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4-30-2009

Gentle Giant

GG has released a new YouTube video to show off some new items that will be coming our way later this year.  Included in the video are the Ahsoka and Anakin maquettes, Snaggletooth statue (now in color), and the Captain Rex Premiere Guild exclusive mini bust.

Check out the video below or head over to Gentle Giant's YouTube channel to watch it in HD.

4-29-2009

Around the Toy Aisle

It's been a slow week in Star Wars collecting but I realized I hadn't done an Around the Toy Aisle in a while.  But, this past weekend I got out to some stores around central New York and thought I'd catch everyone up on what's out and about.

As I said, Star Wars has been pretty slow lately with the new Empire Strikes Back wave of Legacy Collection just starting to make its way across the country over the last week or so.  The Scramble on Yavin Battle Pack, which is shipping with the Clone Wars Jabba pack, has also been popping up, mostly at Target stores.  I didn't see any of that this weekend and the two Target and three Walmart stores I stopped in were kind of a mixed bag for SW stock.

Most stores had the standard peg warmers including Yarna and the Organa family.  Each had a handful of Clone Wars figures but the Saga Legends line was nearly sold out in most of the Walmart stores and what was in Target were the army builder Clone Troopers.  Vehicles seem to still be selling well as I didn't see many but the Transformers and Unleashed were pretty stagnant.  I didn't see a lot of Titanium but I don't know if that means it's selling or not shipping.  The roll play items were around but nothing stood out as there being too much or too little.  The only other thing I noticed were the Comic Packs.  Most stores only had one or two sets, mostly the Leia and Xizor sets but also some of the Thrawn and Karrde sets.  One Walmart store still had a lot of the exclusive wave along with those two sets I mentioned but that was about it.

The summer movie season opens Friday with X-Men Origins: Wolverine, and that means movie toys.  The figures for Wolverine have been out for a couple of weeks at most stores and this weekend I also spotted some new cardboard aisle displays at Walmart.  Both stores with the display were Supercenters so I don't know if smaller stores will have them or not.  They included the 4" figures, some 2-packs of 6" figures, a larger 10" figure and the Wolverine claws roll play toy.  Apparently there are some exclusive figures for Walmart but I'm not sure which character or variant that is.

Star Trek is shaping up to be a huge film this year as well and the line of toys from Playmates backs that up.  Already in stores are 4" and 8" figures, roll play items, playsets and a new model of the Enterprise.  There are some 12" figures on the way also.  The bridge and transporter playsets have a cool feature where buying the action figures allows you to fill out the sets with accessories like consoles and chairs.

Terminator Salvation opens in May along with Wolverine and Trek and the toys for that film hit about the same time as the Trek figures.  These are also made by Playmates and come in 4" and 10" scales along with some role play items.  There's also a Hunter Killer with Terminator set.  I found both of these lines at Target but did find an end cap of Trek at one Walmart store.

Word on the street is that Transformers will be dropping into stores the last week of May and it seems that stores are selling down in anticipation of that release.  There wasn't much on the pegs at any of the stores I stopped at over the weekend.  When Transformers opened in 2007 there was a definite shortage of many toys and I'm guessing that Hasbro and retailers are aiming not to have that problem this year for Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen.

The once hot G.I. Joe line has kind of stagnated at many of the stores I hit.  My local store hasn't had Joe figures since Christmas and my Target, and the one I stopped at in Syracuse, have plenty of figures but nothing that stands out.  Just some basic peg warmers at this point.  Both Target stores had some comic packs, 12", vehicles, and Battle/Multipacks.  Walmart was a mixed bag, other that my local store, but, depending on what specific character you were looking for, there's definitely stuff out there.  With the new film, G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra, coming in August

Four inch seems to be the new scale in all action figure lines this year and Hasbro is leading the way.  The Wolverine figures I mentioned before are there and so is the new Marvel Universe line.  Target is the only local store that has had them, but they've been sold out for well over a month.  I didn't see them at any of the Walmart stores I was in and the Syracuse Target was sold through also.  Being in the same scale and style as the Wolverine figures should help boost the line if the film is successful so hopefully we'll see more stock in stores soon.

Bakugan has been a huge seller since before Christmas and it appears to still be going strong.  Plenty of empty shelves at all stores but I know from watching the local Target, they're shipping this stuff out, it's just selling very quickly.

I didn't really pay much attention to the rest of the Japanimation lines with the exception of Ben 10.  Locally, at Target anyway, sales may have cooled on this line.

Lego continues to be a good seller but I've noticed that the $10 range of sets has been doing the best locally.  The Clone Walker Battle Pack from the Star Wars line, for example, really seems to fly off the shelves. 

Prices seem to be up pretty much across the board in the toy aisle but that seems to have affected different lines in different ways.  The new Marvel Universe figures seem to be relatively hot as is the Bakugan lines, as I mentioned.  Star Wars still sells but sales on Titanium, Unleashed and the Battle Packs have really tailed off.  It'll be interesting to see what the new summer films do as far as generating sales of toys.  I think Star Trek and Transformers have the best shot of really stirring things up but I'm not sure about G.I. Joe.  That will depend on if the film is a hit or if my early thoughts play out and it sucks.

One thing is for sure, action figure collectors have a lot of choice this year.

4-24-2009

Lego

Coming on the heels of the Millennium Falcon announcement Wednesday is the Home One Mon Calamari Star Cruiser!

Set 7754 will be a Toys-R-Us exclusive and should be in stores around August.  The set has about 790 pieces and includes six minifigures; Admiral Ackbar, Lando, Mon Mothma, General Madine, A-Wing Pilot and Mon Calamari.

The set includes an A-Wing fighter for the hanger bay, Ackbar's control chair and the briefing room.  There are a lot of moving parts and fun play features in this set.

StarWars.com has an article with the designer, Jens Kronvold Frederiksen, who also designed the Midi-Scale Falcon, so head over and check it out.

Sideshow

Premium Format Dooku

With last night's newsletter we got a sneak preview of a new Premium Format statue, Count Dooku!

According to the newsletter, he will go up for sale "very soon."  I'm guessing either a sneak attack on a Friday or maybe next week with the newsletter.  Till then, head over to SideShowToy.com for the teaser picture.

Anakin vs Asajj

Announced a week or so back, Sideshow is now offering for pre-order their newest diorama, Anakin vs Asajj.

The polystone statue runs $299.99 and is slated for a 4th quarter release.  The exclusive version is up for order now at Sideshow's website.  The exclusive for the set is an alternate head sculpt for Asajj with a different facial expression.

The diorama is 17" tall and has a 16"x16" footprint so it's a nice size.  Stop by Sideshow's site for photos and ordering information.

San Diego Exclusives

Sideshow has also put up a web page with a countdown clock ticking down to the 2009 San Diego Comic Con.  There is also a photo posted of silhouettes of the exclusives that will be offered by Sideshow this July.

The exclusives will be revealed next week in the newsletter but they will be from Sideshow's Star Wars, LOTR, The Dead, Marvel, Disney and G.I. JOE lines, seven in all.

It looks like we might have two Star Wars figures and if I'm not mistaken, they look to be Han Solo and Luke Skywalker.  Possibly in Stormtrooper armor?  I'd put money on it.

4-23-2009

Sideshow

While we don't know for a couple more hours if Sideshow will announce any new Star Wars items in this week's newsletter, we do have some insight from them via their latest edition of "Ask Sideshow."

Questions include changes to the recent 1:6 Stormtrooper helmet, updates to the Prometheus body, new Jedi characters, Clone Wars characters, and the possibility of additional Expanded Universe characters.

Sideshow also covers Marvel, Looney Toons, future Star Wars EU polls and other questions.

Gentle Giant

On the heals of the Q&A session with GentleGiantCollectors.com, Gentle Giant has released photos of new and recently announced items including:

• 4-LOM mini bust
• Darth Talon mini bust
• Star Wars chess set
• Sterling silver rings
• Boba Fett diorama

These new items are also up for pre-order on the major sites including ShopStarWars.com.  Most are scheduled for a September release with the rings listed for August.

Prices for the mini busts are in the normal $50 - $60 range, depending on retailer, while the Boba Fett diorama lists for about $240 and the chess set clocks in at $600.  Look for sales and discounts if you can.

The rings are kind of steep at $180 - $200 for sterling silver and somewhat of a plain design.  I've wondered why someone wasn't taking advantage of the Star Wars license for a line of jewelry, but if prices are going to look like this, maybe I should stop wondering.

4-22-2009

Gentle Giant

GentleGiantCollectors.com has a new Q&A with Gentle Giant posted in their forums.  You'll need to sign up for a free account but it's worth it to read the newest update.

Covered are questions about future busts such as Lando, Tatooine Luke and Expanded Universe characters like Grand Admiral Thrawn.

Plus, find out if Gentle Giant will be going to Forbidden Planet this year and whether or not they'll have an exclusive.  And if all that, plus the Harry Potter and Indiana Jones answers, isn't enough, maybe you'll even get a sneak preview of GG's upcoming Hoth Leia minibust!

Head to the GentleGiantCollectors.com forums for the April Q&A with Gentle Giant!

Lego

Lego is releasing a new Millennium Falcon set this year in their new "midi-scale" line.  It will be exclusive to WalMart stores and initial word is that it'll run about $29.99.  I'm betting it'll probably be at least $10 more than that but we'll see.

It has 356 pieces but does not come with any minifigs.  StarWars.com has a new article about the set and includes an interview with the designer of the new set.

Look for this around July.

Hasbro

SirStevesGuide.com has a new photo of this year's San Diego Comic-Con exclusive Luke Skywalker figure.  This is basically a repacked figure with a new head but he also comes with a ladder accessory for his X-Wing.

The photo shows the figure in a star case and on the new packaging.  The new packaging is smaller than the current card back so I'm not sure if this is a new star case or not.  Head over to the forums at SSG.com for the photo.

4-17-2009

Hasbro

Battle Packs

Photos of the four new Battle Packs are now up with a little better size than what Jedi Insider had last night.

For the Legacy line, we have the Ewok(s?) pack and the Gelagrub with Clone Trooper plus the Geonosis Assault which was announced at Toy Fair.

The fourth is the Clone Wars Commando Droids and Clone Trooper.  I don't know if the names listed on the pre-orders are the final names or not.  I'll update the checklists when we have final notice on them.

Legacy Collection Empire Wave

Reports are hitting the internet that the newest wave of Legacy Collection figures have hit at retail.  This is the Empire Strikes Back wave (wave 6 of TLC, wave 2 of 2009) which includes the new Ugnaught and Hoth Rebel Soldier.

For the variant hunters, remember that the first release of the Hoth Trooper will come without the lower part of his jacket.  That soft goods piece was added as a running change so after the first cases hit you'll probably see this start popping up.  The first photos I saw online yesterday had the Trooper without the lower jacket piece.

Hasbro

Photos showed up over at JediInsider.com of four new Battle Packs that are coming later this year.  One of them, a Clone Wars set, we learned about in a Q&A, the Gunship turret set is shown as are two others that had only been rumors up till this point.

The first is the Ewok Battle Pack that looks to have Luke, an Ewok with glider and the Imperial Trooper that was pulled from the 2008 Assault on Shield Generator set.

The second is a Gelagrub with a Clone Trooper. 

The Clone Wars pack has a Clone Trooper facing off against three Commando Battle Droids.

Jedi Insider also scored an photo of another entry in Hasbro's new Deluxe line of Clone Wars figures.  This set will include a Clone Trooper with a jet pack.  This will join the other sets we already know of;

• Anakin Skywalker & Can-Cell
• Clone Trooper & BARC Speeder
• Crab Droid
• Battle Droid & Scout Tank
• Turbo Tank Gunner Crew
• Count Dooku & Speeder Bike

4-14-2009

Editorial: Why Does Hasbro Blame the Collector?

Every once in a while Hasbro will put out an answer to a question that really kind of pisses me off.  For this most recent Q&A session, Galactic Hunter was the recipient of "that" answer.

In a question about the 2010 Force Unleashed wave that Hasbro has promised us, we found out that the new figures will not be coming in a wave of their own but rather as some type of exclusive or in a multi-pack.  Possibly similar to the Battlefront packs that were released on-line and recently at Toys-R-Us stores.

Now, on the surface that doesn't necessarily sound like a bad idea or even one that is out of bounds for Hasbro, especially when the figures support a game that will be well over a year old by the time they hit.  But what is kind of ridiculous is the reason that they felt they needed to give; that being that the collector base isn't there.

"Slowed considerably since last Fall?"  Really?  When there has only been one real release of desirable figures since last July you blame us for the problem?  We had two waves of figures for the Legacy launch and then a repaint wave in September.  The 2008 year finished out with a wave that included Bail and Breha Organa, 327th Star Corps, FX-6, Grievous, Faie and Stass Allie.  That wave hit around November 1st.

Faie, Grievous, 327th and FX-6 enjoyed decent sales due to the fact that two of them were army builders, Grievous was the best version of that character to date and FX-6 was just a cool figure.  But the other three were almost guaranteed peg warmers due to the fact that two of them were women and one was a politician.  During the best of times none of those figures would be top sellers.

After that wave there was a three month break till the ANH wave hit in February 2009.  Now the ridiculous break between the New Hope and Empire waves only adds to the problem.  That situation is not our fault and Hasbro needs to get it through their head that long delays between waves of the main line only hurts things in the long run.  Whether it's poor distribution on the final wave of a line, backups at the end of the year (which we've had for 2 or 3 years in a row now) or the frequent re-paint filler wave.

And for them to now use the Saga Legends line against us, after telling us frequently that it's not for collectors, leads me to believe that this is a bogus excuse.  I'd also like to point out again that while the figures do sell, it is frequently at the expense of the main Legacy line.  Hasbro's vaunted assortment numbers (companied with retail's computer ordering systems) fails to account for the lowest common denominator in the equation; the minimum wage-slave stocking the shelves.

I've seen this happen in multiple stores in multiple areas where the figures from the TLC, SL and CW lines are all mixed in on the pegs.  The problem happens when TLC figures are not shipping, due to gaps in waves, and the space gets taken up by what is shipping, Clone Wars and Saga Legends.  They sell through because there is demand and that generates more cases of them to retail.  Suddenly, from a retailers point of view, they look like top sellers while the TLC line doesn't.  Store ordering systems adjust to order more of what's selling and less of what isn't and that counts the TLC line out.  Then when a new wave of TLC figures does hit, retail has no room for them on the pegs if they get them in the stock room or they don't get them at all because the previous month(s) show that TLC isn't a big seller in that particular store.

The root of this problem is as much an issue with Hasbro's delays in waves as it is with collectors not buying.  But I would also be remiss if I didn't mention the fact that while many collectors have no clue whatsoever about running a toy line, they still have a decent idea of what will sell at retail.  And if Hasbro isn't producing what we want to buy, they shouldn't be surprised when shit doesn't sell.

In a separate question this week to Jedi Defender, Hasbro pointed out this same situation as they did to Galactic Hunter.  They even went further to point out lack of sales on another line, Evolutions.  That doesn't surprise me either.  The last several releases have been rather lame, variations on a theme; pilots.  For 2007 we had several cool releases but in 2008 we had repacks of several sets along with the new Sith Legacy, Vader's Secret Apprentice and Padme.  The other three sets were all pilots.  If you look at most stores the sets you can still find are the pilot sets.  This year we're getting more pilots and a Commando set, all of which will be exclusive.  Realistically, this isn't how the Evolutions sets started out and aren't necessarily a good continuation of the great sets kicked off back in 2005.  The price point doesn't even make them attractive any more since they are the same or more, per figure, than buying them on a single card.  If they were all highly articulated, detailed and came with a bunch of accessories like they started with, then yes, good deal.  But now they're repaints, have a couple tweaked parts and have a glaring lack of accessories.  We aren't buying them because there's no support, we're not buying them because they aren't a good deal for what we're getting.

Between the answers to Galactic Hunter and Jedi Defender it feels like Hasbro is blaming others (the collectors) for a lack of sales when that lack, in part, can be directly related back to decisions they're making as a company.  I won't deny that the economy also has an impact, but to blame a lack of collector interest when there's little or nothing to be interested in is just biting the hand that feeds you.

4-11-2009

Hasbro

Friday was Q&A day and it was better than usual for some new information.

BanthaSkull.com asked if we could get a look at the Clegg Holdfast figure that will be in the upcoming Phantom Menace wave (he replaced Ratts Tyerell) and sure enough, they sent along a photo.  Head over to the BS forums for a look.

Han's Hideout picked up two interesting tidbits; the first being that we should see Ahsoka's Jedi Starfighter in the near future.  That would complete the set including hers, Anakin's (out this summer) and Obi-Wan's (out now).  They also asked about packaging for the San Diego Comic-Con Stormtrooper Commander.  Look for this to be on the new red and white cards and come in a clamshell.

JediTempleArchives.com asked about a possible soft goods and lightsaber color upgrade to the ROTS Agen Kolar action figure and in response, Hasbro let us know that we'll see an all-new Agen Kolar figure in the 2009 ROTS wave.  I think that's the first confirmation of any figure from this wave.

RebelScum.com asked about updates to C-3PO and while Hasbro let us know that we'll see him later this year, they also took the opportunity to tell us that we won't be seeing an updated TPM version any time soon.  That's pretty disappointing as the 1999 release definitely could use some updating and, as a major character in the Saga, it would be much deserved.

After the disappointing news that the Titanium line will be coming to an end this year, RS.com asked about the possibility of the two remaining Bounty Hunter ships, Mist Hunter and Punishing One, being made.  Surprisingly, Hasbro says that they are in development for later this year.

Haven't had very many questions lately about the Force FX lightsaber line that Hasbro took over from Master Replicas, but Sandtroopers.com asked about possible upcoming releases of the Mace Windu and Luke Skywalker (ROTJ) versions.  Hasbro, right now, is "hoping" for Fall for new releases but the answer to the question doesn't sound hopeful for the continuation of this line.  Re-releasing sabers that MR already sold a ton of, maybe not the best of strategies but I can see why they would do that (tooling and factory already in place from MR's run).  Still, we've seen what happens when Hasbro re-launches a line based on another companies work and takes too long to get new stuff to market (Yeah, I'm looking at you Action Fleet).

Sandtroopers also asked about future releases of the Republic Gunship and per Hasbro's answer, we should probably see another release of that ship for the Fall.  More info coming at SDCC.  My first guess would be another exclusive but with Hasbro looking to bring that $60 vehicle price point to all retail stores, it may drop in there along with the ARC-170 and Clone Wars Y-Wing. 

In answering a question for YakFace.com, Hasbro cleared up the Legacy Collection numbering scheme for the Evo Anakin, Jango, Clone Pilot and ARC Trooper figures that they announced back on 3/18.  According to Hasbro, those figures were supposed to be Greatest Hits (GH) numbered figures but because of some miscommunication, they are numbered into the regular Build-a-Droid (BD) scheme.

Yak Face also asked about the possibility of designing standardized removable helmets for Clones, Stormtroopers, pilots and their like.  Hasbro can't, for the reasons they give in their reply.  Instead of asking about standardized helmets how about the obvious; stop doing removable helmets on characters where it doesn't make sense?  Those being pretty much all regular Clone Troopers, Stormtroopers and other faceless minions that never removed a helmet in any of the films.  And if Hasbro really feels the need to have a helmet and head, how about interchangeable heads/helmets like they did with the Clone Wars Obi-Wan?  See, problem solved.

YodasNews.com also had two questions that received interesting answers.  The first was about the packaging design that we'll be seeing later this year.  Apparently, for the first time, the Star Wars line will be getting a new size cardback.  Pretty much all previous cards have been 6" x 9" but the new cards will be 5.5" x 8.25."  This will bring them in line with other new cards including the new Marvel line of superheroes and the Wolverine movie figures.  Cost saving, perhaps?  Here's another idea, do away with the ridiculously huge bubble, rubber bands and figure-warping inner trays (for those dynamic action poses!) and coffin bubble them to the cards instead.

The more interesting piece of info for Yoda's News is on the Mighty Muggs front.  We've known for a couple of weeks now that the line would become a Toys-R-Us exclusive later this year but Hasbro now says that there "is no chance" the Muggs, in their current configuration, will come back to mass retail.  Once the line is relegated to TRU we also won't be seeing them for sale from HasbroToyShop.com anymore either.  I'm just reading between the lines here, but I don't see a lot of future for the Star Wars Mighty Muggs line.  Name another Hasbro Star Wars line that has become a store exclusive and continued on?  Can't do it?  Because it hasn't been done before.  The closest example would be the 7" Unleashed line and we know how that turned out.  Besides, the Muggs are kind of cool but, honestly, is it really an unlimited line?

4-7-2009

Gentle Giant

Snaggletooth

A couple weeks ago a sneak preview of a new statue was posted by GG staff.  After a couple of weeks of guessing, some close, some outrageous, the statue was finally unveiled last night to be Snaggletooth.

The sculpt points to this being a nod to Kenner's vintage Blue Snaggletooth action figure.  Although this is an unpainted statue at this point, I think we're destined to see the infamous blue suit and silver boots.

Snaggletooth will be a Premiere Guild exclusive and be on sale later in 2009.

Hoth Han Solo & Magma Stormtrooper

Over the weekend Gentle Giant put up pre-orders for two Premiere Guild exclusives.  The first is the blue coat version of their new Hoth Han Solo mini bust.  The other is the Magma Stormtrooper statue.

Both are Premiere Guild exclusives so you'll need to be logged into your account to order.  Look for these later in 2009.

Hallmark

The 2009 Star Wars Hallmark ornaments have been confirmed with the release of the new Ornaments Dream book.  We'll once again see a limited edition figure which, if released as they were in the past two years, will probably drop on the preview weekend which is usually in July. 

The limited figure this year will be Greedo.  The list includes:

• Anakin Skywalker & Ahsoka Tano (miniature 2-pack) $15.00
• Greedo (Limited Edition): $15.00
• Han Solo as Stormtrooper (13th in series): $15.00
• Luke Skywalker's Landspeeder: $22.50
• Deadly Duel (The Phantom Menace: Obi-Wan & Qui-Gon vs Maul): $32.00

Based on price I'm assuming the Deadly Duel dio will have sound.  Maybe the "Duel of the Fates" music?

Also, for the Indiana Jones fans, there's a new Raiders of the Lost Ark ornament called "Retrieving the Idol."  It's Indy finding the golden idol.  The ornament has sound and plays "The Raiders March."

Sakar International

Sakar International is a newer Star Wars license holder and produces themed digital devices including digital cameras, CD players and computer peripherals such as mice and keyboards.

They displayed several items at the 2009 Toy Fair but I think I missed covering them as they kind of flew under the radar.  This week I noticed that Toys-R-Us is selling several items from Sakar.

Along with the digital camera I mentioned, I also spotted an MP3 player, clock radio and portable CD player. 

At Toy Fair they showed off an iPod compatible iSpeaker, lightsaber flashlight with sound effects, and a Darth Vader helmet digital clock.

The MP3 players and digital camera even come with interchangeable skins to customize your device. 

Sakar holds licenses for other properties including Spider-Man, Iron Man, Hello Kitty and Crayola.  It will be interesting to see what other devices they may come up with in the future.  While Star Wars isn't listed on their website yet, keep an eye on sakar.com.

Toys-R-Us & Target Sales

TRU stores are having sales this week that may interest many of you. 

All single carded Star Wars figures are 2 for $10.99 this week.  Also, all Lego sets are buy 1, get one 50% off.

I stopped in a TRU store on Monday afternoon and there were quite a few other sale signs in the action figure aisles so if you stop in, browse around as you may find other toys of interest on sale.

Lego is also on sale at Target stores this week.  I don't believe all of the Lego section is on sale, but all of the Star Wars sets are marked 10% off.  Check your local store for more details.

4-4-2009

Hasbroo

Ryan B. from the PSWCS club reported in yesterday that wave 5 of the Clone Wars figures have been found in Pennsylvania.  This is the wave with Jar Jar, Kit Fisto, a Clone Trooper and Battle Droid.

He spotted them at Toys-R-Us so be on the lookout if you're interested in any of these figures.  We still have about a month or so before we can expect the Empire Strikes Back wave in the Legacy series so these should tide you over.

4-1-2009

Happy Birthday CreatureCantina.com!

CreatureCantina.com has been bringing the funny for 8 years now and they're celebrating with a huge update and free stuff!  Check out the press release and then head over to their site.