Q&A For August 9, 2004

1. I have not heard if anyone has taken the helmet on the OTC Vader to see if they changed the head sculpt to look like Hayden. These figures are for the new DVDs coming out, and they did change that seen. I thought I heard some where that the helmet would not come off the figure, but it looks like on mine (threw the package) the helmet is removable.
--Sithlordlloyd

Despite what you may have heard, Hayden does not appear under the Darth Vader helmet in the revised Return of the Jedi. He only appears as a spirit at the end, thus rendering your Jedi Spirits Cinemascene and Flashback Anakin Skywalker "deleted scenes" figures.

Hasbro has not altered this figure in any meaningful way for the rerelease beyond the wise inclusion of the stand. While some sites did initially report that the figure's helmet would not be removable, you can see in our photo archive that it is, in fact, removable. Hasbro isn't known for removing an action feature, after all.

2. I have a question for you. Which Star Wars figures in the OTC line have been repainted? It looks to me like Greedo, Pilot Luke, Hoth Vader, Bespin Luke, Jawas, Tuskin, Bib F., and Gamorian G. all have, but is that list correct (and if it is not who should be omitted and who should be added)? The figures I thought might be a little different include Snowtrooper, Wicket, Obi-Wan, Boba F. and the Stormtrooper?
--David

Greedo, Bespin Luke the Jawas, the Tusken Raider, Bib Fortuna, and the Gamorrean Guard have been significantly changed, and of course Hoth Vader has the added snow deco to his cape and feet. Although when I saw Bib up close, I have to admit, it's not exactly obvious. X-wing Pilot Luke has had some minor alterations, and it appears the Snowtrooper and Scanning Technician have as well-- but as I don't have those yet, I can't be sure. Wicket is the same as the painted stitching variation from POTF2, Boba Fett is sort of in the middle of the colors used for the blue and green versions (closer to blue), and Obi-Wan and the Stormtrooper really aren't all that different as far as I can tell.

For more information just like this, please consult our still-in-progress Original Trilogy Collection Hyper Guide.

3. Are the upcoming OTC Darth Vaders new figures, re-released figures or a combo?
--Steve

While the Vintage Darth Vader is all new, the others are basically repaints. The ROTJ Throne Room Vader is the same one that was released in 2003, but with an added stand. The ANH Vader is the same one repackaged to death during Saga, and thankfully so-- as this was the hard-to-get Masters of the Sith Darth Vader from Power of the Jedi. The ESB Hoth Vader, on the other hand, is similar to the one released in the Imperial Forces Gift Set, but with added snow deco to the cape-- so if you only get one OTC Vader, this is probably the one you "need."

4. My question regards the Unleashed line. As you've heard at Comic-Con, both Wal*Mart and Target will now be carrying the Unleashed line. I know this to be true, since some Wal*Marts away from town carry the line, and my local Target picked up the line last week. I was lucky to find the Unleashed Leia, as well as Obi-Wan. This is a great move on the part of Wal*Mart and Target, especially for me, since I previously had to drive 40 miles to get to the nearest Toys 'R Us... the only place that sold Unleashed. I missed out on some of the earlier Unleashed figures that I really want (Boba Fett, Han Solo, Clone Trooper). Do you know if the particular assortments which contained those figures are still shipping? And if so, what are the chances of them hitting Wal*Mart or Target?
--Geo

In the past week I've also seen Target stores with Unleashed and gobs of other new stuff. Many of the earlier figures are still shipping-- the (red) Clone Trooper and Han Solo can be found at many Suncoast and Sam Goody stores in my area, and undoubtedly in areas near you as well. (Sure, they're $19.99, but that's not too bad.) Hasbro has stated they will probably ship existing figures again if the demand is there, so I wouldn't worry too much-- I mean, Hasbro can see a revenue opportunity. People that shop at Target and Wal-Mart may have never seen Unleashed since they stopped carrying it ages ago, so it's a ripe opportunity to sell something old to a new audience.

One thing to consider-- and in my old age, I'm starting to see this a little more-- is that buying stuff online for a couple of extra bucks isn't so bad when you compare it to a 40-mile drive, unless you REALLY enjoy the hunt-- and often, I do. So, sometimes eBay might not be so bad, ditto with Entertainment Earth, Amazon.com, DNS Toys, or any of our fine sponsors. *Plug* I prefer going places and buying them myself so I can look it over, and frankly, it's more exciting to find it in a store than it is to find it online-- it feels like you actually accomplished something. Still, in your situation, I'd go online for these-- gas ain't cheap these days.

5. There are obviously going to be Hasbro figures released after the OTC waves and prior to the Episode III figures being released, the packaging of which we have already seen. What is this interim packaging going to look like? Will it revert back to SAGA packaging between OTC and Episode III or will it be something that we haven't seen yet?
--Robert

While Hasbro has not explicitly stated it, we are lead to believe it will be a modified version of the OTC packaging, just without the OTC logo and a few other tweaks. We haven't seen it yet, of course, but it most likely will not be the Revenge of the Sith cardback-- that doesn't make sense to use just yet.

6. With Hasbro's announcement of no more ships for this year do you think we might see any more from the vintage era sometime next year?
--Dan

It's possible. I don't particularly buy the "oh we can't make a new mold" thing because, obviously, they can-- they're a big company that now has to cut corners for various reasons, one of which is, I'm sure, that the countless new figure molds are expensive to make.

If we do see a new exclusive vehicle, I wouldn't expect to see a-- say-- Cloud Car until late 2005 or 2006. If the fans demand it, it'll probably happen, we just aren't exactly a very demanding fanbase these days, and the days of 10,000 or more supporters for a single product are probably long over.

7. How come Hasbro didn't call the Wol Cabasshite in the Jabba's Court Denizens pack by his correct name, Ghoel? Also, is there any chance that the Sly Moore figure shown at the Comic Con isn't the final product? If it is, I'm really disappointed. It doesnt look anything like she did in the film.
Why have there been no cool new Episode I characters made recently? Like Gragra, Jira, Erdan, more Podracers, Kitster, Wald, Edcel Bar Gane, Rayno Vaca, Sei Taria, Tey How....man the list goes on and on!
And ive been waiting patiently for three characters to be made into the 3 3/4 scale: Dice Ibegon, Tzizvvt, and Cane Adiss(who may never be made). Any chances these obscure charaters will be at least considered for action figures?
--lowtek

Like many fans, you have a good knowledge of aliens and a desire to see them in plastic. Good for you. Problem is, this isn't always possible, and as far as these go, let's take a look.

As fas as Jabba's little pal Ghoel goes, well, Hasbro made a decision to go with a generic name here. It's possible copyright or other restrictions prevented them from using Ghoel, or perhaps they just liked Wol Cabasshite more. Either way, well, we got the figure-- they can call it whatever they want, I'm happy to have it. It's better than "Tonuge Thing."

Episode I is the leper colony of Star Wars, and don't pretend like you don't know this-- we all do. The film is a treasure trove of awesome alien designs that we may never see in plastic because Hasbro believes figures from this movie aren't so popular, or rather, other figures are more popular. Take Jira for instance-- short of those who really will collect them all and people with dioramas, who cares? I fall in to both categories, so I do, and while you do as well, it's a small market. Hasbro is just now revisiting Episode I with some actual new product like Sly Moore, Yarua, and a new Padme... which is more than we've seen since 2002, where we got a very small quantity of TPM characters in Saga. If you want more obscure prequel figures, stick around after Revenge of the Sith, because I think Hasbro will be listening a little closer to the small, hardcore audience. Or repainting things to death, I'm not sure which.

The figures shown on slides at Comic Con were prototypes-- so they'll all look a little different. How different? This I don't know yet.

Lastly, your patience is appreciated, and hopefully you have more of it where that came from. Dice Ibegon and Cane Adiss are both basically heads on a snake body, meaning these wouldn't make for great toys. Hasbro may have to invent the rest of the figure's being, which is something that may make some fans squeamish. I think Cane Adiss and Dice Ibegon are both very cool diorama additions, so if Hasbro does another "Jabba's Denizens" or "Cantina Denizens" pack, we might be in luck-- both not before that. Tzizvvt is basically The Fly in Star Wars, and could very well see plastic some day. But, not today. Your love of obscurity will no doubt be rewarded some day, but that day may not come before 2010.

8. what happened to SW INSIDER'S Action Figure Archive Section? I couldn't wait for the newest issue to hit the news stands, and when I finally found a copy, NO ARCHIVES. I was so psyched to see its' continuation, and now that they're under new management (again), it's disappeared. Any chance this will return in future months.
--Ki-Adi Randy

Like many things with the new publisher, this seems to have been altered, delayed, or removed. The section was a fantastic idea with pictures that were lit... differently, and as such it might be best to just wait for a sequel to the book. I mean, 2006 seems like a good time for an update, what with the end of Episode III and a few years worth of modern product to cover.

9. We have heard from Hasbro that the reason the OTC has gotten so many repacks is that Lucasfilm surprised them with the release of the DVD's and they did not have time to create new figures. That makes a lot of sense with one exception - the vintage OTC. The vintage-esque figures look like a lot of time was put into them and recreating the cardbacks probably wasn't easy either. Out of curiousity was Hasbro already working on vintage figures for something non-OTC? Or were these figures a rush job to get them to retail in time for the DVD release? Or is there some other explanation?
--Chris

While it's tough to rush development on new characters and new packaging for a whole year worth of products, it's not so hard to rush a few new ones to production. In the case of the Vintage OTC, and I don't know this to be fact, it's not unthinkable that Hasbro has had these on the drawing board for years-- super-posable Boba Fett, Han Solo, and Darth Vader have been requests from the likes of us for quite some time, so they were most likely working on these before the DVD was announced. (And if they weren't, it's not like it's impossible to rush a product to market.)

One question I have that's unanswered was since Hasbro always works so far ahead of the curve, if the DVDs were not to happen and the OTC would never have been created, then what would we be seeing in stores right now? (Probably the new molds we got and are seeing for 2005, but hey, who knows.) From what I do know, the OTC concept has been kicked around for quite some time so this was probably an off-the-shelf idea they had ready, just in case.

10. Does the VOTC R2-D2 have a retractable 3rd leg?
Your summary said that the VOTC 12” Boba Fett will have two versions released: TESB & ROTJ. What are the differences? Did Hasbro actually provide a different left gauntlet, rifle, and belt, and a differently colored jetpack and cape depending on which movie he’s from? Or will both use all the exact same parts, just recolored?
The Target exclusive Slave I obviously reuses the mold from AOTC. But, it has added missile launchers near the lower guns, and added guns under the cockpit attached to the sides of the hull. Are these pieces either removable, or able to retract and be ‘hidden’ in some way? Or are they permanently attached as is? Is there any idea what Target will be selling it for?
--Mike

Hasbro has stated the VOTC R2-D2 has a removable third leg, which I guess is more or less just as good. This makes it so the internal area of his body can be used for gimmicks other than leg storage, which I find very useful.

The 12" VOTC Boba Fett's specific changes are unknown, but I do believe I overheard differently colored gauntlets and jet pack. As far as every little change, I don't expect it, as repaints typically don't go through the trouble of having added or altered accessories.

The Target Slave I is expected to be $29.99 when it arrives in the coming months. The new guns appear to be removable, but if they're removable just once or pop out for your amusement remains to be seen as we have yet to see one out of the box that we can futz with. They aren't part of the mold but are a separate piece attached to the ship, so it's not unthinkable you can dismantle the ship and take these off. As far as if all the other weapons and doodads from the Jango Fett version of the vehicle will be present, I'm not yet sure-- and I didn't get a good enough look at the innards of the cockpit to see if that was altered.

FIN

I went to the infamous First Fridays here in Phoenix and got to once again see the fantastic and entertaining Osama Bin Sars play in front of a converted Motel 6 which the kids call Holgas. Good times. I now have no voice left between the noise and my getting sick last week, so hey, more time to write.

I'm working on a definitive or semi-definitive OTC list of all the 39 figures and the changes made to them-- so future Q&As on such things can be directed to that for your convinience. (We're here to help, boys and girls.) A lot of new stuff is hitting, like the Greedo I found at Wal-Mart the other week, so keep your eyes open-- it's hunting season!

That's all for this week. So get those questions in for next week, and if you could put "Q&A" in the subject line, that would greatly help my email filters find your message. Just email me with your inquiry, and we'll see what we can do.