Hasbro wants our Questions:

[DarthWormie]

We have looked at tamper resistant tape, but it is unusable for our needs. Luckily, the vast majority of collectors are upstanding citizens and the cases of tampering are rare.  Any collectors who see tampered product can return it to the customer service desk and notify store personnel, who can then report that tampered toy as damaged goods and effectively remove it from circulation and inventory.

I call bulls**t on both statements. Tampering cases are rare? I'm guessing they mean the 'reported' tampering cases because I know for a fact that the whole tampering situation is completely out of control here in MA. You can't go a week without stumbling across at least 1 tampered figure or BP. I also know that when fellow collectors around here would bring them up to CS to call their attention to the problem, nothing would get done. Instead the tards at Target and WW would just put them right back out on the shelves and NOT remove it from circulation, figuring 'someone' will buy them and not notice the problem.

I guess we should be thankful they are not switching to tamper proof tape. If they did it would give them another reason to jack these already overpriced pieces of s**t up another .50¢ to $1.00. 

[Darth Spice]

Yeah it's hard to really be overly-critical because they're trying to sell their product. When they give some of the answers they do, it's hard not to get a little upset. As long as we continue to see things like the Nitko image that surfaced at Galactic Hunter, and get other info along the way as the year goes, it is STILL worth the time we have to put into it. I'm glad we could get some kind of answer on the ARC-170 too. 

[fishboy_254]

I hate to ask the ole "will we get such and such figure released again,"  but will we see the Fan's choice Darth Revan in the saga legends at some point?  I really hate seeing the escalating prices for this guy on evilbay.

[Major fett]

I hate to ask the ole "will we get such and such figure released again,"  but will we see the Fan's choice Darth Revan in the saga legends at some point?  I really hate seeing the escalating prices for this guy on evilbay.

Hasbro stated in a previous Q&A that within the next 3 or 5 years they'd like to re-release him. Personally I would hope sooner but I'm not running the show!

[fishboy_254]

good to hear!!

[cuyvaldar]

I hate to ask the ole "will we get such and such figure released again,"  but will we see the Fan's choice Darth Revan in the saga legends at some point?  I really hate seeing the escalating prices for this guy on evilbay.

Hasbro stated in a previous Q&A that within the next 3 or 5 years they'd like to re-release him. Personally I would hope sooner but I'm not running the show!

Why wait...that's stupid.

But we can release 100 million of the same figs before the good ones that......DON'T SELL.

Who is the marketing mgr  for hasblo big bird?

[Major fett]

I hate to ask the ole "will we get such and such figure released again,"  but will we see the Fan's choice Darth Revan in the saga legends at some point?  I really hate seeing the escalating prices for this guy on evilbay.

Hasbro stated in a previous Q&A that within the next 3 or 5 years they'd like to re-release him. Personally I would hope sooner but I'm not running the show!

Why wait...that's stupid.

But we can release 100 million of the same figs before the good ones that......DON'T SELL.

Who is the marketing mgr  for hasblo big bird?

Because Plo-Koon and Saesee Tiin are very popular and selling like hotcakes!

[Darth Spice]

THE latest:

1) Dear Hasbro, when will we see a release on the Mace Windu and Luke Skywalker (RotJ) Force FX sabers? Or with the popularity of The Clone Wars, we will be seeing an Ahsoka Tano Force FX lightsaber any time soon?

Unfortunately, we're off to a slower-than-expected start with the Force FX business, as consumer demand is not yet where we forecasted it to be for the original sabers.  As such, we have to move through our material commitments to the original sabers before we can release the new ones. Hopefully they will be out this Fall. There are plans for an Ahsoka Force FX lightsaber, but in the longer term once we are successful with the current lineup.

2) Are there any plans to release some of the older, hard-to-find figures in the Saga Legends line any time soon? I thought that was what this sub-line was for in the first place? Instead of re-releasing versions of C-3P0 and Luke that are still peg warming in their original packages, why not release figures like Episode 1 Sio Bibble and Ascension Gun Padme, Saga Ephont Mon or Lars' Homestead Padme, or the Expanded Universe Spacetrooper and Imperial Sentinel? And speaking of these re-releases that you love so much, have you ever given any thought to another sub-line of re-releases aimed strictly at the army builders? You could call it Armies of Star Wars or something like that, and just keep figures like Stormtroopers, Death Star Troopers, TIE Pilots, Clone Troopers, etc. in circulation continuously since those are the figures that sell the best most of the time. And I'm sure a lot of collectors would love to be able to walk into Target or Wal-Mart and pick up a handful of Stormtroopers any day of the week instead of waiting for them to be re-inserted into the line.

The Saga Legends line was always intended to re-release the best of the best kid-targeted figures, not necessarily to be a collector-targeted SKU. We decided to add some figures to the lineup last year in response to fan voting, but that was not meant to be a standard platform for the line. Currently, the lineup has been designed primarily to focus on the SKU as a complement to Clone Wars, since once we saw the quality of the programming we  knew that we would have trouble keeping up with the demand of Clone Wars figures. In addition to the core that mirrors Clone Wars, we have selected additional popular figures from across the Saga, including several that were voted for by fans previously. While we will not be adding back in the fans' vote to Saga Legends in the near future, we do have plans to upgrade a couple figures you have mentioned over the next two years...so we think that your patience will be rewarded!

3) I loved the Lucky Lekku and would love to have more individualized gunships like the Crumb Bomber. Are there more gunship repaints planned to coincide with The Clone Wars cartoon?

Ideally, we want to keep the Gunship in rotation every year, and as we see new and unique squadrons appear we'll look for a way to get them into the lineup.  There will be at least one coming this Fall.  Stay tuned for news at Comic Con….

[Major fett]

3) I loved the Lucky Lekku and would love to have more individualized gunships like the Crumb Bomber. Are there more gunship repaints planned to coincide with The Clone Wars cartoon?

Ideally, we want to keep the Gunship in rotation every year, and as we see new and unique squadrons appear we'll look for a way to get them into the lineup.  There will be at least one coming this Fall.  Stay tuned for news at Comic Con….

Lets not forget that being a Walmart Exclusive Sucks Major A$$ because none of mine ever get these! If you're going to continue with Exclusives and we know you are just keep them at Target or TRU at least then I have a 50% chance of getting them instead of NONE!

[obidad]

Lets not forget that being a Walmart Exclusive Sucks Major A$$ because none of mine ever get these! If you're going to continue with Exclusives and we know you are just keep them at Target or TRU at least then I have a 50% chance of getting them instead of NONE!

So, Hasbro makes their business decissions based on one person's perceptions?  I could be wrong, but I believe there are more Walmarts than all Targets + TRU's.  Personally, (and here I am speaking from just one person's perspective) if I really want an exclussive, (and I'm one of the lucky ones that actually has multiple TRU's, Targets & Walmarts surrounding me) I get it as long as I'm hunting regularly and keep fellow collectors in my area informed of what I'm looking for.  I've had less problems at Walmart than Target, since Target seems to love to clearance items out so quickly.

[Darth Spice]

So, Hasbro makes their business decissions based on one person's perceptions?

I'm not too sure that's what masterfett is saying but I think people in general are getting frustrated with the Hasbro crap. I DO agree with you 100% when you say if you are looking for an exclusive, all you have to do is get your tail out there and look when you read it's out and to be had.

Another thing is masterfett knows, he's not alone if he was searching for something, he's got an ARMY to assist him!     What they should STOP doing is writing the word "exclusive" on things or maybe put "Exclusive*" where the definition would state it's ONLY exclusive for a few months, if you wait you might find it again and again in the months and years to come! 

[Lt. Starfox]

so Legends are for kid friendly figures?  seriously?  I think they over looked the part of the question where you can still buy the same Luke in the original packaging and in the Legends on the same pegs....puh-leezz

[Commander Ando]

The Wal-Marts here in Portland sucked for exclusives in 2007 and summer 2008. They've gotten a *bit* better starting in the fall, but whenever they get an exlusive, I pretty much try to not get too disappointed knowing I may never see it, so I totally know where Masterfett is coming from.

Thanks to Spice for using more of my questions. It's always nice to see some answers, even if they're not the answers we wanted.

New question:

Dear Hasbro,

As a follow up to the Lucky Lekku question/answer from the 04.10.2009 Session, you mentioned that you would like to continue keeping the Republic Gunship in rotation (that's great! thank you!). Will we see the price on this toy continue to rise on each repaint/re-release as the we've seen with the ARC-170 repaint/re-releases?

[Darth MiniMe]

Dear Hasbro,
now that we have the parts for a more generic looking super-articulated imperial officer (the upper body from Captain Needa and the legs from Tank Sunber) can we expect to see some more imps this year? I presume that the rumored Commander Praji is based on this combination. Will there be more grey-suited officers as well?

[darthdan]

Dear Hasbro,
now that we have the parts for a more generic looking super-articulated imperial officer (the upper body from Captain Needa and the legs from Tank Sunber) can we expect to see some more imps this year? I presume that the rumored Commander Praji is based on this combination. Will there be more grey-suited officers as well?

good question, ask it.....

[Major fett]

Dear Hasbro,
now that we have the parts for a more generic looking super-articulated imperial officer (the upper body from Captain Needa and the legs from Tank Sunber) can we expect to see some more imps this year? I presume that the rumored Commander Praji is based on this combination. Will there be more grey-suited officers as well?

good question, ask it.....

Thirded!
I think the upper torso from Needa combined with Janek Sunber's legs are a great idea for all future Imperial officers!

[Commander Ando]

New question:

"Dear Hasbro, last summer we got 2 awesome large vehicles, the all new AT-TE and the re-designed and re-scaled Millenium Falcon. This year we are getting the all new Turbo Tank.

Can we look forward to another re-designed/re-scaled medium to large sized vehicle within 2009 or into 2010?"

[Major fett]

New question:

"Dear Hasbro, last summer we got 2 awesome large vehicles, the all new AT-TE and the re-designed and re-scaled Millenium Falcon. This year we are getting the all new Turbo Tank.

Can we look forward to another re-designed/re-scaled medium to large sized vehicle within 2009 or into 2010?"

They've actually stated that outside of the Turbo Tank they have no plans for BIG vehicle in 2009, but if sales were good enough for the AT-TE, BMF, and the Turbo Tank there may be one in 2010 or possibly 2011.

[meandnooneelse]

Come on! We desperately need a new larger AT-AT and Sand Crawler!

[VadersFist]

I could live with another one of those for sure.

Come on! We desperately need a new larger AT-AT and Sand Crawler!

[Trooper31]

Dear Hasbro,

In 2008 you stated that in the 2009 waves we would see 4 concept figures based on various artists. We know a concept Anakin is coming in the AOTC wave, but would it be possible for you to tell us which waves will contain the other concept figures in 2009 and will the concept figures correspond to the movie each of those waves in based on?

[Commander Ando]

Okay, here's another one...

"Dear Hasbro,

In the final part of Season One of the Clone Wars, the Ryloth story arc featured Republic AT-TE's with a different color scheme (Grey with green accent) than the AT-TE's featured in Episodes 2 and 3 (grey with red/maroon accent). Will we see a re-issued AT-TE with this new paint scheme at some point in the future or at the very least a re-release of the AT-TE with grey+red/maroon coloring?"

[Commander Ando]

And a packaging question:

"Dear Hasbro,

In the interest of environmental impact, I have this question.

The action figure packaging of the old Kenner figures was simple, iconic, and relatively tamper proof. Star Wars figures pretty much sell themself. You've used it sparingly for the Vintage on the Card line, and you've also stated that the VotC line is not coming back right away. Would you ever see fit to combine the Saga Legends line with the VotC packaging style to create a new branding and at the same time reduce the amount of waste (smaller plastic bubble, filler, etc. for kids and openers/army builders alike?"

[jokabofe]

Here's a question...

Hey Hasbro - WTF? Why haven't the stores in my area seen any new figures since early February? Are you planning on ramming 56 new figures down my throat in a 6 week span sometime soon?

[Jaing Skirata]

Here's a question...

Hey Hasbro - WTF? Why haven't the stores in my area seen any new figures since early February? Are you planning on ramming 56 new figures down my throat in a 6 week span sometime soon?

Best.
Question.
EVER!

[meandnooneelse]

Here's a question...

Hey Hasbro - WTF? Why haven't the stores in my area seen any new figures since early February? Are you planning on ramming 56 new figures down my throat in a 6 week span sometime soon?

Best.
Question.
EVER!

No, they're to busy cranking out transformers in support of the new movie coming out this summer! This also happened in 2007 with the 30th Anniversary collection when the first transformers movie and Spider-Man 3 came out. The wave with the Death Star Troopers didn't show up here until 2 months after it's release. Between X-Men Origins: Wolverine, Transformers 2, and the GI Joe movie it looks to be a slow summer for Star Wars.

[Major fett]

Here's a question...

Hey Hasbro - WTF? Why haven't the stores in my area seen any new figures since early February? Are you planning on ramming 56 new figures down my throat in a 6 week span sometime soon?

Hilarious.. freaking hilarious!!!

No, they're to busy cranking out transformers in support of the new movie coming out this summer! This also happened in 2007 with the 30th Anniversary collection when the first transformers movie and Spider-Man 3 came out. The wave with the Death Star Troopers didn't show up here until 2 months after it's release. Between X-Men Origins: Wolverine, Transformers 2, and the GI Joe movie it looks to be a slow summer for Star Wars.
[/quote]
Hasbro plays this down like it doesn't happen but it's so true, it happens about every other summer what really sucks is Hasbro has the license on every line you mentioned. Not only do they have to compete with themselves but there is also Playmates 3 3/4" Terminator Salvation and Star Trek line this summer.
Personally I don't know why they have to wait to push stuff out until the holiday shopping season I also have gifts to purchase at that time spring and summer is when I have the excess cash not Oct - Nov!

[darthdan]

wave 5 TCW minus kit fisto, TLC TESB wave, new 3 3/4 star trek figures (I think the chairs ought to be customizable for something starwars), new startrek playsets...... and a terminator fig (one of the terminator machines) 


oops posted in wrong area was late at night

[jksonny]

Today, I picked up the new Star Trek Bridge playset at Target. I am not a big Trek fan and I am not a Trek collector but I thought the playset would be a good way to display some vintage figures from other lines (Black Hole, Battlestar Gallactica, Buck Rogers, etc.) in one spot.

The playset is a fairly simple piece (actually, a group of pieces) but is very well done (it actually reminds me somewhat of Palpatine's office in Ep. II and III). Because of its simplicity, it doesn't appear as if it would be overly costly to produce. In addition, the playset can be significantly expanded by buying separate packs of 'galaxy packs' that include chairs, consoles, and figures. Clearly, the galaxy packs are meant to help minimize the actual cost of the original playset while still offering consumers the chance to complete the environment. They also help increase the viability of production by "encouraging" fans to purchase the additional sets, which are mostly composed of re-paints and re-packs of previously released items.

Is this an approach that Hasbro would consider for playsets? I can envision similar approaches to several Star Wars environments; the Emperor's Throne Room in ROTJ, Palpatine's Office in AOTC and ROTS, the Mos Eisley Cantina, various Death Star areas, the Hoth base, Yavin, Bespin, etc., etc.

Thanks! 

[Darth Spice]

THE latest:

1) Are you going to be re-releasing the electronic Battle Droid Blaster from Episode 1 any time soon? It would seem with all the interest in the "Clone Wars" cartoon this would be something to put back out in the market.

We do not have plans to get that blaster back out there.  At least with the General Grievous blaster, which is very similar to the BD blaster, kids have shown that they strongly prefer the Clone and Stormtrooper blaster over the droid blasters.  So after this Spring, we will retire the Grievous blaster as well.

2) Now that we are getting a new Republic Commando with articulated legs, and since we're already gotten Delta Squad and Omega Squad, what are the chances of Hasbro doing a series of four packs featuring the various Repbublic Commando squads? This could be a exclusive with Target or Toys R Us or an open retail item, but it would probably generate a lot of interest with collectors and army builders due to the popularity of the Republic Commando books, video game, current action figures, and just plain cool looking armor.

That is a great idea, and one we have had in mind when we updated the Commando tool.  It certainly is an intriguing idea and we are looking at it for down the road.

3) I hate to ask the ole "will we get such and such figure released again,"but will we see the Fan's choice Darth Revan in the saga legends at some point?"  I really hate seeing the escalating prices for this guy on evilbay.

Right now, he is not in the lineup for re-release.  But we recognize the continued demand for Revan and are looking for ways to get him back out there.  It won't be soon, though - these things unfortunately take time to work out.  It may be in Saga Legends, but it may also be part of something else entirely.