Questions for September 17, 2004
Q&A Archive

Another rousing edition of Question Mark is ready to roll, thanks to all for their questions. Got just a bit of feed back from our last update; seems I totally forgot the half Gungan from the Episode I Gungan Battle Wagon set. Also, a few wrote in nominating the Battle Droid relief from the (Ep I and Clone Wars) AAT, and the dedicated Biker Scout from the "rip-n-race" Power Racing Speederbike as likely candidates for that list. Also, Todd Mount wrote in to suggest those looking for a better version of Mace Windu might want to take another look at the Episode I Preview version, or the Ep. I standard release that came with a removable cloak. Again, thanks for the Q's, everyone have a great weekend!

On with the show:

1
I have only started collecting Star Wars figures in the past two years, starting with the Saga collection (because of the cancellation of Micro Machines) and therefore am missing figures such as Admiral Ackbar and Wedge Antilles. I was wondering if Hasbro, with the OTC now the main focus, would consider releasing perhaps an X-wing fighter with Wedge Antilles pilot. Or an Admiral Ackbar with a Micro Machines Home One like what was done with the Jorg Sacul figure? I think it would also be great to see figures such as General Veers, and the Admiral who replaced Ozzel (sorry, can't remember his name right now). -Adam

Honestly, I think that IF Hasbro were to release anything like what you've described, they would most likely focus on chore characters like Luke, Han, Vader, and stir clear of side characters like Wedge, Akbar, and Piett. Who knows, I suppose anything is possible, but I don't see Hasbro going in this direction anytime soon. Sorry…


2
In an off/non movie year, I can understand Hasbro's decision to repackage figures. However, why not repackage figures that were hard to find in the past? Example: Leia (w/ Hood up) Queen Amidala (w/ Accession Gun), Admiral Motti, Ephant Man, the Trash Compactor Luke or Han. Sure, sure... some die hard, card bending, greedy collector out there is about to bust an artery at the thought. But I think the percentage of that 'type' of collector is too low to even worry about. Most of the characters mentioned above are even in tune with the OTC theme. I'm sure there are tons more. Heck, reissuing R5-D4 without that darn rocket would be a good repack and probably cheaper to produce without the rocket. So, I guess the question is: Does Hasbro ask anyone for ideas of what a modern collector is looking for and compare those ideas with their need to keep 'classic characters out there' for the new collectors/kids? If they do, do they actually utilize the information?

If there is such a panel, get me on it!

I'm not aware of Hasbro asking or including anyone from the collecting community in their decision making process. There was a time once when they worked more closely with members of the community, but that time is long gone. That being said, Hasbro did ask for input on one figure this year and while Trash Compactor Han was a candidate, fans chose the Imperial Scanning Crew Trooper over him. I think it's fair to say at this point that Hasbro was blindsided by the DVD announcement and ended up dropping most of the plans they had for the second half of the year. In trying to come up with a line that fit with the DVD release they did a fairly good job of pulling figures/toys from the past that had the broadest appeal, and meshed well with some of the figures/themes released in the first half of '04. Once we get through the Episode III line, I suppose Hasbro could include repacks of some of the figures you listed above in the basic line, but frankly as long as they are releasing the TRU multipacks, I'd much rather see them included there. In any event, as far as I know there is no panel, but if there ever is one I'll flip you for a seat on it.


3
I was wondering what the pros and cons of sending a figure to be graded by AFA are?
I've heard of collectors' receiving their figures back in worse shape than when they sent them! I would figure AFA was more professional than that? Could you pass on any stories you have heard?

Personally, I haven't heard any horror stories, but anytime you send a figure anywhere you run the risk of it getting damaged. Even the best wrapped packages are susceptible to damage, and while I have a hard time with the notion AFA graders would treat figures harshly I'm sure the postal service (or any other carrier for that matter) is not quite as appreciative of the cargo they're transporting. I suppose short of hand delivering your figure to AFA for grading, you really can't control what happens between your post office and AFA's front door; that's just one of the risks.


4
In your research, who is advertising the upcoming Star Wars Trilogy on DVD at the lowest price? I'm not sure if an online website or an actual store would be the cheapest place to get the set. Usually I've found that Target and Best Buy are the best places to go for DVDs during the first week of release. After that, they raise their prices to the standard rate. Any suggestions?

No real deals come to mind, for the most part all the prices I recall seeing are about the same, more or less. Frankly, I prefer to pick my DVD's up in person, so even with free shipping (which I'm sure some sites offer) I'm more likely to hit up Target than order on-line. Typically, within the first week or so Target, Best Buy, and the like have pretty good "new release" deals, some may even offer pre-order deals with a slight savings or some kind of premium with purchase. Because offers can vary from store to store, town to town, I'd suggest getting on the phone and calling around to stores in your area.

OR - take a peak at Dustin's post from earlier today, which highlights a rather comprehensive guide of the DVD offers currently on the market.


5
I've got these bookcases surrounding my computer and I've got all my Star Wars Unleashed figures arranged very nicely. When I'm at my computer, I occasionally stop and look at these figures and admire them oh so much!!! On top of it, they make my whole computer area look pretty damn cool. But my question has to do with a certain figure that I often lay eyes on....Perky Paddy, as I have affectionately named her. This is, of course, the Padmé Amidala Unleashed figure I'm talking about. I seem to remember that there was a bit of a stink raised because certain body parts were a bit....um....too well formed. Did Hasbro fix the mold on that figure and is the original "eye-opening" figure worth anything if they did?

Yes, Paddy did cause quite a lot of commotion when she was released. I think a lot of collector's were shocked when they saw how detailed that mold was and noting the standard run on new toys, jumped to the wrong conclusion when supply became scarce. As far as I know, and I looked closely, Hasbro never changed the mold on this figure and throughout her run she shipped with all her original features. It will be interesting to see if the figure is re-released on the new style package (hard to imagine since it became quite the peg warmer there at the end), but at this point I doubt any changes will be made.


6
How do the people that work at fan sites, like yourself, operate anyway? I mean, does everyone that is a part of rebelscum.com work in the same city and in an office or a house somewhere? Do you all get paid for what you do? Do you have company meetings, is there a boss, rules, do you have benefits, have to be there on time, set your own hours, or what? I mean, I'm just curious about the team that makes up rebelscum.com and what it's like to work for the site.

Also, the 3-packs of clone troopers that were released during the clone wars line: can you give us the order in which is the rarest or was the hardest to find at the time of release?

And finally, more of a comment than a question: If the release of the star wars DVD was such a big surprise to Hasbro, then how were they able to come up with 12 incredibly articulate vintage figures and they're OTC retro packaging so quickly? I would think the process to make these figures would be a lot more time consuming than a normal figure. If that's the case, they've had lots of time to come up with a line for the DVD release. Hell, why do they even need a line to coincide? The 12 vintage figures are more than enough for a DVD tie-in! We didn't need to be force-choked with rehashes. If I was in charge of Hasbro's figure making, I would have the vintage 12 with their super articulation for the tie in and the OTC basic line be just basically a continuation of the saga line, with basic figures that are new and in the new packaging. Just my 2 cents. -Bryan K. Day

Well, while it may seem like a job at times, basically our work on the site is just an extension of our hobby. There is no paycheck, there are no medical or retirement benefits, we don't have set hours, we don't usually have deadlines, and despite the fact that Philip makes this all possible, we really don't have a 'boss' in the traditional sense of the word. Philip definitely sets the direction of the site, but we're all free to explore the hobby and present relevant content in our own fashion. The rebelscum team itself is spread out over five countries, and six States. The only times we really ever get a chance to get together are when large event are held, like Comic Con or Celebration. The last company meeting we had was a couple years ago, with a few new members added since then, it's probably high time we had another… (hint, hint). Since coming to work with Philip on the site I've had a fantastic time and been afforded some truly amazing opportunities. By far the best though, my time here has allowed me to meet a lot of great people, and make some very good friends.

Unfortunately, as far as I could tell, all the Clone Trooper 3-packs were hard to find. While I had better luck finding the all white set towards the end there, each of the colored variation sets were near impossible to pick up at retail; they just sold too quickly. Without more information, I don't think I could possibly rank them in any order of rarity, or label one as more difficult to find than any of the others.

Yep, there are a lot of questions about the OTC line; how come Hasbro did this, why couldn't they do that... Bottom line for better or worse, until Hasbro offers up more of an explanation, the OTC line is what it is. We've all know it takes a year to design and produce a figure, I suppose if Hasbro's expected to do it in less time, there's less opportunity to work on other things. Considering the Trilogy DVD release, it probably just made more sense to focus on the vintage figures at this time and let the rest of the line fall into place. All in all, I can't say I'm totally dissatisfied with the line; while it would have been nice to see a few fresher items on the shelves, Hasbro has made some noteworthy improvements to previously produced toys. Another up-side; the OTC line has pretty much cured me of my 'completist-itis.'


7
Is there any word or small rumor if Hasbro plans on releasing figs of Luke & Leia as seen at the end of Empire? How about a cinema scene of Vader, Luke & Imp. Officer from Jedi (where Luke turned himself in to the empire.)? Vader could even be packaged w/a green saber for a 1st. These are just a couple of things I have wondered about. I know that they probably wouldn't be in that big of demand BUT...they would be brand spankin' new figs, and ya gotta love that! -Adam

To the best of my knowledge, neither of these sets or figures have been mentioned or rumored for production. Off hand, though I'm sure there are many collectors out there that would appreciate them, they don't seem to conjure up the type of 'excitement' Hasbro typically looks for in a toy.


8
Yesterday [actually several days ago now] RebelScum.com reported Unleashed Wave 11 would contain Mace Windu, Darth Tyrannus, and Darth Vader... Action Figure Xpress revealed that Wave 11 will actually contain IG-88, Aura Sing, and Stormtrooper. Could it be that Hasbro is doubling up? 3 re-releases and 3 new? Thought you might want to look into it for the collectors. -Todd Carlton

While everything these days is subject to change, it looks right now like the re-release and IG-88 waves are two separate waves. I'm sure in both cases the information originated from Hasbro's own order sheet; there may have been changes to one or the other, or a misinterpretation on someone's part. As it stand right now, based on info from additional sources, Unleashed Wave 11 (Mace, Dooku, Vader) should arrive in October, while Wave 12 (Aurra, IG-88, Stormtrooper) is slated for December. Hope that helps!


9
Went to the local TRU and found the DV TIE, reg. TIE and X-wing only to be saddened by the shape that all of the boxes were in! WHY are all the new figures and ships boxes in this shape! I am tired of having to search the entire galaxy to find one nice box!! For the prices of these toys you would think that the damage would not happen like this but it must not matter to Hasbro, after all this new line is supposed to be for the new generation of kids to enjoy right? I don't think many of your average kids will be paying 10.00 per fig. and 25.00 to 65.00 for the ships, let alone shell out 40.00 for a 12in.figure!! Sorry to gripe but Thanks for listening. -Eric Anderson, Indiana

This has been a consistent problem for MIMB (mint in mint box) collectors for as long as Star Wars toys have been made, and frankly there's very little that can be done about it. It's unrealistic to expect Hasbro to double pack these for shipping, and there's very little chance retail would ever care enough about the situation to change how they handle the toys. Dinged corners, cut boxes, dimpled windows; it's all just part of the game. Things like this, though frustrating as they can be, are what make mint boxes worth more and thus more desirable to collectors. Many, many times Hasbro has said they do not make collectibles, they make toys. Collecting mint in mint box toys is the challenge that we as collectors take on ourselves, making that rare find all the more rewarding.

10
A little while ago, someone offered what they thought was the best way to display a movie poster. They mentioned some sort of locking plexiglass frame that you can put whatever poster one would want in this. This person said this is great, especially for someone with limited space since they can rotate which posters they display. They also said that this is the same type that theaters will use; I just can't remember the name. I'm pretty sure it was asked in a Q&A, but just not sure if it was yours or another website? I appreciate your help in letting me know if this sounds familiar. -Jason

It doesn't sound like a question I've answered before, but with a little checking I think I came up with what you were looking for (or at least something like it). A quick web-search for 'poster cases' turned up several sites offering theater quality cases in all price ranges. However, this item at Stargate Cinema.com sounds like a perfect match at a decent price. If anyone knows of additional/alternate sites selling these types of cases please send them in, it would be nice to compare price and style. For those thinking of a more elaborate display, I highly suggest running this search and seeing what's available; there are some really cool cases out there.


Until next time...


Got Questions?