Questions for December 11, 2006
Q&A Archive


1
Do you think we will ever see a Cin Drallig figure in the 30th Anniversary Collection? I mean who wouldn't want a figure that was played by the ultimate Stunt Coordinator Nick Gillard? -RYAN_J

As much as I’d like to see this figure, I honestly don’t think it’s in the cards for next year. Hopefully at some point Hasbro will see their way clear to making this happen, it seems like most Jedi figures do well enough, and a nod to Mr. Gillard is certainly warranted. As always, keep talking the idea up in the forums and if you get a chance to visit the Hasbro booth at any of next year’s cons let them know you want to see this character happen.


2
I'm not so sure why people are confused at Hasbro’s actions. Was the Lars family surprised or confused at the actions of the Empire? No, it was just something that was. Long gone were the days of a free thinking group of people, for the people. A group with integrity, imagination and vision. Instead it was replaced by greed and power. Historically, most empires came into being as the result of a militarily strong state conquering other states and incorporating them into a larger political union. Sound familiar? What if Kenner gained sympathy amongst its fans? Well.."Kenner will no longer be of any concern to us. I have just received word that Hasbro has dissolved the company permanently." I guess we’re entering the "dark times". All we can do now is wait....wait for a new hope! -Bill

You know, honestly, let’s not blind ourselves with a rose tinted vision of how things were back in the vintage years; Hasbro’s motivations today are no different from what Kenner’s were all those years ago. That is and was (we all know it) to make money. Had Kenner not made money on what they were producing, they wouldn’t have been able to do all that they did for the vintage line. Times are very different now, there are so many more things vying for kids’ attention it’s hard for a toy maker to compete and be successful. Thirty-something years ago Star Wars was the king of the hill, now you’ve got dozens of different action figure lines, most of which have a constant barrage of product support from games and television programming. Video gaming in and of it self has taken much of the young audience away from traditional playtime. Kids are just growing out of ‘toys’ much sooner than they used to. These are forces that Kenner never had to contend with, and in my opinion Hasbro has done a decent job of dealing with them. It’s not to say that I am happy with everything that Hasbro has done, but beyond my displeasure as a fan and collector I can see where what they’ve done makes sense... From a certain point of view.


3
Now I am sure many have asked this before but let’s get serious now. When are we going to get a figure of Gargan the six breasted Jabba Dancer!?!?! There was a prototype done by Kenner for this figure back in the 1980s but they canned it. This character has more focused screen time than half the millions of obscure fleeting moment cantina aliens that were made into figures. I need some peeps to support me on this one! -Jason

No definitive word yet on Gargan, but Hasbro seems to be aware of the fact that fans want her in a bad way. As we don’t know Hasbro’s entire plan for 2007, there’s always a chance she could end up in that line. On the other hand the focus next year will be somewhat like it is for a movie year (there’s bound to be a lot of buzz generated with Star Wars celebrating thirty years) and it might not turn out to be a good year for such a collector orientated figure… Basically it’s a toss up, but 2008 might be more likely. We’ll see.


4
What is going on with Code 3 Collectibles? I have every single Star Wars ship and 3-D poster they have ever made. I can't tell you how upsetting it is to see all the ships I paid $400 to $500 for going for $99 on other websites! I thought they were going to do the last 2 3-D posters (Episodes 1 and 2) this year to finish of the set. I also thought they had an AT-AT die-cast they were doing. The website is still up but no customer service number to call and they don't respond to e-mail. Trust me I have tried.

It looks to me like Code 3 is out of the Star Wars business. Is there a chance they will sell those items thru a different company. They sold the Comic-Con mini thru Entertainment Earth. Might we see the other posters the same way? I had a feeling the ships were doomed because of the amazing job Master Replicas is doing. However, Code 3's ships were a little more affordable for the average collector. Anyway, any knowledge you have concerning this will be greatly appreciated. No one I have talked to seems to know what's going on. -Matt V. (Bloomington, IL)

While I’ve received assurances that it’s business as usual with Code 3, in-actions speak louder than words. Things have been very quiet in regards to their Star Wars line and like you, my emails have been ignored. With the lack of info either up or down, we’re just going to have to wait and see what happens at Toy Fair. Hopefully Code 3 will show the AT-AT they said they were working on, Episode I and II 3-D posters, and a few other things. I think it would be a shame to lose this line; I liked the size, the weight, and the price point of their vehicles much more than I do the Master Replicas stuff.

As for who might step in and take over this line… Sticking with the die-cast metal format I can’t think of anyone better positioned to step in than Corgi. Hasbro has abandoned their larger 6” scale die-cast line; I would think Corgi could come in with something in-between the Hasbro and Code 3 scale/price point and probably do pretty well – as long as the pieces were well done. On the other hand, Master Replicas could scale down their vehicles to hit the same price point and walk away with the business. We’ll just have to see what happens.


5
Now, do you think or have you heard anything about an Endor line of Unleashed battle packs, maybe with an Endor Bunker battle set, kind of like the Hoth series? Also, have you heard anything in regards to more vehicles for this line, such as an AT-TE or anything? Being slightly smaller figures, maybe Hasbro could kick out some bigger vehicles like that for the 2” inch line that they can’t or won’t do for the bigger line. -Justin

Nope, no significant buzz about this line that I’ve heard. Aside from the new scene packs that just started showing up, and a few sneak peeks of upcoming waves, that’s about it – and so far nothing from Endor. Considering the Deluxe sets appear to be ‘slow movers,’ I wouldn’t be surprised to see that SKU discontinued. I think the logic here would be if Hasbro was going to invest in vehicles they might as well stick with doing what they can for the more popular 3¾” line. Still we’ll see what shows up at Toy Fair, but for now it doesn’t look too promising to me.


6
Is there any way we can see some more articulated figures. Such as Snowtroopers, Anakin Skywalker of Mustafar Slaughter, Mace Windu, Qui-Gon, Darth Maul, Chewbacca, Imperial officer and Hoth Trooper etc. And also a weapon package like extra light sabers and rifles. This was a issue with my boys. -SERGIO P.

As long as Hasbro is producing a line there’s always a chance Super-Articulated versions of some of these figures could happen. A Super-A Snowtrooper with soft-goods sounds like slam dunk for the vintage style figure line, I wouldn’t be surprised to see this before we see any of the others you listed. As for the others, Hasbro has stated they probably won’t get to Super-A prequel figures for a while, we have a Chewbacca, and Troopers/Officers always make for good repeat business… Time will tell.

The problem with the weapons packs as I understand it is that a lot of the weapons used on the line are built into individual figure molds, there isn’t necessarily a mold just for multiple weapons. For that reason, it’s hard to justify production time just to run the weapons. In order to do this efficiently Hasbro would have to create new tooling to run the weapons for the set. In fact they may have to create two new molds; one for guns and such, another for sabers… While it might seem like a worthwhile expenditure I can see where they may question it. What do they do with the tools after the offer is finished? Could they run the offer again, how often? If they are looking at this as a one time shot, it may just be too costly.


7
I was hoping buy now that we would finally get an explanation form someone about the whole blue / red Anakin lightsaber thing, but as far as I know the jury is still out. It seems to me like it was intended for Anakin to some how switch his lightsaber to red when he turned to the darkside. I believe it was meant for Anakin to use the power of the darkside to induce the change instead of creating a new saber. In the Revenge of the Sith figure line, Palpatine #35 came with Anakin’s blue lightsaber and was later switched to a red saber but it remained Anakin’s hilt and not Sidious own. A friend of mine told me that In the scene in the movie where Anakin joins the Sith there is a part where you see Anakin’s light saber on the ground next to him and then its missing form the next shot, like something was edited out. This was my first clue, the second came with the role-play Anakin/Darth Vader lightsaber that switched from blue to red. Why would it need to switch if Anakin never wielded a red saber in the film? And my final clue came recently when I spotted the Costco lightsaber bundle with the Anakin and obi-wan figures included and you can see Anakin has a lightsaber that is gradually turning from blue to red. All this leads me to believe that it was not just a Hasbro error but at some point it was intended for the film. I guess it might have been to long and difficult to explain the change and then also to make it fit continuity with Luke receiving the same saber in blue again in a new hope. I was hoping you might have heard something regarding this and could shed some light on this mystery! -Ed

Actually it’s much simpler than that. Planning for the Episode III line was done very early, and in some cases certain assumptions were made; like Anakin’s saber turning red when he turns to the darkside. Many of the early figures went into production based on these assumptions that later turned out to be incorrect. As more details from the film were firmed up changes in the toy line were made to account for it but by then there were a lot of packaged figures ready to go.

The issue with Palpatine #35 comes from the fact that an early version of the film/script has Anakin giving his saber to Palpatine/Sidious so that he can fight the Jedi posse. That’s why some clips from that scene have Palpatine dueling with Anakin’s saber.

While your theory is very interesting, I’ve never heard anything that leads me to believe anything was planned to flesh this out on film. Everything I heard so far points to Hasbro jumping to conclusions with a few of their toys.


8
I was wondering a few months back we saw pics of an Operation Vader which I thought was suppose to be out this holiday season, any idea on what happen?? Also, any news on who's y-wing will be released, paint scheme, etc.?? And finally I saw somewhere that the last wave of 06 figs that are suppose to be exclusive to Wal-Mart might not hit shelves ‘til Jan/Feb. If this is true will they be in the saga package or the TAC package? -Nic

As great an idea as it was, the Operation Vader game was just our little April Fools joke this year. Not a bad one to boot, you’re not the only one to ask about it. Y-wing? Sorry to admit it, but I haven’t heard anything about a new Y-wing, unless you mean the LEGO fighter, in which case it’s the standard yellow pattern. The final wave of Saga Collection figures, as seen in this report, will feature the black and silver TSC packaging.

UPDATE: Just got an update from Dan; while the Y-wing (with pilot) is confirmed as an exclusive for 2007, there's still no details on the deco. Considering we're celebrating Star Wars' 30th, my guess it will be the yellow variety - let's hope they do it up right, like the OTC version.


9
Just curious, now that the Hasbro competition is over what are the possibilities of Hasbro re-releasing the darkside Luke or another Assaj Ventress? My kids would love to add them to their collection and a new run would be great considering how short the shelf time was with them. Also any word on a new Episode II Obi-Wan?

At this point I think the chances are better for 2008 or later, maybe 2007, but I think it’s going to take a lot of chat to bring the Luke into play. Ventress stands an excellent chance of getting the green light; I would think she’ll be back in the new Clone Wars animated series and Hasbro is sure to take advantage of that. Darkside Luke is one of those borderline figures that tends to lean more towards the buffed-up look of the early POTF2 line. Looking at it now it doesn’t really fit the line all that well, and I wouldn’t expect Hasbro to re-sculpt this one. Episode II Obi-Wan: I don’t recall hearing anything new planned for this character, but you never know what may show up at Toy Fair.

10
Howdy, Mark!

Glad to see that the Hasbro Q&A hasn't scared you away from tackling the ol' interrogatives! So, in honor of your return, I thought I'd send you along some fun questions to help ease the burden of responding to my fellow collectors' more taxing queries.

1.) What plastic idol were you really hoping would win the Greatest Figure title?

2.) When is Rebelscum going to update the examples in the Collector's Code to reflect the modern collecting environment? (Buying three orange-carded C-3PO's? Oh, and one of those 3PO's transforms into a trooper mid-example...)

3.) If you had to pick a Clone Commander to be your personal assistant, which one would it be and why?

4.) And, finally, who are you rooting for in Order 95?

--
Tresob Yr

Star Wars Action Figure Theatre: http://swaft.info
Creature Cantina: http://creaturecantina.com

Thanks, it’s good to be back! I guess the scariest thing about the Hasbro Q&A is keeping up with all their answers, but at this point they’ve pretty much settled into a recognizable pattern. Still if I do miss a detail here and there I know I can count on help from the QM readers without getting checked into the boards. So…

1.) Of the figures that made the bracket I was hoping for a chance at another Graxol Kelvin, but once he was eliminated I was really pulling for the Darktrooper.

2.) Haven’t gotten a huge out-cry to update that page, but I’ll mention it at the next board meeting.

3.) Hmmm… I’d have to go with Commander Gree. After what happened to him he’s not likely to sneak up on me with bad news.

4.) Order 95: I’m pulling for the Empire (I think…). I actually banished my POTF2 (and Episode I) figures quite some time ago; locked away in those new fangled plastic carbonite Stow-A-Way cases. Bring on the new sculpts!

Follow-up:
I just wanted to comment on Adam’s findings in this week’s Question Mark. The pilot-like helmet and the Zuckuss-ish head are in the Ugnaught blast furnace scene in ‘Empire’ and always have been (I believe you can see some of these things in the old Topps trading card photos). You’re correct in saying that they’re just set filler and re-used props, but I don’t know if an EU story has ever been developed pertaining to their appearance in the scene. -Scott

Well there you go… Sorry Adam, but according to Scott you no longer rule.


Until next time...


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