Q&A: July's Almost Here!
Monday, June 30, 2008

It seems Indy mania has subsided slightly, probably because we're all excited about next month's huge, ridiculous push for new toys and statues and stuff. We look at the Droid Factory, more exclusives, and yes, because you asked, realistic versions of Clone Wars characters. Read on, gosh darn it!



1. The EE Exclusive Astromech packs are amazing. Do you think you could get another set or two made because the first two sold so well? (well the first set is still in stock at Entertainment Earth, but set 2 is only available from Ebay and a few other e-tailers). Now Hasbro could use the R5-D4 mold to get us Red Leader's red and black astromech from ANH and even the R1-G4 mold or the build-a-droid R7. [edited for space] Which droids would you like to see in a new Astromech set?
--Mister XX.XX

As stated before, it's extremely unlikely that we'll revisit the Astromech packs concept-- for one thing, other stores are getting lots more droids, so it seems a sure thing that if there's an easy repaint to do, it will get done eventually. Also, you may notice that the item is still more or less available-- so while the demand was great and it sold well, it's still around. And it came out in 2006.

I've got a wish list for multiple droids I wanted to do back when this set was initially proposed, and many of them are already in production-- for example, I just got R2-T0 from Wal-Mart, which I never would have assumed Hasbro would make. My top choice-- and one I wanted to do for those boxed sets-- is R3-01, so hopefully we'll see that announced this year at some point. Thankfully Hasbro didn't do it, because now we might see a new, better mold used to make it than the R3-T7 mold which would have been used in 2006.



2. As Hasbro is set to unveil its Clone Wars line of figures based on the animated movie, do you anticipate realistic versions of the new animated characters like Captain Rex or Shaak ti like female jedi?
--David

In the short term, no. In the long term, perhaps-- if the figures show up as "real" in the comics, I think it'd be a safe bet. As Hasbro needs to make new figures in the basic line, it's entirely possible. But I wouldn't expect anything just yet, as putting out "realistic" and "cartoony" versions of anyone but top-top-top tier characters all at the same time would probably be bad at retail.



3. In your opinion, based on the SW figures that have been available for purchase since the line was re-introduced in 1995, which figure (or figures) and vehicle (or vehicles) have become the hardest to find since their initial release?
--Sean

While some variants are tough to get, and some exclusives like the 2002 Silver Darth Vader from Toy Fair New York are tough to get, really, nothing is all that scarce. Hasbro made these things in the thousands (or tens, or hundreds of thousands) and there are plenty to be had on eBay, Brian's Toys, flea markets, comic shops, conventions, and so forth. I mean, time helps-- people get bored and realize the "rare" figures they've been hoarding are being hoarded by hundreds of other fans, especially when they show up on clearance or at a dollar store. Prices change with demand, but honestly, in the digital age (if you have some money) there's virtually no such thing as a rare modern figure.

Patience-- but mostly short attention spans-- help "rare" and/or "valuable" figures to gradually become more available with time.



4. Do you think we will ever see Comic Packs that include figures such as Jorus C'Boath, Dash Rendar and Leebo or possibly a Guri or Noghri figure? I love the Comic Packs however there are two coming out this year with Fett-esque figures that look exactly the same! Am I the only person that wants a Admiral Daala or Splinter of the Minds Eye figures?
--psnitkin

I certainly hope so-- and depending on what the market demands in the next year, I think it's a safe bet that these will eventually make an appearance. Most comic packs that are more than just plain ol' humans do fairly well, so it stands to reason that major characters or weird looking individuals might sell well, depending on how Hasbro does it. I'd expect to see Fishing Vest Luke if we ever saw some of the Shadows characters you mentioned, but it's hard to say what Hasbro will dole out in the coming months.



5. With the build a figure concept being on tap for Star Wars this year, is there a possibility for the old droid factory playset to be released in the near future? It certainly goes along with the theme.
--DD

The name? Yes. The theme? Eh, kinda. The original playset is a real winner of a toy, but lacks a Star Wars-y feel by today's standards, as those other creations don't match anything we've seen in the saga all that closely. I do hope we see a droid factory, or something as the line continues because it might be fun and adaptable to a few scenarios. My guess is that the old tooling is shot by now, or lost to the ages, plus it's packed with choke-hazard parts that could be a problem. Don't hold your breath, but maybe we'll get lucky and some droid part-specific environment or accessories could come down the road. (But in all seriousness, no, we're not going to see a Droid Factory unless it appears on TV.)



FIN

That's all for now! Thanks for all your questions-- bonus editions of Q&A are likely to start popping up soon. I've got a lot of plates a-spinnin', so I can't say for sure if it'll be this week or in the future, but stay tuned for that. Lots of nifty new items showed up over the weekend, and I've got basically no idea if they're going to be exclusives or what. Isn't it fun? With the launch of an entirely new line less than a month away, I'd say this is about as much in the dark as we've ever been. Hopefully, if nothing else, we'll get some idea of who's going to have exclusives in July, and what they are. How else am I supposed to know which stores to beg my friends to stalk while I'm working at Comic-Con so I can make sure to get my junk?

(It'd be funnier if I was kidding.) Oh, and I spent a good chunk of Sunday looking for the new comic packs at Wal-Mart-- no luck there-- and then seeing Wall-E and playing Ticket to Ride as it was released this week. Good stuff, on those last two.

More next week. Or during the next week. I'm trying to get something special ready for you all on Friday.

Got questions? I bet you do. Email me with "Q&A" somewhere in the subject line and hopefully I'll get to yours in the next column!

Posted byAdam16bit at 12:00 AM 0 comments  

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More Tokyo Toy Show Coverage
Sunday, June 29, 2008

Site JapanStarWars.com has a lot of nifty new pictures up, including Hasbro's new Millennium Falcon, both USB hubs, and a Gentle Giant exclusive Spirit of Qui-Gon (or holographic Qui-Gon) mini bust too.

...and there's a Celebration Japan Blackhole Stormtrooper set of Chubby figures, but they're somewhat hard to see.

Posted byAdam16bit at 9:42 AM 0 comments  

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New The Clone Wars Action Figure Battle Packs

Previously unannounced Battle Packs have been revealed at the Jedi Insider, featuring Obi-Wan and Yoda specific Clone Trooper squads based on the new animated series. Each features a Jedi and four troopers. There is no specific information confirming these are (or aren't) exclusives, and the clones have unique, previously unseen squad markings.

Posted byAdam16bit at 9:39 AM 0 comments  

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2008 Mexico Convention Hasbro Action Figure Exclusive

The POTF2 Forums are showing of the Mexico-exclusive Coleccionistas III Clone Trooper set, limited to a paltry 350 pieces. That's the bad news-- the good news is that it's made up of the Airborne Trooper and Commander Bow figures from the 2007 Target exclusive Order 66 sets. Click through for more.

Posted byAdam16bit at 9:34 AM 0 comments  

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Revealed: Hasbro Legacy Evolutions Action Figure Packaging

In a sign of what probably will be available on 7/26, site Yoda's News posted packaged shots of the new Padme Amidala Legacy set as well as repackaged Sith Legacy and Fett Legacy sets. Of note, Boba's chest logo has been restored.

Posted byAdam16bit at 9:33 AM 0 comments  

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Target Clearances: Exclusives and More
Saturday, June 28, 2008

It's worth noting that while Target stores are seemingly putting a lot of 30th Anniversary product on sale, the discount varies widely by location. We've been told of 50% and 75% discounts on the Battle Rancor, Order 66 sets, and basic figures, but have only seen a 30% discount at the most. Some stores have no discount at all yet. As such, happy hunting on Target's Funko and Hasbro Star Wars products!

Posted byAdam16bit at 9:27 AM 0 comments  

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Amazon Confirms New Action Figures?
Wednesday, June 25, 2008

It would seem so! Amazon.co.uk has posted a number of as-of-yet unannounced figures, and Rebelscum has the lowdown and the links. As these line up with numerous rumor lists and confirmations, it seems we've got a safe bet at what we'll be seeing between now and the Fall.

Posted byAdam16bit at 7:59 PM 0 comments  

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Wal-Mart to get Clone Wars Republic Gunship Vehicle

A packaged sample of what seems to be a repainted Republic Gunship for the Clone Wars line has shown up. It has a Wal-Mart exclusive sticker on it, which probably means pain and suffering for any who dare track it down. Check it out, yo.

Posted byAdam16bit at 7:52 PM 0 comments  

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R2-D2, Darth Vader USB Hubs
Tuesday, June 24, 2008

Not content with your boring old box? It seems that computer users can get a new R2-D2 USB Hub in Japan soon, and a Darth Vader version is coming as well. No word yet on when or if they're coming to the USA, but I'll post more as I find out.

Posted byAdam16bit at 10:00 AM 0 comments  

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Q&A: Shiny, Heavy Metal
Monday, June 23, 2008

Indiana Jones is still on everybody's mind, as are the hard-to-find recent final wave of Saga Legends. And what's the deal with the Droid Factory stuff hitting-- is there really a vac-metal R-3PO making the rounds? Read on!



1. There's been a photo of a vac-metal R-3PO floating around the web that supposedly is a variant in the Walmart Droid Factory 2-packs. Is it genuine?
--Mister XX.XX

Right now, there's no firm answer. As not one single fan has said they've found this in a 2-pack, and not one single fan has given up a picture (even a fake one) of a packaged sample, it's going to be tough to tell. It's possible to fake such a thing, and it's also possible it could be one of the infamous "lunchtime specials" out of the factory. That is, an item made by production line workers or management during "down time" for one reason or another that ends up funding their rent for a year when they sell it on eBay. Until Hasbro comes out and tells us what it is, or we see a packaged sample, it's going to be difficult to tell if it's legit. As I just got my R-3PO from Wal-Mart, as many others have, it seems unlikely to me that it's going to be shiny metal at some point soon.

Hasbro's recent Q&A implied the first protocol droids we would see would be based on the Death Star Droid frames, but these things could change-- it's possible this R-3PO could be a build-a-figure, or another character entirely released as an exclusive, a gift-with-purchase, or in some other way. We're just going to have to wait and see!



2. Due to aliens, robots, and the rainbow coalition fashion designer for clones, there appears to be an almost infinite number of action figures that Hasbro can make from the Star Wars franchise. What type of longevity do you think the Indiana Jones line will have in comparison? How many grubby Germans, Russians, or local thugs can Hasbro make?
--David

Depending on the rate at which Hasbro cranks out figures, it could be months or years. With repaints and repacks, we see 200 or more Star Wars figures in a year, but if Hasbro cranks out 50 or so Indy figures, it might get exhausted quickly. I'm sure the line will continue as long as fans throw down the cash, but that's the real trick-- will the brand thrive without the marketing push for a new movie?

I figure it's got 18 months essentially on credit. We'll probably see the line last through late 2009 without too much difficulty, but "Guy in Suit" figures are probably going to start becoming the most-requested figures, which will alienate kids, which is going to get old fast. The line still has lots of opportunity for growth, and I can see Hasbro wanting to keep doing it-- and the Joes, and everything else in 3 3/4-inch-- just to build up a ginormous mold library it can borrow from to make figures until the end of time. I mean, if you make a few decent guy-in-suit figures, that can be adapted to other properties Hasbro has, or will have in the future.

So in short, it's all up to you, and Hasbro's ability to properly determine the production run of each and every local thug and German and Russian. Make too many, you risk poisoning the line at retail, which kills it off real quick. Seeing where we're at as of Wave 3, it seems the core, quality figures could be done before we get to 2009.



3. Only wondering... it seems that the Targets in the OC area have not restocked with anything since I've been here. I'd been frequenting the closer locations at least once a day, sometimes at opening time, but have come out dry. In fact, in the three weeks that I've been here I've not purchased anything at Target except for the Kir Kanos/Carnor Jax Comic Pack (which I should have purchased from EE since these clear visors are awful- I thought about eBay but it's usually expensive and it seems the sellers don't typically indicate or know which version they have). Vehicles, Evolutions, and electronic lightsabers no longer have DCPI or item numbers on the shelves. I know Hasbro said that stores would begin phasing out the 30th Anniversary Collection this month, but like with most lines, this last Saga Legends wave has been an absolute nightmare for me to find. I found a single Shadow Stormtrooper before I left Texas, and I found one Utapau Shadow Trooper hidden under a shelf at a nearby Wal-Mart. (This Wal-Mart seems to have ROTS product that occasionally appears out of the blue... I saw a couple Jedi Starfighters and my boyfriend found a Boga with Obi-Wan under that same shelf recently.) Other than that, Toys 'R' Us seems to be the only store with a flowing stock of figures, but even then they haven't seemed to be restocking the more recent waves. As for my question... is there any information that points to these final Legends figures being re-issued in some capacity when the line reboots with The Legacy Collection/Clone Wars/Saga Legends? I still need to get my mittens on a Covert Ops trooper to go with my Mace Windu squadron, as well as Commander Neyo and a couple more Shadow Stormtroopers to protect my UV-ray-exposed Carnor Jax. If not, well, I guess I'll have to wait them out on eBay.
--Victoria

The final Saga Legends are a bit of a pain-- they ship at (mostly) one-per-case and a number of stores are backed up with older figures and aren't reordering the new ones. As such, there's a very good chance that they're "in the system" waiting to get dumped somewhere, like a Kay-Bee Toys or a TJ Maxx on clearance at some point in the future. I see them on occasion, but if you're hitting only one store every day, I would suggest widening your search. There are advantages to stalking a single store, but generally only in addition to checking out a few others. At one per case, these figures can be gobbled up by a single collector before you make it to the toy aisle-- if luck isn't on your side, at least checking out multiple stores can improve your odds, help you learn your new surroundings better, and potentially stumble on some great clearance finds.



4. The fine folk at Hasbro have stated again and again that there would be no "big" vehicle toys in the line unless they were featured in the upcoming "Clone Wars" animated series / cross-marketing orgy. The AT-TE appears in the trailer and "viola", we've got a sweet AT-TE coming our way to incinerate Barbie's® Dream House under the Christmas tree this year.

As there seem to rumblings of more big hunks of plastic coming our way AND seeing how Jabba's sail barge does appear in the new series (I spotted it in the latest trailer). Could we finally see Jabba's boss ride on the shelves of the local TRU? I've been patiently waiting since 1983 and it's not like there's any shortage of produced action figures to populate the thing (Heck, toss a recycled Slave Leia and bartender R2 in there, I won't complain).
--Todd

Based on its Return of the Jedi appearance, the Sail Barge had about 10 minutes of screen time, at the end of which it blew up. In sharp contrast, the Millennium Falcon had prominent appearances in three big movies, hundreds of comic books, dozens of video games, several novels, and so on and so forth. That, and what do we see the Sail Barge do? It's basically a set piece-- it hovers, and there are a few guns on it. As a toy, it's really, really, really unexciting once you get past the "OMG JABBA HAS A SHIP DROOOL" phase, which I'm still on, frankly.

So for the Sail Barge to be viable, it would probably need to have some action scenes and a lot more screen time. If the market for big, $100+ vehicles explodes this year and Hasbro has to come up with new items to sell us, there's a safe bet this could be on a list of new ships to consider. I like the design, I like the characters that use the vehicle, but we have to really consider that as a toy, pretty much anything a large slab of cardboard could do would be what the Barge could do. That, and there's the whole cost thing-- if Hasbro makes a big ship, it's a really ridiculous investment in R&D, tooling, approvals, and so forth. It would have to be an item that could be sold and re-sold for years, and had some level of kid appeal to drive sales, and unless The Clone Wars changes everything, I don't see this as an option you'll see considered for the high-end treatment.



5. Obviously the entire community of collectors is simply thrilled to be
getting the AT-TE and the BMF, and Hasbro has strongly intimated that
their production of further large vehicles depends heavily on how well
these first two sell.

As such, which retail store do you think collectors should purchase
these two from in order to make sure that they sell through? At
Christmas time Toys'r'Us is inundated with parents desperate to get
their kids something so I reckon TRU should be taken care of by them
so collectors should avoid getting theirs there. KayBee's will charge
more than the others for theirs so should we bite the bullet to make
sure they sell through? Target has a habit of losing patience and
putting things on clearance, which would be a complete disaster.

Thoughts? I want a Tantive IV!!!
--Phil

Basically, just buy it when you see it, or order it online. The important thing to do is make sure you're buying it, and helping stores to realize they should re-order and insist on carrying more, similarly sized items in the future. While I also want a Tantive IV I'm not too hopeful mostly due to the fact I can't see fans absorbing multiple huge ships, not just from a financial perspective, but after seeing some shots of the Falcon in a collector's room, space is a real concern. I'm not sure where or how to display it myself right now.

But yeah, buy buy buy. Hopefully you can find it!



FIN

I was lucky enough to find the Droid Factory sets over the weekend, but not Wal-Mart's new comic packs. Based on how the comic packs look, I might be OK with this. I must say the droids are excellent though, and for ten bucks a set these are one of the better exclusives in recent memory. And to think, I was figuring we wouldn't see much of anything fun before July 26 aside from leaks. It's almost a shame that the bulk of the astromech droids are only exclusives, as some of these could have made for some great figures. Although I gotta say Plo Koon's astromech might be a tough sell, it's still quite nice.

Got questions? I bet you do. Email me with "Q&A" somewhere in the subject line and hopefully I'll get to yours in the next column!

Posted byAdam16bit at 12:00 AM 0 comments  

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Droid Factory Action Figures: The Whole Series, With Pictures
Sunday, June 22, 2008

To introduce American Star Wars fans to the build-a-figure concept which we've been asking for, Hasbro gave Wal-Mart a slick assortment of figure two-packs with a bonus part which builds C-3PX.

These sets are a mix of repaints, retooled figures, and reissues. So how are they, and can I write this up really quick so I can meet a friend for lunch? Let's find out.

#1: Plo Koon with R4-F5 (Revenge of the Sith-inspired)
Two repaints and a new limb. Plo Koon is based on the 2005 figure, but now includes a one-piece lightsaber and is painted differently. It's not better or worse, it's just different and a little more subtle. His sidekick, R4-F5, is inspired by the dome of the droid that appeared in his Jedi Starfighter in Revenge of the Sith and is based on the vintage R2-D2 mold. In case you were keeping track, the light-up eyeport is blackened, the pop-up sensorscope still works, the third leg is removable, and the panels are glued down. In short, it's a pretty great set for the money, even if you feel like a sucker for buying yet another Plo Koon.



#2: Darth Vader with K-3PX (Marvel Comics-inspired)
One repack, one retool, one new limb. Darth Vader, not surprisingly, is the 2005 basic figure released once again with no immediately obivous changes-- he still has eight points of articulation, a lightsaber, and a cloth cape, making him a prime figure to pilot your vehicles. His sidekick cames from a post-Empire Strikes Back issue of Star Wars from Marvel Comics, and sports an all-new torso and head with recycled limbs from the 2007 4-LOM figure. Overall, it's worth getting primarily for this unique Imperial protocol droid, which I believe is the very first new character to see a toy that originated from Marvel comics.



#3: Han Solo with R-3PO (from The Empire Strikes Back)
One retool, one repaint, and one new piece. Han Solo takes the 2007 "vintage" figure and paints it up to look awesome, with snow and added glove detail. There's a new head with his hood up, plus a removable visor which can be placed on his forehead or over his eyes. The figure is a significant improvement over the 2007 releases, and this is somewhat depressing as the set with the bonus figure and extra part retail for $0.03 less than that release. His droid companion is a candy red R-3PO based on the 2006 C-3PO Endor Throne mold. The bright red color seems more in line with the shots from the movie, but the 2003 R-3PO had a really killer paint job and top-notch sculpt which makes it seem even better than this release. So while it's worth getting just as another different-ish droid, the older one seems better.



#4: Kit Fisto with R4-H5 (Vehicle-inspired)
One repaint with an added cloak accessory, one redeco, one new piece. Kit Fisto has one of those new wire-enhanced Jedi robes that let you wrap the cloth garment around the figure or pose it in the wind, which is a nice bonus. The third release of this particular mold, Kit finally gets a much-needed deco enhancement because Hasbro painted him green instead of a fairly hideous brown with green highlights which always suggested to me that he was drying out and/or dying. So this is the best version yet of the mold, and is worth getting if you don't have any of the others. (And even if you do, it's still nice.) The Jedi's robot pal is R4-H5, inspired by the design of the dome on the 2006 Target exclusive Kit Fisto Jedi Starfighter vehicle. The original design is pretty gritty and is colored to look like a plate of vegetables-- a nice departure. Our new droid friend also gets a light coat of dust which does a lot to make him look a little more lively, and he's based on the same mold as R4-F5.



#5: Watto with R2-T0 (from The Phantom Menace)
Two repaints, one new piece. Watto takes the 1999 mold and improves on it several times over by decorating it to better match the film. There's not much to say other than Hasbro totally did it right and this kicks the tail of your older Watto. The figure has five points of articulation, and his wings are easily removed. Joining him from his junkyard is R2-T0, a filthy green and seemingly element-battered redeco of R4-G9 (which has been used as the basis for over a dozen other droids.) While he doesn't have the opened panels on his chassis as seen in the movie, the coloring is right and he still looks pretty great. As far as paint jobs go, this may be my absolutely favorite Astromech out of Hasbro to date. It's just really neat to look at, and it seems like it would be right at home in a pile of junk rotting in the desert, which is pretty much the point.



#6: Luke Skywalker with R2-D2 (from A New Hope)
One repaint, one remold, one new piece. Luke Skywalker is based largely on the 2006 release of the figure with a few changes. Yes, he still includes Darth Vader's lightsaber hilt, but on the bright side the ugly oddly grinning face seen in the pre-release photos was dropped in favor of the same head mold used a few years ago. This is a good thing. His grey straps are now silver, the "map" on his sleeve is painted, and there are a few other minor deco changes from the original, although it's worth noting the helmet is still bizarrely clean. Some weathering would have been really nice, and overall this figure looks better than the Vintage release from 2006 which actually cost $0.03 more. Odd, no? He's joined be a newly remolded R2-D2 based on the R4-G9 mold. His dome and body have exposed wires, opened panels, and blasted-off bits and pieces which make this look like a nonfunctioning droid. (Again, this is the point.) The paint job isn't as good as it could have been, as these damaged elements could really have benefitted from a little extra color here and there. Also, R2-D2's blue pieces are a little bit closer to a purple or indigo color, but it's not a dealbreaker. This is a stunning figure and yes, it's worth getting even if you don't care about the Luke it comes with. Get one, you won't be sorry.



Build-A-Figure C-3PX (from Droids comics)
One new figure from six sets. If you get the entire collection, you'll have enough spare bits to build your very own C-3PX, a protocol droid bounty hunter from Dark Horse's early Droids series. The figure has lots of guns on his person, and has the most articulation of any C-3PO-style droid to come out of Hasbro-- he's got ankles, wrists, the works. The figure is still a little clunky as the arms are made in such a way that movement is slightly hindered-- but it's better than it's been-- and the figure is colored in a flat gold color rather than the shiny gold we're typically given for his non-evil doppleganger. If you liked the old comics, it's worth collecting all these figures to get this oddball droid, but I'm curious if we'll some day see a vac-metal repaint. Probably not, given how many little parts are involved, but stranger things have happened.



Overall
If you bought and loved Target's Order 66 collections, you need Droid Factory. If it seems like a waste to you, let me assure you that the new droids and revised figures are largely worth it-- I consider the Darth Vader to be totally disposable, and Luke is a minor upgrade to the point where I don't think I could convincingly say it's worth getting to the level of your being able to toss out your old one. Ditto with Plo Koon. However, the six companion droids, Han Solo, Kit Fisto, and Watto figures are all completely worth owning, and I personally really dig C-3PX. So if you buy the collection for just under $60, you'll get one figure you probably don't want or need, another you could probably use, and another that's basically a variation. So that's three iffy figures to 10 great ones, meaning you're paying about $6 per figure for the good stuff, which I would say is worth your time and effort to track down.

Posted byAdam16bit at 9:05 PM 0 comments  

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Droid Factory Action Figures: Watto & R2-T0

WattoWhen it comes to exclusives, it's rare that one comes along that totally wows fans. Usually you get two or three neat items, along with another one or two you could do without, or worse, already own. Seeing as reducing costs and increasing value may also hurt the wow-wee factor of a new product, it's rare that Hasbro manages to make something really cool that's merely an old toy with new paint that is also awesome.

R2-T0"Watto sells used droids and mechanical parts in his shop on Tatooine. One of the droids for sale is R2-T0" (From back of packaging.)

Fan reaction toward Watto was mixed on his debut in 1999, as it was a wonderfully designed character, a decent digital performance, and one of the more interesting looking new aliens of the then-new movie The Phantom Menace. This figure uses the same mold as the 1999 action figure, with a sculpt allegedly by Art Asylum. Back in 1999, the paint job was based on pre-release illustrations, so we never really got one that matched the movie until this new exclusive version. He's got the same articulation (head, arms, legs) and pop-off wings, but his appearance is so much improved that I'd suggest fans track it down, even if you have one, two, or all three previously released Watto action figures. His accessory is the same view screen from the original release.


Full Photo Set on Flickr


Watto's companion caught the eye of many fans when behind-the-scenes photos began making the rounds, and today we actually have an R2-T0 of our very own. Based on the mold used for R4-G9 in 2005 (and other droids since then), it's a shoo-in for fan love. The deco is dirty and awesome, the articulation is great, and this robot has everything we saw in the movie except for the exposed and opened panels. The paint job seems to be one of Hasbro's best, as the toy looks like it was left out in the sun and wasn't a highly-prized part of Watto's scrap heap. If you have any taste at all, you're going to want to get this one.

PROS: Droid shows amazing deco. Watto also has amazing deco. The entire package is a great illustration of what Hasbro can do with a little paint at a low price.

CONS: Distribution expected to be limited. Watto still has some problems standing up, and his wings pop off easily.

VALUE: Insanely great. You're getting Watto, who sold for $7 with an inferior paint job in 1999. You're getting the head of C-3PX, which you probably want, and if you don't another collector will happily take it off your hands. You're also getting R2-T0, a fantastic repaint that rivals anything Hasbro has done in the size. And it's all $9.96.

OVERALL RATING: *****
This is one of few items I would advise collectors to buy, and for parents to get for their kids. If you have a kid who thought Watto was neat, this is the best Watto money can buy. The droid is awesome, and kids should love it just as much if not more than collectors. I can't gush enough about this set-- as a repaint, it's about as good as you can ever hope to get. If you have the means and opportunity, get this set.

I got this at a Wal-Mart in Los Angeles for $9.96, on June 19, 2008.

Posted byAdam16bit at 12:55 AM 0 comments  

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Wal-Mart Droid Factory Action Figures Now Available
Thursday, June 19, 2008

The Wal-Mart exclusive "Droid Factory" assortment is now available. I found mine in Los Angeles, and they were on a PDQ display on an endcap. I assume this is how you will also find them. They're $9.96 each, and are as follows:
#1: Plo Koon with R4-F5 (Revenge of the Sith-inspired)
#2: Darth Vader with K-3PX (Marvel Comics-inspired)
#3: Han Solo with R-3PO (from The Empire Strikes Back)
#4: Kit Fisto with R4-H5 (Vehicle-inspired)
#5: Watto with R2-T0 (from The Phantom Menace)
#6: Luke Skywalker with R2-D2 (from A New Hope)

Pictures and Flickr and all the impressiony things to follow. I'll post some shots of the display as well, stay tuned!

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A-Wing Revealed!

Transformers super-site Fan2Fan went to the Tokyo Toy Show and shot loads of new exciting robots in disguise, but also revealed some new Hasbro items! Take a look at the new A-Wing Fighter-- it's just one of several items you gotta see when you click through.

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LEGO Announces Bestest Death Star Ever
Wednesday, June 18, 2008

Over at Eurobricks, a new Death Star has been revealed. It has 21 figures and a kajillion bricks and will probably cost more than you pay on your car payments, but it's one of the most impressive toys you'll ever see. Click through and start saving, because it's possible you now have a third super-expensive toy to buy this year!

Posted byAdam16bit at 12:57 AM 0 comments  

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Droid Factory R2-D2 Preview

Rebelscum posted some preview shots of the new damaged R2-D2 from Wal-Mart's Droid Factory 2-packs which should start appearing any day now. It looks great, but the post mentions reduced play action. Still, sounds great.

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Ad: Entertainment Earth has New Hasbro Exclusives
Monday, June 16, 2008

Ad: New exclusives are at Entertainment Earth! You can pre-order new releases like the Star Wars Mighty Muggs Admiral Ackbar & Shadow Trooper Set, the Star Wars Exclusive TIE Fighter Vehicle with Hobbie Klivian, and even the newly announced Star Wars Exclusive Commander Gree Bobble Head. There are more items available, plus some warehouse finds, so click through for pricing and availability.

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Q&A: Sooprsized with Vehicle Questions

Luke was a little short for a Stormtrooper, and this week's entry is a little short for a Q&A column. Due to a variety of factors, including an influx of a lot of the same question, this week's column is shorter, but it has questions on new guns, small vehicles, and of course, cardboard. Because everybody loves cardboard. Read on!



1. Hi Adam, given Clone Wars is to be another big media push similar to the past movie years, do you know if Hasbro has any intention of reintroducing the Battle Vehicles assortment (which, if I recall correctly, was last seen during the Revenge of the Sith line)? Of course, Hasbro is generally bound by what characters and vehicles actually appear in the Clone Wars movie and subsequent television series, but it would seem to be the perfect time to repack low-cost vehicles like the AT-RT and Clone Wars-era speeder bikes (with new CW Clone Troopers). Or have the Battle Packs replaced the Battle Vehicle assortment?

Personally, I would *love* to see Hasbro try their hand at creating "off-screen" toys for Republic and Seperatist vehicles at this low price point, based upon unused concepts or even their own design ideas.
--FFN

Hasbro's love for smaller vehicles has apparently waned, as for the future the only known plans for them are in Battle Packs. It seems the $10-$15 price point is more or less dead.



2. I've been looking around but haven't managed to find out exactly which droid parts will come with which figures in Hasbro's new TLC BAF line (I'm talking about the basic figures here, not the WalMart Droid Factory 2-packs). Have you caught any word about, or do you happen to be able to dig up via your sources, what we can expect to find packed in with each figure in the first assortments of the TLC line please? I'm not a completist collector, but I do like the look of some of those new BAF astromechs, so I am curious to know who I will have to pick up to get the parts I need and what I'll have to be swapping for – eg: which part of which droid do I get when I buy Yarna for instance? Does that kind of info exist for the first wave or two of TLC yet?
--Daniel

Well, I've got bad news and worse news for you. The bad news is that there is no list yet. The worse news is that it's going to get complicated. Hasbro confirmed that the pieces a figure comes with may change from wave to wave, so if you were to buy a case, that case would have enough pieces to build a (or more than a) figure. So when wave 1 ships, they have two droids. When wave 2 ships, this may change.

The packaging is designed so that the droid part can be easily changed out-- the droid description on the cardbacks I've seen so far are stickers, meaning either I saw something weird and/or special, or the bits and pieces will rotate. This means a checklist isn't going to be enough, we're going to need more of a chart. I'll be happy to maintain said chart as soon as I start seeing stuff up close and personal, but that could be a few weeks.



3. I just remembered that in the Hasbro Q&A, they mentioned that for the Clone gear lockers they would be using the spare weapons from the Battlefront 2 Clone pack, though not all of them. This is an odd statement to make, because as far as I can tell, there were only three new weapons introduced with that set anyway, the chaingun that they've already reused on one of the Order 66 packs, the EMP launcher with the jet trooper and the PLX rocket launcher. Not counting the Droid blaster that came with the Clone engineer, the rest of the weapons would be the two types of DC-15 rifles that all Clone Troopers already be carrying.

Am I right or have I gone insane?
--CP

You do indeed seem to be right-- so it's possible they will just include two of the three new guns. Sadly, nobody has cracked open a weapons locker yet so the precise contents are still unknown.



4. 7/26 Is a Saturday - Is the Clone Wars Launch going to be Friday at midnight like they did for ROTS & AOTC? I recall them saying at the ROTS midnight launch at one of the local area Wal-Mart's that they were not going to put out all of the merchandise. In your opinion which store would be the best of "the big three" to obtain the most stuff minus the specific exclusives?
--Chad

Hasbro's plans do not call for a big midnight roll-out, but there very well may be one-- it's going to be up to local stores and the chains. My guess is that the way various products leak these days, you might be best served to start hunting in the coming weeks and not wait for the end of July. Stuff gets out, you may as well be vigilant and forget this whole launch thing, except for exclusives, which we don't even know for sure what they are yet.



5. Since the price of oil is going up why doesn't HASBRO revisit the idea of cardboard or chip-board play sets? They would be cheaper than a plastic play set AND they could make it a mail-away for collectors?
--Jon

Hasbro has been asked. Repeatedly. By me. They just don't want to do it right now, for whatever reason, and my guess it has something to do with sales projections. I would personally be very pleased to see 3-4 cardboard playsets over a year or two, but I don't know how many other fans would jump at the chance. Probably enough to make it worthwhile for your average smaller toy company, but Hasbro deals more in volume, and it can be tough to satisfy stockholders when you have a product that doesn't sell in the kajillions of pieces.



FIN

That's all for now! Yes, it's down to 5 questions. Why 5? That's how many weren't duplicates of questions asked in the past month, and the number I wanted to cut it down to. The plan for future columns is still to do 5 questions a week-- this is, of course, depending on what you send in-- and I'll do "bonus" columns depending on what else comes in. If I get 20 good questions, you're going to see more installments-- but if there's 5, that's going to be it. I want to start putting more time into other features I can write, plus Figure of the Day is actually surprisingly time- and will-to-live-consuming. So yeah, less is less, but for me, less is more.

After the first Millennium Falcon found in Canada, it seems like there's a very good chance that it won't be Hasbro, but the fan community at large who assembles the "release list" for July 26-- which, I might add, is the most frequently asked question. Every week, no less than 4 people write in asking if a list for the big July launch has been generated yet, and the answer is still no. With all the packaged samples surfacing around the web, it's unclear if these will all be 7/26 items,

Got questions? I bet you do. Email me with "Q&A" somewhere in the subject line and hopefully I'll get to yours in the next column!

Posted byAdam16bit at 12:00 AM 0 comments  

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Saga Legends Weapons Locker Revealed
Sunday, June 15, 2008

Over at Jedi Defender, there are images of what appears to be the weapons locker which will come with all new "Saga Legends" figures later this year. In it are six unique blasters, including a Battle Droid blaster, the standard rifle, the typical pistol, one of the smaller twin blasters which fit in the holsters in select clone commanders, the grenade launcher (as seen in Battlefront II), and a rifle which was packaged with the Revenge of the Sith deluxe Clone with jetpack. It's a pretty great mix, actually, and should help arm any figures which have lost their weapons over the years.

Here's hoping for more in the future!

Posted byAdam16bit at 5:13 PM 0 comments  

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Previews Exclusive Mighty Muggs Admiral Ackbar
Friday, June 13, 2008

Assuming it's no hoax, an eBay seller has Admiral Ackbar in fully packaged Mighty Muggs form. According to the box, it's a Diamond/Previews exclusive, meaning it should be in ample supply. Will there be others? We don't know yet. The seller also has other neat items, like as-of-yet unannounced (as far as we know) Hulk Marvel Legends.

Posted byAdam16bit at 10:56 PM 0 comments  

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Imperial Pilots Legacy Revealed

Proving once more you can't keep stuff under wraps in the digital age, Jedi Insider posted packaged photos of the Imperial Pilots Legacy set. This new Evolutions pack has new versions of two Clone Trooper pilots as well as Biggs Darklighter from the Empire comic book series. Not bad! Were I a betting man, I'd say you'll see this in stores in the next two or three months.

Posted byAdam16bit at 8:53 AM 0 comments  

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Millennium Falcon Lands in Canada Early

Apparently a lucky collector hit the right Toys "R" Us this week! Snowtroopers.ca's forums are jumping because someone managed to snag this ship at retail over a full month before its target release date. What does this mean for the rest of the line? We should all probably start keeping an eye out for absolutely everything at this point.

Posted byAdam16bit at 8:49 AM 0 comments  

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Rebelscum Presents New Legacy Rumor List
Wednesday, June 11, 2008

While it seems anything past wave 1 of The Clone Wars is a closely guarded secret, yet another list of figure and vehicle rumors for The Legacy Collection is making the rounds at Rebelscum. Highlights include another wave of Revenge of the Sith figures and a new batch of A New Hope characters which actually don't sound half bad. Click through for more!

Posted byAdam16bit at 9:42 PM 0 comments  

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New The Clone Wars Theatrical Trailer Posted

The theatrical pilot has been posted to Yahoo movies and can be seen in HD, were you so inclined. What's notable are several new vehicles and voiceovers. It's hard to be certain but many fans believe they hear the voice of Christopher Lee-- as Lucasfilm has been quiet on voice actors, it's going to be interesting to see the cast list when the time comes!

Posted byAdam16bit at 9:37 PM 0 comments  

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Exclusive List Incoming
Tuesday, June 10, 2008

As we try to offer you the most useful news and info, we added a quickie list of recently released and upcoming exclusives to the blog! Currently appearing on the bottom of our page, these items should be showing up soon if they aren't already. We'll be going through our notes and adding more, but we hope you find this feature useful.

Posted byAdam16bit at 1:25 AM 0 comments  

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Q&A: Clones, Ships, Coins, and Indy
Monday, June 9, 2008

Oh, the things you ask about. It seems most fans are going ga-ga over Indiana Jones, especially in light of the total lack of new Star Wars at most stores. You're curious about The Clone Wars launch, and rightly so! We're still in the dark for most of it. And what's with the sudden "buy the stuff or the redeco won't come" messages? Well, that's hard to pinpoint, but we do our best to make heads and tails of it all in this week's Q&A!



1. It's great not to be an Indiana Jones figure collector. I picked up two (just two) from the basic figure line, just because I had one of the vintage Indy figures when I was a kid. The two figures are the basic Indiana Jones Figures with and without Jacket. Both have revolver and whip. Both suck. One sucks tremendously and the other has a single fatal flaw.


[snip]

How can a company that has as long a history as Hasbro continually repeat past mistakes? How can an otherwise good Indy figure have peg holes in the feet that are at most 2 millimeters deep? Has the company never actually looked at their own damn stands? As for the truly horrible figure, how in the name of all that good and holy can they revisit the horror of the widespread stance with no leg articulation? The legs of this Indy are in almost precisely the same rigid pose as the legs of Ponda Baba from the "Cantina Showdown" 3-pack of 1997. I kid you not. Hasn't the POTF line from 1997 been completely panned? How can these legs resurface in 2008? The only way they could have made this figure worse is if they made him as buff as POTF Han Solo. All I can say is, "Thank God there is no maniacal addiction driving me to collect Indiana Jones figures."
--David

One of the amazing things about this column is the frequent influx of Indy questions. As such, I'll keep answering them.

In the case of Indy, Hasbro's company line is that they're using a new factory who is still figuring out the ropes, basically. (So says the various Q&A sessions they've done.) Having dealt with factories overseas, I can say I believe it-- this sort of thing is hard to get right when dealing with a language barrier and a new production facility. I agree it should have been caught before going out, but some things-- like deadlines-- trump quality control. If you have a new movie coming, sometimes it makes more sense to release a pretty good product rather than miss the sales window. As a collector, this is heresy, but for business it makes sense. But peg holes, well, that baffles me-- Kenner got them right on every figure from 1978 to 1985, why is it a problem now? My guess is the sheer volume of product coming out of Hasbro makes it harder for someone to check off some of these details, but I don't know for sure.

I don't think the figures are as bad as you're saying, but they could definitely be better toys. Sometimes the stances are done to make the figure look appealing in the package, sometimes it's to enable an action feature to work properly, and other times, it's just the way that someone wanted to do it. It happens. Thankfully, as you say, it's not hard to skip on a bad figure.



2. What is with Sideshow's choice of characters for their 12" line? We are years into their license, and still we have not gotten 12" versions of such standards as C-3PO, R2-D2, Chewbacca, Stormtrooper, Classic Vader, even cool stuff like Biker Scout, Sandperson, Snowtrooper or the bounty hunters (the Boba they sold was Medicom RAH, and like all RAH's, a tad too short to be in scale with Sideshow figs.)

Some of these characters are tough to pull off for sure, but that was the reason for the excitement over Sideshow acquiring the license - if someone could pull it off, it was them.

But who decided to do Praji before a stormtrooper? An Endor Rebel before a Biker Scout? Luke in Yavin outfit before a Hoth or X-Wing outfit version?

Was this all a ploy to do head swaps on their Sideshow bodies and drape them in yet another jedi robe outfit?

There have been a few other issues here and there - sculpts very hit and miss, monkey arms problems, a "make up" look to the face paint - but the choices of characters is what's emerging as the biggest problem. They - and we - are running out of time on this license.

Jabba was an act of inspired genius - but this is one of the few bullseyes of this line. With Hasbro's half-ways decent job on the Indy 12" - at a $20 price point (!) - I'm actually at this point beginning to hope Hasbro gets back into the 12" Star Wars business.

--Duncan

Much of Sideshow's decisions supposedly had a lot to do with tooling costs. Figures with mostly cloth outfits (or a new head or a helmet) are much cheaper to make than a fully armored trooper, and apparently Sideshow intended on saving those-- the sweetest plums, really-- for after the initial hype of the line wore off. Also, there's a lot of competing products (Medicom) and collectors have versions of many of those figures. While Hasbro's Scout Trooper 12-inch figure isn't perfect, it's really good. Sideshow has to up the ante considerably in order to make a compelling product.

As to the human faces, well, those are tricky. Can't say much there.

Hasbro will likely not get back into the 12-inch business any time soon, not because of any contracts, but because it's not their business model. Hasbro is a company that sells mind-bogglingly large numbers of several items to stores, while Sideshow is in the business of selling a few thousand figures direct to consumer. Simply put, it's not in Hasbro's interests to sell a low-volume line like the 12-inch line was. I'm sure the numbers are such that any of a number of companies would be beyond thrilled with it, but Hasbro wants to sell tons of items, using the economy of scale whatnots to bring down prices.

Simply put, Sideshow will take the time and energy to try some unique things (12-inch Jabba) because it wouldn't hurt them to try. If Hasbro sold items by the low thousands, it'd probably hurt them a great deal. That, and I'd also say that I think the 12-inch Indiana Jones line is barely acceptable-- a lot of those faces are just horrible. The costumes are nice, and the accessories are good, but there's really no reason they can't make a wonderful head in 2008 when they were doing a fine job in 1979.

I'll be curious to see if Hasbro and Sideshow continue the relationship. With the recent announcement of G.I. Joe in their stable, I think it's a safe bet it's going to continue for a while. I mean, if you think about it, it's truly baffling for Hasbro to license out the 12-inch G.I. Joe line considering that the entire invention was theirs, but it seems Hasbro is starting to be more in the business of character portfolios, and if someone is willing to pay them to put a ninja toy out that they would never produce, well, it makes sense.

Overall, I was a little happier with Hasbro's $20 12-inch figures due to lower expectations. (The first 12-inch figures out of Kenner in 1996 or so were pretty bad.) Odds are it won't make a lot of sense for Hasbro to do them unless they do an "indie film"-esque toy division that is genuinely interested in lower run items, but I wouldn't expect that any time soon.



3. I am aware of both your opinion and Hasbro's on playsets. But it seems to me if they ever made more playsets instead of trying to think up new ideas wouldn't it be easier to just use those Micro Worlds from the 80's as a template only increasing the size to fit 3 3/4 inch figures considering that they could make different sizes and multiple sets that would connect together into one giant world. What are your thoughts on this?

At Toy Fair, they said that 23 figures from the new Clone Wars line would be released in 2008. We have seen Wave One and the holographic Grievous. Of the remaining 14 figures, I am wondering if any have been leaked & will we see any at the San Diego Comic Con?
--Chad

First: there will be leaks. There are always leaks. Just this week, I found scores of Transformers: Animated toys at retail-- their street date isn't for a while, I hear. But yet, I found them. Stores are unable to keep a leash on their stockers and it's really somewhat difficult to try to keep the genie in the bottle for so long, especially given Comic-Con is during the Clone Wars launch. Which is just ridiculous.

Aside from some Clone Trooper redeco test shots, Hasbro has been exceedingly quiet on what these first waves will be. I fully expect the traditional stuff like C-3PO and more Troopers and Droids, but honestly, nothing has been announced or leaked yet. But as product ships to stores in this era of cell phone cameras, even if they don't leak from China, it's unthinkable that we won't see them early. I figure we'll see most if not all of the stuff by July 4.



4. I've been collecting the new Indiana Jones line. Poor paint application (especially to the faces) aside, I like the figures and it makes a neat side shelf to my Star Wars collections. I just recently picked up the German Motorcycle soldier and it's pretty slick IMO. I was most interested in collecting the figures from the original trilogy but I thought it would be cool to get some of the new figures from the new movie. . . before the movie came out. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion, but I for one did not like the new movie at all. It had its moments, but overall it left a poor taste in my mouth. I'll keep the figures from the new movie as they ARE part of the collection but I'm having a hard time convincing myself to get anymore that aren't part of the original 3. Here's where I ran into a problem: the mini relics that come with each. Some of these are pretty lame (a fake arrowhead? Seriously?!) but some are fantastic, and as I discovered, some of the movie relics do not necessarily come with the figures from the movie. Without giving away some of the mystery of what relic comes with what figure, I'll just say that one of the new movie figures [AP note: Dovchenko] came with a highly detailed Goblet of Kali (the skull mug that held the blood of Kali that Indy was forced to drink in ToD); and it's just freakin' cool! My question is, do you know if any of the other new movie figures come with any cool relics; especially the movie relics? If so, would you mind sharing which new figures I should buy to get the relics? Thanks!
--Ryan

A lot of figures have decent relics, but really what you need to do is research who has what and buy accordingly. What's cool varies from fan to fan, and I'd hate to steer you wrong. I mean, I think the Chachapoyan Temple Carving with that Raiders Indy is super cool, but you might not. This sort of haphazard blind-ish packaging of relics is sure to drive fans online to research who has what, and encourage purchases of figures fans don't want just for the artifacts. Ridiculous, I know, but effective.

I'll see if I can crank out an artifact list for you all soon.



5. When Vintage Han Hoth was shown at Toy Fair last year, a hood up alternate head was shown with it. And it was really pretty cool - hood up, hood down. Then the hood up head was quickly pulled from the Toy Fair display. Hasbro said that Lucasfilm didn't approve it due to something like quality issues. So vintage Han shipped with no swappable head.

Then along comes the new Droid Factory and (upcoming) battle pack versions. I pulled a close up image of that Toy Fair head and it's the exact same sculpt (and oversize goggles) used for the new sets. What gives? It's a quality issue last year, not this year?

It would have been a great addition to that vintage figure, instead we got that dorky scarf/visor/goggles thing.

It's just that I paid over ten bucks for that vintage figure, and now I get to buy it again (this time in sets!) with the head that was designed to be included with that vintage figure? So did Lucasfilm change their mind? Or did Hasbro tell a little white lie to ensure another figure could be made of the same thing?
--rbdk

It's my understanding that Hasbro's words were something like "the hood-up version was not approved." This can mean lots of things-- it wasn't approved to be shown, it wasn't approved for production, or it wasn't approved for this particular line because they wanted to use it later. It's in Hasbro's best interest to milk these sculpts for all they're worth, and well, we're seeing exactly that.



6. I want to be sure that I have a complete set of the TAC coins (which are every bit as cool as the old POTF coins, but I digress). How many different black coins were made, and which figures accompanied the coins?
--Robert

There are 60 "basic figure" coins with 59 basic figures and 1 coin album. These, you should find easily, and there's also 10 variant gold coins to track down for Boba Fett (McQuarrie and Animated), Darth Vader (ANH), Stormtrooper (McQuarrie), Han Solo (Gunner), Luke Skywalker (Ceremonial), Chewbacca (McQuarrie), Mace Windu, R2-D2, Galactic Marine, Airborne Trooper, and Biggs Darklighter (Pilot). There are 8 Saga Legends coins-- one for each movie, and gold and black Expanded Universe coins. There are seven mail-in figure coins (including the New York Toy Fair coin and 6 vintage figures), the Comic-Con coin, the Celebration IV coin, the Celebration Europe coin, and then there's US and Europe versions of the McQuarrie Luke coin, the McQuarrie Droids coin, and just the US version of Concept Grievous' coin. Oh, and there's a gold Indiana Jones coin from Comic-Con. And I think that's pretty much the lot of it.

So you have...
60 basic coins
12 gold coins (Ultimate Galactic Hunt)
8 Saga Legends coins
3 "Convention coins" (4 if you count New York Toy Fair)
7 Vintage Mail-in coins (6 if you don't count the Toy Fair coin in the set)
5 Convention figure coins
1 Indiana Jones coin

So there's a lot. The black Expanded Universe coin comes with the Shadow Stormtrooper and Utapau Shadow Trooper.



7. Do you think we will see a re-release of the republic gunship this fall? My son is begging for one and there is no way I am going to pay the obscene second market prices. I think it would be a big dumb mistake not to release this highly demanded ship that is such a centerpiece in the Clone Wars at the time of its premiere. Don't you?

--Wendy


There will be at least one new Gunship in July (or around July) but Hasbro has yet to show it-- odds are it will match the movie/TV show but it's hard to know for certain.



8. how long will the Rancor thing be on the shelf. My son also went ga ga for it. Is it grab it quick or it'll be there at Christmas.
--Rich


Knowing Target? It'll be gone before Christmas. I'd say get it now, as it seems to be selling fast, but keep in mind it's in 30th Anniversary Packaging and Hasbro said they want to phase that out for July 26-- and knowing Target's turnover on exclusives, I'd say it should be on markdown on or around that time. Don't expect to see this item in stores past July or August, and that's being generous. A new Rancor may replace it, though. If your kid really wants it, buy it and hide it somewhere. That, or prepare for eBay purchases, which could be higher or lower than the $39.99 asking price today.




9. I opened my han R-3PO set this morning and the leg to c-3px has ankle articulation. Do any of the c-3po molds have this?? I can't think of any!
--George

No previously released C-3PO has an ankle joint in the 3 3/4-inch scale-- so if this one has it, it's the first!



10. It seems to me like Hasbro is changing their approach toward us, and in fact it almost seems like they are threatening us, "buy our merchandise or we may not make any more!" Let me explain:

Recently they made it a point to notify many, or all, of the various Star Wars figure sites to tell them, "hey, you better not wait for the Order 66 sets to go on clearance, because they're not going to. So you better buy them. Now." I suppose on the one hand this could actually be a helpful tip. But reading between the lines, it seems like they're saying: "Hey, you better buy these now, because we told Target that they would be big sellers, unlike the ones from last year that blew out at $2.50 a pop, so just to let you know Target's not going to mark these down, so go buy them. Now." And yet, interestingly enough, some Targets did mark them down. Hmmm. Granted the various stores have some discretion when it comes to markdowns, but if it was a company wide mandate to not mark them down, it wasn't enforced.

The thing is, Target has kind of trained us to wait for clearance. Personally, I buy stuff right away because I may never see it again, and worry about the clearance later if it happens. But in general, Target clearances stuff out FAST! So we get used to that, and now Hasbro is blaming us for that.

And the thing that really irks me, especially because I really am looking forward to it, is the ROTJ Rancor that was supposed to come out this year using the new mold. In one of the Q&As I read, I don't recall offhand which one it was, Hasbro flat out said, when someone asked about the ROTJ version, that due to scheduling issues, the Rancor was bumped, and as a matter of fact, if the TFU Rancor doesn't sell well, there's a chance the ROTJ version might not come out. Really? Threats to buy their merchandise? What gives?

They put the cost into a new mold for the new Rancor, and Hasbro is always quick to tell us how expensive molds are and that's why we don't get a lot of the stuff we want, so they're telling me that if I don't buy this version, which I don't care for as I don't buy EU stuff, they might not do the ROTJ one? Really? Huh. I was kind of under the impression that in order to recoup the cost of a new mold they have to repackage something several times.

So what gives? Is there a shift in attitude over at Hasbro? Is there someone new in charge? Are they not making enough money, or what?
--Charlie

The same guy-- Derryl DePriest-- is still in charge of most of the stuff on Hasbro's Star Wars team. He's a nice guy, and in the past couple of years he and the rest of the team are starting to pay much closer attention to the stuff we all post on forums, news sites, and yes, columns like this one. With numerous vocal fans taking the attitude of "I'll just wait for clearance," fans and the guys at Hasbro are both trying to get the message out of how the free market economy works-- that is, what you buy sends a message. While Target's clearances are insane, it does make a big difference. Not only does Hasbro and Target have to design product with the big red retailer's incredibly short attention span in mind, but they have to make things that fans will want to buy, regardless of age. This is a tricky prospect, especially when Target rarely gives any one exclusive more than two months.

Regarding the Rancor, putting out two Rancors in one year seemed odd-- so in a way, I'm glad Hasbro decided to push it back. I just got this one, and it's probably for the best to let some demand build up before releasing another one, especially at $40. (Or wait for a big Jabba's Palace push.) I don't think it was a threat so much as it was "we're not doing it now, yeah we know you know we were considering it, please buy the one that's available." As you pointed out, it's a safe bet that it's probably chatter. Today, it may seem like they're saying "oh, well, sales may make us not produce this item" but the reality is that if someone begs for an exclusive, and there's a mold sitting around, and a repaint would be easy to do, it's a safe bet that it'll happen eventually. But if sales and demand don't warrant it, "eventually" could be 2014.

And yes, if the Force Unleashed Battle Rancor doesn't sell well at all, it would probably be a safe bet Hasbro wouldn't want to make another version of the creature for quite some time. I don't know if you got one, but as it is, it's basically a normal ROTJ Rancor with a saddle, no chains, and some extra blue paint. Other than the pack-in figures and leaving off a paint app, the other version really isn't all that different, and I'm sure if a kid got this one and a new one came out for Christmas, it'd be a hard sell to parents. "Didn't you just get that?" or "How many of those do you have?" are the kind of thing I'd expect to hear. (Sort of like what I hear when I bought another Starscream last weekend.)



FIN


Who says you can't burn the candle at both ends? I'm still a smidgen swamped, so as always, please get your questions in ASAP. I'm considering revamping the column and how it works in order to provide more frequent and smaller installments-- is that something you guys would like, or do you prefer it weekly? Just curious.

It was yet another slow week for Star Wars, but boy howdy, it was a great week for Transformers. I found me a Ratchet at Wal-Mart on Saturday, which pretty much made my week. A few of you are probably watching Transformers Animated on Cartoon Network, which so far seems to be the best overall series based on the toy line. The voice actors are great. The guests are even better. Brian Posehn? Fred Willard? "Weird Al" Yankovic? It's just incredible. If they could find a way to shoehorn in Alice Cooper, Patton Oswalt, or Sarah Vowell, they'd probably have the best voice cast for a Saturday morning show ever. If you watched and dug Beast Wars, this is probably worth your while. If you remember liking the original 1980s show, you'll probably like this too.

Right now, I'm getting nervous for The Clone Wars. I'm both very excited and very skittish-- you see, someone decided to launch the entire toy line the same weekend as San Diego Comic-Con, so hardcore fans are presumably expected to be in two places at once. Seeing as how there will be exclusives at Comic-Con, Target, Toys "R" Us, and Wal-Mart, I'm not precisely clear on how any fan is supposed to complete their collection without calling in numerous favors. Although maybe the store exclusives will suck, so I won't have to care. But it's just really inconvenient.

Got questions? I bet you do. Email me with "Q&A" somewhere in the subject line and hopefully I'll get to yours in the next column!

Posted byAdam16bit at 12:22 AM 0 comments  

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Rebelscum Gets Gallery of New Droid Factory Set
Wednesday, June 4, 2008

The talented folks at Rebelscum posted a nice gallery of the first Droid Factory to see release, which you can order from Wal-Mart's web site. (It's an exclusive, you see.) The set in question sports a Vintage Hoth Han Solo with his hood up and a new R-3PO figure, based on a previously released C-3PO mold. The set also features 1/6 of the build-a-figure C-3PX droid, a bounty hunter from the Dark Horse Droids comic series. Whew! Go take a look.

Posted byAdam16bit at 12:51 AM 0 comments  

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Ad: Entertainment Earth Reveals New Hasbro Exclusive
Tuesday, June 3, 2008

...sort of. Online merchant Entertainment Earth posted a sneak peek of its new 2008 Hasbro action figure exclusive. There are six shadowy figures, but it isn't clear which is actually part of the set. Click through to see if you can determine what they are, or pre-order the box of 6 for $35.99.

Posted byAdam16bit at 9:01 AM 0 comments  

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Q&A: New Exclusives, Classic Clone Wars, Greeting Cards
Monday, June 2, 2008

So what's the deal with the new old Clone Wars cartoon characters we haven't seen made yet? And what's going on with all these mail-in offers lately? And the exclusives-- there's so many of them! What's going on there? All this and more in this somewhat hastily written Q&A!



1. I have heard rumors that the Battle Rancor and the Large Wing White Tie Fighter are going to be in very short supply and basically what is on the shelves now is what we are going to get. I was able to pick up my Battle Rancor, but the White Tie Fighter has been super elusive here and now my Local TRU is saying they haven't had it in weeks. Have you heard or know if there is any truth to these exclusives being on a short run?
--Christen

People like to make up stuff all the time to make themselves feel important. There has been no indication that any exclusive will be a short run, and if you look at pretty much every non-Wal-Mart exclusive in the past few years, most of them were made in incredible numbers. You'll keep seeing these, I'm sure, until the clearances start.




2. The jig is up; with the release of the EE Summer catalog, we now know that there will be a new EE exclusive with 6 "new" figures. I know that you can’t tell us who or what these figures are (and your definition of "new" is often times different from other peoples definition of new), but can you tell us if the "silhouettes" in the ad are indicative of what figures are in the set; or is it like last time where there were random figures that made up the silhouettes for the print ads.
--Damon


For the record, I do work at Entertainment Earth and I do have a lot to say about the marketing. More than a few decisions are made for various reasons, including Hasbro's requirements for product announcements, Entertainment Earth's needs for marketing momentum, and my own desire to shake up the ant farm that is the online fanbase. For example, in 2006, we announced a "Mystery Figure" Comic Pack with Kir Kanos and a figure that would eventually be revealed to be Carnor Jax. We put a silhouette of Han Solo in our marketing materials to stand in for the mystery figure, in part because the Star Wars Insider did the same thing to promote their Cantina Band Member in the shadows in their magazine. It made sense to me, so we ran with it.

That said, one of the six figures is indeed the shadowy representation of one figure from the set. (In my opinion, not the best figure in the set.) Some of the other figures would have totally made it easy to guess the nature of the set, which will be revealed in full at Comic-Con 2008.

I will say that a lot of the things I've said in here about exclusives holds true. It's not Knights of the Old Republic. It's not a boxed set of existing figures, McQuarrie or otherwise. It also hasn't had any "leaked" figures pop up online anywhere yet, but that could change. (And if it does-- or doesn't-- I'm in no position to comment further at this time.) I did have a hand in this one's development, so I'm pretty pleased with it. I hope you will be as well. If you liked the sets Entertainment Earth made in the past, you should like this one too.



3. Do you think its feesable t say that now the original clone wars characters have been produced we will get a Mutant Nelvaanian warrior (theose massive blue retarded guys from clone wars 22-25)? Also for those people who arn't collecting the new animated figures would it be wise to begin requesting all the cartoon made figures to be realesed in realistic styling eg ashoka?
--StarWarsSims101

The market and its need for new product generally move Hasbro's hand in ways our begging never could. We got a cartoony Yavin Anakin Skywalker, and then a short time later, they cranked out a "movie"-style one because they wanted to sell another version of our Jedi hero.

As to the future, well, frankly you're going to have to help here. Make a fuss online, and be sure to point out that if you didn't buy her, that you would were she "realistic." The future of the line is always in motion and it's entirely possible that by next year, Hasbro may put more emphasis on this animated style if it succeeds, or switch to "movie" if it doesn't. Right now it's still far too early to know for certain, as with most things in life odds are Hasbro will simply follow the money.

Other Clone Wars characters could see production, as we're seeing later this year. It never hurts for fans to demand the figures, because you never know who might hear it and ask for an exclusive, or put it in the regular line, or fast track its release.



4. I bought a bunch of Indiana Jones figures and want to keep them for display, yet I also want to remove the mail-in sticker without damaging the bubble & card to get my exclusive. Yet when I removed the tiny mail-in form, the sticker is nowhere to be found. Is it in the "hidden relic" box? It has to be somewhere in the bubble, because I watched the stock girl open the case and the figure shows no sign of tampering. Has anyone reported stickers being left out? Any help would be appreciated.
--Chris

The stickers are indeed in the little artifact boxes. As such, it's not going to be easy to get those things out without a fight.



5. greetings from down under. i am sure you have been asked this before but can you rate the modern vader figures? i am streamlining muy collection and want to get your thoughts on your favourites and not so favourites?
--craig

First, get rid of anything you can't see a reason to keep. That is the easiest way to go. If you have 28 Darth Vaders and don't see a reason to keep 20 of them, do yourself a favor and unload them.

I would personally suggest getting rid of any figure that isn't unique (Battle-Damaged Darth Vader, for example), super articulated (2007's basic Vader), or can sit in a ship (2005 Revenge of the Sith Vader). There are so many, I don't want to take the time to rate them-- but I can say that it's always a good thing to get rid of figures you can't find a reason to keep for the rest of your days. Your requirements for keeping a figure may differ, so this is really something only you can decide.



6. Recently I purchased a Sterilite 7-drawer cart system ( http://www.sterilite.com/ProductDetail.html?ProductId=408&Section=Storage ) and was wondering if it was OK to store figures in it (i.e. damaging). I heard that they have bad chemicals, but I'm not sure. If they do, would wrapping the figures in plastic store bags (i.e. Shaws, Wal*Mart, Target, Toys R Us, etc.) and putting them in the drawers that way be OK? Thanks for your help.
--Mr. Yuck
I've had a few fans write in and tell me they love this thing-- but it's quite difficult to tell the long-term effects of figure storage in any environment. The storage device is just one part of the equation, as light, heat, humidity, and other factors (like the kinds of paint Hasbro uses) could each pose a potential threat.

Depending on who you ask, everything has bad chemicals in it. I'd suggest making sure the figures are stored in such a manner where they can't be bent out of shape, where they don't touch one another, and where they aren't "suffocating." Plastic bags with no air holes may lead to moisture build-up, and that can be bad. A few small holes can help this a little bit, but since nobody does tests on the long-term effects of ziploc bags on small plastic men, well, it's going to be tough to really understand how it will work in the long run. I prefer cheap paper lunch bags for a variety of reasons, but that might not work for you.



7. I am in the process of whittling down my collection & I ran across a set of the WalMart exclusive [2004 OTC] DVD 3 packs. Since these are made up of existing figures they seem perfect for getting rid of. However I know that Hasbro will often use a really good figure, like say a Vintage Han, in something like this. So before I throw them up on eBay I was wondering if you knew what figures made up these 3 packs. Knowing which figures are in there would help know A) if I have them already or not & B) if I want to get rid of the 3 packs or the carded version. Also your opinion on the 3packs would be helpful as well.
--Mikk


These figures are absolutely 100% recycled from previous releases-- if you have another figure in your collection that looks like them, then you're covered. I'd suggest selling them off if anyone is willing to pay you actual money for them. If you have a complete set of basic regular carded figures, you probably have these guys. If not, well, maybe you do and maybe you don't. I've never seen your collection. Of note, the Darth Vader from the Return of the Jedi set was previously released as a Toys "R" Us exclusive in the Imperial Forces Saga set-- if you didn't get that, then you might want to hang on to this one.



8. I remember reading somewhere that the landing gear on the 2007 TRU Y-wing wasn't the greatest. While looking at mine this week, I noticed that the back right landing pad was not locking into place. Any suggestions to remedy this problem?
--Mike


I've heard two solutions for the Y-Wing Landing Gear Problem, which has plagued the line since the first POTF2 Y-Wing many moons ago.

One, you can get a junker vintage Y-Wing (the 1983 one) and swap out the internal workings. They were made of a much stronger material that did not sag after a short period of time.

Two, you can prop it up. I suggest putting some LEGO bricks or other small pieces under it to prop it up so the gear doesn't sag. You might say "but Adam, doesn't that mean Hasbro made a questionable product? Shouldn't we be complaining to them?" Yes and no. I figure there's no real way to do anything about it at this point, so all you can do is try to fix what you've already got-- propping it up makes for the easiest solution, even though it may not look so great.




9. Hey, do you know exactly what we can expect July 26th? It looks like at least 8 of the CW figs and maybe wave 1 of Legacy. Is there any comic 2 packs hitting then too? The Walmart C-3px 2 packs are hitting July 1st, right?
--George

With few to no packaged samples appearing, no pre-orders, and no official information out of Hasbro, it's hard to say. The entire line is essentially going to be relaunched on that date, but it's unclear if everything will be available, or if it will be available widely. We're going to have to see what else pops up, but it's pretty likely you'll see a few waves of basic figures and Legacy figures. As to the droid exclusives, that remains to be seen. I hope so, I really want to get those.



10. last year at Celebration 4 Hallmark had a booth with some interesting Star Wars cards. There were two cards that moved and played music. one the cantina and the other Yoda on Dagobah. The man at the booth said that these were supposed to come out at Easter but I never saw them at any Hallmark shop or heard of them released online. So what's the deal with them? Are they still slated to be released? I have seen several other Hallmark cards that used the same technology.
--Craigboyse

I've got no idea-- so I pose it to you readers. Can you help Craig out here?



FIN

The last few weeks have been nuts-- and this next week is going to be nuts too. And next week. It's a bit much. I'd write more but I actually have to get working on another project, so if you could all help me out and just send your questions in early, that'd be swell.

Got questions? I bet you do. Email me with "Q&A" somewhere in the subject line and hopefully I'll get to yours in the next column!

Posted byAdam16bit at 12:01 AM 0 comments  

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