Really? Because that's pretty much exactly what you said.
I don't want to see duds enter the marketplace, particularly when this item aimed at collectors will likely eat up a slot for another, better item aimed at collectors.
That's funny, I don't see "main line" or "exclusive" anywhere in what I said. Looks like you saw what you wanted to see.
(No worries, I've done the same.)
Re: your point about "protecting Hasbro," keep this in mind: they really do pay attention to what fans say. And they get burned. Fans online in ALL hobbies often exaggerate their interest (or lack thereof, especially on these very boards over the years). A few years ago fans on Transformers boards said they would pay $500 (a hypothetical estimate) on a Beast Wars Neo Unicron toy. Not only WOULDN'T they pay it, but a lot of these people were young fans who probably *couldn't* pay it. This sort of thing happens a lot. I don't doubt that many are interested in this piece, but I doubt there are many who aren't already posting on the forums that would shell out for it. A 95% positive forum approval can still be a false positive-- who wouldn't say yes if Hasbro said "we're totally going to make the Lars Homestead for $60, who wants it?"
I'm usually the one going on about how much I like something in face of others hating on it, so for me, this is a bit of a strange twist of fate. Back in the day the JD forums were the one place I could always be sure I could find a long string of posts on how much someone dislikes something which I thought was fantastic... I'm kinda surprised to find that this time around, it seems the only hater is me.
Come on now. I like Sideshow's product a lot, but it's not friendly to a collector on a budget. Do you know how much the new Darth Vader VS Obi-Wan Kenobi piece is selling for? $300. And truth be told, it's not all that big, especially compared to Sideshow's Premium Format pieces which are similarly priced. And that VS scene would likely be limited to about 2,000 pieces or so.
Hasbro can crank out a greater number of Funeral Pyre Vaders at a much better price. And I find their approach of taking this to the collectors to be refreshing. Hasbro seems much more engaged with the collector base now than they were 6 or 7 years ago. And taking the collecting community's temperature on this item seems to be more of a grass roots approach to line planning, rather than depending on the tastes of retail buyers that may be more fickle. They can present buyers with a good level of online feedback before they decide to pick up the set.
That's pretty much exactly my point-- this is an item with a smaller appeal. Have you seen the shrinking edition sizes on Gentle Giant and Sideshow items, and the massive drop-off in interest which caused them? There's a good reason to go that way. Success is relative. If Hasbro sold only 10k of the item, it might be a flop by their standards while 2.5k for Sideshow would be a tremendous hit.
The power of "you can't have this" is one of the greatest marketing tools a collectible company has-- Gentle Giant, Sideshow, and Hasbro used it to great success early on in all their lines.
And look at it this way-- I seem to be one of maybe four people poo-pooing this item on the boards, certainly the most verbose. I've heard a number of people in person dislike it before I said anything either way, so if the fan interest really truly is as high as may be believed, my complaining about it makes me look wronger than usual and everyone's comments will shine a light on what a great seller it is, right? This is Hasbro and Lucasfilm we're dealing with. They don't do grass roots movements, they go forth and [attempt to] profit.
I'm one of the Padme lovers that Jesse hates. 
[SNIP]... Just like the funeral Padme, she doesn't need any articulation in my opinion, she laid there with her arms cross on the hover-hearse.
I'd be interested in that, even if it'd be a stranger item. At least she'd have a unique outfit and not be an existing figure.
[SNIP]
You want Vlix I'm pretty sure, in some capacity. I personally think the Droids cartoon is retarded, and beyond Boba Fett, I'm not really interested in much from it.
Vlix is my Waterloo. I know it's a lost cause, there's no reason to do one up except for the old-timey Kenner collectors who really dig the gangsters of the early Empire and unproduced toys-- like Gargan was. It's like some people want Ackmeena, or Tikkes, or whatever. It's not just *a* figure that I'd like to see, it's *the* figure I'd like to see. I'm not going to argue it's a huge hit, it's got limited appeal and would probably have to be part of a multi-pack with a much more appealing product to work. Once you get past the fact he's not from a movie, I'd say the appeal is similar to that of Willrow Hood, a key difference being that Vlix is something of a legendary toy while Hood is something of a shining piece of fan lore. And both are equally obscure, but depending on who you ask and when, either could be more recognizable. They're doing ICMG for us-- I think specifically for JediDefender, really-- and that's no small victory, particularly when many of the petitions over the years didn't even use the character name in the graphics.
And I agree, I'd go bonkers for a good Freeze Han too-- I never get why every Carbonite Han Solo is based on the melting scene and not the freezing process. I'd totally support that... and I'm right there with you on a bigger, better Carbonite playset. I like the POTJ one, but yeah, a big one would be something else wouldn't it?
