Author Topic: Why Do Vintage Case Assortments SUCK So Badly?  (Read 9784 times)

Offline Sprry75

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Re: Why Do Vintage Case Assortments SUCK So Badly?
« Reply #15 on: April 7, 2012, 02:27 PM »
I don't know, but it's beyond frustrating.  Sometimes I'd like to quit this hobby altogether because of the approach Hasbro takes.

It's nice that Hasbro has helped make that decision for some of us, given that the distribution is equally as ****** as the case packs.  I haven't seen new VOTC figures in months (all I ever see are TPM peg warmers)
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Offline Nicklab

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Re: Why Do Vintage Case Assortments SUCK So Badly?
« Reply #16 on: April 7, 2012, 02:47 PM »
I remember one thing that Derryl DePriest said Hasbro-Star Wars was going to try regrading case assortments:  Offering cases of new figures with repacks that would be geared towards troop builders.  These cases would be steered towards online retailers like EE, BBTS and the other outlets that were selling figures by the case.  In the forums it seemed to be a popular idea.  But in practice it turned out to be a disaster for the retailers.  The assortments didn't sell through.  And it was evident that this move came well after the army building phenomenon had reached it's peak.

I think that the Hasbro Star Wars brand was run pretty well from the time that Derryl DePriest came aboard (circa 2004) through about 2008.  It started to take a turn when the economy tanked in late 2008.  Coincidence?  Probably not.  And we've seen a good number of toy licenses underperform in this same time period (2008 - 2012).  Anybody recall some of the massive bombs in the toy aisle in recent years, like the Green Lantern line?

Frankly, I don't think the case assortments are designed to help collectors.  Hasbro tried this and it bit them in the ass.  The case assortments are clearly designed to replenish brick & mortar retail.  Case in point:  Darth Sidious and Darth Maul as carry-forward figures.  When the TPM wave hit those were two of the most difficult figures to find from that initial TPM case.  At retail now I am only starting to see the TVC Darth Maul every so often.  Because that figure is selling through, and is worth replenishing.
« Last Edit: April 7, 2012, 04:19 PM by Nicklab »
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Offline Matt_Fury

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Re: Why Do Vintage Case Assortments SUCK So Badly?
« Reply #17 on: April 7, 2012, 03:17 PM »
So you're saying that Hasbro hiring DePriest caused the econnomy to tank?  I can get behind that!
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Offline Nicklab

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Re: Why Do Vintage Case Assortments SUCK So Badly?
« Reply #18 on: April 7, 2012, 04:13 PM »
So you're saying that Hasbro hiring DePriest caused the econnomy to tank?  I can get behind that!

What's the saying about the Pit?  What happens there, stays there.  Including methods of argument.   ;D

Derryl DePriest came on board (with the Star Wars line) around the time when the OTC line launched in 2004, IIRC.  And he had been lauded for his role in GI Joe before that.  As for the Star Wars line, that stretch of '04 - '08 was probably the peak for the line, and that was due in no small part to the ROTS line. 
« Last Edit: April 7, 2012, 04:21 PM by Nicklab »
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Offline Pete_Fett

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Re: Why Do Vintage Case Assortments SUCK So Badly?
« Reply #19 on: April 8, 2012, 11:36 AM »
Whatever his past or recent performance was, I have always been extremely vocal against DePriest (or my non-PC name for him "DeRetard").

As far as I'm concerned - if you have a wave of figures - let's say Wave 12 - with the five new figures. And you pack it out like this:

3x Imperial Navy Commander
3x Darth Malgus
2x Realistic Clone Wars Anakin
2x Darth Vader (EP4)
2x Hoth Luke

And then, up-charge the case another $1 a figure - so instead of EE being able to offer them for $130, they offer them for $140, I would GLADLY pay that additional premium to NOT have to go crazy looking for the wave. Heck, I'd even double up on a wave like that, knowing that I have co-workers who are into SW:TOR and want Malgus and whatever else is extra should be easy enough to trade away.

Make it a case available to online retailers ONLY and let Hasbro earn an extra $1 on each figure that should more than make up for the "costs" of the case.

They used to give us cases of 2x figures per case, it's not like the factories in China care whether they are making a Luke, an Anakin or a Vader, they just make what you order from them - so wouldn't making MORE figures out of new tooling make the overall cost of a figure LESS?

Ultimately, and I know this is VERY conspiracy-theory-ish of me, but I'm convinced that these lousy assortments are a way of HURTING the online retailers and making it so more and more collectors do frequent the brick-and-mortar stores. Maybe whoever took over for DeRetard will see the error in this thinking and start offering up to large online accounts like EE the ability to buy case assortments that they won't have any problem selling through.

One more thing - I can appreciate Hasbro for making "hard to find" Vintage figures from 2011 easier to get as carry-forward figures - like the Garmorrean Guard, Wedge Antilles and the Rebel Fleet Trooper, but where's Bastilla Shan? Are you telling me that Bom Vindim (sp?) is/was harder to get than her? I don't think so! If anyone still needs him or Logray - courtesy of all of the "Revenge of the Jedi" cases, I have an extra of each of them if anyone's interested. There was no-need for that wave to be re-released wholesale.

Also if it was DeRetard doing the forecasting, then hopefully that will be fixed too - but if not, fire whatever moron who forecasted that AOTC Obi-Wan Kenobi or TPM Qui-Gon Jinn needed to be in more than their initial shipping case.
« Last Edit: April 8, 2012, 11:36 AM by Pete_Fett »
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Offline DoctorPadawan

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Re: Why Do Vintage Case Assortments SUCK So Badly?
« Reply #20 on: April 8, 2012, 09:24 PM »
I've never met DePriest (or anyone from Hasbro, for that matter) personally, but the 30th Anniversary (2007) line was probably the high point of the last 10 years of Star Wars for me, at least in terms of character selection and the ability to actually find figures at retail.  Aside from the huge drought mid-year (which seems to have become a staple of the line since 2007 unfortunately) and the large number of waves hitting all at once, that was probably the last time I recall every figure that we were promised actually being released in decent numbers.  Everything since then has been horrible, both due to the inability to find new figures and for certain waves being almost impossible to locate.  So, for whatever else he may have done poorly, I can't fault the guy for 2007.

That being said, I thought Hasbro said that they had "learned" from the 2011 Vintage case assortment situation and were going to presumably remedy it for 2012.  I guess that didn't happen, because we're heading right back down that same path with the 2012 assortments.  I've said it before, but I never actually saw wave 7 at retail (only got the other four figures through the revision cases later in the year that Wal-Mart did get), and I still don't have Bespin Han or Barris Offee, so I'm glad to see them (and the Gammy and Wedge) make a comeback.  I do agree that Bastilla/Echo Base Rebel/Walrus Man could do with another few cases, and why Hasbro isn't doing that confuses me to no end.  The very idea that a "Fan's Choice" winner is about as common as a villain in a Hasbro Marvel movie line is, frankly, asinine.

At this point, outside of maybe Maul, there is no reason whatsoever for any of the vintage TPM figures to be repacked in ANY future case assortment.  There is an abundance of every figure at retail, and it's blocking anything from getting stocked.  Hasbro could stop shipping those figures, put new figures in cases at 2 per case, with repacks of older, truly HTF figures (Bastilla, Echo Base Rebel, Wedge) to fill out the case and things wouldn't be nearly as bad as they are now.  Of course, the TPM stuff would still be sitting on the pegs, so maybe not.

Given several factors (the new brand manager, whoever he/she is, that seems to have a fondness for 1995-level articulation, 2002-level action features, and 1923-level distribution; continually abysmal case assortments; dropping of the Q&A with websites; price hikes; essentially dumping Clone Wars figures altogether; Movie Heroes as a whole; and the admitted bombing of TPM 3D in theaters), it honestly feels like Hasbro is trying to deliberately kill the SW line as an ongoing thing.  And to be honest, if they are doing it purposely, I wish they'd just go ahead and pull the plug at the end of the year completely and stop jerking us around with false promises of things getting better.

Offline P-Siddy

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Re: Why Do Vintage Case Assortments SUCK So Badly?
« Reply #21 on: April 8, 2012, 09:39 PM »
I've said this before in another thread, but I do think that the case assortments suck in which figures they decide to carry over. I mean, even though this is a new year, why does Hasbro think they can't carry some of the figures from last year into wave 1 or 2, etc. I think it would break the cycle of stagnant figures. TPM, it seems, never does well and it seems that Hasbro has avoided figures from that movie like the plague (except Obi-Wan, Maul, and Qui-Gon). But for the first wave of 2012 to be all TPM figures and then to carry some of these forward was over-confident that they'd be hot sellers. Now I'm just seeing lots of Naboo Troopers and Pod Racers on the pegs.

Offline Jesse James

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Re: Why Do Vintage Case Assortments SUCK So Badly?
« Reply #22 on: April 9, 2012, 01:19 AM »
So everyone's at least on the same page that these assortments do suck...  That's nice.  I'm wondering after Wave 13 (2012 4), where will things stand?

I agree on Wave 7 maybe not needing re-released wholesale, and spread stuff out a little too...  Shan should've been in there.  So should the Echo Rebel and other Wave 9 guys that really ultimately got shafted.  That's a wave that stings.
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Offline SnTrooper

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Re: Why Do Vintage Case Assortments SUCK So Badly?
« Reply #23 on: April 9, 2012, 12:00 PM »
So everyone's at least on the same page that these assortments do suck...  That's nice.  I'm wondering after Wave 13 (2012 4), where will things stand?
According to the cases that Dan Curto posted over at RS back in February (Here) this is what I figured it might look like this.

Ones in bold are their first release. The ones with a "1" at the end of their number should be the "Lost Line" card backs. Obviously these could be changed since this this from early February. There was already a change with Wave 4. Maul was replaced by Ratts Tyrell in the revision.

Wave #5: Walmart Repacks - 37499484D & 37499738D
269664840 SW EPI QUI-GON
375114840 SW EPV LUKE
985244840 SW VC58 AAYLA SECURA
985254840 SW VC59 NOM ANOR
985264840 SW VC60 501ST CLONE TROOPER
985274840 SW VC56 KITHABA
985284840 SW VC57 DR. CORNELIUS EVAZAN
986924840 SW VC28 REBEL PILOT WEDGE
985294840 SW VC72 NABOO PILOT W/DUSTER
985314840 SW VC71 MAWHONIC
985324840 SW VC73 AURRA SING
985334840 SW VC74 GUNGAN WARRIOR

Wave #6 - 37499484H & 37499738H
496874840 SW LUKE SKYWALKER
375084840 SW EPIV DARTH VADER
375114840 SW EPV LUKE
375134840 SW EU DARTH MALGUS
986924840 SW VC28 REBEL PILOT WEDGE
985344840 SW VC51 BARISS OFFEE
985364840 SW VC53 BOM VINDIN
375144840 SW EPIII CLONE PILOT DAVIJAAN
375164840 SW EPIV GRAND MOFF TARKIN
375174840 SW EPVI NIKTO SKIFF GUARD
375184840 SW EU TFUII GALEN MAREK
375194840 SW EU TOR FEMALE BOUNTY HUNTER

Wave #6 Revision - 374997383
985297380 SW VC72 NABOO PILOT W/DUSTER
985317380 SW VC71 MAWHONIC
985327380 SW VC73 AURRA SING
986927380 SW VC28 REBEL PILOT WEDGE
985337380 SW VC74 GUNGAN WARRIOR
985347380 SW VC51 BARISS OFFEE
985367380 SW VC53 BOM VINDIN
375147380 SW EPIII CLONE PILOT DAVIJAAN
375167380 SW EPIV GRAND MOFF TARKIN
375177380 SW EPVI NIKTO SKIFF GUARD
375187380 SW EU TFUII GALEN MAREK
375197380 SW EU TOR FEMALE BOUNTY HUNTER

Wave #7 - 37499484J & 37499738J
985294840 SW VC72 NABOO PILOT W/DUSTER
985314840 SW VC71 MAWHONIC
985324840 SW VC73 AURRA SING
985334840 SW VC74 GUNGAN WARRIOR
985354840 SW VC50 BESPIN HAN
985374840 SW VC54 ARC TROOPER COMMANDER
385244840 SW CW AHSOKA
385254840 SW CW OBI WAN
385264840 SW EPVI LUMAT
385274840 SW EPVI ROYAL GUARD
396534840 SW EPVI NIEN NUNB
396544840 SW EPVI WEEQUAY HUNTER

Wave #8: Lost Line - 37499484K
986934840 SW VC21 GAMORREAN GUARD
385254840 SW CW OBI WAN
385264840 SW EPVI LUMAT
396494840 SW EP1 JAR JAR
396504840 SW EPII CLONE LIEUTENANT
396514840 SW EPIII CLONE
396554840 SW EU REPUBLIC TROOPER
396524841 SW EPIV SANDTROOPER
375124840 SW EPV PRINCESS LEIA
396654840 SW EPVI ORRIMAARKO
396644841 SW EPVI DARTH VADER
396514841 SW EPIII CLONE

Wave #8: Lost Line Revision 1 - 37499484A
496894840 SW LANDO CALRISSIAN
375074840 SW CW ANAKIN SKYWALKER
375084840 SW EPIV DARTH VADER
396524840 SW EPIV SANDTROOPER
375124841 SW EPV PRINCESS LEIA
396554840 SW EU REPUBLIC TROOPER
396494841 SW EP1 JAR JAR
396524841 SW EPIV SANDTROOPER
375124840 SW EPV PRINCESS LEIA
396504841 SW EPII CLONE LIEUTENANT
396644840 SW EPVI DARTH VADER
396654840 SW EPVI ORRIMAARKO

Wave #8: Lost Line Revision 2 - 37499484B
375014840 SW EP1 BEN QUADINAROS
496884840 SW PRINCESS LEIA
497044840 SW A-WING PILOT
375074840 SW CW ANAKIN SKYWALKER
375084840 SW EPIV DARTH VADER
385244840 SW CW AHSOKA
385254840 SW CW OBI WAN
396494841 SW EP1 JAR JAR
396504841 SW EPII CLONE LIEUTENANT
396644840 SW EPVI DARTH VADER
396644841 SW EPVI DARTH VADER
396514841 SW EPIII CLONE

Wave #8: Lost Line Revision 3 - 374994845
375144840 SW EPIII CLONE PILOT DAVIJAAN
375164840 SW EPIV GRAND MOFF TARKIN
375174840 SW EPVI NIKTO SKIFF GUARD
375184840 SW EU TFUII GALEN MAREK
375194840 SW EU TOR FEMALE BOUNTY HUNTER
385244840 SW CW AHSOKA
385254840 SW CW OBI WAN
396494840 SW EP1 JAR JAR
396504840 SW EPII CLONE LIEUTENANT
396514840 SW EPIII CLONE
396524840 SW EPIV SANDTROOPER
375124841 SW EPV PRINCESS LEIA

Offline Pete_Fett

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Re: Why Do Vintage Case Assortments SUCK So Badly?
« Reply #24 on: May 30, 2012, 07:55 AM »
Ok - well - I'm resurrecting this thread, because, there just *MIGHT* be some light at the end of the tunnel...

Now I'm not sure if this is an BBTS-only deal since EE hasn't posted it yet, or if it's an online-retailers only deal, but check out this case assortment that's up for pre-order from BBTS:

http://www.bigbadtoystore.com/bbts/product.aspx?product=HAS21956&mode=retail

It has the six figures that are in the SDCC Carbon Freeze Chamber box set - 2x of each, one set is on the "Lost Line Look" cardbacks and the other set is on the regular Vintage-style cardbacks.

As someone who wants MOC sets of both AND wants two of each figure to open, buying two of these cases is absolutely ideal.

I'll end up with NOTHING left over.

Now this wave seems to be coming before the Tarkin wave.

So I wonder what that means for these figures:

VC102 Ahsoka Tano Realistic TCW
VC103 Obi-Wan Realistic TCW 
VC104 Lumat
VC105 Emperor's Royal Guard
VC106 Nien Nunb
VC107 Weequay
VC113 Republic Trooper The Old Republic
VC114 Prune Face

of course, and this would be SO AWESOME too - that is exactly EIGHT figures - if they were to throw in VC71-VC74 which were the repacks of the Naboo Pilot, Aurra Sing, Gungan and Mahawonic figures - that would be equally amazing/awesome.

If the rest of this year for Vintage meant 2 of one case and three of another, I would be in heaven...
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Offline Darth_Anton

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Re: Why Do Vintage Case Assortments SUCK So Badly?
« Reply #25 on: May 30, 2012, 12:52 PM »
You see, if that is indeed the way that SDCC set is going to be packed, that will get me to buy by the case. I wouldn't be happier.

Hasbro, please make a note of it, for what it's worth.
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Offline Jesse James

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Re: Why Do Vintage Case Assortments SUCK So Badly?
« Reply #26 on: May 30, 2012, 08:54 PM »
That assortment indeed will probably also get me to order...  Was on the fence, but 2 of each, may split it with a local buddy.
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