Just to say this up front: I love
Galactic Hunter and I visit their site regularly, because (with the exception of JD of course
) they're one of the most reliable sites on the web when it comes to SW collecting. I think that Michael Sullenger and Adam May and the rest of the crew do a wonderful job there and I hope they continue for many years to come. So no offense to those guys at GH at all.
There's actually a point in the Q&A that I was marveling at his thinly veiled use of semantics to avoid the cost of the EE packs. Let's take a look, shall we?
While basic carded figures are the heart and soul of Star Wars collections worldwide, they don't make for great exclusives-- me, I'd rather see more multi-packs of figures if most (or all) of the figures are new enough to be cool.
Now, this I agree with. I don't like the idea of a basic carded figure being an exclusive, especially if it's an army builder (like the Target Clone) or a unique figure that isn't a repaint. He had me up until this point, and then the laughter ensued.
In recent history, individually carded exclusive figures were priced at levels that, frankly, I don't care for-- $10 at Toys "R" Us for a holographic figure, or free with purchase? $12-$16 for Wedge? $13 or so for Holographic Leia or Holographic Emperor? Color me cynical, but I don't much like those prices.
Of course you don't like those prices! Since those figures are exclusives to someone other than Entertainment Earth, you would have to pay actual retail for them and, you know, have to communicate with the plebians in the collecting community you avoid contact with so much in order to locate some of them! How dare Hasbro not cater to your individual wishes!
Are the figures overpriced? Sure, they're overpriced, and I don't think anyone will deny that. But the approach that he seems to be taking is that exclusive figures that cost more than a basic figure being sold at retailers other than EE is bad, while those sold at EE for exhorbitant prices is a-okay. And he further cements this with this little gem:
If you can get the price down to $8 or less each in a multipack, it's a little more acceptable, if all the figures in the pack are OK.
So, just a minute ago, 10 bucks for a Holographic Yoda was bad, bad, bad, but 8 dollars for a repaint in, say, a five pack of figures exclusive to Entertainment Earth is perfectly acceptable. Sure, fine, whatever you say oh sage of the SW collecting world.
I have to admit though that this one paragraph has shown perfectly (if a bit subliminally) how the conflict of interests between work and hobby is starting to take its toll on people.
Also, for those of you who might be saying, "I don't get that he's condescending toward his readers at all" just check out these little gems from this morning's Q&A:
As far as other Jedi, well, keep asking Hasbro when you have the chance to bring it up. Write them letters and be sure to ask nicely, because I could care less and won't be asking for them myself.
Nice (grammatically incorrect) insult there, isn't it? Also, way to imply that your opinions are the only right ones and the only ones that you will support (he does this several times, discounting the support for any KOTOR figures while saying how Kir Kanos would be his big choice, as if that would sell any better than a KOTOR figure).
I'm curious how he knows what fans are talking about and what fans want considering, from all reports and observations, he doesn't take part in any fan communities, not even the GH forums.
It actually took me a good while to get through the Q&A due to the obstructed view created by the huge ego floating in front of it.
