagueCHEW]

On 7/28/2021 at 11:22 AM, Buzzetta said:

It saddens me to say that the train loop is going to have to come down to do some urban redesign to accommodate the biggest modular on the block. 

 

Nice pick up, I was thinking of getting the Daily Bugle but passed on it. Can't wait to see it finished!

[Cat]

Whose a big boy? You are! Yes, you are! 

 

[Cat]

Nothing I really liked was revealed in this week's Marvel Legends reveals. None of it for me, thanks. I would have loved finally getting a Marvel Zombies Captain America, but that ship has long sailed. 

At this stage I'm just hanging out for the Retro Fantastic Four and friends.