Q&A's 2001 Run Begins
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1 A couple of quick things: 1. Do you think they will ever re-sculpt Bib Fortuna? I think he would be a great one to re-sculpt, since his initial design is so dynamic. Esp. his hands, with his long fingernails, could be done much better with the molding technology of new figs.
2. Speaking of re-do's, don't u think it would be great if they re-made
Fantastic Voyage? With all the remakes of movies these days, you would think
this would be an ideal one to do, with modern CG FX. Innerspace and Honey, I
Shrunk the Kids does not quite cut it, if we're talking great/serious
"miniaturization" movies.
On #1, I have serious doubts, even though an Episode One Bib Fortuna would be really, really cool. I agree the first figure is kinda flawed now, even though it's still one of the nicer POTF2 figures. If it happens, it'll be some time, or an exclusive...
On #2, no. Without Raquel Welch, it just can't work.
2 Hey Adam, I'm back for more.....perhaps you can answer this, or post it so a reader can answer it for me... I know this is like finding a needle in a haystack, but several years ago I saw the most amazing custom on the net and I wish I could find it again, but I can't. The customizer took the slab from the POTF2 Carbonite Han and actually recast it in a translucent red plastic. He then painted the entire thing grey, but used a lighter shade for the part where Han was coming through. When it's in front of a light source, the red actually shows through JUST the part with Han, as if he's thawing out. It was a brilliant piece, and I'd like to see it again.
Does this ring a bell with anyone? If so, please let me know!
Anyone? I'd love to see it too if anybody knows what the deal with this one is.
3 I know that the 1985-and-older figures once came on "Trilingual" cards for overseas sales. A few years ago I was at Big Lots (the closeout store) and they had a treasure trove of POTF2 figures for about $3-4. While one of the figures I got was a basic domestic release, I also got three Trilingual, holostickered figures (Hoth Soldier, 2-1B, Luke in Hoth Gear). All the information on the cards are printed in English, Spanish, and French. Are these figures rare, or simply common items that made their way here in a bulk closeout sale? -Jethro McB
New POTF2 Trilogo guys are pretty commonplace overseas, and never made much of a splash when the closeout chains started getting late '96 through late '97 figures. Cool, yes, but not uncommon. Anything "weird" tends to make some people go bonkers, but odds are if you traded with other countries, you'd have 'em all by now.
Of course, the new POTJ guys showing up in Canada and the UK seem to be making a bit of a stir with local fans. Why, I don't know. They could've had 'em MONTHS ago (and possibly cheaper) if they just traded with us ugly Americans.
4
what is your thoughts on the George Lucas selects?
I like that Lucas wants to give fans some insight into Episode II, but to be honest, it kinda pisses me off that more often than not, it's a closeup of a table leg or foot and more often than not, it's all warped with a photoshop program. What is the purpose of that, do you think? to be "artistic?"
Just looking for another opinion.....
My guess is the purpose of them is to keep interest in Star Wars and Episode II high, while making LucasFilm look good by throwing us a bone of sorts. And I'm fine with that-- the info blackout of E1 did nothing but tick me off. Some of that is being found here (i.e., for E1, I just wanted to know the name of Liam Neeson's character... didn't get it for quite some time.) Based on what I read online, I *think* I know Christopher Lee's character's name, but hey, something official would be nice.
That said, well, I'm not overly thrilled with all of the images. I do like seeing sets from a new perspective that may never be seen elsewhere. I thought the Fett with the umbrella was pretty amusing. But well, it'd be nicer if they were more spread out and just a wee bit cooler. Too few are especially memorable, and I've stopped making a case to go and look at them.
5 What reason do you think might be behind [the Duro] not showing up at the 2001 International Toy Fair? The rebelscum article also lists some other absent figs that we're fairly sure will hit shelves this year. -Schtoiker
"Because." Odds are it wasn't far enough along to show... I mean, N2 Toys showed off early Fifth Element toys, and while I'm thrilled to see such a thing happening, unpainted, unfinished prototypes are just really a crappy thing to show off.
Hasbro never, ever shoots their load o' pics in February. They like having new stuff to show off through the year so as to provide some surprises to fans throughout the year instead of a big wave of interest in the winter and another when the figures hit.
It'll be shown soon enough. Well, not soon enough, but soon, that's for sure.
6
I got a set of these from a mail-in offer on a Pepsi Cube during the SW:SE era. You had to send in a UPC and, if I recall, a few bucks in exchange for the posters. They most certainly did come in a tube, mine got a little beat before they got to me.
7
The Collection system is one of the most misunderstood in the hobby. And with good cause, it stopped making sense around Episode One.
In POTF2 in 1995, there was one assortment. In 1996, a second assortment was added for Shadows of the Empire which went on to carry other new POTF2 figures and a few existing POTF2 guys. There was no real obvious distinction of why one went where it did.
In 1997, the three collection system started with Collection One ("Alliance", red stripe added with Freeze Frames), Collection Two ("Millennium", yellow stripe added with Freeze Frames), and Collection Three ("Galactic", blue stripe added with Freeze Frames). Collection One was good guys almost exclusively, Collection Three was mostly bad guys, and Collection Two was everything else. Biggs appeared in Collection Two, Hoth Leia in Collection Three, and Expanded Universe remained in Collection Two like its Shadows of the Empire forefathers. This stuck from the middle of 1997, around the release of Tarkin and friends, until the end of the Freeze Frames at the end of 1998.
Enter 1999. The dark times. Classic POTF2 was knocked back to one assortment (Flashbacks, then CommTechs) and that's how it stayed through mid-2000.
Episode One started on the three collection system. Collection One (yellow stripe), Collection Two (orange stripe), and Collection Three (red stripe) held a significantly less distinct separation. Collection One contained "main characters." These were the ones that Hasbro assumed would have the highest turnover, would be bought by kids, and were typically heroes and others that needed to be shipped to stores frequently. Collection Two was supporting characters like R2-D2, C-3PO, Yoda, and the Nemoidians. And Collection Three was the collector ghetto. The stuff assumed for completists only. Mace Windu, Captain Tarpals, and others were in there. As the line went on, it shifted to One being "stuff that should sell the most", Two as "stuff that should sell less than One", and Three being "stuff that probably won't sell to well." That, unfortunately, does not explain Captain Panaka's appearance in Collection 2.
Now here we are, in 2001. In late 2000, Power of the Jedi came out, and yes, there originally was some sort of pattern there. Collection 1 was meant to be more kid friendly, and Collection 2 more collector friendly. There was inevitably some crossover (Chewie in C2), but this was more or less nuked at the end of the year when figures like Boomer Damage Battle Droid appeared in Collection 1. Now it seems like 1 is "stuff that should sell nearly immediately/main characters" and 2 is "future pegwarmers if they shipped in any reasonable quantity."
Personally, I wish they'd do an assortment for Army Builders. Nothin' but Biker Scouts, Battle Droids, Stormtroopers, and other things that people will want in quantity.
The only help the collection system has given to retaillers is to know which figures they're out of. C2 sells quickly, order more C2. C1 sits... no more C1 for a while. It really doesn't do that much help given how most retaillers place orders months in advance and individual stores in a chain are rarely able to order more of a specific assortment. I guess it kinda helps because this way, a store can order more of some assortments while not getting stuck with some figures... but it really seems kinda weird the more you think about it.
8
Retooled Vader is a carded version of the SOTE 2-pack Vader. It was produced because they could use existing tooling to crank out more Vader figures when the demand was high late in 1997 (or so they told me). Other than a more pliable cape, the actual toy is nearly identical to the SOTE 2-pack figure.
It was available primarily in a four-pack via the JC Penny Catalog. Random reports of it being made available elsewhere came up, but it's hard to say for sure if it hit regular assortments or not. (For example, I know for a fact I saw a holosticker, slant-bubble green card Lando on a peg at a Target. How it got there, I'll never know.)
9
I agree, Hasbro's done some great stuff with the advent of POTJ, especially when the new stuff started hitting. Mas Amedda was nothing short of fantastic, the blue Coruscant Guards were pretty cool, the new Fett is fantastic, and hey, Porkins is out for those who want it. It's a boon to the booming "why the hell does anybody want that?" figure market. I was stoked when I got my Mon Calamari officer... wish I had two.
Hasbro supposedly reads this column. I'm never quite sure if they actually are or not since I don't hear from them as much these days. (Dudes, write in and say "hey.")
Of course, for every positive remark they receive, some goober's gonna whine they didn't get their favorite obscure character that nobody but them or a completist would actually buy. (You know who you are.)
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Some turn pink as part of repeated exposure to light (ANY light), others just shipped that way.
FIN Non-Star Wars questions are being forwarded to the Q&A column at 16bit.com, so check there for your TransForming, He-Manish needs. Plans still call for another update on Wednesday.
while it looks like the force files are here to stay for now, do you think hasbro missed the boat by only doing the mini-dioramas with the EU figures? if you look at the current figures it seems the dioramas are obvious - the tusken raider with a rocky piece of tatooine desert, the calamari officer with part of ackbar's control room, etc. do you think there's any chance we might see the dioramas again in the future? -Bill
With the current cost-cutting measures? Not a chance.
2 I just kinda wondered whether Hasbro have already got character and ship designs for EII now (or in the near future). How long would it take for them to create their range once they know what they are producing?????? -Stuart
It takes less time than you might think... finished Episode One guys were ready in the Fall of '98, and the first I remember hearing about Hasbro working on the line was early in '98. Six months to a year is the typical turnaround for a new line, and E2 with its new packaging and all is most likely going to be considered a "new" line.
In a related question, we've gotten a lot of questions about the busts. The busts are to SW product like that rubber duck demo was to the PlayStation 2-- it's a technology demo. Is it possible that busts might be made for sale? Sure. Actually, it might be kinda cool... if they're really cool and fairly priced.
3 Adam:I previsously read somthing about some cut-scene about Yoda w/ a whack-a-mole? Is it a true scene, or just a rumor. -Brandon
OK... I remember a comment (which I may have made, I can't recall) about a cut scene regarding Yoda playing whack-a-mole. The idea was to mention something so ridiculous that nobody would ever mention it again. I've gotten like half a dozen people that seem to have bought it.
Apparently I need to try again.
4
Well, rumor has it there's this really horking big photo guide at Rebelscum...
5 A couple of months ago I happened to see an anouncement on Entertainment Tonight stating that the title for Episode II had been anounced. That wannabe John Tesh replacement said it would be "Rise of the Empire." I have not heard anything since or seen any info of it on the internet, which is strange. Even if it is a mistake somebody would have taken it and ran. I was wondering if it was later confessed false or if I had missed anything else ever posted about it. Maybe it was those Damned Dirty Apes! -Elmer
LucasFilm has released no title of Episode Two. "Rise of the Empire" is an old title that's been floating around for years, and as such, Lucas probably won't use it. "Probably" translates "I'll gladly let the physically challenged tapir that cleans my bathroom do this column if he uses it."
6
What does "@$%#" mean? Hell? Spell it out, people!
K-Mart has often been placed as a retail dinosaur that's next to go in the retail wars. They get good stuff sometimes, I've found TransFormers there months ahead of other chains, and they were the first place I saw E1 stuff a few days before the official launch. Still, I hate that it's around because I always stop there on toy runs and leave empty handed more often than not. (Granted, this happens everywhere I go, but I'm exaggerating to make a point.)
Fetts per case? Jeez, I don't pay attention to that stuff anymore. Six or eight.
7
(Rant about collector plates cut to save the nerves of my readers. It's my gift to you.)
No, there is no word on collector plates based on the prequel trilogy.
8
My question is in regards to the Dagobah Vader. The Canadian version has a
sticker on the corner of the bubble with a picture of Luke's face inside
Vader's helmet indicating "Secret Luke". Do any of the American Dagobah
Vaders have this sticker? The only ones I've seen on the net don't have the
sticker.
Han Bespin, Vader Dagobah, Scout Trooper... Woohoo, Star Wars is back in
Canada!!!:)
This is indeed a most momentous occasion: it's the second time Canada's ever had something done right. (No wait, third. I forgot about "Kids in the Hall.")
The American package makes absolutely no distinction on the feature, which is pretty ridiculous. Some kid is going to be really disappointed when he rips the head off the figure and realizes it was made to come off.
If the US version has been given a sticker, I haven't seen one as of yet.
9
That's "wrath." You'll have to wait for Lord of the Rings for a Wraith.
What is it? Well, given how no information was made available and it's gone as of yet unpictured, it's hard to say. Speculation leads fans to believe some sort of viewable skeleton or snap-on energy weapons ala Boomer Damage Battle Droid. The only thing we know for sure is that we don't know, but hey, we will eventually.
10
Everything that's been mentioned on this topic hint toward it being for an outstanding order on the little Sith Lords set that will never, ever be filled. A shame to be sure, I've never seen that set in stores (and thank the delightful person who helped me to get one.) It's a pretty nice set.
FIN More Friday.
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