I'm definitely in the camp of folks (with all due respect to Nick) who fail to see how having situations like this do anything to the line except frustrate the ever dwindling community of collectors you have.
I understand YOUR stance, Pete. Those of us who are in this are the ones who bear the brunt in this particular situation.
What I'm getting at is this: there has been a steady loss of the collector base from the Hasbro Star Wars line since 2006. Some of us have stuck with it, obviously. But there are others who have moved on for a variety of reasons. And there are some in the general realm of sci-fi/comic/movie fandom that haven't gotten into Star Wars to the point of collecting Star Wars Hasbro product on a regular basis. And truth be told, San Diego Comic Con is the single biggest gathering of that potential fanbase IN THE WORLD. Not everyone at SDCC is a Star Wars fan or collector, but they are part of that population that might get drawn into the fold. The news of a hot new Star Wars exclusive is meant to draw THEM in too! And yes, Hasbro runs the risk of alienating some of the existing collector base. But what if this kind of offering draws in at least an equal number of past collectors, or some of that other segment of the sci-fi/comic/movie fanbase that attends Comic Con? That potential growth in the customer base that a hot exclusive can generate might be worth testing the loyalty of some of the existing fanbase. And when you consider that there are some 200,000 people in attendance at SDCC, that potential audience that you might get some traction with is very tempting.