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Messages - Xander

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151
Most times no, but sometimes just for kicks I'll go through them all to get an idea of the amount of pegwarmers out there.

Plus, you never know. Sometimes stores stock them in the back, for some reason, or they mingle throughout, or people will half-heartedly "stash" on the back of the pegs.   Now, during the movie push with all of that space allotted for ROTS, I can't go through every peg. Once we get back down to the limited Star Wars section, it will get easier.  They make these numbers easy to spot too, so it takes less time.

152
Revenge of the Sith / Re: More Target Exclusives?
« on: April 28, 2005, 05:47 PM »
Yeah, the price blows, but one's not gonna break me. I'd feel a lot stronger about this if I was an army builder, but I'm just kinda of a mini-army builder, and I just like the look of a few of the clones or stormies or whatever in a small group.

It doesn't really matter if these sell "a lot", I think, or if they sit on the shelf. The bread and butter of action figures are the base figures, and those prices haven't changed significantly in YEARS.  And all the time the quality has been improving. Exclusives are just the icing on the cake for retailers.  Its part of the contract with distribution, and something we're not gonna control either way if we don't buy this on the basis of priciple.

I suppose its coming out now in order to sell some before ALL the clones hit: the SA, the 3 pack army builder, and the EE cases.  Hasbro seems to be catering a little better to army builders with all of these upcoming choices, plus the plentiful numbers of Clone #6.

I do feel for completist or real army builders, because taken by itself this one is way overpriced, but down the road the whole pictures is looking pretty good.

Funny I got lucking and found this early.  I always assume that if I get it, everyone's already got one. I least I got an extra for an army building fiend.

153
Watto's Junk Yard / Re: What's spinning?
« on: April 27, 2005, 08:04 AM »


Dandy Warhols, yeah baby.

154
Revenge of the Sith / Re: More Target Exclusives?
« on: April 26, 2005, 01:01 PM »
I found 8 yesterday, bought 2, and from the local store reports found out they were all gone in less than 2 hours. Same story at other stores, someone bought one in the morning, and then they were all gone by the time other people got there. I'm always the first to question the scalper scapegoat angle, but this is looking suspicious. The people in our local group know pretty well the buying patterns around town, and these places don't normally sell out of new figures right away, especially these overpriced ones.

Yeah, I wasn't expecting the $12.99 price either. I was thinking $9.99 or something, so, that wasn't so much fun. I don't think I can afford my second one - it'll go to another local who missed out. Though I was thinking these things would be hanging out for a while.

155
Cool pics. Even better for those of us who haven't found the 33-and-up Clones yet.  I admit I've stayed away from most of the current ROTS figures, but these are the ones that wet my appetite.  Those look cool on that AT-RT! Or maybe they look like clowns riding a bike, but either way, I'm into it.

156
Revenge of the Sith / Re: Blue and Purple
« on: April 18, 2005, 02:27 PM »
I noticed it too when I got home and had one purple and one blue #6 Clone troopers.  So blue is going to be the standard?

157
Watto's Junk Yard / Re: Why did you select your avatar?
« on: April 14, 2005, 02:50 PM »
Mine (currently the cartoon R2) was scanned from a knock-off type kids record.  There's also a C-3po copy on the cover, and the record is not about Star Wars in the least. I'll find this picture I have of it soon.

158
Yeah, for some reason I noticed all the kids getting Star Wars figures this time around for ROTS. Its not like I've never seen it before, but its happened a lot in the last two weeks - the kids are getting into it, the mom asks if he wants to choose between Star Wars or another toy, and he wants the Star Wars. And its the figures I've seen the get.

I don't think this anecdotal evidence would convince me that a lot more kids are getting into it, but I know at least some kids are way into it.

What I can't believe in that article is how well they said the Hulk hands sold. I thought I was watching those things multiply before my eyes. Maybe they were actually selling, and they were just shipping a whole helluva lot more.

159
Watto's Junk Yard / Re: What does your JD forum member name mean?
« on: April 14, 2005, 02:43 PM »
Mine's Xander from Buffy the Vampire Slayer. I'm not really into him as a character, except I like the whole show, but didn't want a female name from another character. Of course.  I started with Xander at other boards, and for the sake of continuity just keep the same name now. 

160
Watto's Junk Yard / Re: Rebelscum Spam Mail? WTF???
« on: April 12, 2005, 12:16 PM »
This really has been a turning point.  All of the quality posters are now over here, or gone completely. I'm including Josheee too, and others who still haunt the Scum. Vintage doesn't count because that's like its own republic, and only worthwhile section now. You people are the type that kept me coming back for a good post once in a while, and real collecting analysis.

I'll still go to scum for a glance at news and vintage, but man, that Wuher's lost its way a long time ago.

I just realized something about the Spam:

1st spam came to an old email address, that I had forgotten I had removed until:

2nd spam came, and that one arrived at my currently registered email.  So the first one, as is obvious now from everyone else, was sent to an email database he's been collecting. OK.

161
Revenge of the Sith / Re: Sales Expectations
« on: April 9, 2005, 10:27 AM »
Ah, I found an edited version online, so added the stuff they left out.

So, those Hulk hands were big sellers after all?

=========================================================

Movie-related toys no longer sure seller

By Stephanie Kang

Wall Street Journal

Darth Vader, Batman and the Fantastic Four are headed to theaters this summer for an action-movie showdown. How the action plays out in the toy aisle will reveal a lot about how much mileage is left in the once-booming movie-merchandise industry.

Traditional toys based on Hollywood movies have been a hit-or-miss business in recent years, in part because the prime customers – boys – are outgrowing action figures and miniature vehicles at younger ages than ever before.

NPD Funworld says licensed toy sales, including toys based on movies, inched up just 1.8 percent in 2004 to $5.7 billion. Toy makers hope their next round of licensed products – including “role-play” toys like “Star Wars” light sabers and toys incorporating videogame-style technology – will bring on faster growth.

The coming brawl features the movie and toy worlds’ marquee names. Toy giant Hasbro Inc. is working with Lucasfilm Ltd. on toys based on “Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith.” Time Warner Inc.’s Warner Bros. has teamed up with Mattel Inc. for toys based on “Batman Begins.” “Fantastic Four” is being merchandised by Toy Biz Worldwide Ltd., a unit of Marvel Enterprises Inc., the company that created the original comic-book series in 1961 and, along with News Corp.’s Twentieth Century Fox, is one of the companies producing the movie.

The slugfest begins next month, when the first toys start arriving in stores, among them a remote-control Batmobile and oversize feet and hands made of foam, inspired by those belonging to a character in “Fantastic Four.” Some of the toys are made to be used with a TV set. And then there’s “Darth Tater,” Mr. Potato Head’s evil alter ego (light saber included).

“Fantastic Four” might be the most kid-friendly of the bunch: The plot concerns four friends who gain superpowers after their space shuttle gets doused with radiation. The two other films, in comparison, are expected to explore darker themes: “Star Wars: Episode III,” for example, details the transformation of Anakin Skywalker into Darth Vader, a good-goes-bad theme that might put off some parents and confuse some kids. On the other hand, it could delight young kids who clamor for stuff that was once reserved for their older siblings. “Batman Begins” chronicles the violent events that impelled Bruce Wayne to turn into Batman.

In the past, big-budget film licensees have produced everything from bedsheets to board games based on movie characters and storylines. The company with a film’s “master toy license” usually gets the rights to make action figures, role-play toys, “plush” toys and board games. Analysts say a strong licensed-toy line can contribute up to one-third of a film’s merchandise sales, generating hundreds of millions of dollars at retail. Some think the rush of high-profile films opening this summer will help revive the movie-based toy business.

But even with their movie credentials, these licensed toys are vulnerable to the same challenges affecting the traditional toy business. Increasing competition for kids’ attention from MP3 players, video games and other electronics and media means that many kids put away traditional toys at ages as young as eight or nine.

The action-figure category in particular has taken it in the chops. Though sales of action figures make up about 5 percent of the toy industry’s $20.1 billion in annual sales, they have fallen 14 percent over the past two years to $1.2 billion, according to market research firm NPD Funworld. Sales of toy cars and trucks dropped10 percent to $1.8 billion in 2004 from $2 billion in 2003.

A few recent films, such as “Spider-Man,” have given rise to strong toy sales. But others, such as “Godzilla” in 1998, have been toy-aisle catastrophes. Earlier this week, Marvel said sales at its toy division dropped 41% to $21.8 million, mostly from decreased sales of action figures and accessories based on the movies "Lord of the Rings" and "The Hulk."

Action-figure sales will continue to slide, predicts industry analyst Jim Silver, because boys play differently than they did even five years ago. Although action figures have long been the way kids have played out movie scenarios, now costume and prop type toys infused with voice and light technology allow kids themselves to "become the hero," Mr Silver says.

These role-play toys are some of the few strong sellers among licensed toys in recent years. Among them are Marvel’s “triple action web blaster,” which kids wear to squirt water and “web fluid” and pretend they are Spider-Man, and the green foam “Hulk Hands,” the big green boxing gloves that were the best-selling toy to come out of the 2003 film directed by Ang Lee.

Toy makers working on film projects now look closely at their intended customers when planning the merchandise, industry observers say. For instance, the Batman franchise has a strong fan base of young children, many of whom first encountered the Batman franchise in the Warner Bros. animated TV series. Mattel's action figure and vehicles, including the inconic black Batmobile, which in this incarnation looks like a cross between a Hummer and a Ferrari, are inspired by the cartoon. Says Mattel brand president Matt Bousquette, the "point is not to just make souvenirs but cool stuff to play with."

Marvel, meanwhile is pegging its hopes on role-play toys, including giant hands and feet that kids can wear to become The Thing, from "Fantastic Four." The appendages are expected to retail for about $20 for a pair of feet or hands. Marvel is rolling out more products for "Fantastic Four" that for "Spider-Man" and "The Hulk" and says it is supporting the franchise with their biggest-ever ad campaign for a line of toys.

"In contrast, hasbro's planned line of "Star Wars" toys is "tighter" than in years past, says Brian Goldner, president of Hasbro's U.S. toys group. Over the past three decades, consumer retail sale of "Star Wars" - related toys, video games, clothes, shoes and other goods have topped $9 billion, making "Star Wars" one of the most successful movie related merchandise franchises ever, says Howard Roffman, president of Lucasfilm Ltd.'s licensing arm.

Lucasfilm executives expect retail sales of $1.5 billion or more for all kinds of merchandise from the coming movie, compared with $2 billion for "Episode I - The Phantom Menace," released in 1999, and $1.2 billion in retail sales three years later for "Episode II - Attack of the Clones." Believing they may have lost potential sales as a result of too little "Attack of the Clones" merchandise, they plan to ship more goods this time around, says Mr. Roffman.

The new "Star Wars" line is segmented for specific consumer groups, including collectors, young children, and tweens and teens. Action figures for the youngest fans feature bigger hands and feet, which make them easier to handle and play with. But many of the new products are aimed at so-called tweens, defined as kids from about eight to 12 years old, and even at young teens - age groups that seem to have left action-figure play far behind."

Another set of action figures are positioned on a base that has instructions on it about the character. Kids can battle the action figures like characters in trading-card games. Some of the new role-play toys include a "plug 'n' play" game, in which players hold a wireless light saber and fight Jedi and Sith on a TV screen: a Darth Vader helmet changes a kid's voice to emulate the villain's heavy breathing speech. A Trivial Pursuit game on DVD highlights factoids from all six movies as well as questions from 20 "Star Wars" fans. "We are reflecting the changing lifestyle and the other pursuits that boys are undertaking," Mr. Goldner says.

"We look at it from a long term point of view," says Lucasfilm's Mr. Roffman. "This is a day-in, day-out business for us, and although it spikes during big media events, like a movie, we can't manage the business strictly for the spikes."

=========================================================


162
I want to type in an article from the March 14th Wall Street Journal, yet it looks like I'll have to finish it later. This article compares product for Batman, Fantastic Four, and Start Wars.  Here's a little part:

"In contrast, hasbro's planned line of "Star Wars" toys is "tighter" than in years past, says Brian Goldner, president of Hasbro's U.S. toys group. Over the past three decades, consumer retail sale of "Star Wars" - related toys, video games, clothes, shoes and other goods have topped $9 billion, making "Star Wars" one of the most successful movie related merchandise franchises ever, says Howard Roffman, president of Lucasfilm Ltd.'s licensing arm.

Lucasfilm executives expect retail sales of $1.5 billion or more for all kinds of merchandise from the coming movie, compared with $2 billion for "Episode I - The Phantom Menace," released in 1999, and $1.2 billion in retail sales three years later for "Episode II - Attack of the Clones." Believing they may have lost potential sales as a result of too little "Attack of the Clones" merchandise, they plan to ship more goods this time around, says Mr. Roffman.

The new "Star Wars" line is segmented for specific consumer groups, including collectors, young children, and tweens and teens. Action figures for the youngest fans feature bigger hands and feet, which make them easier to handle and play with. But many of the new products are aimed at so-called tweens, defined as kids from about eight to 12 years old, and even at young teens - age groups that seem to have left action-figure play far behind."

More of this later.

Interesting about the expectations.

163
Especially with this volume of figures - now its an even greater game of concentration to try and put matching figures on the same peg. I examined about 10 Luminaras to get the best paint job, and then gave them a dedicated peg. I'll be back for the 3rd shift to get going with other figures, I promise.  :-*

164
Watto's Junk Yard / Re: Rebelscum Spam Mail? WTF???
« on: March 31, 2005, 08:25 AM »
Well this whole situation has been rather eye-opening.  (More so than GNT's annoying that's posted for every little thing.)

"Get a life" - that's the turning point for me.  And all these bannings?  How long before Martha Stewart's gone?  I detected some thoughtfulness in those posts, so it looks like curtains for him(her). Geez, ROTS is really bringing out the best in everybody.  Wuher's has dwindled down to nothing. I can't get any good info in the ROTS section from all the speculation. What else is there?  Vintage always has good info from the hardcore crowd, but they might as well be their own forum anyway.

I'll say this, I read JD a lot more than I post here. (I don't want to bring the place down.)

165
The Prequel Trilogy / Re: ROTS Trailer
« on: March 10, 2005, 10:38 PM »
Nice, very nice, very very very nice, indeed.

Ok, so I stood there holding the back of my VCR this close to changing the connection to videotape it. Didn't get it, but got to watch it. 

Yowza! 

I remember the premiere of the AOTC trailer - this kicks its ass.

Now I'm just waiting patiently for the download.

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