JediDefender.com Forums
Collectibles => The Vintage Collection => Topic started by: Brian on December 20, 2011, 08:47 PM
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I figured it was about that time again, always fun to read what everyone enjoyed the most from the past year. A lot of good stuff from the vintage collection - from basic figures to new or updated beasts/vehicles. I have to go back and look at the list to remember everything that came out this year, lots of nice stuff.
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Let's go with the following catagories:
Best Figure
Best Vehicle
Best Exclusive
Best Multipack
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Best Figure - Walrus Man
Best Vehicle - Y-Wing Fighter
Best Exclusive - The Search for Luke Skywalker
Best Mulitpack - The Search for Luke Skywalker
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This'll be a lot more difficult than Clone Wars. :)
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I don't think I got any vehicles or multipacks this year. My wife got me the taun-taun pack as part of a Xmas gift I think. Anyhow:
Best figure: Gamorrean Guard
Top 5 runner-ups to best figure:
Rebel Fleet Trooper
AT-RT Driver
Fordo
Zam Wesell
Bom Vimdin
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Best Figure: ARC Trooper Commander
Most Underrated Figure: Kit Fisto
Best Vehicle: Y-Wing, I guess? Not many choices...
Best multipack: Target 3-pack with IG-88, Bossk, and Snowtrooper
Best Exclusive: SDCC Death Star set
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Best Figure - Bespin Han Solo (like there was any chance I'd pick something else ;)). Runner ups = Bom Vimdin, RFT, Echo Base Rebel, Gamorrean Guard.
Best Vehicle - Um, none? I think the only ones I bought were the Y-Wing and B-Wing upgrades and while they were nice, they were mainly minor upgrades and fancy box purchases. :-\
Best Exclusive - Search for Luke Skywalker. The Han could have been a little nicer, but seemed like a good buy for $25 in this day and age.
Best Multipack - Indiana Jones "Lost Wave" SDCC Box Set :-X Can I count that? If not, then I'll pick the TRU Battle over Endor 4-Packs.
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It is tough to narrow this list down, really a lot of good stuff coming out of the Vintage Collection, and not really many "stinkers" which is nice.
Best Figure - Bespin Han Solo (like Jeff, this is one I've been looking forward to for a long time). Runners up - Gamorrean Guard, Bom Vimdin, Rebel Fleet Trooper, Admiral Ackbar, Wicket, Luke Skywalker - Jedi Knight, Zam Wessel, Captain Fordo, Echo Base Trooper, Ponda Baba
Best Vehicle - I don't remember much aside from repacks/repaints, but I'll go with the Target Exclusive Landspeeder. I really liked the previous (Saga) version, and this only improved on that. I also picked up the Y-Wing, which was nicely done as well.
Best Exclusive - Just to not double up, I'll go with the Target Vintage Taun Taun. The price stunk compared to the multipack (which is next), but the combination of a brand new Taun Taun (my favorite beast) and the spiffy vintage packaging puts it up there for me. It could have been $5-10 cheaper and it would be even better.
Best Multipack - The Search for Luke Skywalker. Obviously, a much better value than the single Taun Taun, plus you get a couple of decent to nice figures. Can always use more Hoth Rebels, and the Han was alright too. Pretty good value overall too.
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Best Figures:
Bespin Han Solo
Captain Fordo
Echo Base Trooper
Ponda Baba
Bom Vimdin
Phase 1 Clone Trooper (by far the most underrated figure of the year)
Kit Fisto
AT-RT Driver
AOTC Padme
Rebel Fleet Trooper
Best Vehicle - Didn't buy any, so.
Best Exclusive - Search for Luke.
Best Multipack - Endor sets were pretty sweet.
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FWIW I'm only counting Waves 4-9 as 2011 figures, as I found ROTJ (wave 3) in 2010.
Best Figures - Zam Wesell, Peasant Anakin, AOTC Clone, Bespin Han, Fordo, Bom Vimdin, Rebel Fleet Trooper, Ponda Baba, Echo Base Trooper
Best Vehicle - Didn't buy any
Best Exclusive - Search for Luke Skywalker
Best Multipack - Republic Commando set (or Indiana Jones Lost Wave)
And just for kicks:
Best Repacks - Legends Spacetrooper, TIE Fighter Pilot
Worst Exclusive - Death Star Trench Run
Worst Figures - Stormtrooper, Utapau Clone
Worst Wave - Wave 5
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Best Figures:
Captain Fordo
Bom Vimdin
Kit Fisto
Rebel Fleet Trooper
Best Vehicle - Didn't buy
Best Exclusive - Search for Luke.
Best Multipack - Didn't buy
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Best Figures: I'll post my list when I actually find all the figures released in 2011. (Never saw Zam Wessel, "Fordo", Echo Base Trooper, Bastila Shan, Wedge and Ponda Boba).
So, I won't be posting any best figures list. :P Bom Vimdin was nice, though.
Best Vehicles: Didn't buy any...since I don't collect starfighters per se and that Landspeeder was overpriced.
Best Exclusive - Search for Luke Skywalker, which I didn't get yet...they are probably all gone now! Whoops. I got a Battle of Endor pack, but hated the TIE PIlot because his shoulder was so loose I could flick it around in circles. :-\
Best Multipack - Force Unleashed, for at least having new characters that otherwise would not have been made...finally making the Republic Commandos right better is nice, but they could've gotten right back when but cheaped out on the Scorch mold. The Target 3 -packs were dullsville.
Worst Figure: That I bought, Groucho Marx General Lando second . That I didn't buy: fake Medal Ceremony Han Solo and Escape from Death Star Luke.
Most Pointless Repack: Commander Gree beats out Super Battle Droid by having no changes. ROTJ Boba Fett comes in third, while another reissue of VOTC Fett, it would be foolish of them not to milk all the money they can out of Snake-Eyes Batman Boba fans. Keyan Farlander has minor changes, but they could've done more...make him blonde. Not accurate? Heck, the character isn't canon! And neither of those rebel commandos are onscreen actors, either.
Best Repack: Legends Spacetrooper, the last non-vintage carded repack nod fans will get for who knows how long...
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Worst Figure: That I bought, Groucho Marx General Lando second . That I didn't buy: fake Medal Ceremony Han Solo and Escape from Death Star Luke.
Not possible. It's the ROTS clone Utapau or white period end of story, or the yellowed stormtrooper helmets too. The Han doesn't really qualify because if you just take the medal off of it, it is the best regular Han Solo figure we have ever gotten period in terms of Harrison Ford likeness.
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Disagree completely on that... I passed on that Medal Han completely, first because it's inaccurate for what it was supposed to be, but second because I simply don't concur on that likeness. I'd go with scockery on putting him up there on the worst list.
Lando I thought was nice though... not the best likeness but a good figure overall.
The Clone helmets clean up so I can't agree they're "the worst". If anything I rather liked the Stormtrooper, actually. :-\ The Clones were easy passes because I just had enough of the old SA one to not care I guess, but to me that Han was just bunk. I prefer VOTC over it personally... The Clones weren't high on my list by any means, but since the helmet cleans up I don't hold the discoloration against it ultimately.
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I didn't single out a mulitpack but here's what I picked for my Best list this year:
Best Figure: Bastila Shan - All new, Fans' Choice and if you got one with a good paint job, excellent figure. By the way, the Gam Guard technically came out in 2010, I picked him tops last year.
Best Vehicle: Mandalorian Gunship - All new, holds a bunch of figures and it's a unique design we haven't seen before. Runner up was the AV-7 Mobile Canon.
Best Exclusive: I picked the Lego Padawan Menace, not a toy, this year. But I almost picked the Star Tours Travel Agency from Disney. Five figures, four of which were new characters, and basically three new droids plus the accessory. When matched with the Ambush set that accompanied it, and with the Starspeeder that just came out, it's a really well planned out set of toys.
Best Multipack: I don't single out mulitpacks but the Disney set could fit here also. I kind of like the TRU Force Unleashed set. The two Navy Commandos are cool, Phobos isn't bad and Starkiller looks pretty good, even though I understand some people had a problem with him vs his game appearance? Not sure, I thought he was a good figure and that's what I cared about.
E...
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This is really tough...
-Best Figure... I'm at such a loss on this one because the figures almost all had huge qualities, and minor flaws. Since I'm biased, I'm going with a tie between the Echo Base Trooper and Rebel Fleet Trooper though (would it have been any other way for me?)
They both have what I consider one major drawback, and basically some minor flaws, but otherwise were pretty perfect figures.
The Echo Base Rebel's only drawback to me was his lack of a removable hat... Having Hasbro prove they can do not one, not two, but three functional and aesthetically pleasing removable Hoth Hats, and then to just not do one on this figure, kind of blew. the sculpt was outstanding though, articulation is good as always, the paint aps were nice, and the character was LONG overdue... One could bitch up a storm about price and availability, but both could be said for many (or every) figure.
The Rebel Fleet Trooper is my guilty pleasure, and so I had to list him. The sculpt's outstanding, and besides his lack of a holster, he's pretty much perfect. Hasbro went overboard on accessories, to the point I wish a couple were left out for the f'n holster, but his articulation was great, sculpt was sharp, paint aps were great... Again, minor gripes and then one one "biggie" in his lack of a holster. In viewing the Blu Rays, it's pretty clear that these guys almost all had holsters at both Yavin IV and on the Tantive IV. Oh well.
-Runner Up Figure... Zam Wessel... Long overdue, great sculpt... Other than her hair color being "off", I liked this one a lot and happily bought several of a figure just to display her in a variety of ways.
-Best Vehicle... I didn't buy any vehicles this year, but I'd go with the Clone Cannon ultimately. It has play features galore ultimately, it utlizies the "kids love Clones" mantra, and it's nice to see something less vehicle,a nd more fixed artillery. They're a rarity ultimately.
-Runner Up Vehicle... Nothing. I really felt Hasbro dropped it on vehicles this year. I'd have rebought the Snowspeeder with a better deco, and I'd have rebought the V-19 with a new deco... In general, decoes are non-existant on 90% of the Star Wars vehicles, so just getting a paint variation is welcomed... Hell, even if it's just dirtying up the "clean" decoed ship, I'd probably rebuy it.
-Best Exclusive... This one was tougher. I have to go with a late-comer to the party though,a nd something I guess Hasbro wasn't really involved with, in the Starspeeder 1000. To me, it was a kick in Hasbro's sack, telling them what they need to start doing more of with what they make. A decent price on a big ship, with tons of play features. How that Republic Shuttle was priced so much more is beyond me because the Starspeeder is twice the toy at a lower price, and a piece only sold at a couple friggin' places on the planet! Hasbro, you got some splainin' to do.
-Runner-Up Exclusive... Search For Luke. $25 for 2 figures and a sweet Taun Taun? Plus they get you that cool little phantom accessory? The saddest thing about it all was the $25 Taun-Taun next to it with, well, nothing.
-Best Multipack... Attack on the Cornet. It's an exclusive too, but I considered it more "figures" and less a set like the Search for Luke set. To me, this was the best one of the year, and the only one I considered purchasing even. All Battlepacks were basically a waste, and this was all I was interested in.
I cheated some by throwing in runner-ups but I wanted to at least point out some cool stuff I thought about other things that didn't make the cut.
In general though, I have to say, I'm kind of down on Star Wars collecting these days... I look around at what Lego does, or Sideshow, and I just feel they deliver you more value for the price. I feel Star Wars is in a weird place with Hasbro right now, and that's a big reason we're seeing a line shift to "action featurey" stuff. Sure there's the collector line, but the collector line had issues this year that far transcend perceived distribution issues. There's a lot more going on there that highlighted problems within the line's current direction.
IMO if it doesn't change in 2012, there may be major shifts in the line in some form or another. At this point though, I just sometimes don't get the thrill about this that I once did. I'm not interested like I used to be. Maybe it's because the RFT is here that I wanted and now I don't care? Regardless though, I'm disappointed in the hobby in general right now, and I don't foresee a big rebound for my feelings about collecting anytime soon. Unless something really cool/positive happens for collectors here, pretty soon.
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In general though, I have to say, I'm kind of down on Star Wars collecting these days... I look around at what Lego does, or Sideshow, and I just feel they deliver you more value for the price. I feel Star Wars is in a weird place with Hasbro right now, and that's a big reason we're seeing a line shift to "action featurey" stuff. Sure there's the collector line, but the collector line had issues this year that far transcend perceived distribution issues. There's a lot more going on there that highlighted problems within the line's current direction.
IMO if it doesn't change in 2012, there may be major shifts in the line in some form or another. At this point though, I just sometimes don't get the thrill about this that I once did. I'm not interested like I used to be. Maybe it's because the RFT is here that I wanted and now I don't care? Regardless though, I'm disappointed in the hobby in general right now, and I don't foresee a big rebound for my feelings about collecting anytime soon. Unless something really cool/positive happens for collectors here, pretty soon.
Those are some interesting points Jesse, I'm sort of curious about the line's future at this point as well. I know this probably isn't the right thread for this, but like you mentioned, the line is in a strange place in some ways right now. Although I'm not an all-out CW collector myself, just picking up a few figures here and there, it seems so strange that that portion of the line is getting pushed aside so much this year. I understand wanting to push movie stuff with these 3D releases, but it seemed like - at least during the first couple years - CW was all Hasbro cared about. We were told so often (particularly during the Legacy line's run) that it was basically all that made money and that collector's weren't supporting "our" line. To go from that to basically an afterthought seems surprising. I have read that the show's ratings have declined, although I don't know how much. I still watch each episode, although I admit I'm not quite as psyched up each week as I was the first couple years.
I'm sort of wondering how much kids care about SW right now, aside from role play stuff. I haven't seen kiddos looking at figures much this past year, although the lack of figures on the pegs might have had something to do with that in some instances. It will be really interesting to see how this Movie Heroes line does. It is obviously going to be the focus, and if kids don't bite, it is likely going to sit pretty badly. In some ways, this year of SW collecting could really influence the line's future - particularly with the planned continued 3D releases. I'm still in with the Vintage Collection - likely all of it - and will continue with movie stuff in some capacity as long as they make it most likely. At the same time, I can see your point about "bang for your buck" with other lines. This is the first year (or last year I guess) that I got into LEGO a little bit, with a couple smaller sets, an X-Wing, and now the Falcon for Christmas. I can see why those collectors are so dedicated to that line, a lot of neat stuff there as well. Anyways, I'm still loving the vintage line myself, but I am interested to see where the line is headed beyond this year. If this movie heroes stuff tanks, and CW doesn't start picking up steam again, it might have to move to a smaller, collector focused type line similar to what it was in the POTJ days (if Hasbro is interested in doing that).
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Despite the problems we all have with Hasbro, admittedly they've done an overall good job of keeping SW merchandise as relevant as any other hot new toy line, and even moreso. But at some point, it will likely have to become a collector-only line, like NECA and such. Certain years have looked more like that than others, but it's inevitable I think. A 30+ year old property is going to eventually become a nostalgia thing rather than support of new media- that's what it's been for me and many other collectors, since the line began. I just wish Hasbro would acknowledge the support collectors have given this hobby: I don't care how many kids get their parent to buy a Vader figure, it pales in comparison to the dozens/hundreds of army builders many of us buy, year after year.
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I'm going to have to agree with Jesse and name the Star Speeder 1000 the best exclusive and the best vehicle of the year! It's huge and has lots of play value. It is a little cheap feeling but definately less expensive than I thought it was going to be.
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Best Figure: Rebel Fleet Trooper, just because he was a top most Needed Resculpt for me.
Best Vehicle: Landspeeder re-release. I didn't have this version
Best Exclusive: Based on Photos, I have to say Starspeeder. I don't have one. If it has to be one I have... Luke's TaunTaun...sorry I know price sux, but I choose it.
Best Multipack: Search for Luke.
Looks Like we need a new catagory...
Best Retailer (for you personally).... Despite my Love for the Target stuff... Entertainment Earth is where I got more figures than anywhere else this year. I don't have the time or excuses (no more diaper runs) to hit Brick and Mortar anymore.
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Best Figure: Rebel Fleet Trooper
Best Vehicle: Landspeeder (only vehicle I bought)
Best Exclusive: Vintage boxed Landspeeder
Best Multipack: Search for Luke Skywalker
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Best Figure: Bespin Han (although there are plenty out there I would like to buy but have never seen, and Han wouldn't have made my list if it erent for Paul).
Best Vehicle: I did not buy any vehicles this year.
Best Exclusive: The Mail-away Boba Fett is really nice.
Best Multipack: Republic Commando set. Those SA clones are really nice.
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They sold Star wars figures this last year?
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Despite the problems we all have with Hasbro, admittedly they've done an overall good job of keeping SW merchandise as relevant as any other hot new toy line, and even moreso. But at some point, it will likely have to become a collector-only line, like NECA and such. Certain years have looked more like that than others, but it's inevitable I think. A 30+ year old property is going to eventually become a nostalgia thing rather than support of new media- that's what it's been for me and many other collectors, since the line began. I just wish Hasbro would acknowledge the support collectors have given this hobby: I don't care how many kids get their parent to buy a Vader figure, it pales in comparison to the dozens/hundreds of army builders many of us buy, year after year.
I have to agree. The fact that they've kept the SW line going this long is impressive in and of itself, but I think - at least for the most part - they have really hit their stride with the figures lately. Sure, there are always improvements that could be made, but I remember a time when almost every wave had at least one "stinker" of a figure that was really subpar in articulation, or sculpt, or action featurey, or something else. Overall, the quality of the line has been pretty strong I think - distribution is another story of course.
I think you're right on with SW eventually becoming more of a specialty "collector" line. We've all debated it before, but I really do think collectors carry a large portion of this line. I wonder how much kids are still interested in Star Wars - particularly kids that aren't "kids of fans/collectors". The window for action figures for kids seems much smaller these days, as they are getting into video games and other media much younger than we did. I also really wonder how many of the "prequel" or CW generation will really stick with the stuff into their 20s, 30s, 40s and beyond like we have/do. I've said it before, but I'll be in it in some capacity likely until the end - or at least as long as they continue to do new figures/updates from the movies (particularly the OT). That being said, I think they could really cover a lot of what's left for many people by the time the 3D releases are wrapped up (if we see them all), or even before.
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I also really wonder how many of the "prequel" or CW generation will really stick with the stuff into their 20s, 30s, 40s and beyond like we have/do.
We're about to find out. Those "prequel kids" who were 6-9 when TPM hit in '99 are hitting their early 20s now. Hasbro is hoping/banking that these 3D re-issues will be the catalyst that turn a lot of those 20-something prequel kids into the next generation of adult collectors.
Hasbro has talked quite a bit at the past few shows that we really are entering a new era in collecting. We've got the old guard collectors, who've been in it for like 30 years; then you have the "new guard" prequel kids who are starting to his young adult hood as sort of the next generation of collectors; then you have the ongoing kids still being exposed thanks to their parents and Clone Wars on TV.
It should be interesting to see how it plays out. Will those 20-something kids buy up Anakin/Sebulba Pod Racers they didn't get when they were kids out of nostalgia for the prequels like Hasbro is hoping they will or will they ignore the stuff? Wait and see I guess...
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Kinda hard to answer since I buy few toys and most are for my son, who absolutely is STILL into Star wars! If I had more extra cash we'd be getting a lot more than we have.
So for me, the best figure we got is the Rebel Fleet Trooper; overall he is a great looking toy, very well sculpted with the right amount of articulation. Coming with a removable helmet is a plus and then a second cap? Not bad at all. PLus being a figure WAY over due makes the RFT my figure of the year. CLosely followed by Zam Wesell and the AoTC vintage Mace windu who FINALLY looks like SLJ.
Multipack/battlepack would be the Republic Commando set. Not only do they look really cool, with great articulation makes these commandos a figure they can build on and churn out multiple variations for years to come. Can anyone say Omega Squad?
Vehicles - didn't buy any new ones this year.