Those are actually Power Team Elite items... Keep your eyes peeled as they turn up at Big Lots, Ryan. The A-10 wasn't around this year but was around last year. It's the only remotely close to 1:18 Warthog around.
Not sure on an Apache though... Got pics you could post in here? PTE made a Blackhawk, LIttlebird, a Chinese one from this last year, the Raptor/F22, A-10... That's it for aircraft that I was aware of. This could be a new mold or from another company/line.
Forces of Valor's stuff does ok I guess. OK enough that they phased out WW2. They're big problem is a lack of diversity. They had new stuff like SWAT and Firemen lined up to add into the modern line with their USMC and Army figures, and their Spec. Ops/Navy SEALS they did in the last series... Then not a peep from them. No commitment to any new sculpts. Target will suddenly restock, and they slowly tend to sell through, sometimes have a sale/clearance, then restock again... It's a very weird deal. And the company's not overly talkative.
They're doing some licensed stuff right now (Crysys 2 stuff, and Assassin's Creed Figures soon). I think their production capacity is limited.
Their WW2 figures were pretty decent. Americans were so-so, but the Germans were cool as ****, and to me they seemed to sell great. Then poof, they went to online only and no new sculpts as well. They even made a really nice Tiger-I with Zimmerit coating, and a later-production Sherman compared to the 21st Cent. Toys version.
Anyway, everything went to online that's WW2, and nothing new, and so its sales have to have slowed... My targets couldn't keep Germans in stock and certain US sold out probably just for the gear and customizing (Paul always hated their pants. I can't blame him as they weren't accurate but they had potential and rockin' WW2 gear).
At least FOV still puts stuff out... 21st Century is "restructured" and doing nothing but sitting with its thumb up its ass making claims as to what they're going to do, someday. BBI/Merit/whoever the hell it is that I guess is involved in a dispute with 21st that they lifted some of their molds from the factory, have put out some recast 21st Cent. stuff, but nothing real exciting and all online...
Our War figures are the only thing current. They're nice basic modern infantry, but non-removable headgear.
And so far out of Toy Fair not ONE thing has happened.
Bad Cat Aviation (a retailer) was making bold predictions that they somehow knew someone was going to come out of TOy Fair with new 1:18 scale news... Nothing. There's always rumors that don't pan out, the collectors get annoyed (like I said, 21st Toys stuff is selling for anywhere from its full retail price to many hundreds beyond its original price on Ebay, so there's a market there with money) because someone lied to them that something was gonna happen... blah blah blah.
To me, I am focused on 1:16 RC tanks to satiate my desire. The figures match the tanks perfectly and the support stuff goes great with it. I'm amazed more GI Joe guys haven't latched onto these considering there's some good sized modern tanks (not 1:16 but inexpensive customizable big-assed RC tanks since modern tanks are pretty huge compared to WW2 ones). I'll collect these though, and if 1:18 has any life I'll get it. To me, too many companies tried to make lines live on these huge uber detailed models. They don't grasp that smaller things that sell in greater quantities and are less initial costs are what you need (and to keep fresh) to keep the lines going. Instead of doing 5 planes a year, do 1, but put out 3 waves of figures in a year and keep them fresh with repaints and head variants and such. Put out a couple tanks, but not a bunch. Just maybe one larger armor piece and a smaller one. Look into smaller vehicles like motorcycles and Jeep-sized vehicles or artillery.
Don't paint yourself into a financial corner by sinking tons of your money into multiple plane molds that you're going to rely on repaints to make up that cost. Instead do your one, then another one next year, and again next year, then maybe repaint one and make another new one, and so on.
Sorry for the digression. I just get frustrated since I actually really enjoyed collecting these lines, the figures and armor/ground gear anyway, and I really aim a lot of blame at the planes for why the lines lagged. They're just too costly to do as many as they did. And Forces of Valor didn't do planes and here they are still making figures and armor. Hmmm... Correlation?
My collection room/office ceiling is FILLED with planes, and I wasn't vaguely a hardcore aircraft collector. I bought some I liked and if I saw one on a great clearance I'd buy it (My Avenger was only $35, never even put out at full price. Went right from the stock room to clearance, originally $70, and it's MASSIVE. It puts every Star Wars vehicle to shame, in every capacity... Even the AT-TE, AT-AT, Big Falcon... They really just look like toys by comparison to this behemoth that's riddled with model-like details and features). I somehow have more plane diversity though than tank diversity. They're the most expensive items but more were made. It's kind of obvious to me what at least one major issue was.
