Author Topic: C4 Exclusives - McQuarrie C-3PO & R2-D2 and Luke Skywalker  (Read 60781 times)

Offline Jayson

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Re: C4 Exclusive McQuarrie C-3PO, R2-D2 and Luke Skywalker
« Reply #120 on: April 22, 2007, 07:47 AM »
Does anyone remember when the CIII exclusives went on sale at shop.starwars.com if Hyperspace members got the first crack a them or were they open for sale to any Joe Schmo?
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Offline Darth_Anton

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Re: C4 Exclusive McQuarrie C-3PO, R2-D2 and Luke Skywalker
« Reply #121 on: April 22, 2007, 10:17 AM »
Does anyone remember when the CIII exclusives went on sale at shop.starwars.com if Hyperspace members got the first crack a them or were they open for sale to any Joe Schmo?

I don't think hyperspace was around yet when Vader was offered. Supposedly the droids will not be offered at all though.
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Offline Nicklab

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Re: C4 Exclusive McQuarrie C-3PO, R2-D2 and Luke Skywalker
« Reply #122 on: April 22, 2007, 11:12 AM »
No, Hyperspace was around back then.  I don't recall whether or not people needed a Hyperspace membership to buy the C3 Vader online, but there were certainly limits.  I think they started at 4, then 2 and then 1 per person.
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Offline Morgbug

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Re: C4 Exclusive McQuarrie C-3PO, R2-D2 and Luke Skywalker
« Reply #123 on: May 2, 2007, 01:36 PM »
I'll second Nicks opinion, Hyperspace was already underway at the time.  I was not a member and was able to order from the store when they went online. The Vaders went on sale after C-III was over, but I can't tell you the exact number of days after anymore.

Supposedly the droids will not be offered at all though.

I would expect to hear nothing else.  But outside of dumping them all to Brian's Toys, what are they going to do if they have 1000 left over?  I'll be watching the website pretty closely after C-IV. ;)
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Offline Jayson

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Re: C4 Exclusive McQuarrie C-3PO, R2-D2 and Luke Skywalker
« Reply #124 on: May 2, 2007, 01:38 PM »
But outside of dumping them all to Brian's Toys, what are they going to do if they have 1000 left over?  I'll be watching the website pretty closely after C-IV. ;)

AFA graded no doubt.  :P

I went back and looked at my order history at SWS.com and I ordered the CIII Vader on Apr. 25, the day after CIII ended (CIII ran April 21-24 2005) if that is any indicator.
« Last Edit: May 2, 2007, 01:43 PM by jedijaybird »
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Offline Jeff

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Re: C4 Exclusive McQuarrie C-3PO, R2-D2 and Luke Skywalker
« Reply #125 on: May 2, 2007, 01:54 PM »
Supposedly the droids will not be offered at all though.

I would expect to hear nothing else. 

Yeah, I agree.  Last time, the timeline went like this...

April 21st - Celebration 3, Day 1
April 23nd - GenCon/LFL finally confirm that Vader (and some other C3 exclusive loot) will be available on-line after the show
April 25th - Vader shows up on SWShop.com

Obviously, I think (like others have said) that they probably aren't going to announce anything in hopes that some folks (like SoCal locals) panic and go to the show... but I still think they will show up on-line afterwards.   ;)
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Offline P-Siddy

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Re: C4 Exclusive McQuarrie C-3PO, R2-D2 and Luke Skywalker
« Reply #126 on: May 2, 2007, 04:00 PM »
... but I still think they will show up on-line afterwards.   ;)

I really hope that is the case, Jeff. That would suck that they would do that to fans of the McQuarrie figures. If anything, Hasbro should just offer the figures on a regular card and coin, and the other as a strict exclusive so it can be worth money... otherwise, it's a poor decision on their part.

Offline iFett

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Re: C4 Exclusive McQuarrie C-3PO, R2-D2 and Luke Skywalker
« Reply #127 on: May 2, 2007, 04:15 PM »
I really hope that is the case, Jeff. That would suck that they would do that to fans of the McQuarrie figures. If anything, Hasbro should just offer the figures on a regular card and coin, and the other as a strict exclusive so it can be worth money... otherwise, it's a poor decision on their part.

Not to derail this thread by talk of Transformers, but Hasbro is stickin it to the TF collectors (fans) by offering the final three Classic seekers + 2 other repaints only through Botcon and the set will only run you back $320 whereas it would only cost $60 were they a normal release.  - I think you could consider this another poor decision on their part.

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Offline poddie

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Re: C4 Exclusive McQuarrie C-3PO, R2-D2 and Luke Skywalker
« Reply #128 on: May 3, 2007, 12:10 AM »
I'm still trying to figure out what I should do with my Wave 2, 3, 4, and Vintage case preorders at EE.  I am completely 50/50 thinking I should just cancel them.  The concept series was about 50% of the driving force behind my extreme interest in this year's collection... I would have bought probably half the figs otherwise.

But Hasbro giving all the collector's who can't make it to C4 the big finger has completely turned me off.  I'm just worried that if I cancel them six months down the road Hasbro will come out of their cocaine high or whatever their problem is and actually allow people to purchase their product again (what a messed up idea, eh?).  Then I will be really sorry I missed out on this line and will want to spend whatever it takes to get them.

I am so confused... all I want is to be allowed to purchase the best subline Hasbro has put out in years.  After being a Star Wars figure collector since they came out in '77, I can't believe H has no interest in retaining my business.  But I guess the time had to come where their greed (or stupidity?) would get the better of them.

I have NEVER been fed up anywhere near this point... I am usually one of the first ones to defend their decisions  (such as repacks or endless Vaders) as being well founded business based decisions rather than collector based.  I understand that not everything they do will turn out well for ME.  But their decision to deprive both kids and collectors of these awesome figures for no good reason really feels like it may be their last, most important mistake.

Am I the only one who feels this way?  I don't see the forums full of near as many complaints as I would expect.  Are most people just not into this line or don't care that they may never get their hands on three of the most important figures in it?

Offline Jesse James

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Re: C4 Exclusive McQuarrie C-3PO, R2-D2 and Luke Skywalker
« Reply #129 on: May 3, 2007, 01:29 AM »
Keep in mind at least one of them is likely to be available online, if not both...  It's early to panic.

But add to that any past exclusives to cons have been relatively easy to find, save for Toy Fair vader perhaps.  Even old Jorg Sacul has come down to what even I think of as reasonably priced.
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Offline Morgbug

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Re: C4 Exclusive McQuarrie C-3PO, R2-D2 and Luke Skywalker
« Reply #130 on: May 3, 2007, 10:15 AM »
Keep in mind at least one of them is likely to be available online, if not both...  It's early to panic.

But add to that any past exclusives to cons have been relatively easy to find, save for Toy Fair vader perhaps.  Even old Jorg Sacul has come down to what even I think of as reasonably priced.

But the TF Vader had an actual production number associated with it, something I can't recall for very many, if any other figures (senility, I think, there are probably others).  It was at 10K for production but I'm guessing the Con exclusives are at least double that.  I would guess they've probably ramped up production as well, relative to even C-III numbers and that exclusive, while not as nice as the McQ figures, has come down to about $20 or maybe even less on ebay. 

I'm still guessing they'll actually release the figures more widely.  The cardback will change as will the coin, but I'm guessing getting your full set won't be so hard in the end. 
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Offline Jeff

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Re: C4 Exclusive McQuarrie C-3PO, R2-D2 and Luke Skywalker
« Reply #131 on: May 3, 2007, 11:11 AM »
It was at 10K for production but I'm guessing the Con exclusives are at least double that.

Well, here is what I was told at Celebration 3 when we asked about it...

500 Pallets = 10,000 cases = 120,000 Vaders (give or take a few).

So that was 120,000 C3 Vaders... and that does not count what they left behind to to sell on-line after the show.

Most of the numbers I heard being tossed around were between 145,000-160,000 for final production numbers.
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Offline Morgbug

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Re: C4 Exclusive McQuarrie C-3PO, R2-D2 and Luke Skywalker
« Reply #132 on: May 3, 2007, 11:31 AM »
Thanks Jeff.  So a pretty substantial difference from the Toy Fair Vader situation really.  I can't imagine that the good folks at Hasbro are going to short production relative to C-III, if anything they might push it up to fit with the general 30AC push, so 200K for production?  That's just blatant speculation with nothing to back it up, but I can't get worried about these figures.  (Actually I can't much get worried about anything Hasbro is producing these days, and not because of the cynicism I've had for them for a while.  It's just a lesson learned over a period of time: so few figures are actually rare anymore that a little patience means saving a lot of money)  I want them, badly, but I surely won't overpay for them or let them alter my collecting habits.
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Offline poddie

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Re: C4 Exclusive McQuarrie C-3PO, R2-D2 and Luke Skywalker
« Reply #133 on: May 3, 2007, 12:17 PM »
Well, here's what I'm thinking:

(1) I want a matched set.  I don't care if it says anything about a con or whatever (in fact I'd rather it just completely match the others).  My best case scenario would be that Hasbro releases them on regular cardbacks that perfectly match the others in the line.  I was actually hoping to get these cased up and display them on card.

(2) I don't believe that previous con exclusives are indicative of the difficulty of getting or the value of these two.  To speak bluntly, all previous exclusives were pretty much merely curiosities and nice souveniers for people who attended the show (which is what con exclusives SHOULD be, not punishments for everyone who can't afford to go).  There hasn't been a single one I was remotely interested in.  Compare this to what are three of the most key characters with completely new sculpts in the hottest subline of figures of the year.  If Hasbro/GenCon sticks to their guns and the R2/3PO are not available outside of the con, I think these will skyrocket.  Luke may be somewhat easier, but it still pisses me off greatly that I now have to worry about it, plus the fact that I will have to wait months after the con to relieve that worry or pay huge scalper prices.  What if after that three months Hasbro then decides to only release a few more?  Again, huge prices.  How badly botched will the ordering process be on whatever website they choose to distribute them on?  Will I have to sit by my computer for days trying to score one of these little plastic toys that should be commonplace?

I just think Hasbro's decision here STINKS to high heaven.  I was peeved enough when they announced R2/3PO.  Then we got hit with the double-whammy with Luke, who they even specifically claimed (apparently outright LIED) whould be available in the basic line.  I don't think this benefits anyone but GenCon.  Surely it hurts Hasbro more than it helps them given the huge numbers of customers they are disappointing.

Offline Morgbug

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Re: C4 Exclusive McQuarrie C-3PO, R2-D2 and Luke Skywalker
« Reply #134 on: May 3, 2007, 02:27 PM »
I understand your frustration, but I just can't get worked up about it, sorry.  Hasbro doesn't limit production on figures in the regular line at all.  Why are McQuarrie figures currently so hot?  Well, they're cool, that much is true.  There's secondary market value (now) but that's because of the truly bizarre mentality of collectors that paying $40 for a $6 figure now makes more sense than waiting 3 months.  I put that one under more money than brains, but it's only my opinion.  Guys are stocking up on McQ stuff because it either has secondary selling value or is good for trade bait where you can generate multiple returns (which is the same thing, but more justifiable).  Really though, how many figures hold their value down the road in the modern line?  5 of them?  R2-B1, Amidala ascension gun, Sio Bibble.  Maybe three? 

But that's not the real point, the point is people are getting screwed by Hasbro over unique Con content.  Ok, I understand.  But do you honestly expect Hasbro to jump out in the weeks before the Con, which is a money generating event for everyone and say don't worry, we'll make these figures available to everyone easily at retail?  Of course they're not and they won't because it would affect their sales, it would affect attendance (walk up) at C-IV (and I'm guessing even if they wanted to say something, there's probably a legal agreement with the folks running Celebration that prevents them from saying anything that might negatively affect attendance) and it would surely kill topics like this one where people are fired up and talking about Hasbro product like crazy.  People are more excited about McQuarrie concept figures than they have been about anything Star Wars Hasbro for quite some time.  People that were dropping Hasbro's 3.75" line are picking these up; they're sucking people back in.  They're not about to kill that for anything, even pissing people off (anyone remember how angry people were about the UGH chase figures last year?  Whoo, those are commanding a premium now aren't they?). 

Yeah, the figures are unique and frustrating.  But think about this:  You are obviously not attending C-IV, otherwise you'd not be nearly so fired up.  So you're not laying out X number of dollars for the Con entrance fees.  That puts you ahead of the people there.  I can't begin to explain how humourous I found it at C-III to watch the people that so clearly wanted in only so they could get a Vader to sell online.  They spent hours in line after paying $40 for the day (or whatever) to miss most everything else for the chance to scalp a Vader.  It's ****** up, to put it mildly.  So consider the fees you're NOT paying to get into the Con and realize it's not unreasonable to pay more for the figure in the first place, because some of those silly ebay sellers will have paid parking, paid admission, given up 2-8 hours of their life to "turn a profit" on ebay on an $18 figure that you're going to pay $40 for.  You're still ahead of them because realistically when you add in the $40 fee, they paid nearly $60 and their time for the damn thing anyway.  You and me get to stay home, click a button on ebay in about 4 minutes of auction watching time and still have the figure. 

I accept your point on past Con exclusives maybe not being relevant.  But neither you nor I have a hot clue on what they'll do after (whether it's a day or two years down the road) with respect to these figures.  There IS another McQuarrie Luke being released but maybe not the Droids in the immediate future.  But remember this: outside of some variations of figures (freeze frame Weequay) there is exactly one figure, Toy Fair Vader, that commands a substantial premium over it's retail price.  Even Sacul is under $30 at times, which is what?  Double it's selling price at C-II?  We also have no idea what the production numbers will be.  If you think 150,000 figures is rare, then I can do nothing to ease your mind.  I still have a couple of C-III Vaders sitting beside me here and no, the figure is not unique, but then again neither were any of the UGH figures.  But it didn't stop people from getting excited and worked up.  Yeah, I know, I'm missing the point as these are entirely new figures.  Me, I'm waiting for the McQuarrie battle packs that all but inevitable ;)

But hey, I think Hasbro stinks to high heaven regardless of this latest insult to collectors psyche's.  I'm just not feeding them anymore by getting fired up by it.  I have friends that will try (but hopefully not so hard they don't enjoy themselves at Celebration) to help me out with this figure and I do hope I get them.  But you know what?  If they don't, I'm guessing I'll still have to get up in the morning and go to work the next day and the sun might even shine, even here in Canada. 

I hope you find some help getting the figures at retail price (probably 3-4x the regular retail price anyway) or luck into an auction for a very reasonable BIN or get them online (I'd watch SWS.com the day after the Con, were I you ;)).  I really do. 
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