Toys 'R Us and Target in Illinois
April 2, 2005
Story by Chris Spice (Darth Spice)
 

IT'S ALL ABOUT THE SITH
I decided for the Revenge of the Sith Midnight Madness I would saddle up and head out to the Toys 'R Us in Niles, Illinois. There were some members of the Midwest Garrison who played host to the line that ran the entire length of the building, during a rainstorm with the mercury in the mid-thirties. After some conversation on what to expect from a man only to be known as Jango Fett, I decided being in this situation on two previous occasions, that there will be more than plenty.

The clock struck twelve and the madness ensued. There wasn’t anyone that was being a complete jerk, but I just feel during an initial release you have no business buying more than two per figure. Why do you need ten Clone Troopers right now when you are spending so much money in a single day?

I was impressed with the turnout, and had a great time seeing the fans interact with members of the Garrison. I’m very much looking forward to donning my armor and joining yet another fight that will definitely be worth fighting. By 1:30am they were almost completely out of Collection 2. I noticed the AT-RT and several of the other smaller vehicles were completely gone.

I hit the road and prepared to be in the foxhole very early to ensure I was going to snag Target's exclusive Lava Darth Vader, the scalps would most certainly try to siphon every last one to the bay for maximum profit. I packed up and stopped in here at the War Room to plan my next phase of attack. Thanks to a fellow Trooper, I was alerted the Holographic Yoda was in stock at Amazon.com and I was able to place my order no problem at 2:30am, scratch one exclusive!

I was so shocked after my pre-dawn raid of the Target parking lot to find absolutely nobody there! I was ticket holder #1 in the Lava Darth Vader sweepstakes. I was told one per family by the gentleman at the door, thus he said he would not give my wife a ticket. Understanding the reality of someone else not getting one for me needing two I completely accepted the situation for what it was, and was very happy to simply be getting one. It was pretty much calm and in order. I was so relieved at the ease of scoring this figure, I picked up the Clone Trooper Target Cup and headed for the registers.

People helped each other out and I even bumped in to fellow Lake County, IL S.C.A.L.P. Trooper Dennis for some dialogue on his evening in Gurnee at TRU. After “moving along” from Target I headed for the Zion K-Mart only to find empty pegs littered with a few of the newer Clone Wars figures. I asked the manager if they were putting out new Star Wars figures, he kind of lit up like a Christmas tree and said, “Oh please, meet me in the back!” So I went back to see what I could turn up. Other than Yoda (26), Obi-Wan (27) and Anakin (28) nothing I hadn’t seen on my first two patrols.

I packed up and headed for the Wal-Mart tent sale to pick up the last exclusive, the Early Bird Kit. The tent was still packed at 11:30am and I found a few other things to push my total well over $400 for the previous twelve hours. I can honestly say I’m jacked up about this new line seeing the entire display of product in person.

I can’t wait for Sandwatch Action Figure Reviews to kick in full swing, and although it will take time our Images section will be in for a serious overhaul since being neglected since February. We will continue to provide a look ahead and do our best to stay on top of the situation as we have for the last couple of years. I had a wonderful time with both my wife and my cousin who collects as well. I didn’t see anything too distasteful and for the most part everything was under control in all places. I couldn’t have expected better from the greatest fans in the world.

United We Find Troops, keep the reports coming in.