The Action Figure and Toy Collecting and Discussion Thread!

Discussion in 'Miscellaneous' started by cooleddie74, Apr 7, 2012.

  1. cooleddie74

    cooleddie74 Fleet Admiral Admiral

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    For those interested, the big 31” Darth Vader with seven points of articulation (Jakks Pacific) is starting to show up at Walmarts. Trust me, you can't overlook or miss it.
     
  2. C.E. Evans

    C.E. Evans Admiral Admiral

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    Oh, that brings back memories of 2000-2004, when I could walk into almost any retail store in the U.S. (including Walgreens) and buy a Gundam action figure for about five bucks.
    :wah:
     
    think likes this.
  3. Saga

    Saga Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

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    those were the days. i still have a few of those action figures in storage somewhere. and my Gundam Wing models too.
     
  4. C.E. Evans

    C.E. Evans Admiral Admiral

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    I think I got my grubby little hands on every Gundam action figure that came out during that time (I don't know how many, but I've got at least 30 or 40), and even tried my hand on a few model kits, but I totally suck at that.

    I know it's a long shot, but man, I wish there was a new Gundam TV series with an accompanying toy line in the U.S/North America. Such a series likely would have to skew more younger rather older (somewhere between the Power Rangers and the new Beware The Batman series), but it could get Gundam toys back in local stores, IMO.
     
  5. Saga

    Saga Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

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    they should bring over Gundam Build Fighters. it looks to be skewed towards younger kids. i still think if they put Unicorn on Adult Swim and had some of the toys/models in stores Gundam would bounce back.
     
  6. Stephen!

    Stephen! Fleet Captain Fleet Captain

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  7. cooleddie74

    cooleddie74 Fleet Admiral Admiral

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    :lol:

    Bacta must make a fella randier than usual.
     
  8. OdoWanKenobi

    OdoWanKenobi Admiral Admiral

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    Can I also add: Ewwwwwwwww. :wtf:
     
  9. cooleddie74

    cooleddie74 Fleet Admiral Admiral

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    Yeah, that too.

    If I want to see a brother seduce his sister I'll watch one of the new reality shows on the History Channel.
     
  10. C.E. Evans

    C.E. Evans Admiral Admiral

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    Yeah, I do think Gundam Build Fighters is the series that could really bring back a resurgence of the property to the U.S. mainstream (and more importantly to retail store shelves, IMO).
    That could work if Adult Swim still wasn't so skittish about Gundam and could acquire the show--or any Gundam series--on the cheap.
     
  11. cooleddie74

    cooleddie74 Fleet Admiral Admiral

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    Out of curiosity, has anybody here ordered the Amazon-exclusive Slave I and already received it? There've been many reports of the gorgeous retro Vintage Collection box showing up mashed and bent in all sorts of ways. Requesting Gift Packaging supposedly cuts back on the chances of crushed and damaged product, but Amazon's long had a reputation of shipping damaged Star Wars toy packaging.
     
  12. Hound of UIster

    Hound of UIster Vice Admiral Admiral

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    After AGE I don't think you can trust Bandai to do anything right.
     
  13. cooleddie74

    cooleddie74 Fleet Admiral Admiral

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    I now have all four of the 6” Black Series characters and all eight of the 3.75” figures. The 6” Sandtrooper is by far the greatest of all 12.
     
  14. OdoWanKenobi

    OdoWanKenobi Admiral Admiral

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    Hell yeah. I've been contemplating picking up a second. I'm glad to see that the series is getting pretty easy to find. Every Wal-Mart and Target in the area is stocking them.
     
  15. cooleddie74

    cooleddie74 Fleet Admiral Admiral

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    Best 6”: Sandtrooper :cool:
    Best 3.75”: Arena Padme
     
  16. Redfern

    Redfern Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

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    I'm not a member of any "social media" sites like FaceBook, Twitter, etc., so I haven't read the exchanges first hand, but transcripts (which can, admittedly, be misinterpreted) and second hand accounts (which are even less reliable) suggest that the Character Options 1/13th scale Doctor Who line is winding down.

    The release of Rory Williams signaled the end of "new series" figures at 5.5 inches. This was known for a while. But now that Ace (from the 7th Doctor's era) has been released and the "Pyramids of Mars: Priory Set" has just reached some US specialty retailers, the only "new" sets related to the "classic" series to be released will be "The Daemons" set with a redressed Brigadier and the Master in ceremonial robes and a "Claws of Axos" that contains a "humanoid" Axon and variants upon Jo Grant and a third version of the Brig'.

    Supposedly, mind you "supposedly" after that no new molds will be developed for totally new figures. If the line is not completely halted outright, the most we'll get are repaints.

    When Alistar Dewar, the project manager in charge of the DW line, was asked if a 5.5 inch version of Peter Capaldi's Doctor will be made, he stated it looks VERY doubtful. Such a figure, regardless of scale would likely be more than a year off, anyway. We won't see his outfit until December 25th at the earliest, but more likely, the character might not don his final ensemble until the next series starts recording and aired in mid 2014. Then there's the development time to sculpt the prototypes, engineer the joints, design the molds, and so on. It'll probably be the holiday season of '14 before it would be ready, regardless of size.

    Naturely, a lot of fans are upset. Several iconic "monsters" never reached production such as the original three eyed Silurians from Jon Pertwee's second serial or the Yeti which featured a few times during Troughton's years. The line had just started releasing "classic" era companions such as Peri, Leela, Jo Grant, the Brig' and now Ace, but in this year of the 50th anniversary, collectors had hoped the first "TARDIS team", Susan, Barbara and Ian would have debuted. Sarah Jane seemed an obvious choice as well as Jamie the Highlander. Now, it looks like they'll never reach production.

    Am I bitter? disappointed a bit, naturally, but not bitter. It's a near miracle we got ALL the existing Doctors. Dewar had hoped the "classics" could have been sold in the "high street" shops (major chain businesses) but shortly after the initial wave debuted which contained Doctors 4, 5 and 6 as well as some assorted "monsters", Woolworths, the biggest client, went bankrupt and closed all its stores. The "classics" would have "died", but deals were struck with Forbidden Planet in the UK and Underground Toys in the US to commission additional waves and distribute them to the specialty shops. As a result, we eventually got a window box collection of all 11 Doctors, William Hartnell through Matt Smith. Once that set reached the stores, everything since then has been gravy. In contrast, DaPol released a McCoy, a Baker (without his iconic scarf) and a Pertwee before the line folded. Had that deal not been negotiated with UT and FP, we would have only gotten Tom, Peter and Colin. So in that regard, I'm very grateful for what we did get.

    Forgive my rambling. The core of my post is that the 13th scale line is definitely slowing. It's not officially cancelled, but Character Options will no longer be devoting the kind of resources as it used to do. When it can no longer maintain any profit margin from repaints and repackaging of existing figures, it will likely end.

    I know the focus of this thread is aimed towards Star Wars figures, but I suspect a few DW collectors skim it every so often.

    Sincerely,

    Bill
     
  17. OdoWanKenobi

    OdoWanKenobi Admiral Admiral

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    That's a shame. I have the 11 Doctors set, and I quite like it. Too bad I'll never be able to add Capaldi to that lineup.

    Also, this thread is in no way primarily aimed towards Star Wars. I just happens that the most prolific posters in it happen to collect Star Wars. I like to post about my DC stuff all the time, along with any other collectibles I acquire. We welcome any and all collectors of any lines here. It's always fun to see stuff that I don't collect, or don't even know about.
     
  18. Redfern

    Redfern Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

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    Great to know you have the 11 Doctors Set. So far, it has been the only way one could get the 8th Doctor, Paul McGann. Fortunately, that figure will be re-released (hopefully soon) as part of a Doctor/Dalek 2-pack (as well as the other Doctors). Each Doctor is paired with a Dalek particular to that specific Doctor's era. I bet you're wondering, "But we never saw any Daleks cross paths with McGann in his single outing." In the case of the 8Th, they will draw upon one of the comic adventures published within the Doctor Who Magazine, a colony of Daleks founded by ones imbued with the "human factor" gained during "Evil of the Daleks". As such, this McGann figure will have a paint scheme to match the comic art.

    Plus, fans in the US will finally get a "Special Weapons" Dalek which had been previously exclusive only to Forbidden Planet in the UK. This version will have a sound chip. No doubt it will be that resounding blast and boom since it didn't talk, but there are rumors that the insane giggles of Dalek Caan may be added as an "Easter egg" since the novelization suggested these gunner Daleks went mad from the radiation of their weapons. Again, that's just rumor at the moment, but I like the idea.

    But these examples simply illustrate the current game plan, existing figures merely tweaked and released again.

    Sincerely,

    Bill
     
  19. OdoWanKenobi

    OdoWanKenobi Admiral Admiral

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    How do make a Dalek with a soundchip and not have it say "EXTERMINATE"?
     
  20. Saga

    Saga Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

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    heh, sometimes i do think this should be called 'the OCD Star Wars collector thread'. :p