JediDefender.com Forums
Collectibles => Past Hasbro 3.75" Lines => Saga Collection '06 => Topic started by: Brian on April 6, 2006, 02:45 PM
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After reading some people's comments on bare pegs at various stores, it got me wondering further about where everyone is having the best luck this year. From the online reports, it looks like Target is most often ahead of the game in Star Wars collecting this year...and many Wal-Marts are behind, or empty. Although I do think I've managed to find quite a few of my figures at Wal-Mart (I've only found the first three waves, no sign of Coruscant yet), I think I must have just been fortunate enough to stop in at the right times...because they have had bare pegs (or overtaken pegs) the rest of the year. Looking back on what I've bought this year, I think this is how its broken down:
Carkoon Wave - Found at Wal-Mart
Hoth Wave - Wal-Mart (AT-AT Driver, Snowtrooper, Derlin, Veers) Target (R2-D2, Vader)
Geonosis Wave - Target (Poggle, Sun Fac), Wal-Mart (2 Clones, Scorch)
It kind of surprises me that overall I've found more at WM so far, because the pegs are literally empty every other time I've stopped there. In fact, our closest WM now doesn't even have pegs for basic figures, instead filling those pegs with the smaller (regular) Transformers. Plenty of SW Transformers, Unleashed BPs, and Force Battlers on the pegs though. Our WM also doesn't carry Galactic Heroes so far. In fact, they don't seem to be too crazy about action figures in general so far this year, as the ML pegs have been mostly bare (aside from a couple Black Panthers), they don't carry JLU or DC Superheroes thus far, no sign of Fantastic Four Classics or the X-Men lines, and a smaller action figure section overall. Of the lines that actually have figures on the pegs at WM now, I think its something like this:
Power Rangers (large section)
TMNT (large section)
Transformers
GI Joe - Sigma Six
"The Batman" Animated Line
Superman Returns (just arrived this week)
Marvel Legends Showdown
Marvel Legends (very few figures right now)
Spider-Man Classics
Fantastic Four Movie
Overall, I enjoy shopping at Target much more. Its actually one of the wife and I's favorite stores, to just shop for a variety of things. Plus, we never seem to leave angry or frustrated just from the "shopping experience" like we do at WM. Although they don't have the size/inventory of WM, our Target does carry a variety of action figure lines - more so than WM actually - and seem to be better at stocking, at least so far this year. I'd probably skip WM altogether if I could, but it is quite a bit closer to us and easier to stop in at and check things out. Our closest Target is further away, so its often picked over by the time I can get there. One I've forgotten to mention is TRU, which hasn't really been too bad I guess. They don't usually have a whole lot of Star Wars basic figures, but have had more than WM overall (they stick around longer at least). They sometimes have some of the "other" lines stuff first (Titanium Ultra, Titanium figures) - even though I'm not necessarily interested in those things. Also, they are the only place in town that carries the Fan4 Classics and X-Men lines from the Marvel side of things. They also have a healthy stock of the DC stuff most of the time. Anyways - back on the TSC subject, what stores have been the best to you this year? Where do you prefer to shop?
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Good topic. I'd usually say that Walmart has been my best place to find new waves, but really my toy run times have changed over the past year so that affects things. Probably TRU (which has been a surprise) has been the easiest for me, but I think that's because less collectors seem to be hunting at the one I go to now (close to my work).
:P
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Well, I really get 90% of my stuff at WM. I've completed the first 4 waves there. Out of the 22 scorches I got there were only 2 from Target. Out of the 40 or so U. clones I got only 2 from Target. Well..hehe, I've helped alot of WM
?haters? out with their collections by shopping at WM. Not to say that I'm not irritated with WM..because I am. Their retail plan locally/regionally? is to get fig. cases in every 2-3 weeks. that's just too long a wait for me. I don't remember the waits this long in other non-movie years >:(. Target , on the other hand, seems to get new toys BEFORE WM this year sometimes more than a week before WM does. Unfortunately, I never/rarely get anything from that store because I don't have the opportunity to go looking there during 'prime times' and at other times they're toy policies locally disagree with corporate's message to customers= I never get anything because their employees stick to a no-collectable love policy. Quoting their corporate words doesn't help worth a crap either- because of this it's a real depressing place to shop-I think they should have painted blue instead of red :(. Imagine a store with a main goal to make a sale so customers will return yet they have a policy against that very function. So, there's a policy against collectibles/collectors...it's hypocrisy- who do they think funds those lines?! Especially when there's room to stock it, they have more in supply in the system but don't want to stock because of a policy?! Which, hurts somebody like me ..who can only go in there in the evenings at best ::). I guess if I could 'run' speedwalk to the toy aisle in the morning(not have a job) I would be getting more from them and complain less??
This year is a flip flop from last. Last year I got everything at WM 1-2 weeks BEFORE Target did..now this year Target seems to get the product first. Makes me wonder if the manufacturer had alternating time release contracts annually between the 2 retailers?
Another thing that is just atrocious is the price wars-it like watching the numbers at the corner gas station change. Definately the first year I've ever seen the prices go up and down by that much difference AND frequency.
Notice, I didn't mention Kmart or TRU here-- their highest prices and frequent lack of availability have really made them non- factors here when thinking of a place to shop for SW(until their exclusives hit-when your then forced to visit them ::))
K-bee..who?
--Urb
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I guess if I could 'run' speedwalk to the toy aisle in the morning(not have a job) I would be getting more from them and complain less??
That reminds me of this time I had a broken ankle and had my crutches. I went to Target at 8 like I do some mornings (usually in the summer since the university traffic is less and I can park closer to my lab) and this other collector saw me there and ran to the toy aisle to beat me there. I stopped half way there because I was laughing so hard and he came back down the hall before I was there and told me "there nothing new there". I just kept laughing. I mean, I had a broken ankle, anyone in the city could have beaten me to the toy aisle. To this day I still laugh about it.
Anyway, I bought all my TSC at Target with a few army builders at TRU when they had the 4.99 sale and a few more army builders this Sunday with the 3 for 2 thing.
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Wal-Mart has, by and large, been pretty useless this year so far. There are three within a 30 minute radius, and each one of them follows the exact same pattern of case reciept and stocking trends:
MONTH ONE: Wal-Mart gets one case of figures period.
MONTH TWO: Other toy lines start to overtake the eight pegs where SW figures should be. Now only four pegs for SW figures. Wal-Mart gets one more case of the wave that shipped before the last case assortment.
MONTH THREE: Figures are now down to three varieties (Sun Fac, Poggle, and Derlin) in multiples, although the peg space is now down to two pegs. The army of Cliffs and Bugs overflow and WM doesn't get anything else but more Transformers.
MONTH FOUR: Wal-Mart finally gets another case of the first assortment, but by this time, two more waves have come and gone from the other retailers.
Lather. Rinse. Repeat.
Toys R Us is equally useless, although they seem to go through the stock a bit quicker. I actually saw an Utapau Clone for the first time since early February when I pulled mine from a case at Target there the other day, but it was amongst a fresh restocking of the Retail Death assortment (the one with all the Hoth and Geonosis figures everyone already has in bulk), so I left it behind in case one of the kids circling around that are could get one. If you need Polis Massans, though, TRU has you more than covered at more than original retail price.
Target is pathetic here. They get one case a month of the basic figures, and at least 20 cases a month of the other stuff (Transformers, Titanium whatevers, and those horrid "Unleashed" Battle Packs). The figure pegs stay practically empty except for my old friends Bib and Barada, but everything else is well stocked and even more well restocked.
So yeah, this whole artificial demand surrounding the "UGH" (never has a name been more accurate) promotion is actually secondary to the absolute drought of basic action figures on the pegs that is making the whole process of just getting one of each new figure to open a headache of the nth degree. Thanks Hasbro, 11 years and you've learned nothing! ::)
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I mainly go to my local flea markets and so far I have only gotten 6 TSC figures from wal-mart/the bay.
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Walmart has been a bit out of my reach lately, but my few trips to them have yielded little, and what is hanging on their pegs has mostly been Hoth wave leftovers. I've given up on them for now.
The reason I gave up on Walmart was Target, which, until the last several weeks, was on fire with new cases. Just unbelievably healthy. I've found all of the Saga waves at one Target or another. If I see remnants at one store, with a bit of persistence I can find the same cases at another nearby store. Even working to get items from the back has been a pleasant experience. But, all good things, you know...
I was on record saying that the Geonosis wave would cause a backlog of figures, and I was really shocked that it didn't come true. Instead, my Target luck has been killed by the unneeded Wave 2.5R2 case, with the Carkoon, Hoth, and Geo remix. It's spilling over the pegs here, and still hasn't stopped. It's been overshipped in obscene amounts, and is preventing the Coruscant (and the UGHs) from finding their way out of backrooms. The pegs can barely support a new case now, and they're drowning in Chewie, Poggle, and Darth Vader.
And TRU and KB are useless here now, too. On top of that, my closest TRU is closing down. So unless Walmart starts coming through, I have to stick with Target and hope those older waves that were stupidly refreshed clear out.
Hey DocP, where ya been?
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For me it's been a mix bag where no place is a clear winner or loser. Oddly enough I found 2 Cody's at a Walgreens. My trip back to Illinois in February I found most of the Hoth wave at a Gordman's. It's all been kind of weird for me and Saga2 this year.
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Wal-Marts have sucked this year, after an incredible 2005. Out of 2 WMs that I frequent, there are either no figs at all, or one lonely Rieekan surrounded by Choppers, Titanium, etc.
Target has been hit or miss. They get new waves in, but the pegwarmers stick around while the better figs fly out. I've bought only the Carkoon wave from them so far.
TRU has been great this year, though they've had a shipping slowdown lately. I've picked up the Hoth wave and half of the Geonosis wave from TRU. A pleasant surprise when compared to the ROTS crapfest.
KB and K-Mart left town... we still have a KB, but they haven't had anything new since they got the VOTC ANH wave, so I pretend they don't exist.
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I've completely given up on WM at this point. I've ranted in other threads about how hard it is to find new stuff there. DP - I love your comments on the WM stocking trends!! Made me laugh you did. :)
TRU? Many have closed their doors where I live and the only one that's close is backlogged with 30-50 ROTS figs and caked with the Hoth wave. I'm sure with their upcomming BOGO sale will result in more of the same wave as the pic suggests.
I get most of my stuff from Target. I'm an early bird hunter so I have the pleasure of competing with the HW guys. I've never had to run to beat them to the stuff - don't need toys that bad. Most of the guys have this "first come first served" thing though which is nice.
KB? Don't even think there's any left in my entire state.
K-Mart. K what?
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Most of my stuff has come from Wal-Mart. I'm always too late when I hit Target, so I usually don't bother with them anymore.
I haven't bought a Saga figure at TRU yet. They're about a month to six weeks behind everyone else when it comes to Star Wars.
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Walmart, which is due to my career and schedule. I teach and am at school so I can only hit a local Target on my way to school. The others are too far out. I will say though that I have hunted hard at Wally and the first 3 waves I cleaned up there with, but Coruscant is harder. It is harder because you have ALOT more people out looking for Cody (and multiples I have found, I mean multiples like some wanting 6 to 10) AND you have the collector/scalper and the scalper out. So you have to hit a store at just the right time in order to score I think.
I'm off track (no teaching) for 3 weeks now so I'll be back to hitting Targets so that works good for me as a balencing tools. Just in time for the VTSC!
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I guess if I could 'run' speedwalk to the toy aisle in the morning(not have a job) I would be getting more from them and complain less??
How the hell do you equate "not having a job" with being at a Target at 8am or a WalMart at 7am?
I've got a damn good job, that pays me quite well, and I can hit at least one WalMart and one Target both when they open on my way up to work.
What you really should be saying is "not have a job that requires me to be on the clock before 9am"
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K-bee..who?
Surprisingly, this has been my best source over the past 3 weeks. I happen to know the specific time they unload a truck each Friday, and have been there for the 1 case of figures they receive each of the past 3 weeks. 3 weeks ago it was the Hoth/Geonosis mixed case, and for the past 2 weeks it has been Commander Cody and Coruscant.
:o
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I guess if I could 'run' speedwalk to the toy aisle in the morning(not have a job) I would be getting more from them and complain less??
How the hell do you equate "not having a job" with being at a Target at 8am or a WalMart at 7am?
I've got a damn good job, that pays me quite well, and I can hit at least one WalMart and one Target both when they open on my way up to work.
What you really should be saying is "not have a job that requires me to be on the clock before 9am"
Damn already...OK was that was a rough way to say it?! Note there's alot of I's in what I wrote? OK ok maybe I should have said 'unless I want to quit my job to get a new one that req's me to be on the clock before 8am(when my targets open)'. Well...I just figured with all the I's I put in there that folks would determine I wasn't talking about them :-\.
Wow, Dressel- I have not heard really anything from anyone getting anything good at KB toys lately. I guess what I hate is that... over the last few years their prices are so rough that it makes it tougher to spend there and...at least where I live, they get any waves really late like TRU/KMART anyway. :(
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In my area Targets have been really hit-or-miss... You either find the pegs fully stocked or no basic figures at all. The few times I go to Wal*Mart they usually only have the usual pegwarmers, Sun Fac, Derlin, AT-AT Driver, Leia, etc. I don't consider TRU to be a place to find new figures, as for the past 3+ months the pegs have been clogged by Baradas and Bibs.
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Wow, Dressel- I have not heard really anything from anyone getting anything good at KB toys lately. I guess what I hate is that... over the last few years their prices are so rough that it makes it tougher to spend there and...at least where I live, they get any waves really late like TRU/KMART anyway. :(
Don't get me wrong, KB is horrible. For months I went there and found absolutely nothing. Then 3 weeks ago I happened to stumble in there on Friday morning when they were unloading a truck. I saw a case of Star Wars and asked if I could open it. I got to talking to the manager and she said that they get a truck every Friday morning, and there is always just 1 case of Hasbro Star Wars 3 3/4" on it each time. Now basically before I discovered this, it was always gone within hours.
Here's the real kicker, I watched as they unloaded 4-5 cases each of mini-Unleashed, Galactic Heroes, Force Battlers, and Transformers. So basically they always received four times as much of each of the ****** line than the real hot one. For the life of me, this makes no ******* sense whatsoever. I don't get it.
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Question. Is it retail's fault by holding back ordering product due to seasonal history (and yes, buyers who order this for the major retailers do consider seasonal time of year when the order), or Hasbro's fault for limiting production? Or are there just more people coming out of the woodwork right now to buy? Is it a combination? I would say if you can shop early, Target is it. If you can hit late Walmart. Then during the days you have your Kmart's, Shoko's, etc. However, everyone seems to be getting limited cases.
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My area local WM got 5-6 elongated cases each of UGH wave last(thurs) nite. Seems like a lot for 4 different stores at one time but..it's really nothing compared to the fact that the stores get a shipment every 2 1/2 to 3 weeks :(. I agree with everything Black dog asks about except the Hasbro's fault in production. I'm pretty certain they don't just produce it to produce it. They produce according to retail's demand- so I'd definately say retail is to blame combined with more buyers involved this year :(.
Nice post B. Dog!
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Normally I would be pointing the finger squarely at Hasbro (as long-timers here know I am want to do from time to time) for not producing enough or what have you, but the thing that disturbs me more than anything else about the lack of basic figures that don't have wings or a humorous alcohol dependence is exactly what Dressel mentioned. Every store I go to is FULLY STOCKED with the peripheral stuff, like the Unleashed BPs, the Titanium ships, the Choppers, the Titanium figures, Galactic Heroes, and Transformers, and multiple cases of these items arrive about twice a week at least. Basic figures are stocked sparingly, with maybe one case every month, depending on the retailer, and practically empty pegs when they don't have a new shipment arrive.
I'm really confused about this, because if the production was being done according to retail's demand, Slothus, and I mean this with the utmost respect, wouldn't the amount of the peripheral items already clogging the shelves to the point of unsightliness being shipped in greater and greater amounts be the complete antithesis of producing according to retail demand? Is retail brainwashed by Hasbro into thinking that the Choppers line is more interesting and popular than the basic figures, or is Hasbro not producing or shipping enough basic stuff, or is it something else entirely?
The fact of the matter remains that there is an alarmingly low level of basic figure product out there right now and the entire line has become a "Ultimate Galactic Hunt" situation as opposed to the 10 figures that were intentionally changed in order to make a promotional statement. Whether it's Hasbro's fault or retail's fault, I have no idea. All I know is that when I see Marvel Legends chase figures more than I do regular SW figures, things are just hitting an all-time low.
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The only thing I can say to that,Doc, is that I go to at least WM alot at night and I would say I see equal amount of cases of UL, Transformers, basic ect. They come at different times...but only the basic moves fast. I haven't seen the bikes ship in over a month-they never move anyway. All waves of unleashed pegwarm..even the clone ones..
Basically, what I see is that when a store gets the basic in..especially if it's new figs, it's gone in 2-3 days. So it always looks empty-where I live anyway. It's pretty obvious the demand for basic is really high this year and the empty pegs (among full of everything else) shows demand is not being met by basic. For instance we have wave 2.5 (geo+ hoth/carkoon) is overflowing and pegwarming at our Targets (as Jared predicted)..the reason is...they got geo..followed quickly by coruscant..then for some overstockish? dumb reason they restocked with geo again. WM 'here get the product every 3 weeks..by then there's not much on the pegs so they fully restock..but, people were waiting so long for new product that they buy it all up and now have to wait 3 weeks again ::). If it were an every week or biweekly schedule then it would meet the demand now. Retailers just aren't going to set up that many pegs for that kind of shipping schedule or ask hasbro to produce those kind of amounts in a non-movie year..ever.
As far as back east..I hear alot of WM's with no basic pegs at all or they haven't gotten figures in months. I've never had a problem with WM for SW in my neck of the ahh 'desert' so I fail to comprehend this now. I'm hating the 3 week interval wait right now though.
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KBtoys.com just found the nuts to raise their basic figure price to $8.99 today.
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One Target in my area has four full pegs of Vader and two full pegs of Lushros. That leaves only two pegs for the rest of the line. Were those two figures heavilly shipped or something?
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I made some stops over lunch today, and was surprised at what I saw. Both TRU and WM were stocked full with figures from Carkoon through Coruscant (except for Cody, of course). I might have to start making TRU a regular stop again. They had been pretty much empty most of the year, but seem to be catching up a bit now. Plus, with the Target and WM price increases, they aren't too much more expensive at this point either (especially with that buy 2 get one free sale they have going now). Target had the same as usual - Poggle, Sun Fac, Yoda, and Derlin. Also of note, between WM and TRU, I think I saw at least 10 of the Hoth Vaders. Didn't pick one up, but I hadn't really seen that figure much this year yet, but they had plenty today.
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Checked out a few stores the past couple of days, and the situation isn't too great right now - but hopefully things are on the way soon.
Wal-Mart - TONS of VTSC figures, and probably 5-10 TSC figures pretty much made up of Geonosians and a couple of H & V figures. Other than the "other" lines (TF, Force Battlers, 2" Unleashed) not much else here. No vehicles or anything like that.
Target - VTSC figures, although they are slowly selling through. Lots of Demise of Grievous figures, and a few figures from the Coruscant and H & V waves. Also, a couple of Bren Derlins that have been there since February I think. Skirmish packs sitting about still too, and sometimes a few of the $20-price range vehicles.
TRU - Again, quite a few VTSC figures. Other than that, a couple of ROTS Mas Ameddas, 5 Hoth Vaders, and a couple of H & V figures. No sign of the Gunships, but plenty of Falcons :). They often have a few of the $20 price range vehicles here as well.
Overall, pretty much looking the same for the past month or two at the retail stops here. The VTSC figures are really stocked pretty fully at all three stores, with the Biker Scouts (and to a lesser extent Luke) being a little more picked over - but they can be found. I'm glad to see that they aren't tough to find, but hope that they sell pretty well overall so we continue to see these type of figures in the future.
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Yeah, things are fairly clogged up around here lately, lots of H&V, Geonosis and Courescant. One store has Tatooine starting to clog the pegs, Hems, Garindins and Hans mostly. A lot less options in terms of what stores to hit since many are moving basic figures very slowly.
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Wal-Marts near me have, by and large, the exact same stock, an itemized list of which follows: :)
Basic Figures: Hoth Vader, Derlin, Bib Fortuna, Sora Bulq, Sun Fac, Lushros Dofine, H&V Mace Windu, H&V R2-D2, H&V Obi-Wan, H&V Anakin, H&V Vader, H&V Chewie...oh forget it, can I just say "H&V Anyone Who Isn't A Clone?"
VTSC: Gobs and gobs of all five figures, with slightly more Greedos and Hans and slightly less Lukes and Scouts.
Titaniums: Sith Infiltrator and multiple BSGs. At least 4 each of the Ultra Tri-Fighter and ARC. Multiples of the Vintage Finish Vader, and 2 regular Fetts.
Unleashed: Fully stocked with everything from the Kashyyyk and Felucia sets. Only Chewbacca remains from the 7" line (gosh, who'da thunk it?) ::)
Galactic Heroes: A mountain of the last assortment with Maul/Kenobi, etc. At least 30 at each store.
Transformers: Tons of Vader, tons of Grievous, tons of Anakins, tons of Boba Fett. Nothing else.
Did I mention the SW Choppers? Because they're still here too if you can make the packaging out through the inches of dust on the box.
Target is hit and miss. They have about 5 Skirmish packs, Anakin's JSF, 2 Titanium Bossks, 4 Demise of Grievii, a full set of the VTSC, and their basic figure selection consisted earlier today of 5 Hoth Vaders, a Derlin, 2 Foul Moudamas, 4 H&V Mace Windus, 3 H&V R2-D2s, and 2 Dofines.
Toys R Us has a crapload of ROTS Collection 2 figures (Polis Massans in the house!), tons of the MF at full price, a lot of lightsabers, and no sign of the Gunship or the HFG pack after the one shipment.
Hooray for retail! :P
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Pittsburgh PA goes something like this...
-Wal-Mart... It's a mix and really dependant on your store. For instance the one nearest for me has ZERO VTSC on the pegs and never did get any in at all. Or if they have, they've never been out for sale. The basic figures had, up till last week, been just overflowing with H&V figures. Now, they're down to like 6, and there's a Coruscant remnant mixed in there here and there too, but they sold through a ton of H&V at this store.
Now, that's my nearest WM which has zero competition around it within a 25 minute drive at least.
Go to the two WM's I hit on one of my toy run loops that takes 45 minutes to get to, and they're literally falling off the pegs with H&V and some pegwarmers like Poggle, Lushros, or Gummi Mundi. And Vader figures out the wazzoo (Hoth, Bespin, H&V). The same can be said for the WM out in the boonies I hit now and then, as well as the one in an urban strip mall I hit now and again, and a couple others on other long toy runs...
Of all the WM's I visit, several have VTSC in varying quantities, while 2 have no VTSC whatsoever. One I was at last night had full sets, even Scouts, while the other had VTSC falling off the pegs and tucked on shelves and above the pegs haphazardly. This store had no Biker Scouts though. Go figure.
-Target... Target is weird. Sometimes I find a remnant of Tatooine Wave at these stores, but never Hem Dazon, Luke, or Sandtrooper (duh), but I've seen R5, Garindant, and especially Momaw a couple of times now.
These stores also have a ton of H&V sitting around though certain of those have sold very quickly while others have just sat and sat (Mace, Chewbacca, Vader, R2, etc.)... Target's the only retailer who seemingly tries to separate the two lines (Basic from H&V), so I assume that's why they get a smattering of Tatooine Wave in semi-routinely. They've also been putting out new cases of Coruscant Wave or Geonosis Wave too, but usually a case at a time and nothing more.
Target also has the smattering of basics clogging the pegs with H&V though, such as Gummi Mundi and Lushros, and there are also Hoth and Carkoon stragglers too like Bib Fortuna and Derlin at Target but nowhere else too much... One Target near me too, oddly enough, is the only one with a $5.89 pricerange too... I find that incredibly weird, but it proves to me that any Target could be charging that and profiting but they simply choose not to. Retail's frustrating right now that way.
Target stores all have pegspace for VTSC and Demise of Grievous. Grievous' fall off pegs at some stores while others have only one peg's worth of them. The VTSC are pretty well picked over and I don't see Luke's, Sandpeople, or Scouts at Target much at all, but Greedo and Han are in massive abundance. I long for clearance on those two. :)
-Toys R Us... I hit 3 or 4 TRU's on a semi-routine basis. So far the most any store has gotten in is 2 cases of Hunt for Grievous, some have sold cases sealed to buyers locally while others have brought them out from the back when asked. I've yet to get my two sets though.
They seem to have the best mix of figures, basic and H&V, but haven't had much new come in for a little while. The VTSC at TRU seem to be more picked over than at Wal-Mart... There's much less even than at Target which is pretty well picked over itself.
TRU has done well with their sales this year. They clear stuff out faster than any other retailer, and it's a trend I wish the others would realize and adopt to clear out what they have sitting around. Veers and Derlin figures flew out the door when they were about $4 and change instead of $7+.
-Kay Bee Toys... KB has been a surprise hit in about the last month. They've been getting fairly routine new stock in, especially during their buy-2-get-1-free sale. They will bring out fresh cases of Geonosis Wave, Coruscant Wave, or even the newest Tatooine Wave, and the best part is you can army build with all 3 waves for on the cheap... That's a pretty spiffy deal.
The usual suspects pegwarm though (Poggle, Derlin, Gummi Mundi, & H&V nobody wants), but the army builders go as fast as cases are put out I've noticed. If you hit it right you can come out with a great deal really on Utapau Clones or Sun Fac figures.
KB also has VTSC in abundance, and all 5 figures too, not just select ones. Unfortunately their current sale does NOT apply to the VTSC and that just sucks butt really. I found Scouts thinking man, I hit the jackpot, but the guy said it didn't apply to anything but $6.99 SW figures. That took the wind out of my sails but still I got good stuff cheap(er).
As for all the other stuff...
In general I've noticed the small Titaniums sell really well. I'm surprised, and at the same time I'm not. I think the Hot Wheelers are into these almost as much as core collectors.
The bigger Titaniums tend not to sell as well... And the Titanium figures I notice fairly routinely to the point that newer waves aren't out in much abundance (Bossk's tough to see around my area, but Vader/Fett are everywhere).
Galactic Heroes I never pay much attention to but they seem to have some kind of steady sales... At least I think they do.
Unleashed Battlepacks suck... They're going nowhere fast, and every WM has them falling off the pegs and stacked high on shelves.
Unleashed 6" are backed up like a nightclub toilet. Every WM has them en masse and they really suck.
Star Wars Transformers... I don't know who thinks these things are selling, but in my area they don't seem to be. At some WM's I hit later I notice new cases, but the next day the same old same old is still out, and some are collecting dust at this point. I still feel this idea is a dismal failure and I'd love to see these put to rest finally.
Choppers... MOre the same. Bad idea in the first place and not selling by what I observe in my area. Tons at every WM, Target, and TRU.
Vehicles... The $20 pricepoint vehicles are in bulk at some retailers but things like the tri-fighter sold once more and even the Jefi Fighters seem to have moved well again. I think there's life in those yet.
Role-Play... The cheap sabers seem to linger but I notice the light-ups sell steadily and there's always new ones or stuff shuffled around at my local retailers. The Clone/Stormie blasters are flying out the door too, I'm shocked in a way but RP has been big for the past couple years now.
Attacktix... I can't tell how these things sell... :) Some stores look like the same have hung on the pegs for ages while others have nothing but pegspace for them, so these are weird to me.
That's things out here...
I'm sick of the price though. If I have a gripe with a figure anymore, a lot of is largely due to the fact that Star Wars figures are $7+ and aren't even as good as they were in 2005 for the most part, save for a handful. The price dropping a dollar per would do a lot for my opinion on many figures (Veers for instance)... It's very frustrating too when one Target sells for that price, but all other stores in the area seem to gouge you for more.
Sales have been something I jump on a lot more this year, that's for certain.
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I've been very happy with retail this year. In fact, I just found the entire Tattoine wave (except R5) over the last two days, incluidng two troopers. I found all of these at Targets. However, I found the Curo wave at TRU a while back, and the Carkoon and Hoth waves at a KB. I also just saw that my local KB had the Tatooine wave, but Vader was all that was left. In all, I've found every figure in a timely fasion spread out over three retail establsihments. For a post movie year, I consider that excellent. Any one else remember 2003, and the 6 month dry spell?
So far, I think that this has been my favorite non-movie year for collecting. Not all of my favorite figs, but the hunt is just tough enough to be interesting, but easy enough to be satisfying!
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North Target - Very little VTSC, some Demise of Grievous, TONS of Barada and Bib Fortuna, nothing else. It's like this store ordered a bunch of the carkoon wave and decided that they were done with SW for the year. Disappointing, since I found a bunch of HTF ROTS figures at this same Target.
North Wal-Mart - Hoth and Bespin Vaders galore, no VTSC, a few H&V figures scattered around, tons of Transformers.
South Target - TONS of Demise of Grievous, TONS of Senate Battle Packs, TONS of Vaders, Hoth, Geonosis, and Coruscant pegwarmers, H&V figures out the wazoo, some VTSC. On occasion, they'll get in some Tatooine/Coruscant stuff, but the hot figures are always taken quickly, leaving the pegwarmers.
South Wal-Mart - TONS of VTSC, more Hans and Greedos, less Lukes and Bikers. Vaders galore, Coruscant pegwarmers, H&V out the wazoo. However, they frequently put out new cases, though it goes fast.
TRU - An odd mix... pegwarmers from EVERY wave, with new stock being brought out occasionally. Some VTSC, about 3 of each figure mixed in with the Landos. Lots of vehicles and lightsabers too. And old ROTS Luminara figures.
All in all, things are really weird around here. Each store varies DRASTICALLY from one another, which is interesting I guess. I'm just glad that the South stores are at least getting new product in, and I'm able to get new stuff.