September/October Hauls

[JediTricks]

I don't think any of us will be sure how we feel about the film until December.

Based on recent consumer behavior, it appears some people have decided they will love it based on a teaser trailer.

-ROTF Skystalker. This fucking bastard, entirely too hard to find, even on eBay, and largely overpriced. I got him for $25 shipped which is ridiculous for a Basic from 2009, but in an age where even now Basics are $10, and considering shipping and that he was complete (always the possibility of him not being when buying secondhand) and for such a hard to find figure, a $15 markup is not actually all that bad. I am rapidly approaching a point where I have more money than patience to grab stupid shit I've wanted for a while, so jumping on this when I've found it for under $30 is actually pretty good. Have not tried him out with Mindwipe yet.

Oof, sorry you missed out on a better price. Surprised you didn't just settle for the Laserbeak repaint, it's pretty good. I really like this mold on Mindwipe... in robot mode. I have Skystalker on one shoulder and Laserbeak on the other. Hope you dig it as well.

-RID Dreadwing and Smokejumper. That's their names, right? Whatever. They're great toys! I only own a G2 release of Dreadwing without the arm panels or any missiles, so to get the whole set complete (with ALL the missiles!) is pretty neat, and there's that cool "RID/Universe 1.0" feel that's great. Now that I have them, I actually think their colour layouts are fairly close to BB and Starscream, just in a military camo-type style instead of the black and purple from the Japanese release. I dig it a lot more than I thought I would; these guys were mostly on the list for completionist's sake but their play value and colours are largely pulling me towards them. Something about this era of toys, man.

In RID, it's "Dreadwind". I have Dreadwing and Smokescreen from G2 also without missiles (or Smokey's guns, IIRC) as well as Dreadwind and Smokejumper, either way, what a fun set. How much did the RID ones run you?

Those new SW figures are bad enough that I want to movie to be bad. (Seriously, if I end up liking that movie and cannot get a good figure of a favourite character, I will be pissed.) On the other hand, at least they are toys I can easily skip.

Black Series is supposed to be for you, then. Of course, that carries its own host of problems (like the fact that 99% of Star Wars collectors have every character they want already in 4" scale) but that's the direction Hasbro seems to be going.

The Bleak Series 3.75" line is now a Walmart exclusive, figures are still $13 a fucking pop, still terrible executions since the new brand manager seems to just accept whatever trash the factory gives him because his budget is tight, and still using molds over a decade old as filler. The sculpting on the 5POA figures right now is coming out better than the Black Series figures, although they jacked up the price to $8 on that line which is unacceptable.

The Black Series 6" line is a mess right now, lowered number of paint ops, questionable sculpting and deco choices, and bad materials choices are holding it back.

I still think these are closer to the 90s SW toys than they are the 70s. Articulation aside, these are at least sculpted and painted well (for Hasbro standards) and look like the characters in the movie (from what we know).

Paint is utterly fucked on Hasbro Star Wars everything, I give them no props there, but the sculpting is much better than the original Kenner line or the '95 POTF line for these new 5POA.

[Onslaught Six]

The NECA T-800 is not bad. The biggest objective problem is the lack of accessories. (The included gun is consistent with the movie. But, I would prefer more/other guns for the endo-skeleton.) Personally, would want an infiltrator type. (I might still end up buying one.)

There's that, but there's lots of variations out there, and 6" scale accessories aren't that hard to come by anymore--isn't Marauders starting up their own line of 6" scale accessories now? If I didn't have so many and love TF as much as I do, NECA's huge expansive bunch of properties would be what I had the most of.

The Re-Action line is crap. I am old enough to remember that standard being *the* standard. And, Joes blew away SW toys. Renember when knees on non-Joes were a big deal. 7 points of articulation was standard 15+ years ago. 10 was average 10+ years ago. Current "Star Wars" is worse than stuff from 20 years ago.

The big problems with the 6 inch figures is that they are more expensive (obviously) and more limited in scope. (One of the strengths of SW has always been the range of characters, and iterations of characters. That cannot happen in a 6 inch line.)

I also think that there's a push to put the new SW toys into the hands of the people who may be most captivated by getting toys for a movie in a franchise they love: kids. The new SW figures, for all their flaws, are reasonably enough priced that they are (relatively) affordable on a child's allowance. $10 will barely get you a GI Joe today; Marvel Universe is eeking towards $12 in some places, and TFs have very few options under $10--none of which are very satisfying. For whatever reason--probably the continued success of Marvel Legends--they've decided on Black Series to be the collector-oriented line, regardless of the obvious flaws you mention.

The other reason 6" (or God forbid 12") doesn't work well for some lines is because, well, Star Wars is the original troop builder line, isn't it? I mean, if all you EVER bought was Star Wars toys as a kid, it's conceivable you could afford 3-6 Stormtroopers and have yourself a little army. At $20 apiece, getting even two Stormtroopers is beginning to be an investment. It's very weird.

I don't think any of us will be sure how we feel about the film until December.

Based on recent consumer behavior, it appears some people have decided they will love it based on a teaser trailer.

I can say I'm excited for the new movie. I can give my piece on why I think it will be better than the prequels and could be a worthy successor to the franchise. I can like several of the decisions they've made regarding casting and character choice. (Have you noticed that out of all the new characters, not a single one is a fucking white guy? That's amazing to me!) But until I'm actually in the theater, watching it, I won't be able to make a true assessment.

Oof, sorry you missed out on a better price. Surprised you didn't just settle for the Laserbeak repaint, it's pretty good. I really like this mold on Mindwipe... in robot mode. I have Skystalker on one shoulder and Laserbeak on the other. Hope you dig it as well.

The purple is swanky. I didn't want to grab Laserbeak because he doesn't match Mindwipe! The shades are different and stuff. Plus, with TF being kinda-sorta slow right now, I've taken more to trying to fill out those holes that have stayed holes for the obvious reasons of price or rarity--I figure I may be unemployed in another year, or something, and back to not buying shit and selling off crap I don't like anymore (got a huge bin of Movie crap just for the occasion!) so I won't miss the $25.

In RID, it's "Dreadwind".

God fucking damn it!

I have Dreadwing and Smokescreen from G2 also without missiles (or Smokey's guns, IIRC) as well as Dreadwind and Smokejumper, either way, what a fun set. How much did the RID ones run you?

It was $20 with $9 shipping, which I think I just grabbed because it was pretty cheap and wasn't thinking too much about it. (Right now I think I've got more money than time or sense, you know?) It ended up arriving in 2 days, so I guess I didn't mind the shipping price, although in my experience, getting this thing in the mail for under $6 is usually a challenge anyway, so I have no idea how that happened. Didn't the set retail for like $20? A $9 increase over 14-15 years is not that bad for secondhand values.

The Bleak Series 3.75" line is now a Walmart exclusive, figures are still $13 a fucking pop, still terrible executions since the new brand manager seems to just accept whatever trash the factory gives him because his budget is tight, and still using molds over a decade old as filler. The sculpting on the 5POA figures right now is coming out better than the Black Series figures, although they jacked up the price to $8 on that line which is unacceptable.

The Black Series 6" line is a mess right now, lowered number of paint ops, questionable sculpting and deco choices, and bad materials choices are holding it back.

I actually didn't know if they were still doing the 4" Black line; it's funny you mention it being a Walmart exclusive because my store isn't ordering it, but our department manager doesn't give a fuck (and neither do the guy who stocks it; he's an asshole) so there we are. I was exclusively referring to the 6" Black line.

Not shocked that they're still reusing even 10 year old moulds, but you could argue that they were more quality than some of the shit in the last few years!

Paint is utterly fucked on Hasbro Star Wars everything, I give them no props there, but the sculpting is much better than the original Kenner line or the '95 POTF line for these new 5POA.

I dunno. Most of my experience has been looking at them in the packaging, you know? Haven't bought any myself, because I don't know if I'll like the movie yet (of course)!

[JediTricks]

I can say I'm excited for the new movie. I can give my piece on why I think it will be better than the prequels and could be a worthy successor to the franchise. I can like several of the decisions they've made regarding casting and character choice. (Have you noticed that out of all the new characters, not a single one is a fucking white guy? That's amazing to me!) But until I'm actually in the theater, watching it, I won't be able to make a true assessment.

That's not accurate, protagonist Poe Dameron is a white guy. The bad guys are white guys, Kylo Ren and General Hux. Captain Phasma, she's a white woman. Protagonist Rey is also a white woman. My problem with it is they gave the apparent main protagonist, Finn, an incredibly dull outfit, but him being black may be a big deal to audiences without them knowing it -- you're literally saying that they made 1 character black and 2 characters women, that colored your actual interpretation of facts, there will be some who see it that way but as a negative.

It was $20 with $9 shipping, which I think I just grabbed because it was pretty cheap and wasn't thinking too much about it. (Right now I think I've got more money than time or sense, you know?) It ended up arriving in 2 days, so I guess I didn't mind the shipping price, although in my experience, getting this thing in the mail for under $6 is usually a challenge anyway, so I have no idea how that happened. Didn't the set retail for like $20? A $9 increase over 14-15 years is not that bad for secondhand values.

Very nice, I think that's close enough to retail to be totally worth it, it actually went for $25 at Target in 2002 - with inflation, that would be $32.48 today, so you saved money!

Not shocked that they're still reusing even 10 year old moulds, but you could argue that they were more quality than some of the shit in the last few years!

You'd think so, but not THESE decade-old molds. The Vader has fucking diagonal-swivel elbows, it's a travesty.

[JediTricks]

Got a few things...

Aukey 3-in-1 phone lens kit - the title is misleading, it's in one box but is actually 3 lenses in 2 bodies, not one. Clever ideas on all 3 and they work on my phone. Got them at a great discounted price, $10 down from $18. Quality seems pretty decent, although I would have liked to have seen body caps as well as lens caps. Comes with 2 clips so if you lose or break one, you're still ok; and a cleaning cloth. The macro lens at first I didn't think worked until I got suuuuper close, then it was decent although it blocks the flash partway so it can only work with external light sources. The wide lens is interesting as it de-zooms the camera for a wider image, and it screws onto the macro lens to work. Then there's the fisheye lens, I'm not a big fisheye fan but this was more interesting than I expected.

Aukey bluetooth headset - my Samsung BT headset works via BT 2.1 so it doesn't sound as good as modern BT 4.1. I bought a set of Aukey BT earbuds not too long ago and they have a built-in mic, they work nicely as headphones and as a headset, but that leaves one whole bud dangling, so I got this. It's very lightweight, nice-looking design, build is a little cheap but it cost $13 so I'm not shocked, sounds ok so far, we'll see how it goes.

Russel tank top - I was in the gym on Monday and even with the AC had to strip off my t-shirt, so I figured get a tank top. This one is fair, but it's not great, the cut on the arm holes leaves a notable bulge at the front of each arm hole, and the trunk is a little itchy. It was cheap at least.

Hot Wheels Star Wars The Force Awakens Stormtrooper and Capt. Phasma character car 2-pack - both are interesting with some issues. The TFA stormie is intentionally aping the OT stormie car from a few months ago, but where that was a Porsche, this is a taller car which looks odd, the bio claims it's a rally car but it's not lifted, just thicker, so I think the designer screwed up the lines and used that "rally car" as a coverup. Phasma looks good for the most part, shiny with nice weathering, but it's paint instead of chrome, and the plastic elements have very little detail which make it feel more like a Happy Meal car. So good, not great.

Combiner Wars voyager Optimus - this was on clearance with free shipping from HTS via their ebay outlet, so I finally pulled the trigger. Figure got here fast. I like this figure more than it deserves.

[Onslaught Six]

I can say I'm excited for the new movie. I can give my piece on why I think it will be better than the prequels and could be a worthy successor to the franchise. I can like several of the decisions they've made regarding casting and character choice. (Have you noticed that out of all the new characters, not a single one is a fucking white guy? That's amazing to me!) But until I'm actually in the theater, watching it, I won't be able to make a true assessment.

That's not accurate, protagonist Poe Dameron is a white guy. The bad guys are white guys, Kylo Ren and General Hux. Captain Phasma, she's a white woman. Protagonist Rey is also a white woman. My problem with it is they gave the apparent main protagonist, Finn, an incredibly dull outfit, but him being black may be a big deal to audiences without them knowing it -- you're literally saying that they made 1 character black and 2 characters women, that colored your actual interpretation of facts, there will be some who see it that way but as a negative.

Dameron looked like he was middle eastern or at least vaguely ethnic, at least from the card art--that's literally been most of my exposure to these characters, and the trailers. Women don't count as "white guys," because they're not guys, so Phasma and Rey don't count. (Anyone else bothered by the cryptic lack of last names? Of course, that could also be an early marketing tactic to stop the obvious reveals of "Skywalker" and "Calrissian" or something.) The bad guys, Kylo Ren is in an all black costume and arguably could be revealed to be anything--he could be a fucking alien, where the actor's race is irrelevant, and he could end up being voiced by someone of a different race. (After all, Darth Vader's VA was black.) I don't know who General Hux is, so.

I think Rey is actually the main protagonist; I think Finn is a guy along for a ride. Maybe it's Mad Max colouring my perceptions, but Furiosa was the main protagonist of that movie, Max was just a guy hanging out for most of it. Finn is clearly a Stormtrooper traitor or something from the trailers, so who knows what the arc is for either of them? The point I'm making is, I like that they openly chose to write a movie where the main characters aren't white guys, when they easily could have been.
You say his outfit is boring, but this is Star Wars. Han Solo's most iconic outfit is a black vest, a white t-shirt and a pair of pants. Leia's outfit in the first film is a white sheet. Luke's is an all-black button up thing. I'm not all that worried.

Anyone who is concerned that the protagonist lineup of the movie is somehow lacking in straight white males needs to be reminded that there are two old guys filling that quota perfectly fine.

Very nice, I think that's close enough to retail to be totally worth it, it actually went for $25 at Target in 2002 - with inflation, that would be $32.48 today, so you saved money!

Neato!

You'd think so, but not THESE decade-old molds. The Vader has fucking diagonal-swivel elbows, it's a travesty.

Gross! I picked up a few of the McQuarrie concept figures a few years ago, and most of them were made in that era, and I was really disappointed at that aspect of them. Can't believe they're bringing it back, ugh.

[Shockwave]

where the actor's race is irrelevant,

I'd like to think this would be true for any actor in any movie.

[Shockwave]

Also, we really don't know anything about the plot, at least not from the trailers I've seen. Sure we see the one guy in a Stormtrooper armor, but we saw Luke and Han do that in the first one too and they weren't actual Stormtroopers. Just sayin.

[Onslaught Six]

where the actor's race is irrelevant,

I'd like to think this would be true for any actor in any movie.

While I agree, your quote is out of context; the actor's race is relevant to what we're discussing only in as much that the character they're playing is distinctly human. We don't know what Kylo Ren looks like under his mask so if he's an alien, the actor's race is irrelevant to the character.

To be fair, if Rey and Finn turn out to be shitty characters, then fine! Whatever! I just think it's neat that they openly decided to have the main new characters be a black guy and a woman, instead of--for example--two white guys.

Also, we really don't know anything about the plot, at least not from the trailers I've seen. Sure we see the one guy in a Stormtrooper armor, but we saw Luke and Han do that in the first one too and they weren't actual Stormtroopers. Just sayin.

Well, of course. But their moment in Stormtrooper armour wasn't the main shot in the trailer, and they never look as panicked as Finn does.

[JediTricks]

Dameron looked like he was middle eastern or at least vaguely ethnic, at least from the card art--that's literally been most of my exposure to these characters, and the trailers.

It turns out he's hispanic, but this presents an interesting lesson in racial identity. Middle Easterners, including Israelis, are caucasians, but because they're more swarthy we think of them as a different race. Poe Dameron is played by Oscar Isaac - who is of Guatemalan and Cuban parents (and apparently one of his grandparents is French), born in Guatemala and raised in Florida, and he seems "vaguely" ethnic but is clearly less brown/Native American than other hispanics, so he probably has more of that caucasian about him, and then he uses his middle name as a more Euro-centric public identity. It's confusing to be white.

Women don't count as "white guys," because they're not guys, so Phasma and Rey don't count. (Anyone else bothered by the cryptic lack of last names? Of course, that could also be an early marketing tactic to stop the obvious reveals of "Skywalker" and "Calrissian" or something.)

So your point is that the pecking order is "White guys. Non-white Guys. Women" in overuse, yes? I can see that, but there is some challenge because ethnic identity in our society does sometimes trump gender identity hierarchy. Our society sucks. Then again, what society doesn't have gender and ethnic issues?

The bad guys, Kylo Ren is in an all black costume and arguably could be revealed to be anything--he could be a fucking alien, where the actor's race is irrelevant, and he could end up being voiced by someone of a different race. (After all, Darth Vader's VA was black.)

The character is shown in the film without his mask and cloak like in this pr photo, he's still Adam Driver. Ugh. https://pmcvariety.files.wordpress.com/ ... .jpg?w=670

I don't know who General Hux is, so.

This tool in the way-too-Earth coat and shirt: http://d51ck0gypsxpo.cloudfront.net/wp- ... t-look.jpg

You say his outfit is boring, but this is Star Wars. Han Solo's most iconic outfit is a black vest, a white t-shirt and a pair of pants. Leia's outfit in the first film is a white sheet. Luke's is an all-black button up thing. I'm not all that worried.

Actually, Star Wars outfits speak volumes even when they're simple...

Han Solo's outfit is a white tunic with shortened sleeves and no collar, a black pocketed vest, a gunbelt, blue trousers with a red bloodstripe down each leg, and tall boots.

Princess Leia's outfit is a regal, flowing white gown with a hood, a unique silver belt, and mid-calf white leather boots.

Luke's outfit at the end of ROTJ (which I'm assuming you're referring to) is a functional black tunic with a neru collar and separate chest panel with no obvious signs of fasteners, a single black glove, a simple utility belt, matching trousers, and knee-high black boots - this is the character stripped away of his protections in the form of his hooded dark brown cloak, his brown vest, and his poncho.

Finn's outfit, meanwhile, is the boring thing in this shot that doesn't look Star Warsy at all (which could it be, the guy who looks like he's in Star Wars, the girl who looks like she's in Star Wars, or the guy who looks like he is visiting the set of a Star Wars filming?):
http://media.comicbook.com/uploads1/201 ... 131779.png
The design even shows boring shoes:
http://s3.amazonaws.com/images.hitfix.c ... 3/finn.jpg
http://www.technobuffalo.com/wp-content ... Friday.jpg
It makes for a dull action figure:
http://static4.techinsider.io/image/55c ... r-wars.jpg
The jacket isn't even unique, it's a design also seen on Poe Dameron: (this shot is the only one I can find of the character in it that isn't a potentially massive spoiler, but I assure you he's in that jacket in the movie)
http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/8 ... SY355_.jpg
The jacket is a boring, bulky version of Luke's ANH ceremony jacket which wasn't even that great to begin with:
https://swlibrarian.files.wordpress.com ... ration.jpg

Gross! I picked up a few of the McQuarrie concept figures a few years ago, and most of them were made in that era, and I was really disappointed at that aspect of them. Can't believe they're bringing it back, ugh.

I forgot that those McQ figures had that articulation, what a shitty cost-cutting measure. And for $13, you can get the Vader from that line at Walmart today!!!

[Onslaught Six]

Dameron looked like he was middle eastern or at least vaguely ethnic, at least from the card art--that's literally been most of my exposure to these characters, and the trailers.

It turns out he's hispanic, but this presents an interesting lesson in racial identity. Middle Easterners, including Israelis, are caucasians, but because they're more swarthy we think of them as a different race. Poe Dameron is played by Oscar Isaac - who is of Guatemalan and Cuban parents (and apparently one of his grandparents is French), born in Guatemala and raised in Florida, and he seems "vaguely" ethnic but is clearly less brown/Native American than other hispanics, so he probably has more of that caucasian about him, and then he uses his middle name as a more Euro-centric public identity. It's confusing to be white.

Bugger me off and call me Sally, then.

So your point is that the pecking order is "White guys. Non-white Guys. Women" in overuse, yes? I can see that, but there is some challenge because ethnic identity in our society does sometimes trump gender identity hierarchy. Our society sucks. Then again, what society doesn't have gender and ethnic issues?

Well, yeah. Look at the Avengers--an entire team of white muscly dudes and (now) two women, neither of which are getting their own solo movie anytime soon, who frequently get the shaft in the toylines. DC isn't much better, especially when they pass up perfectly fine characters in Hawkgirl and John Stewart for Hawkman (who cares) and Hal Jordan (again) for the sake of...having more white guys, I guess?

The character is shown in the film without his mask and cloak like in this pr photo, he's still Adam Driver. Ugh. https://pmcvariety.files.wordpress.com/ ... .jpg?w=670

I cannot believe how photoshopped that looks. It literally looks like it's from an entirely different photo.

This tool in the way-too-Earth coat and shirt: http://d51ck0gypsxpo.cloudfront.net/wp- ... t-look.jpg

Looks more like he just has a plain coat over the standard Admiral uniform that Tarkin and such were wearing in the original films.

Actually, Star Wars outfits speak volumes even when they're simple...

Han Solo's outfit is a white tunic with shortened sleeves and no collar, a black pocketed vest, a gunbelt, blue trousers with a red bloodstripe down each leg, and tall boots.

Princess Leia's outfit is a regal, flowing white gown with a hood, a unique silver belt, and mid-calf white leather boots.

Luke's outfit at the end of ROTJ (which I'm assuming you're referring to) is a functional black tunic with a neru collar and separate chest panel with no obvious signs of fasteners, a single black glove, a simple utility belt, matching trousers, and knee-high black boots - this is the character stripped away of his protections in the form of his hooded dark brown cloak, his brown vest, and his poncho.

Finn's outfit, meanwhile, is the boring thing in this shot that doesn't look Star Warsy at all (which could it be, the guy who looks like he's in Star Wars, the girl who looks like she's in Star Wars, or the guy who looks like he is visiting the set of a Star Wars filming?):
http://media.comicbook.com/uploads1/201 ... 131779.png
The design even shows boring shoes:
http://s3.amazonaws.com/images.hitfix.c ... 3/finn.jpg
http://www.technobuffalo.com/wp-content ... Friday.jpg
It makes for a dull action figure:
http://static4.techinsider.io/image/55c ... r-wars.jpg
The jacket isn't even unique, it's a design also seen on Poe Dameron: (this shot is the only one I can find of the character in it that isn't a potentially massive spoiler, but I assure you he's in that jacket in the movie)
http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/8 ... SY355_.jpg
The jacket is a boring, bulky version of Luke's ANH ceremony jacket which wasn't even that great to begin with:
https://swlibrarian.files.wordpress.com ... ration.jpg

I mean, I dunno. We have yet to see everything that happens in the films (as Shocktrek says) so we'll see where it goes. I don't mind it being a little grounded--many of the prequel outfits were a little too "standard Jedi-y" for my tastes, everyone in those movies was either in a brown robe or a browner, darker robe.

I forgot that those McQ figures had that articulation, what a shitty cost-cutting measure. And for $13, you can get the Vader from that line at Walmart today!!!

I already have the Vader! It's the Threepio and Artoo I need, and Chewie and weird Han Solo/Obi Wan guy I need.