Star Wars Movie Fan and Collecting: Hand in Hand?

[Brian]

I just got to thinking about this earlier, and was curious on some of your opinions on things.  Do you think that the majority of Star Wars fans (more than just casual movie-goers) are also collectors in some capacity?  Are there fans that are just really into the movies, but don't collect any of the different lines?  I'm sure there are people out there who are, and before I got back into collecting in 1999, I didn't have any Star Wars merchandise in my possession other than my childhood toys, and I was still a big fan of the movies themselves.

I know I read of a number of people, even on these Star Wars "collecting site" boards who don't really buy into the action figure line(s) at all, or if they do, it is quite limited (some just came out of retirement for the VOTC line).  Others just collecting the higher end things...busts, statues, prop replicas, etc.  Some collect a little bit of everything that has the SW logo on it.  Anyways, I was just curious what some of your opinions were on this.  What do you see the most of?  What do you think is the most common combination (movie fan/action figures, just movie fan, movie fan/high end, movie fan/everything, etc.)?

[SilverZ]

I think there's a common pattern in personalities that like fantasy and sci-fi material that makes us all find owning a tangible peice of our favorite fantasy universe appealing. I'm finding it hard to categorize people like you asked, but I think there's more folks out there (in this sort of genre) that collect some part of it than do not.

I know that prior to the POTF2 launch, I collected a wider variety of things, like random toy lines, laserdiscs, things like that. I was always looking for one particular aspect to focus on, and didn't find a match until there was a resurgence in SW merchandise to chase. Now I basically collect anything I find compelling in the SW universe, and only want everything from the 3-3/4" toy line.

But, I have a group of friends that are in a lot of ways just as much into movies/Star Wars/fantasy/whatever, but have very different collecting habits. One friend now collects movie props exclusively, and with a good explanation. He explains that for the dollar amount he used to spend on action figures every week, instead he could take that total and actually own a piece of the movie. So he has all sorts of random props now.

Another friend dumped his modern Kenner/Hasbro stuff and went to "high end" and now focuses on Master Replicas, Code 3, and props, with a limited vintage toy selection.

If we were all truly "everything" collectors, Sansweet would be out of a job.

Finally, I don't know anyone that admits to being a fan and is content with just watching the movie. It comes back to the personality type and basic like of the genres. Someone into Star Wars, or LOTR, Aliens, D&D, Transformers, anything like that, seem to have a little something tangible from that series to own.

Just my take.

[Brian]

Yeah, that's what I was thinking as well Tydirium...it kind of "goes with the territory" in some ways.  If you are a big fan of something like this, whether it be movies, comics, television show, etc., you are usually pretty likely to buy into collectibles, magazines, products, posters, etc. surrounding it.  Thanks for the reply.

[jokabofe]

I have a friend who's a huge fan of the films, but couldn't give a rat's ass about owning any of the stuff I have. He'll come to my house, and check out my crap, but he doesn't feel the need to own anything. I just don't understand him.

[Famine]

I have a friend who's a huge fan of the films, but couldn't give a rat's ass about owning any of the stuff I have. He'll come to my house, and check out my crap, but he doesn't feel the need to own anything. I just don't understand him.

Check for wires.

He might be a robot.

Kevin

[CorranHorn]

I think being a fan of the Star Wars movies can lead someone towards collecting Star Wars items. But I don't know if those people are necessarily huge fans of the Star Wars mythos. For example, I get the impression that there are some vintage SW collectors out there who are more interested in collecting the kenner line because it's a unique thing to collect, but their interest in other things Star Wars is low. Sure they will watch the movies, but they may not be interested in the comics, novels, games, or other collectibles. Whereas there are many of us collectors who literally thrive on the Star Wars saga in all its forms.

For me personally, I began collecting Star Wars toys in the early 90's when I started picking up items I had lost from my childhood like a Boba Fett or R2 figure. Then my friends would give me their old toys and suddenly I was looking to add new purchases at every possibilty (which were few being I was in high school at the time). Then in early 1996 I came across the POTF2 line and the poop hit the fan with me collecting as much of the modern line as I like (which is a lot ). For many modern collectors however, it took the SE's or TPM or AOTC or it will take ROTS to get them into collecting as they either recall the fun they had as kids with the Kenner line or they may be youngins themselves now.

[JediMAC]

I think this is somewhat along the lines of the "Are you a forum snob" thread I posted a while back, where I asked if folks thought that pretty much most collectors were also involved in the forums.  The answer is obviously no.  Probably far from it.  In fact, I'd say that forum members are probably in the minority of overall collectors (I was in the same boat myself just several years ago, before making the leap online).  Just seems weird to me now that avid collectors wouldn't also be members of one/some of the collecting forums online, to chat with their SW collecting compadres.

So along those same lines, do we think that most avid Star Wars fans also collect all/some of the figures and other various collectibles just like we do?  Again, I'd say that despite what we would think due to our involvement in collecting and knowing that everyone else in here does the same, I'd still say that we're probably in the minority when it comes to overall Star Wars fans.

Take for example the midnight DVD release parties.  There were nearly a thousand people out here (I think) who showed up at Best Buy that night, many in full SW regalia, and all of which were pretty hardcore fans.  But I can probably count on two hands the number that are actually members online in the collecting forums.  I'm sure there's many more collectors beyond that too, but in the grand scheme of all those people, I'm pretty sure there were way more non-collectors than collectors.  Or at the very least, not collectors of most of the figure related stuff that we're into.  Maybe some Master Replicas stuff, or posters, or things along those lines.

I even remember chatting with a lot of people at C2, and many of them didn't collect anything, which I found totally bizarre.  But yeah, I'd tend to think the "Movie Fan" and "Collector" would likely go hand in hand.  But for whatever reason, they often don't.

Maybe it's just because they're missing that special OCD trait that most of us collectors share, however mild or extreme it may be.  Yeah, I think that's it.   

[Jedi Idej]

Among all the SW geeks I know that I didn't become acquainted with from repeatedly bumping into at conventions/stores, I'm the only type II SW geek.