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First, on R2 the panels on mine don't stay fully closed.  In pictures on the web the front panels appear to be fully closed and not impact the look of the figure too much.  But on mine the stick out quite a bit when I try to close them.  Is this normal or is there some trick to getting them to stay closed?

I take it you removed the rumberband?

I think I removed one when taking it out of the package (to detach him from the tray)... and I can't find any others... where should I be looking?

Thanks

So I've now pre-ordered waves 5, 6, and 7 from Newforce.

Having never done this before - I'm wondering what % of their orders get canceled?

Am I in good shape to expect these or should I be making back up plans and filling my gas tank up for more fruitless Star Wars runs?

From the email Rick sent out today:

hello all...
Just a note, we have added wave 6 and wave 7 to our presell catalog (the last 2 items). We have also added more wave 5 for preorder.
 
To give all an update, so far this year we have been very encouraged by Hasbro's allocation of product to us. Below is the % of our initial orders (if over 100%, it is extra product ordered for in stock sales).
Wave 1-90%
wave 2-100%
wave 2.5-100%
wave 3-120%
Vintage-105%
 
So, if this trend continues, we are hopeful to continue to be able to supply everyone with 100% of their preorders! As folks know, preorders are not a guarantee, but this year they are looking good!.
 
We also have minimal wave 3 cases left in stock, ready for immediate shipment. And, for a limited time, any order for a wave 3 case (did not apply to preorders, only new orders) with receive a free Vader and Coin set!.
 
Thanks
Rick, www.newforcecomics.com

Hi-res pics are over at JediInsider now...

4-LOM, Lando, and McSnowtrooper are incredible.

Unfortunately, Han's shoulder's are VERY large for some reason... this is a big disappointment to me, he was my favorite in the old line and it just seems like there's always something weird about his sculpt in the new line.

My quick take on these:

Bossk - Easily the best figure of the line.  NO flaws that I can see.  And yes, I wanted him bad... the previous versions were sculpted very nice but pretty lacking in articulation.

IG-88 - Kick butt again.  Nice height, amazing articulation.  I feel he's a little fragile for his own good (though this seems unavoidable given his build), and they screwed up the holster on his back (what the heck gun fits in this thing???  How did this get through?).  But overall I give him a 95 for all the articulation and coolness.

Snowtrooper - I haven't gotten an opener of this yet, so this is preliminary... but it looks very cool in the package.  I'm going to subtract just a bit for the clone head (this just bothers me for some reason).   Let's go with a 95.

Han - This should have been my favorite, but misses the mark a bit for a couple reasons.  First, they are absolutely nuts for not including the hood up head.  And the hat they did include is the most worthless piece of junk imaginable.  But thank god they at least put it off to the side in the bubble... that was really going to piss me off if he was useless for display in package because of the stupid hat.  I can get past those pretty easily if the rest is all good.  Unfortunately, the head has some paint issues on every one I've seen... I'm not usually too sensitive to head paint.  But Han looks like he's been using way too much eyeliner (makes him look oddly feminine), and I really don't like when the hairline paint is messed up and their scalp creeps up into their hair.  Still very nice on all other fronts.  I give him an 87.

Luke - Hmmmm... tough one.  Just doesn't really do it for me much.  I was really looking forward to this one.  Too thin, really bad head sculpt, and I don't like the color (specks) of his outfit.  Some strange looking joints (elbows and shoulders), though not too bad.  It's mainly the head and the almost nonexistent waist that kind of spoil this one for me.  I still appreciate the articulation, though.  80.

Leia - Couldn't care less about this one, and don't understand why she got lumped in with all the other Empire figs like this.  I would have much preferred a Hoth Leia.  Doesn't look too hot either... long neck and all.  I will say I really don't care if poncho colors are off though... that doesn't bother me at all.  I have not opened one of these... I'll go with a 70.  I just find it to be a strange choice.

Overall comments:

One of the things that seems strange to me is that there seems to be a lot of loose parts on these new ones (Bossk's neck roll, Han's hood, IG-88's bandoleer and tubes and whatnot).  I think I would prefer if most of these were actually glued down.  This is an easy fix of course, but it makes them hard to play with in the meantime or if you don't want to modify your figures.

I have no problem with the price premium.  I will gladly pay for the full package of articulation, and the chance to display in the vintage package for my non-openers.  I don't think they cheated on any this year with those damn swivel elbows (Sandperson, many of the original VOTC).  Good job... though Target's $12 price is a stretch.

Glad to see HTS has plenty of Snowtroopers.  My extras are on the way.

Love this line... let's see Luke Hoth, Leia Hoth, Han Bespin, 2-1B, Walrus Man, Gamorean Gaurd, Han Carbonite, and Luke Jedi.  I would dearly love a redone C-3PO and some of the others from the first batch on the wrong cards (like I want R2 on his Star Wars card), but I know those will never happen.  I can dream though...

I'm with Hasbro on this one, the discount was really a case of "too good to be true".  It would be nice if they would knock off the shipping, but I don't blame them for reneging on the orders too much.  As far as it goes, I'm just glad they offered the figure online (and quickly), period.  $15 + shipping is way better than the $40 + shipping on eBay.

I'm still pissed about it being exclusive, costing twice what a normal fig does, their deceptiveness about when it might be placed online, etc, blah, blah, blah, but I can't fault them for charging the same price as the con.  I also hope they will get many many more to satisfy the demand for those who missed it.

It's also nice to see that ToyRocket got enough of the R2/3PO that it seems everyone has a chance at it.  But on the flip side it certainly seems like an accident... that they simply didn't sell as well as expected and so they dumped them.

On the bright side, I see HasbroToyShop now has the Luke available.

Wish Hasbro hadn't lied (didn't they say they would be available a few months after the con or something like that?), but at least they're out there now.  I suppose we can hope that they merely "changed their minds" instead of outright lying... yeah... right.

On the down side, it looks like so far they weren't wrong about R2 and 3PO... no sign of them yet.

As far as people getting tired of hearing about it... I don't go into every thread on the boards and post "that's nice... but Hasbro SUCKS".  I try to only post my complaints in relevant threads.  And I think one can hardly go into a thread that literally contains the phrase "Hasbro Sucks" in the title (even if posted in jest) and not expect to see any negative comments.  The reverse is also true, of course... I can't expect there to not be any people who have an oposing viewpoint in this thread.  And that's fine... I am certainly not wounded by it (despite what Blackwolf seems to think), but I did want to make a general point that if people were a little more sensitive to things it would be a nicer world.  You never know when someone who is reading might take away a bit of a message about caring for other human beings and thinking about someone other than themselves, rather than jumping on the "what a whiner" bandwagon and blasting away.

I also try to give Hasbro credit where I can, like with their superior showing at C4 of all the amazing upcoming products.

But everyone is certainly welcome to their own opinion.

I really really really hope I don't see too many Dark Troopers in the wilds of retail.  That's my fear.

Agreed.  Looks like a potential pegwarmer to me.  He just doesn't even look like a Star Wars figure to me.

I thought of a good accessory to go with the exclusives: Cheese to go along with the whine. 

I understand there is a fine line between whining and complaining.  To me, the difference is whether the complaint is valid or not.  In this case, I believe there is plenty of justification for it.

Obviously others have a differant opinion and consider it whining... I think most of these people have difficulty putting themselves in other's shoes.  They are often people that (a) already have a way to obtain the exclusives or (b) don't find the exclusives attractive or don't want them for some other reason.  And then since they don't understand the fuss (can't look at it from the perspective of the people who really are disappointed by it) they start calling it "whining".

Lack of empathy is an epidemic in the world today, and I think this is simply one further sign of it.