Author Topic: The Future of Star Wars Collecting?  (Read 236591 times)

Offline Jesse James

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Re: The Future of Star Wars Collecting?
« Reply #360 on: July 23, 2013, 05:48 PM »
I'm with Scockery...  I like Hasbro's balance.

I think they still try to hit that, but another company, they're gonna miss.  McFarlane's stuff is dismal if you ask me.  Not even a toy...  It's mass produced low-end GG stuff and nothing more.

If I want higher-end I buy higher-end stuff.  If I want mass produced toys, I want Hasbro at the helm.  I'll take a not-quite-100%-great Stormtrooper helmet on a figure that 500,000 of them exist and mine is no more unique than anyone else's.  My collection doesn't need to be special I guess, is my point.  And I think $10's frustrating enough per figure, so any more is way out of the question.

For me, Hasbro's done well...  They're still doing well (I like TBS figures for the most part even though I'm a little PT'd out.  I think that's about to change some).  Give me more of the same...  Even dial it down a notch on the ammount a year and focus that 5POA on the kiddies.  Just don't quit giving collectors of the 3.75" line something they can appreciate.
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Offline Brian

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Re: The Future of Star Wars Collecting?
« Reply #361 on: August 5, 2013, 02:50 PM »
I was thinking about this today, but what do you think the future holds for the SW line once the movie(s) start up?  If things hold true to the original plans, there could be some sort of Star Wars movie every year for the forseeable future, which offers a lot of toy opportunities for Hasbro.  Do you think the line may go more towards the current Legends/Mission Series format of 5POA?  Then, there's the upcoming Rebels series as well.  Will we see seperate "animated" and movie lines.  Also, where does that leave characters from the OT, or the PT?  Do you think we'll see figures from those movies, or are these last couple of years the last hurrah (at least for a little while)?  I guess there is a chance that maybe the 6" line will be the avenue for people who want classic characters, while the smaller scale will focus more on the current movies, television, etc.  Of course, they could have multiple lines covering everything, you never know.  I kind of get the feeling that if we get a Rebels line, it may not go the animated style route that CW did, and may blend more with the regular line, but who knows.  I do wonder how much we'll get from the past movies when the new releases start up though.  I know when the ROTS line was going strong, we didn't really see anything from the OT, and the same could be said for the other prequel movie years for the most part.  Anyways, what do you think the future of the line is for 2015 and beyond?

Offline Pete_Fett

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Re: The Future of Star Wars Collecting?
« Reply #362 on: August 5, 2013, 03:02 PM »
My hope for Star Wars: Rebels is that they'll do a cheaper, kid-"friendly" 5POA line and then more popular characters will get the Vintage/Black Series treatment.

I think at this point, putting out a third figure line would just be too much product at once - and I believe even Hasbro acknowledges that less is more for the time being. When the new movies come out? Perhaps they might get away with a bit more, but not right now.
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Offline Rob

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Re: The Future of Star Wars Collecting?
« Reply #363 on: August 5, 2013, 03:18 PM »
I was thinking about this today, but what do you think the future holds for the SW line once the movie(s) start up?  If things hold true to the original plans, there could be some sort of Star Wars movie every year for the forseeable future, which offers a lot of toy opportunities for Hasbro.  Do you think the line may go more towards the current Legends/Mission Series format of 5POA?  Then, there's the upcoming Rebels series as well.  Will we see seperate "animated" and movie lines.  Also, where does that leave characters from the OT, or the PT?  Do you think we'll see figures from those movies, or are these last couple of years the last hurrah (at least for a little while)?  I guess there is a chance that maybe the 6" line will be the avenue for people who want classic characters, while the smaller scale will focus more on the current movies, television, etc.  Of course, they could have multiple lines covering everything, you never know.  I kind of get the feeling that if we get a Rebels line, it may not go the animated style route that CW did, and may blend more with the regular line, but who knows.  I do wonder how much we'll get from the past movies when the new releases start up though.  I know when the ROTS line was going strong, we didn't really see anything from the OT, and the same could be said for the other prequel movie years for the most part.  Anyways, what do you think the future of the line is for 2015 and beyond?

Just thinking about it makes my head hurt.  I was secretly looking forward to the idea that Star Wars had run its course... that I'd sit back and look at a giant wall of 3 3/4" figures and finally have a complete set.

In the meantime, I'm past 30 now, and what started as a small hobby at age 15 has gone 10 times farther than I ever thought it would.  I'm getting to the point where pulling the plug on everything other than OT is creeping into my thinking more and more.  As excited as I am about the new films, I can't fathom trying to keep up with movie releases every year from 2015 until who knows when.  By 2025 I'll be 45, and no offense to 45 year old's here, but I don't particularly want to be doing this at that point.

I think Army Builders are the next thing to go... then maybe Prequel Mini-busts.

Offline P-Siddy

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Re: The Future of Star Wars Collecting?
« Reply #364 on: August 5, 2013, 03:27 PM »
I'm getting to the point where pulling the plug on everything other than OT is creeping into my thinking more and more.  As excited as I am about the new films, I can't fathom trying to keep up with movie releases every year from 2015 until who knows when. 

Kind of condensed it a bit, but I agree with Rob.  I was glad to think 6 movies and it, with occasional (rare) CW figure.  But I'm leaning more and more towards Classic Trilogy figures and even then they really have to be new or arguably better for me to buy them.  6" is nice and I might bite on a few of those, but the price is over my budget and then I reason that I already own that figure in 4" so what's the point.  I can't foresee picking up anything from the new movies or cartoons unless it's really cool... like how Maul felt when I first saw him (though in hindsight, he was just a pawn).

Offline McMetal

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Re: The Future of Star Wars Collecting?
« Reply #365 on: August 5, 2013, 04:22 PM »
Count me down for a separate Rebels line in the source-accurate animated style. Produced by Disney. With no Hasbro involvement whatsoever.

 ;D
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Offline Pete_Fett

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Re: The Future of Star Wars Collecting?
« Reply #366 on: August 5, 2013, 07:36 PM »
Count me down for a separate Rebels line in the source-accurate animated style. Produced by Disney. With no Hasbro involvement whatsoever.

 ;D

Won't happen - Hasbro just revised their agreement to include the upcoming movies and the new cartoon - so you'll get what Hasbro makes and you'll LIKE IT!  :P
Peter

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Offline Brian

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Re: The Future of Star Wars Collecting?
« Reply #367 on: August 5, 2013, 09:17 PM »
I have to admit, I've felt a little bit of fatigue at times as well.  Like Rob mentioned, the prospect of all that could be coming a few years down the road is a little daunting.  I'm actually pretty excited at the notion of new movies (and the toys that come with them), but honestly, our office (which is where my collection is allowed to be) is already pretty much at capacity.  I'm going to have to either dump some stuff, pack a bunch away, or make a lot more money and get a bigger house if I want to continue collecting like this.

I even noticed a change the other day while at TRU.  They had the entire new wave of Black Series figures on the pegs.  In the past, particularly after this gigantic drought we've experienced this year, I probably would have grabbed them all.  This time, I only got a few, and even those I hesitated on a bit.  Some of it may be the lack of newness, but even looking at the next couple of waves beyond that I don't think I'll be getting much more than half of those waves either.  We'll see I guess.

I still get the most excited about OT figures, so I'd be sad to see those go away in a couple of years (if that happens).  Then again, I think we can all admit that we've really had a good run of these things too, and have a lot of it covered.  I'm always a fan of simplification with the Star Wars brand and lines, so the prospect of multiple lines isn't really appealing to me, although I do understand it.  Right now, the prospect of having a new movie line each year, the Rebels line, the 6" line, and possibly another 3 3/4" line (depending on what they do with "collector" figures and the current Legends format, not to mention Mission Series), and you're starting to look at half an aisle of SW figures at the stores.  I wish things could work like the old vintage days, but things have changed too much since then.

Offline Darby

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Re: The Future of Star Wars Collecting?
« Reply #368 on: August 5, 2013, 09:38 PM »
I just don't know myself. Very ready to give it a rest but then I'm out buying the millionth version of Yoda and Obi-Wan today. The older I get the more involved I am in vintage collecting, and I expect that to continue. I will be excited to see how the new films translate into toys, but I just don't know how much I will get involved. One thing i do know is that I've been a lifelong collector, and I don't see why that will change.

Offline Brian

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Re: The Future of Star Wars Collecting?
« Reply #369 on: August 17, 2013, 07:50 PM »
I was reading through Adam's Q and A at Galactic Hunter this week, and really liked some of the points he made in his wrap up section.  You can check it out here, if interested:

http://www.galactichunter.com/gh/story/qa-big-figures-big-articulation-and-old-figures-gear-eternity

After all the questions, he talks about how the action figure/collectible (and video game) world is changing - and the effect it has not only on collectors, but on kids.  To be honest, the kid aspect is something I've thought about before, but this really hit home for me the way he wrote it.  I order the majority of my stuff online (I collect primarily SW and Marvel), partially because it is easier for me, but also because I feel like I'm maybe not taking a kid's chance away from finding it if I just order it from an e-store.

I can't imagine how difficult it would be to be a kid collecting an action figure line these days, even without the distribution issues we've seen.  In the vintage days, I could take my ROTJ cardback and see what figures were available, and probably find most of them at the local store - or at least have a decent shot.  Also, although I personally didn't do this at such a young age, but you could probably stay reasonably complete on the action figure side of it with prices being low ($2ish I think?) and different figures being more in the 10-20 range in any given year from 78-85.  I know times have changed a lot, but it sort of saddens me that you can't do that anymore.  Heck, I have a tough time keeping up, and I'm an adult with some disposable income.

Anyways, I just thought it was a well written and interesting read - and something I think about a lot these days too.  I do wonder if these recent stripped down, basic figures are more of an attempt to get kids and a broader fan-base back.  I think maybe Hasbro really did price themselves out of a lot of collectors and casual buyers/kids the past few years.  ROTS had to be one of their modern heydays (and the POTF2 days too, not sure which would be more), and the figures were in the $5-6 range then since they were moving so much product.  I wonder what we'll see when Ep. 7 rolls around - if the 3 3/4" line will be all these 5 POA, and maybe the 6" stuff will be the "collector figures" much like other lines are doing these days.  Also, on a side note, I find the quote that Adam started his write up with (Head of DC Comics: "We don't publish comics for kids, we publish comics for 45 year olds") kind of sad...sad, but true.

Offline Scockery

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Re: The Future of Star Wars Collecting?
« Reply #370 on: August 17, 2013, 08:31 PM »
If you say so. For the most part, kids are gonna say "screw it" and move onto video games regardless of availability. The age at which boys quit action figures is younger than it was in the 80's.

Quote
I'm sure some people love scarcity so there's a strong secondary market, but a scarce figure just means that's more money Hasbro isn't going to have in their own pocket.

Yet, how many fansites have at least one web retailer known for gouging scarce figures as a sponsor?

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Did you want a figure for $5 with your allowance? Too damn bad, we demanded better articulation and now it's $8 or $10.

Who demanded the price increase that was Comm-Tech chips? Not collectors. That was the first big jump in basic figure prices.

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By this time next year, I hope Hasbro expands its "5 points of articulation" program to include collector characters, because I believe they will most likely be very happy with the results

Right, like the characters that wouldn't sell in the past when they were $5 or $6 or $7 and had more articulation, accessories, etc.? Does Pawlus remember the pegs of Ponda Boba's in the late 90's? And Rancor Keeper? Or that even not so-long ago when fickle collectors wouldn't buy readily available cool cantina aliens that were instead  recalled and shredded?


The adult collector guilt trip: If Hasbro cannot get product that kid's supposedly want to store in quantity, how are collectors to blame? Some guy bought the ONE Season 3 Ahsoka that made it to one store in a 40 mile radius of some kid who likes Star Wars? The odds were against the kid (or anyone) getting it. Hasbro didn't care to ship more. Or the store didn't care to order more.  But we are gonna dump on adult collectors in general?


Offline Jesse James

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Re: The Future of Star Wars Collecting?
« Reply #371 on: August 17, 2013, 09:17 PM »
I'm more to Scockery's side of things...  I think Hasbro's listing too hard to port, trying to compensate for all the folly of listing too hard to starboard for so long...

Happy balances seemed to work out better for all...  2007 anyone?
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Offline Dan

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Re: The Future of Star Wars Collecting?
« Reply #372 on: August 17, 2013, 10:18 PM »
Balance is important for the line- and for us too.
I'm one of the dustier monkeys on this branch at 44.
My kids have gotten past the point where they enjoy the hobby with me. That makes it tougher to keep adding new items. If I want something, I sell something else to get it. I limit myself with arbitrary numbers, and space to devote to the hobby. I still enjoy what I own, but it takes up far less of my brain than it used to. I spend more time working, teaching and training karate, reading, with my wife, and my daughters before they get tired of that too (they are 13 and 15).
Don't let what you own define you. If Hasbro turns out great stuff, enjoy it. If not, find something else to enjoy. It's all over way too soon to waste a moment blaming or pestering a multinational toy company- what they do or don't do should have a negligible impact on your life, if any. I know someone with a small hobby store as part of his regular business. He's had more than a few families come to him in the last few years with dozens and dozens of boxes of brand new star wars toys, trying to figure out how to liquidate it as part of an estate. You don't want the biggest thing you pass on to be a bunch of unused toys.

Offline Brian

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Re: The Future of Star Wars Collecting?
« Reply #373 on: August 17, 2013, 10:48 PM »
Good points.  Jesse bringing up 2007 really hits it well too.  That seemed like one of the more recent examples of everyone being pretty happy, as far as this hobby goes.  Prices were under control, we were getting a pretty great balance of figures from the various movies - they were for the most part easy to get a hold of, and we still got some big bonus accessories on top of things.  It would be nice to get back to those days, somehow.

I guess we're just in the age of the $10 figure if we want articulation and all of the detail that we were used to, and I wish we could get back closer to $7 to $8 of those days.  I also continue to think that Hasbro is just putting out too much stuff per year.  Although more and more collectors are starting to become selective these days, I think prior to the price hike (and countless repacks, etc.) you had more of us trying to keep up with a year's releases.  I still say that some of the best years (like Jesse's 2007 example, or also the POTF2 or POTJ days) were when we had more in the range of 25-40 figures per year.  That's easy to come up with.  Heck, when I was collecting when I was first married, fresh out of college, and on a tight budget, I could keep up on about $30 a month.  Try doing that now.  Movie years are another story, of course.

Also a good point about kids in general going towards video games much earlier.  When I was a kid, we had video games in the house to some extent (the Intellivision, does anyone remember that?), but action figures stayed with me all the way through elementary and into jr. high years.  I think I even kept the shoebox of my Star Wars and Joes in the closet beyond that, although they didn't really move from there until I got back into things.  Just looking at my nephews, they moved into the video game era much earlier and left "toys" behind about that time too, for the most part.  The one exception to that is LEGOs, they still like, ask for, and "play" with those (they are 11 and 13 years old).  Action figures almost seem like an 8 and under thing these days (or 20 and over), so things have changed a lot.

Offline Muftak

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Re: The Future of Star Wars Collecting?
« Reply #374 on: August 18, 2013, 12:11 AM »
I find myself agreeing a lot with what Dan says. I'm 39 and I've been collecting these guys since 1978. I remember looking forward to finding the holdouts of the'82 line (Tie pilot was really hard to find.) all the way through stuff like the anticipation of the Shadows of the Empire line in '96 as golden times.

In my old age, I really look back fondly on that Potf2 era as the best we've ever had it as far as line consistency, depth, and availability. I no longer have most of those toys, but I could see that set being a collection I would put back together if everything OT comes to an end someday and the collecting bug starts biting. But right now it jut isn't biting, and from all I read I feel fortunate because lately things would be maddening. There are plenty of figures from the past 3 years I would buy if I ever saw them, but I'm not going out of my way to look.

2007 was definitely a turning point in the line and how I collect. I set myself a master list of everything I might ever want, rather than feel obliged to buy stuff just because it got made. I have since only been suprised a couple of times by hasbro's selections to the point that I needed to add a figure to my list ( I think Jacen and Jaina were the biggest nice suprise I've had since then.) That being said, in 2007 I was able to go to the store once a week and buy one figure or so with very little stress in finding what I wanted. 2008-9 stuff was not as easy to find, and by the time vintage rolled in and the price hit 10 bucks I pretty much lost the compulsion. It may not be a coincidence that I lost that drive just after my first son was born in late '09. Now we look at toys for the boys and even though I still look in the Star Wars section, I haven't seen anything to interest me in quite some time.