Hasbro wants our Questions:

[Darth Spice]

With the new release of the clone wars AT-TE vehicle coming up, are there going to be any more plans for producing more large scaled vehicles?  Is it going to depend on the sales of the AT-TE?

I'm pretty sure I spotted this info at Jedi Temple Archives in their Toy Fair report I think, but I'm pretty sure that's what they said. The AT-TE would give them an idea if they wanted to continue doing big things.

[jacensolo66]

Im stoked to see Hasbro making larger Star Wars vehicles.  The one vehicle I would love to see the most is the Clone Turbo Tank.  Im sure a lot of other collectors especially ones who collect mostly clone trooper figures would go into a frenzy if Hasbro planned on doing this!

i actually like the turbo tank more then the at-te but thats just me.

[jokabofe]

With the new release of the clone wars AT-TE vehicle coming up, are there going to be any more plans for producing more large scaled vehicles?  Is it going to depend on the sales of the AT-TE?

I'm pretty sure I spotted this info at Jedi Temple Archives in their Toy Fair report I think, but I'm pretty sure that's what they said. The AT-TE would give them an idea if they wanted to continue doing big things.

Exactly. They pretty much said that this will be the "measuring stick" towards large - scale items going forward. If this sells well, who knows what they will produce. If it doesn't sell well, it will most likely be the death of large scale anything. But I have a feeling this is going to fly off the shelves, even with the $100 price point.

[Bloodant]

If sales for the AT-TE exceed expectations will Hasbro consider making Jabba's Sail Barge?

[VadersFist]

Basically Dave has it boiled down in a nut shell guys. Buy,buy,buy those AT-TE'S because if you don't, then their is no reason to complain why hasbro won't make large scale vehicles any longer.

[Napseeker]

Agreed - this is THE big vehicle that most of us wanted and bugging Hasbro about for ages now.  They'll never take collectors seriously again if the thing languishes on shelves and ends up on clearance although I suspect this is highly unlikely given that I hear people talking about buying 2 or 3 of these for their dioramas.  They'll probably re-release it again in future years but it'll be some other deco ("Rhen Var" snowy AT-TE, orange dirt Geonosis AT-TE, jungle muck AT-TE...) so anyone who wanted a clean AT-TE (with the option to add their own customized battle damage and dirt deco before a future Hasbro re-release does it for you) is going to buy this one.

[darthdan]

the turbo tank I think may be an eventual possibility if this at-te does well, because hasbro has already developed designs/ prototypes for it prior to ROTS line of toys being released, but shelved it.

[jokabofe]

If sales for the AT-TE exceed expectations will Hasbro consider making Jabba's Sail Barge?

I don't know if they would go THAT large scale, because you are talking about something huge with that, even if it wasn't made to scale (which, of course, it wouldn't be). But I was talking to the GI Joe guys from Hasbro at TF and they were telling me that they have plans in the works to use a lot of the old molds for vehicles to re-issue them for the 25th Joe line. Of course, I had to ask if the U.S.S. Flagg was coming up somewhere down the line, and the rep told me that a) that is one of the few items that they no longer have the molds for, and b) if they re-issued it the cost to manufacture would be so high, they would need to charge around $500 for it (because apparently they looked into it).

But Bob's pretty much spot on:

Buy,buy,buy those AT-TE'S because if you don't, then their is no reason to complain why hasbro won't make large scale vehicles any longer.

If ths AT-TE doesn't sell for some reason, you can forget about ever asking Hasbro to make anything else large-scale.

[Darth Spice]

NOW the U.S.S. Flag! THAT was a freakkin' PLAYSET! I didn't have one as it was one of the few things that eluded both me and my cousin Tweenys' collections. I saw one at a show a few months back and dood wanted 350 for it missing 2 pieces. I REALLY thought about it, for about 2 minutes! 

[Jaing Skirata]

Dear Hasbro,

Not only am I a faithful member here at www.sandtroopers.com (!!!!), I am also a member at wwwmandalorianmercs.com, a costumers site not a collector sites (so we don't participate in the Q&A over there). However, many of the members collect Star Wars tys as well. In their forums the question came up as to whether or not we will see more Mandalorian figures ( I told them about Fenn Shysha and Tobia Daala coming this year in addition to the Fett Legacy set) or another Mandalorian Evolutions set. Maybe we could see some great figures like Jaster Mereel, Cassus Fett, Canderous Ordo, Deathwatch type Mando armor, more Crusader armor (like Mandalore the Indominable) and some Neo Crusader.

Again, as always thank you for taking the time for answering our questions and thank you for giving us the opportunity!

[SHB033196]

NOW the U.S.S. Flag! THAT was a freakkin' PLAYSET! I didn't have one as it was one of the few things that eluded both me and my cousin Tweenys' collections. I saw one at a show a few months back and dood wanted 350 for it missing 2 pieces. I REALLY thought about it, for about 2 minutes! 

Some guy here in atlanta was selling his for 150 bucks on CL. I thought about it as that's as good as price as I've ever seen, but I simply don't have the room for a 7' toy. I thought about it long and hard as that may have been the greatest playset EVER made. We'll never see anything like that again. But I do look forward to them re-making a lot of the older vehicles. Saves me from my plan of buying the vintage stuff.

[Bloodant]

NOW the U.S.S. Flag! THAT was a freakkin' PLAYSET! I didn't have one as it was one of the few things that eluded both me and my cousin Tweenys' collections. I saw one at a show a few months back and dood wanted 350 for it missing 2 pieces. I REALLY thought about it, for about 2 minutes! 

Some guy here in atlanta was selling his for 150 bucks on CL. I thought about it as that's as good as price as I've ever seen, but I simply don't have the room for a 7' toy. I thought about it long and hard as that may have been the greatest playset EVER made. We'll never see anything like that again. But I do look forward to them re-making a lot of the older vehicles. Saves me from my plan of buying the vintage stuff.

$350 is a good deal and $150 is the best I have heard of, wow. The guy still have that one?

[SHB033196]

NOW the U.S.S. Flag! THAT was a freakkin' PLAYSET! I didn't have one as it was one of the few things that eluded both me and my cousin Tweenys' collections. I saw one at a show a few months back and dood wanted 350 for it missing 2 pieces. I REALLY thought about it, for about 2 minutes! 

Some guy here in atlanta was selling his for 150 bucks on CL. I thought about it as that's as good as price as I've ever seen, but I simply don't have the room for a 7' toy. I thought about it long and hard as that may have been the greatest playset EVER made. We'll never see anything like that again. But I do look forward to them re-making a lot of the older vehicles. Saves me from my plan of buying the vintage stuff.

$350 is a good deal and $150 is the best I have heard of, wow. The guy still have that one?

No clue. This was back in the beginning of Jan. I thought about putting a link up here, but figured the shipping would be over 100 bucks easily.

[Master Frank]

Dear Hasbro,

Do you have any plans to make more interactive 3 3/4 inch Star Wars action figures? The R2-D2 that beeps and flashes when you press a button on his chest, or the Chewbacca that carried C-3PO with eyes that lit up are recent examples.
I understand that costs could be a factor early on, but why not an entire line of staple Star Wars figure with similar interactivity? A Vader with a light saber that would glow red and makes the famous breathing sound when pressed, or a Stormtrooper that yelled "stop right there" and the tip of his gun would glow red when pressed, would make exciting figures!

Frank

[Lt. Starfox]

they had these with the FX series I believe, maybe they will revisit this idea Frank

[Darth Spice]

The latest:

1: We've gotten new, updated, better versions of Boba Fett, IG-88, 4-LOM, and Bossk. When are you going to show Zuckuss and Dengar some update love?

We do have plans to get to an update of Zuckuss before too long. However, Dengar will still be a ways off.  Eventually, we will get to him as well but he just isn't dialed into a plan yet.
 
2: I realize that Hasbro has previously said "no" to the idea of a single universal neck peg for all of the basic figures and that the needs of a particular sculpt would dictate the peg size. However would Hasbro please consider the idea at least of a common-sized neck peg on most human characters?  For example, there were many complaints about the face sculpts for last year's Moisture Farmer Luke and Yavin Ceremony Luke. They really didn't resemble Mark Hamill even remotely and most of us searched around for an alternate Luke head to put on these figures to improve the overall look.  For example, when I used the VTSC X-Wing Luke head on my Yavin Luke, I was astonished at how much I suddenly loved this figure - although to make the head not wobble, I had to insert some extra tissue paper inside.   Having the option of swapping heads vastly improved my appreciation of this figure and I even went out and bought a second Yavin Luke for another head swap.  When Hasbro sometimes gives us a figure with a "pinhead" like the VTSC Endor Han, or the comic 2-pack Jedi Leia, again, we collectors would at least be able to find another larger head to fix the problem.  Or if we're not happy with Hasbro's version of X-Wing Biggs (because of the Dutch Vander mold) we'd have the ability to make our own X-Wing Biggs by taking the head from the Tatooine Biggs and putting it on a 2008 SA generic X-Wing pilot body (hint).  Please don't underestimate the value that having a common neck peg size for at least the human characters has for we collectors to fix perceived problems.  The ability to make minor customizations to a figure to suit our own taste has tremendous value and would probably help Hasbro to sell a few more figures for "body parts" or "extra heads".

We do try to use a standard neck size whenever possible. Sometimes, the factory makes changes to the neck without notifying us. Usually, by the time we see production samples it is too late to make changes and we just run with it.
 
3: Even though I'm not a big fan of the Geonosians as characters, I was so impressed with the sculpt and articulation of the TSC Sun Fac that I was happy to add him to my collection. I'm now wondering if Hasbro will be retooling this figure any time soon in order to give us a great generic Geonosian Warrior. It'd be a fantastic army builder and perfect for an arena diorama.

Thanks for the comment.  We don't have any specific plans for a Geonosis Warrior update in the near-term, but will take your comment into consideration.  We like the Arena battle ourselves and agree that it needs some more attention someday.

[Bloodant]

Zuckuss  is coming, good news..
Pin heads.. LOL
More attention to the arena in the future sounds good to me.

[Jaing Skirata]

Dear Hasbro,

As always, I would like to start off by saying a heartfelt "Thank You" for offering us fans the opportunity to ask questions of you. Now, I have a couple questions packaged as one I hope you can answer. One is just cuz I want to know, the other is about your toy lineups for the future.

1. I read on another site (a costuming site, not a collectors site) that Mil Gilmar and B'arin Ampa from the EE Mando sets were originally to be Kal Skirata and Walon Vau. However, because the faces were too young, the figures were renamed. I also read on that same site that Mij Gilmar is a play on Jim Gilmar, a friend of Karen Traviss' and finally, that all of the heads under the helmets were based upon Hasbro employees. I take that info pretty seriously as it is from a credible source who has direct toies with Karen Traviss and Jim Gilmar. Is any of that true?

2. Any chance we'll see any of the Mando's from that set repacked and sold individually? Better yet, with all the great EU Mando characters in the Legacy books, those body sculpts would be a great way to repack/repaint and produce several of those characters. If you didn;'t want to use names, fearin they wouldnt be purchased for lack of them being known to young buyers, they could simply be labled "Mandalorian Super Commandos". Between the new Boba and Jango EVO sculpts, the Latts Ward and female scuplts, you have the superior parts and pieces to kitbash and make some great figures! However, just stay away from the old stauesque Boba and Jango molds please... keep them articulated!

Thanks

[Darth Spice]

THE latest:

1: With the new release of the clone wars AT-TE vehicle coming up, are there going to be any more plans for producing more large scaled vehicles?  Is it going to depend on the sales of the AT-TE?

Im stoked to see Hasbro making larger Star Wars vehicles.  The one vehicle I would love to see the most is the Clone Turbo Tank.  Im sure a lot of other collectors especially ones who collect mostly clone trooper figures would go into a frenzy if Hasbro planned on doing this!

We do think that the large vehicle format is the way to go to unlock the excitement of the Clone Wars, but whether we do another one will depend greatly on how this one does and what other vehicles await in the Clone Wars animation.  By this Fall, we should know a lot more on both of those scores, but if what we have seen of the early animation holds out for the rest of the series, the future looks very bright.

2: Do you have any plans to make more interactive 3 3/4 inch Star Wars action figures? The R2-D2 that beeps and flashes when you press a button on his chest, or the Chewbacca that carried C-3PO with eyes that lit up are recent examples. I understand that costs could be a factor early on, but why not an entire line of staple Star Wars figure with similar interactivity? A Vader with a light saber that would glow red and makes the famous breathing sound when pressed, or a Stormtrooper th at yelled "stop right there" and the tip of his gun would glow red when pressed, would make exciting figures!

Interesting question.  The biggest obstacles are the extra cost of electronics, and being able to incoporate them in a way that does not detract from the aesthetics of the figure. We can't afford to put lights and sounds in many 3-3/4" figures in the "basic" price point because of the added expense; if we did, we would have to take cost out elsewhere to be able to afford them. We could look at a higher price point (as we have done in the past for FX figures), but aside from droids, we don't think that the electronics within figures add all that much to the 3-3/4" play pattern. If we could afford the cost, perhaps the more serious challenge is where we can actually hide the electronics in the human figures. On figures like R2-D2, electronics and asethetics can be combined relatively seemlessly because of R2's relative lack of articulation and body width that can accomodate the guts (electronics & battery). On humans, something would have to give if the electronics were inside the figures - like an an increase in chest size, and certainly decreased shoulder/arm articulation.
 
3: In a recent Q&A about the Vintage Line, you made this comment:

"The stable of real strong versions of core OTC characters to anchor future vintage waves is getting thin, we just don't feel the future is there for Vintage as we have been bringing it out."

I'm not sure how you're getting to that conclusion. There were 92 figures in the original Kenner line, not to mention how many characters were never realized in plastic. So far, there have been a total of 23 figures in your "vintage" line, so you've still got close to 70 figures to make, just to catch up with Kenner  . I understand that you're looking at "core" characters, and not all of the original Kenner figures were of "core" characters, but if you're aiming this Vintage line at older collectors who remember the original vintage line and are looking to spark some nostalgia, ANY of the original Kenner figu res would do that.

Of course there are plenty of solid figures left, but you are assuming that all vintage figures sell-through to collectors at the same rate.  Actually, they do not. Core characters and strong troop builders do the best, with lesser-known characters trailing behind.  Why this is, especially when the recent mail-in redemptions encourage even purchase across the line, is still a bit of a mystery but does point to the fact that we need to craft Vintage waves with the same sensibilities with which we approach basic figures...a mix of core strong heroes to support the smaller-run more obscure characters.  In the main basic figure line, it is easier to compensate a number of lower-volume characters, but in a smaller assortment like vintage, each and every choice is important to helping us get to where we need to be volume-wise.

[jksonny]

Frankly, I'm getting fed up with Hasbro giving us - the serious collectors to which Star Wars means the most - these non-informative, vague, politician-like "responses" that provide no real info. Plus, there seems to be an air of arrogance to the whole Q&A issue (on this and other sites), as if they're doing us a huge service by giving us such TOP SECRET, juicy info like offering a new Slave Leia sometime in 2009!!! Wow - I hope no one loses their job over that leak!!!

My pessimistic fears began with the EE Mandalorian set. Even before I ordered the exclusive, I realized it had little to offer except Fett/Clone re-do's and unfortunately, I was correct. For one thing, are we supposed to believe the Mandalorians had battle armor with the curves and dimensions to (perfectly) fit women? Ridiculous.

Hasbro's approach to Star Wars is beginning to feel much like the days of the post-ROTJ era when general interest in the franchise faded and the line disappeared. The hopes for the line's continuation seem to rest on the success of an animated series (remember 'Droids' and 'Ewoks?') and a delayed-delayed-delayed video game (yet to hit the shelves where it might actually support Hasbro's investment).

The difference is that Kenner was doing the best it could with the SW licenses it had (no Marvel rights but Droids/Ewoks and little cooperation from Lucas on new figures), and the competition from TV-backed GI Joe, MOTU, etc. Hasbro simply seems to have thrown in the towel. For instance, and I know this is a small detail but the world works on the small stuff - Hasbro's display included an Amidala set that was missing the third figure (an entire year wasn't enough to throw together a decent prototype?). In fact, their SW Toy Fair display looked, at best, like it was an unwelcome afterthought.

Is it just that Hasbro's concentrating on other licenses? Maybe (all new Indiana Jones figures AND vehicles, new additions to GI Joe) and maybe not (the awful Mustafar re-do for the IJ playset, re-paints of Joe figures as cartoon/comic book likenesses).

I realize part of the lessening enthusiasm for SW is natural b/c the movies are at an end. However, Hasbro did a great job of staving off any apathy in 2007 with the McQuarrie figures and other long-awaited additions (Academy Biggs, Smuggler Lando, Torture Rack Han, etc.). As far as I could tell, Star Wars 2007 was a big success for Hasbro (and collectors), especially considering the lack of any film tie-in; but judging from their approach to 2008 thus far, you would think Star Wars had taken a big plunge.

The comic packs, which started with such promise, have become a cheap way of re-painting/re-selling previous figures as "new" characters with minimal original sculpting. For example, they are butchering some of the classic Marvel comics with their weak Fenn Shysa, Tobbi, Leia, and Dengar figures. I assume that, like me, many collectors have been looking forward to having action figures of these and other characters for 20 years. For Hasbro to stick a bald head on a Boba body and say, "Look! It's Tobbi D.!" is insulting. Just to demonstrate that I'm not being frivolous, you can check out my personal collection in Sandtrooper's 'Collections' section; you will see the customs I commissioned that are based on some of the same characters Hasbro is planning for 2008 (Fenn Shysa, Thrawn, etc.). I wasn't willing to wait on Hasbro and I'm relieved that I did not b/c the customs are far superior.

In short, the Hasbro SW is not yet broken - but it's on the way - and here are some ideas to prevent having to fix it later:

1. Continue the Comic Packs BUT: They are going to need collector support and the best way to do that is take some chances. Pick some of the iconic Marvel issues and create up-to-date sculpts of non-staple (Luke, Han, Leia, etc.) characters like Kiro, Flint (Dark Jedi and normal), Lumiya (and as Shira), Knife, Crimson Jack, Rik, Dani, Chihdo, Jolli, Jaxxon, Bey, Tay Vanis, etc., etc. They could balance this with figures of the staples but only in their comic likenesses - Lando's disguises, Luke in white fatigues, crazy Lobot, Jedi Obi Wan, etc. 

2. Revive the VOTC figures BUT: Instead of (or in addition to) the main characters, create VOTC versions of characters that Kenner never offered, such as the Rebel Fleet Trooper, Uncle Owen, Oola, Vader/Anakin, Evazan, Tarkin, carded Blue Snaggletooth, etc. Or, if they really want to make collectors happy, produce a 'Purely Vintage' line with these kinds of figures in sculpts like we would have seen in the Kenner days - straight arms, legs, plastic capes/robes, vintage-style photo/card - the entire Kenner treatment. Perhaps even a POP mail-in to receive a Kenner-style Boba Fett that matches the version on the original cardback offers (with firing backpack, of course - another custom in my collection).

3. More Concept Figures/Vehicles/Beasts: I am a huge McQuarrie fan and there is more of his work to produce (Lando, Tauntaun, the landspeeder, dewback, Jabba, etc.). Also, there are Johnston's contributions and a myriad of other possibilities in the realms of what- could-have-been.

4. Figures Hasbro Knows Collectors Want: Instead of offering more versions of the main characters (that, once again, require the minimum of new sculptings) from deleted scenes and passing it off as going outside the box, produce figures of Fixer, Camie, Solo's girl in the cantina, Chewie with his poncho, even the human stand-in for Jabba in ANH and the Emperor from the original ESB. As always, there is also: Needa, Bespin Ice Cream-Maker Man, the Alien Bespin Guard, new Piett, new Owen (as above), new Oola, new G. Guard, the other Weequays, the Human Skiff Guard, etc., etc.

5. NO MORE IRRELEVANT FIGURES: What's with the Rodian from TPM and the Aqualish senator and an unnecessary 2-1B re-do? I'm assume the costs to produce these figures were low but combined, surely those costs would be enough to fund creating one of the long-awaited figures. In other words, offering fewer figures of desirable characters is preferrable to providing a larger # of figures.

6. NO MORE DROIDS: which leads to #6 -     

7. Offer Interesting Pack-Ins: Offering the public a reason to buy (even when they may not want to buy) is smart business but Hasbro is going about it all wrong. We've had the coin idea (didn't work in the eighties so it was a doubly-odd choice), the holograms, and now this droid factory concept. Let's be realistic - I am not a customizer but I can open up my closet anytime and find more than enough pieces to easily create any make/model/color/ droid I want (which is none). It's as if Hasbro has gotten too lazy even to throw together their own re-paints and re-packages so they thought, "Hey - let's get the collectors to pay for extra figures and let them do it!" As an alternative, try a pack-ins the buyers would enjoy assembling and wouldn't mind paying extra to complete. For example, the Sarlacc: packages could include tentacles, rows of teeth, surrounding sand, the mouth/snout, etc. This could be paired with appropriate figures such as Boba in Sarlacc Mouth, Lando w/leg in a tentacle, and so on.

8. 'What If' Line: Figures based on possible scenarios that did not happen; Luke in Carbonite, Vader/Anakin surviving as a Light Jedi, Lando as the "last hope" (from the fake scripts), Han and Lando in Imperial Disguise to Rescue Frozen Luke, etc.

There are hopeful signs, such as the AT-TE, but if Hasbro doesn't crank it up a notch, collecting new SW figures is all over (again).

I'm not ready for that.

jksonny             

[Darth Spice]

 

YOU tell 'em Sonny, I'm going to make sure to forward this to the Q & A team, as I do think they need to hear this sort of input. Thanks again for sounding off! Very concise and well thought out!

[darthdan]

actually even though he will peg warm I'm glad we got po nudo (aqualish senator and sepratist.

[Lt. Starfox]

Desify will like your thinking, another Jaxxon purist 

[Napseeker]

I am also all for Jaxxon -- he is the new Ice Cream Maker Guy / Yarna / Hermie Odie for the new (old!) generation   It's time to get Jax on the wishlist polls no matter how Hasbro feels about making a giant green bunny!

[Jaing Skirata]

Wow, you're pissed! Seriously, I get some of it. But some of the points you make confuse me.

Frankly, I'm getting fed up with Hasbro giving us - the serious collectors to which Star Wars means the most - these non-informative, vague, politician-like "responses" that provide no real info. Plus, there seems to be an air of arrogance to the whole Q&A issue (on this and other sites), as if they're doing us a huge service by giving us such TOP SECRET, juicy info like offering a new Slave Leia sometime in 2009!!! Wow - I hope no one loses their job over that leak!!!

Some of theiranswers are certainly ambiguous and can be interprreted many ways. However, they've always provided us with the information needed to be able to count something in or out. Sometimes you just have to piece it all togethr from Q&A's on several sites. Plus, there needs  to be a certain air of secrecy about what's coming to drive consumer thirst.

Truthfully, them giving us this Q&A is a bit of a favor. Without it, it would be like the Dark Times of collecting when we had to wait for Cons to get any info at all about what's coming.

My pessimistic fears began with the EE Mandalorian set. Even before I ordered the exclusive, I realized it had little to offer except Fett/Clone re-do's and unfortunately, I was correct. For one thing, are we supposed to believe the Mandalorians had battle armor with the curves and dimensions to (perfectly) fit women? Ridiculous.

No intent to offend as I don't know what your reading activity is in relation to Star Wars EU. But, have you read anything with the Mando's? The Insider bits, the comics the LotF books etc? Since the time of the Mandalorian Super Commando armor, the basic shape and design of the armor has been the same on all of them. They paint up the plates different and accesorize differently. However, the overall look is the same. Also, there have been Mando females in print and some officially recognized art work for years. So, it's been established by LFI that female Mandos wear armor just like the men... it's not something Hasbro just made up to sell a couple of figures. Also, in the Mandalorian culture, their is no gender bias between men and women. Women are expected to be as skilled and deadly a warrior as the men. Do you expect them to wear aprons into battle? Other than plates taken from dead loved ones, each Mandalorians armor is custom smithed for them. So, the plates are going to be custom fitted to a womans curves. In real life, check out all the FeMando's you see popping up at Cons... modern materials can be made to fit a woman so, I'm in the the SWU, it's a cinch. In fact, over at www.firespray.net (the Mandalorian Mercs website), one of the guys just made a beautiful set of metal armor for one of the female members. It only took about a month and it's truely a work of art.

All that being said... with the EE set, we got 8 repainted clones. The clones with teh Mythosaur skull on the chest were weak and in my house have already been used as custom fodder. However, the ARC's were from a great sculpt and were very attractive figures. I wasn't dissappointed in them at all. The RC's still lacked the articulated legs and it would have been nice to see them accessorized slightly different than Delta Squad but, Omega are just black clad RC's and RC squads are all issued the same basic equipt so I can overly complain about them. The ones from the sets I ordered went to my sons and they love em! With the Mando's, we got a new torso sculpt with Dredd Priest and Llats Ward. I think it's pretty cool. It sucks that they reused the Boba legs but, what do you do? Like wise with Mij gilmar and B'arin Apma. The legs were new sculpts, later used in the EVO Jango, but the torso's were crap. We did however get a whole new sculpt and 2 nice figures with Isabet Reau and Rav Bralor. Between the EVO Jango and Boba as well as the Dred Preist/Llats Ward torsos and the Rav/Isabet figure, Hasbro could make a killing with kitbashed repaints on those kicking out some high end, well articulated Mandos in every color of the rainbow and I for one hope they do... I even asked the question just below this weeks responses. Another great thing was 6 new head sculpts for customization and variety.

The difference is that Kenner was doing the best it could with the SW licenses it had (no Marvel rights but Droids/Ewoks and little cooperation from Lucas on new figures), and the competition from TV-backed GI Joe, MOTU, etc. Hasbro simply seems to have thrown in the towel. For instance, and I know this is a small detail but the world works on the small stuff - Hasbro's display included an Amidala set that was missing the third figure (an entire year wasn't enough to throw together a decent prototype?). In fact, their SW Toy Fair display looked, at best, like it was an unwelcome afterthought.

I think 2008 is shaping up to be a great year with lots of variety for collectors and kids. Honestly, alot of it doesn't interest me but, they covered alot of nitches for alot of demographics. i don't think it's waning or an after thought at all.

The comic packs, which started with such promise, have become a cheap way of re-painting/re-selling previous figures as "new" characters with minimal original sculpting. For example, they are butchering some of the classic Marvel comics with their weak Fenn Shysa, Tobbi, Leia, and Dengar figures. I assume that, like me, many collectors have been looking forward to having action figures of these and other characters for 20 years. For Hasbro to stick a bald head on a Boba body and say, "Look! It's Tobbi D.!" is insulting. Just to demonstrate that I'm not being frivolous, you can check out my personal collection in Sandtrooper's 'Collections' section; you will see the customs I commissioned that are based on some of the same characters Hasbro is planning for 2008 (Fenn Shysa, Thrawn, etc.). I wasn't willing to wait on Hasbro and I'm relieved that I did not b/c the customs are far superior.

The comic packs are not perfect by any means this year. However, in addition to teh repaints we are getting alot of new figures that look great! Look at the Legacy figures for example... the Imperial Knights, Cade and Darth Talon are SiCK! I know the colors kinda suck on some of them but hey, what do you expect when they bse the figure on the old Marvel comics color schemes... they wer ejust plain funky. However, they are still great figures and hold alot of nostalgia for 80's Star Wars readers like myself.

As far as Tobi Dala and Fenn Shysha...
The Boba and Jango EVO sculpts they are using are top notch figures! The only thing they lack at all is a ball jointed hip! Otherwise they rock. I hope Hasbro runs with those for awhile.

Fenn Shysha:
The Figure...


The way he looked...



Might need to trim the holsters off and give him a different gun. Otherwise, looks pretty dead on.

Tobi Dala:
The Figure...


The way he looked...


Looks like they nailed it!

The rest of your post I mostly agree with. However, as much as us collectors would like Hasbro to give us what we want and what we want only, we must remember... they are a toy manufacturing company. Their first alliance is and always will be to the child. We just have to work around that with our collecting habits. We will never be their target demographic.

[jokabofe]

Guys, we need your help!!! We've run through out stockpile of questions, even with Napseeker dropping them on us 4 and 5 at a time (thanks for that!!). We've got absolutely NONE left to send for the next round in two weeks, so please post some questions that you have for Hasbro. And don't forget, we've got the Indiana Jones Q&A now as well.

[Jaing Skirata]

Guys, we need your help!!! We've run through out stockpile of questions, even with Napseeker dropping them on us 4 and 5 at a time (thanks for that!!). We've got absolutely NONE left to send for the next round in two weeks, so please post some questions that you have for Hasbro. And don't forget, we've got the Indiana Jones Q&A now as well.

I just submitted one the other day and I know I've asked a few other further back in this thread that never got asked. Feel free to use them if you think they're up to snuff.

[darthdan]

What are the chances of us seeing the new design anakins starfighter from the new clone wars animated series/moviein 3 3'4" scale? (the yellow one that we are now seeing on store shelves as a lego set, not the ROTS one).

[darthdan]

What are the chances of seeing a young Owen Lars, Beru, or Cliegg lars in chair as 3 3/4" figures any time in the immediate future?

[VadersFist]

I wouldn't mind seein the ugnaught made even though it was in lego format, so why not in 3 3/4, but then again that would be a huge vehicle. I would STILL also like to see the sandcrawler made as well.

EDIT: Let me rephrase that in saying that it was a MTT.  I couldn't think of the name and was thinking ugnaught, but oh well must have been a brain fart.