Q&A For October 18, 2004

1. Hi Adam. I'm waiting for a couple of figures to be released, but sometimes I think to buy the POTF2 versions. Wich of the following figures can really be re-packed (and/or re-painted) or re-sculpted?

Ree-Yees, Saelt Marae, Pote Snitkin.

And what about a Logray basic figure in the OTC? Is Hasbro waiting for a re-sculpt?
--Darth Tagnan

As far as repackaged figures go, Hasbro loves surprises. Any figure could show up again at any time, and Jabba's Palace has been rumored for the multipack for ages. As such, consider a couple of things. One, POTF2-era figures are cheap as in nearly worthless-- on eBay, Pote sells for $5-$7, Yak Face goes for $2-$4 (and rarely gets bid upon), and Ree-Yees is anywhere from $6 to around $20-- but that means he can be had for $6. A few of 'em, actually. The other thing to remember is that Hasbro has learned something we all wish they learned earlier, and that's that they can get away with recarding figures to death without doing a new sculpt if the existing sculpt is good. And for all three of these, the figures are great with Pote Snitkin being arguably the best of its time.

So my advice to you in this trio is to watch eBay or toy shows as green carded figures from POTF2 are pretty much worthless and can be had at or below SRP. Most importantly, you can have them now.

As far as Logray, both he and Wicket are figures I sorely want to see redone, but as Hasbro has released them both many times, I doubt it. Logray will most likely never be a basic in the OTC, but you can always get him, a Speederbike, an Endor Rebel, and much more in the TRU exclusive Endor gift set right now. (Which is a steal-- one $10 vehicle, two $5 figures and a formerly $6 two-pack.) I wouldn't hold my breath for resculpts of specific Ewoks, but I have no doubt we're going to see more existing Ewok bodies given new heads and paint in the coming years.

2. What are the chances of a McQuarie concept Vader [maybe even a series], Chewbacca and C-3po are also very popular on the request lines!
--Sam

As stated previously in the column, Hasbro has asked us if we wanted these before, and we said yes. And that was in 1996 or 1997... and then there was the Fan's Choice #4 contest, which got us our very first McQuarrie carded figure in 2003. At this rate I would assume we wouldn't see one more McQuarrie figure until post-ROTS-on-DVD and then, maybe only as a fan's choice. Those three are my top favorite designs of his (at least to have as toys) and I think it'd be a mistake to never do them. But that said, who knows how they would sell?

3. Lucas has indicated that a live TV show will continue the SW saga, surely Hasbro will continue toys based on this don't you think? Also, DO you think Lucas may have in mind to have Spielberg to do the last 3 movies? Sw can live forever and much money can be had and more fans keep pouring into this universe it would be a shame for Lucas to let it die. [Your thoughts] and thank you for your time.
--zak

Lemme tell ya a story.

There won't be three more movies. At least not for the near future. As such, I'd say it's time to stop speculating. (At one point GL said there would only be 3 SW films, and look what happened there.)

As far as a TV show goes, I think that unless it turns out like the TV series for Logan's Run or Planet of the Apes, there's a very good chance that the new show will take the focus from movie-based toys and we'd have a TV-based line. I think we'll definitely get some figures from it because Hasbro had Clone Wars stuff on tap before the show even aired, so I fully expect 1-2 waves from this hypothetical toy line-- but it's a ways off, 2006 at the earliest, so I'm willing to bet that not only does Hasbro have no plans, but LucasFilm is probably still hammering out things as well.

4. I actually have two questions for you, please show me mercy if you can by answering both of them. Do you think it would be fantastic is Hasbro kept the OTC line alive for the next um-teen years? I think this could be very possible and we wouldn't be under so much pressure to tie-up the loose ends of the line in order to gear up for Episode III. Instead, Hasbro could also develop a PTC (Prequel Trilogy Collection) line to include all figures within Episodes I, II, and III. Hasbro had really three lines going during Episode I, so I don't see the harm with this. Of course I still want to see Episode III in its own packaging for the first year, but down the road it could make its way to this packaging. This way we could still see vintage figures be produced and get our cool ships in retro-styled packaging. We could then see the like of Ree-Yees, Han Solo (stormtrooper disguise), Death Star Commander, et. al. be reissued in that wonderful OTC packaging and still satisfy our craving for the prequels.

Secondly, I have to say I am very shocked (being that you have very high standards) that you don't criticize the paint jobs on all the news figures more harshly than you do. Although the paint detail and color palette is better than ever, the applications are so terrible. For example, Leia Bespin looks like she has a beard sometimes and Lando Calrissian's eyeballs are just so screwed up the figure looks retarded. If you look at a POTF2 Luke Skywalker or Ishi Tib or Lak Sivrak or Biggs Darklighter, et. al. or even POTJ figures, the paint jobs are MUCH simpler but painted perfectly. Do you agree?
--Paul

First answer: I don't know of a "PTC" or even another "OTC" is a good idea-- it divides the line and basically encourages people to pick and choose a "collection," instead of either buying their favorites or buying them all. That, and the OTC worked for a few good reasons-- awesome packaging, great character selection, and it was feeding a market starved for characters that haven't been easy to get for a few years. In short, it was the perfect line at the perfect time.

As far as a specially packaged prequel theme, I don't think it'd work-- stores would go "oh, well, the OTC guys sold great and the AOTC line didn't do so hot in comparison, so let's not order that other line." One line is fine by me, Hasbro's multiple lines during 1999-2000 didn't do much to help it and it should probably stand as an example of how to split your customer base really easily. As far as repackaging figures goes, Hasbro said around POTJ that this would never happen again. And in Saga, it happened. So I think we'll be seeing old molds on new cards much more often than before, which is a real mixed blessing.

As far as paint apps go, it depends on what I find-- I often look over several figures before getting one with a level of paint quality that I find worth buying, and during Episode I I waited a very long time before I saw a Naboo Qui-Gon or Adi Gallia I'd even consider buying. There's a lot of glitches on every figure, as is the nature of making tens or hundreds of thousands of these things-- some are bound to be a little off. Some of the OTC Leias have been particularly bad, but if you don't like the face paint you see, another one will be around shortly. (And for the record, my Biggs had crappy paint.)

5. I was wondering what you might think the chances are of an updated version of R5-D4 might be? I realize it probably won't happen until after the "Revenge of the Sith" figures are out unless he makes a cameo in that film. So, do you think he stands a chance or am I stuck with "Blast 'Em to Heck" R5-D4?
--Richard

Skippy has been on Hasbro's drawing board for years, and they have told me he gets bumped all the time for other droids they decided to do instead. Hasbro knows we want them, we're just going to have to wait until they say "OK, let's go for it." It'll happen, eventually.

6. I got a question concerning the new Boba Fett Slave I. In the last few weeks since Slave I started showing up in Targets, I've been visting the Target near me every few days checking for it. Unfortunately, I'm having not a single piece of luck. Not only is the Target apparently deficient in putting items on the pegs and shelves, but here hasn't been a minute trace of the Slave I ever having been there (I checked some of the shelf talkers to see if they ever carried it, and that's a big negative). In any case, I was wondering if you were spotting any Slave I's in your hometown Targets. I don't want to miss out on a chance to nab this thing, and I fear that I indeed will.
--Bryan

Like you, and many of our readers, I have yet to see the new Slave I myself. And let me assure you, even though I've been moving and I injured myself the other week, I keep looking. Some exclusives take a while to roll out, and this appears to be one of them... many Target stores are still resetting so it could show at any time. At least it had better.

7. I'm a pretty big Hasbro apologist, so don't think I'm being nit-picky. However... Is there some kinda funky Star Wars math l ain't aware of? To whit: Clone Wars clone trooper--14 points of articulation, price $4.99; Vintage Original Trilogy Vader--12 poa, cost $9.99.
TIE Pilot--10 poa, 5 bucks; VOTC Obi-Wan 10 poa, 10 bucks.
Jedi Luke--14 poa, $5; VOTC Luke--14 poa, $10.
Cloud Car Pilot--12 poa, $5; VOTC Yoda 10 poa, $10.
Lobot--freakin Lobot!--10 poa, $5; VOTC C-3PO 5 poa, $10.
I could go on (Rieekan 5 poa, $10?), but I'm sure my point is made. Am l the only one who doesn't get this? Will the piles of unwanted VOTC Obi-Wans prevent me getting the few VOTC figures for which I might actually sacrifice 10 bucks (whither Chewbacca), not to mention highly desirable upcoming figures like Rabe' and Pablo-Jill? Might Hasbro consider giving us our money's worth on future VOTC figures--in the unlikely event the line continues?
I would suggest for instance: a new X-wing Luke with removable soft-goods snowspeeder jacket and interchangeable black and grey gloves/boots. Now there's ten bucks well spent. I realize that in the grand scheme of things, we are adults whining about toys when there are kids out there who must go without. Capiltalism demands, however, a fair return on investment. So go out to Kay-Bee Toys, fellow collectors, and buy up all those unsold Zam Wessels for 3 bucks, donate them to charity and make way for the toys you want. Then we'll all be happy on the holidays.
And while you're at it, Hasbro, a decent OTC Mon Mothma would be nice...
--paulyboy

The vintage figures aren't meant to be a great value, which you've observed nicely. They're an item to be sold at a $10 price point-- you may have heard an expression along the lines of "some people want a $10,000 car, others want a $30,000 car." This is like that-- these are high-end figures for collectors, and have been given ornate packaging and additional detailing to make you feel happy you just spent $10 on a $5 figure-- and one without a stand, I might add.

You're right-- these are just as good as the $5 figures, but the idea is that these are collector's figures and as such, Hasbro has just proven you will pay twice as much for pretty much the same toy you could be getting for $5. This is why I won't be too sad to see the VOTC line end.

When it comes to other figures, I was once told about the economics of a case of toys from someone at McFarlane. Figures don't need to meet a certain cost, but the case does-- so the cost of the 12 figures in the whole box needs to meet a price point. This is why some old figures ship, or some repaints ship-- it drives the cost of the case down. With Saga, Hasbro found an amazing secret-- you can reuse the crap out of molds. Dannl Faytonni, for example. The Padawans. With OTC, there's repaint after repaint, or repackaged figure after repackaged figure, and the development cost to Hasbro is pretty low-- the big investment on developing the plastic man has been made, and while there's some new packaging and production issues to tackle, it ain't that bad.

With VOTC, it's all new stuff with high-end (and superfluous) packaging that takes up a lot of air in the case, plus these were meant to cost more. I mean, I'd be willing to bet someone sitting in a meeting said "so what can we offer in the way of figures at the deluxe price point?" and this is what happened. Not that this is a bad thing-- I mean, is anyone not happy to know a great super-deluxe Fett exists? But I digress.

I'd also like to see more VOTC figures, and more imaginative ones. Obi-Wan was a fine example of a dud. It makes sense on paper (and in the packaging) but it's about as fun as a bend-em figure. Meanwhile, the new Stormtrooper from that line is the most amazing thing I've seen in a while. It just ain't right-- and hopefully Hasbro will go "oh, people really like figure X" and strongarm someone (Entertainment Earth) into selling them in four packs. C'mon Hasbro and e-taillers, you know you so want to do that.

8. Any reason why the Dengar/Boba Fett Galactic Heroes packaging has the characters renderings opposite the figure in the package? Every other Galactic Heroes figure 2-pack has the rendering on the same side as the figure? I can imagine my kids growing up thinking the guy in the brown suit is Boba Fett. This seems similar to all of us growing up not knowing who was 4-Lom and who was Zuckuss during the Kenner days.
--Delaton

Well, mistakes get made... given the huge number of items made in both the vintage and modern eras, a few mistakes are bound to be made-- and odds are if West End Games stuck with the "wrong" Kenner names, nobody would ever notice. But I digress. Sometimes in multipacks, the names or art get moved around for artistic reasons, or because it was a mistake-- it's happened in a lot of toy lines and it'll probably happen for years to come. Is it annoying? You bet. But that's part of the problem of getting more than one toy in a box.

9. My first question is this: Do you suppose that a curved section of the cantina bar will be released in the future, as has been rumored? Only one would be needed, as I am enough of a geek to know that the bar terminates in a wall on one side & only has one curved section. It would be nice to have a section to bridge the barstools that we have.

My second question is this: If so, what three figures would you like to see with this section? Here's the caveat: No re-makes, re-tools, re-paints, new versions of main characters, etc. I'd like to know which three aliens that have yet to see plastic that you'd like to see.

Realistically, by all accounts these cantina folks don't sell very well. Hasbro seems to be releasing them for the love of completion, so I'm hopeful for more. And it's nice to see the quality work that they put into secondary characters like Ellorrs Madak, Dannik, Djas, and yes, even your favorite Bo Shek. ;)

Ultimately, I'd even like to see some of the "glowing tables." It would be great not only for diorama building, but for the key Han Solo/Greedo scene. I could see these coming with two-packs, or single-packed with characters as exclusives like the bar sections initially were.
--Andrew

There are no known plans for a rounded end to the Cantina, which is really just as well. It's not like it was lined with stools either... the cardboard set still remains the definitive version as far as I'm concerned.

If we were to do another round of Cantina figures with a new section piece, I don't think I can name three characters that I really expect to happen. I mean, the Tonnikas would be the no-brainer answer but as you all know, the chances of them happening are slim to none. Hasbro/Kenner produced so many aliens with more coming that at this point, I'd say I'd really just like to see them do the unproduced Fan's Choice Cantina characters. So Bom Vimdim and Baniss Keeg would be good to start with. Perhaps the Arcona (gold eyes) would be nifty, too, or the skull-like Givin. Unlike many, I'm not enamored with Dice Ibegon's lamprey-esque features... but if Hasbro wanted to repaint Kitik Keed'kak in the correct colors, I'd like to see that.

If Hasbro really wants to rake in the cash, they should do a series of aliens or humans that each come with a piece of the Cantina. Collect all 24, get a big playset and everybody's happy.

10. Does the re-released Sandtrooper coming out have the same colored paulderon (gray)? It looks like it. Why wouldn't Hasbro re-release it with different colors (Orange or white) for army building. I never bought the 4 pack because they were clean.
--Scott

It is indeed grey, but as you know Hasbro loves to make variations. I wouldn't be surprised to see different recolored pauldrons throughout 2005, and actually I'd really like to see that. Maybe some dirty Scout Troopers too. I'm thrilled to see the OTC theme continue a little longer, because that Sandtrooper packaging is easily one of my favorites of all time... based on the tiny pictures so far, anyway.

FIN

Still having problems after my move-in, but such is life. This week I learned two fun things. One, there was a Logan's Run TV show in the 1970's... I never heard about it before. I knew Planet of the Apes had one because I've seen most of it on late-night Disney Channel airings, but Logan was news to me. (And no, I have no idea where it can be seen-- I'd like to see it, it sounds terrible.) This interests me to no end because, as some of you know, it was once said that Star Wars would be better as (and make more money in) a weekly TV series instead of a theatrical one. Since most sci-fi flicks don't convert to TV well, it's neat to note just what we missed.

Also, one of my favorite brands is coming to Modified Arts here in Phoenix this coming week. Freezepop, ladies and germs, is on tour and tickets are cheap. Good times.

I had a couple of requests this week regarding the possibility of a future Q&A Megathon-- that is, daily (or near daily) Q&A updates for weeks at a time. In the past, when I was literally the only Q&A game in town, it made sense to do this because of the insane backlog of questions and the neverending influx of new ones, plus it was harder to find answers to a lot of inquiries. Today, well, as always it's up to you-- send in questions, and I'll be happy to give you Q&A every day until I run out of things to answer. (Well, except for on the weekends between 4 and 5. That's Adam's time.)

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.