Is the Black Hole/Stormtrooper really based on a comic though? This sounds like something from the super-old comic strip which ran in newspapers.

I loved that strip, but I can't stomach the Dark Horse shiite. Did they just recycle the stuff that ran in papers years back? Or was it more of a "re-imagining"?

Quote from: McMetal on March 25, 2010, 04:47 PM

Anyone spot these at a Walmart yet?

Not a single one has shown up locally at TRU or Target, starting to get concerned...

I've seen a bunch between three TRUs. If you need, I could pick up for you.

Thanks, I may take you up on that if I go another couple of days without finding these. Appreciate the offer!

Anyone spot these at a Walmart yet?

Not a single one has shown up locally at TRU or Target, starting to get concerned...

Oh, I'll watch it, believe me, I just shudder at the thought of some bitter little kid making the Jedi look like a bunch of stooges. It's bad enough they keep getting punked by Cad Bane. TCW has really done a lot to chip away at their mystique of awesomeness, it seems to me.

I guess it's not any more implausible than baby Anakin blowing up the Trade Federation ship, but I can't help but long for the days when the SW heroes could actually shave and converse like adults. (Cranky old man rant over)

Ugh...spare me. The coolest thing about that character is the mystery. Once you start pulling back the veil, that quality is forever lost.

I don't see how that would make for an even remotely exciting figure either. There is NO WAY that iconic armor is going to fit that little tween punk at his age, so he can't possibly wear it on the show. And what's exciting about a figure of a young human boy? 

What kind of self respecting bounty hunter would take orders from a little kid anyway?

Nope, not on board with this idea...I get it's a shrewd marketing ploy, but it just seems like a cheap, easy grab for some pub at the expense of the original canon.

If they want to flesh out a character with a good backstory, please have a go at Aurra Sing instead.

I haven't been following this conversation all that much - but are you saying that the realistic Clone Wars figures bombed?  I seem to recall most of them doing pretty good, but the animated ones having more problems.  A lot of those hit clearance in quantity.

Just my impression really, not based on any hard data. I've looked through those 2003 offerings though and they are pretty limited, IE: not a huge # of figures, vehicles, etc. I assume if they had strong sales Hasbro would have had a more robust assortment of swag.

By contrast, I could never find the first incarnation of animated figures at retail, although admittedly I was pretty clueless about tracking stuff down back then. I had to get nearly all of them on eBay.

Really I was just sort of making the point that it seemed like they tried going down the realistic/animated route before, and for whatever reason decided to go in a different direction. (Thankfully, IMHO)

Didn't Hasbro sort of attempt that back in 2003 with the Clone Wars line? The ships were cool but I thought the character renditions were horrible. Durge in particular was a trainwreck compared to the Tartakovsky inspired version. I don't think they sold all that well either as my recollection is that this line was pretty short-lived.

It's a novel concept, but also my worst nightmare, frankly. I would definitely lose all interest in the TCW offerings if they went "realistic". I just don't think you can render animated characters well in a realistic style. It's true kids might buy them no matter what, but I think the animated style is sort of unique and holds its own offbeat appeal.

I do think you'll see the positive impact you are looking for when the live action show arrives. Those will likely inspire a whole new line in the realistic style, and likely help boost the associated realistic lines as well.

Finally snagged a nice A-Wing Pilot on Saturday night for a better than average price. The auction listing did not include the hyphen, so I think that helped. (If you search eBay on "A-Wing" it won't display listings for "A Wing" apparently)

The last few remaining figures on my want list are going to be pricey, so I'm looking at knocking out a few more of the remaining playsets first. Only 15 items total to go and I'm done.