There’s definitely layers to that conversation.  The audience here might be a bit over the criteria that’s become important in some circles because most here have seen so much over such a long time.  Among the criteria that’s important with a lot of that crowd?

-FINISH THE 96 - In terms of Hasbro having re-made the Original 96 Kenner figures in modern form.  Some have expanded on the idea, and want all of the O96 figures specifically within the Vintage Collection.  That’s where they lose me in some respects.  Because the conversation gets fractious because they don’t consider VOTC or VTSC to be the Vintage Collection.  SMH….

-DEFINITIVE VERSIONS OF CORE CHARACTERS - Hasbro has touched on most core characters.  But with a good deal of them their most recent versions could be 10, 15 or 20+ years old.  Another aspect of this is how well have previous versions of the character represented them in figure form?  I know that Hasbro really struggled with Mark Hamill’s likeness for a long time. And only in the past few years have they gotten pretty good at delivering figures of Luke that look like Luke.  Farm boy Luke has stuck out in the social media crowd because he really hasn’t been done well compared to current standards. 

-LOST CAUSES - This one irks me to a degree.  When I was reporting for a couple of collecting sites there was all sorts of talk about the Tonnika sisters.  I think I figured out what the deal was, and I maintain that it seems like a lost cause, no matter how many petitions circulate. 

-CHARACTER CAMPAIGNING - Sometimes this actually works.  Because there was a pretty substantial petition for Velken Tezeri that got some traction in the community.  Lo and behold, now we have him.  And numerous people on social media have been trying to find that next character to launch a social media campaign to get them made.

-OBSESSING OVER SOME DETAILS - In some of these crowds it seems like some people think they’re design engineers.  And the obsessive focus on hyper articulation is over the top.  The conversations about hip joints have been farcical.  When the TVC Endor Leia was released you would think that Hasbro had committed a war crime because the figure didn’t have wrist articulation, but did have swivel forearms. 

I think part of the reason that the conversations have evolved along these lines is because of how the line has been shaped during the Disney era.  5POA figures were launched as a cost cutting measure, but also to keep prices down.  We also learned at that time that backgrounders were far less likely to sell with casual buyers.  The trooper focus has gotten pretty crazy.  And tooling dollars seem to be scarce, so we get more repaints and reissues.  But we have also gotten some amazing figures.  I didn’t think Hasbro could really improve on Darth Vader.  But then the version from the OWK series came out and it was a game changer. 

I don’t think all of the social media conversations are ridiculous.  Some are definitely out there, and they’re missing the forest for the trees.  But some of it has brought some positive developments.  Yet I agree with a core point here - the line lacks the richness of character selections that we got pre 2013. 

I agree that Hasbro has covered Count Dooku extensively.  But the last time Hasbro touched on the figure in a live action form in the 3.75" figure line was 12 years ago.  The Black Series version that came out a couple of years ago put the likenesses of all of those figures to shame because it actually looked like Christopher Lee.  And some of the figures from 2002 really look like trash.  Add in the modern paint apps and articulation?  I think Count Dooku deserves that kind of presentation.

As for relevance?  I disagree there.  Because Dooku is an important character in Clone Wars, which has proven to have some long legs in terms of coming back for season 6 on Netflix and then season 7 on Disney+.  And then Dooku was a focal point in Tales Of The Jedi.  Most recently he factored in somewhat to the long and complicated lineage of Jedi that would end with Anakin Skywalker and Ahsoka Tano -  Baylan Skoll mentioned that as a significant plot point in the AHSOKA series.

Overall?  I think the reveals are a mixed bag.  I am very excited about Count Dooku.  He has not been in the line in a long time, and I think that the updates look good.  Having him on a TVC card is really cool, and I like the artwork.  And I'm hoping that Dooku sells well, because if he does I hope that would motivate Hasbro to take on him from Tales of the Jedi.  One of those 2-packs with Jedi Master Dooku and Yaddle would be tremendous!

The Clone Trooper looks reasonably good, but that's because of the body.  The helmet looks a little bit deformed, and I think Hasbro really needs to go with the swappable heads here.  I think they can get away with the removable helmet with a bald character, but it seems problematic with almost everyone else.  Finn looks about as good as that figure can be.  I had hoped that Hasbro might present him with the lightsaber when he fought Kylo Ren in TFA, but that wasn't meant to be.  As for Cassian Andor?  The figure looks good, and the photo real paint apps make a big difference.  But Hasbro's inability to judge the market seems problematic since its quite easy to get a hold of both the 3.75" Black Series and TVC releases.  Could this version of Cassian be relevant to season 2 of ANDOR?  Potentially, since I've heard Tony Gilroy state that ideally season 2 will end with Cassian getting on his ship to begin the adventure that unfolds in ROGUE ONE.

The Fan Channel only thing really struck me from all of these reveals.  Target and Walmart both hold tremendous sway over the way Hasbro operates because of their buying power.  I don't think Hasbro is checking out on brick and mortar retail stores.  And that's because Hasbro got Target to buy in on the Mandalorian N-1 starfighter.  You don't stock 3 or 4 x $130+ toys on prime shelf space if you're considering diminishing the relationship.  But I do think that Hasbro is mindful of what collectors are asking for and are trying to steer those things to fan channel retailers.  The puzzling part of that is why Hasbro would put Cassian and Finn there in light of the response to those announcements.  However, I think it's very likely that the ANH wave with Vader, the Stormtrooper reissues, X-Wing Pilot Luke, R2-D2 and the new TVC Leia are likely to be very present at brick & mortar retail.

Same here.  I finally bit the bullet on the 212th Clones, and also got the Imperial Officers plus the Ewoks 2-pack.  And sure enough I got clones without the brow lines.  At least I only bought one set.  Still, it's disappointing.

Less than 7 hours to go and the campaign is still 1500+ backers short.  It’s not looking good for Giant Man!

Personally, I might have backed an MCU Giant Man.  The scene at the airport in Civil War plus the final battle in Endgame were some of my favorite moments for the character.  And I have to wonder if that might have led to a higher number of backers. 

Glad to see that I’m not the only one doing some purging!  I’ve been selling off my McFarlane Sports Picks, ToyBiz LOTR and extra Star Wars stuff.  Almost all of my Mattel Marvel Secret Wars and Kenner Super Powers figures are gone.  Next up?  ToyBiz Marvel figures that were released before the Marvel Legends line was launched.  And there’s still some vintage GI Joe and Transformers left to go.  Ugh.   

Tangentially related, my daughter loved the Young Jedi show and watched all of it when it came to D+.  She wanted toys but there were none.  Yesterday I was at Wally and I noticed an entire line of figures (and vehicles!!),  Would have been nice to have when she was more into it.

I saw an endcap full of Young Jedi Adventures merchandise at Target.  And it was placed near the section  of the toy department that’s dedicated to little kids toys. 

My Amazon order for this got pushed back even further into December.  Although there could be another email changing the date to Thursday.  IDK what is up with Amazon sometimes.