JediTricks
12-21-2007, 04:49 PM
The last Q&A for this year, it's Hasbro's answers to SSG questions for December 21, 2007. Thanks again to Hasbro for the answers, to all the folks who sent in questions and especially those who voted on them.
Hasbro Q&A for the week of December 21st
Q: With collectors clamoring for playsets the last few years and Hasbro's take being that there's no market for them at this time, might the Ultra Battlepack concept be used to get us a little closer to playsets by including larger environment elements instead of vehicles? We could have Dagobah with Yoda's hut and the tree (where Luke battles his demons); and a Death Star with trash compactor, corridors & doors, and cellblock. So, might the Ultra Battlepack line be purposed for this need?
A: We certainly look a the Ultimate Battle Pack concept as a way to deliver more play features but at the same time not weigh down a product with a massive tooling burden. As has been well-documented, playsets are backbreakers from a tooling and product costing perspective, and their return on investment is still not justified relative to the higher level of interest in figures and vehicles. That's why there were new elements to these sets, but they were not the sole focus of the sets themselves. By using a considerable amount of existing items, we were able to justify some tooling expense, which we spent on the turret and the logs. Surprisingly, the turret did not take up that many tools and was very efficient from that standpoint compared to some of the other suggestions which are more intensive from a tooling and piece price standpoint. The exception might be Yoda's hut, which is a pretty good suggestion and one we should look into. So the sucess of the UBPs (and they have been very successful) does not mean a change of format to more playset-dominated sets, but it does open the door to opportunities that have a similar type of format - i.e. some newness mixed with a good dose of existing to keep our costs down.
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Q: Back in October, Hasbro said that getting a Corran Horn figure in the comics 2packs line was unlikely because he "only appears in one comic series (X-Wing Rogue Squadron: Family Ties) as a security officer, well before his most iconic stores in later novels." However, that's not accurate as he's in the SW:Union mini-series, in at least 3 different outfits - training gear, civilian clothes, and trademark green robes during Luke & Mara's ceremony (which would also be a great way to sneak in a Cilghal figure). Does this up the odds at all for Corran Horn?
A: It still doesn't change our belief that the comic packs might not be the best place to deliver a Corran Horn figure. He's still high on our wish list with some other prominent figures, but we'll have to wait a while longer yet before we can look to do something with him.
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Q: With Commander Neyo from the Treachery on Saleucami set being among the winners of the Saga Legends fan choice poll, would you please pack in a second, generic belt with him the way you're doing with the Gray Clone Commander figure in the Saga Legends line? That way, the Neyo-style troopers could be represented by this same figure (remove the pauldron, swap the belt, voila), leading to more sales of the guy.
A: Excellent suggestion, but too late to impact this figure, which is being built now for shipment soon.
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And the questions at ActionFigs.com (http://www.actionfigs.com/index.php?categoryid=12&p2_articleid=1384):
We understand your current stance on playsets, but if you go back to making beasts, would you consider a Sarlacc pit? It's got a big gross mouth, tentacles, and the special editions have added a large beak (which, should you make this figure, we'd hope could be a removable aspect), yet this is one Star Wars creature that's always gotten the short end of the merchandising stick despite being a major part of ROTJ. It could be done as a beast pack, maybe an ultimate battle pack, or even part of a boxed set with a Tatooine Skiff.
A few Battlepacks have featured Jedi, a Clone Commander, and three Clone Troopers. Will we see this concept applied to more sets in the future, perhaps something like Ki-Adi-Mundi, a grittier repaint of Commander Bacara, and three Galactic Marines? What about extending this idea to the other films beyond Ep III?
In the past, Hasbro's stated that main characters should always be available to casual collectors, which makes sense, and Lucas has stated that the saga is about Darth Vader. That said however, there are currently at least 9 different Vader figures available on shelves - TAC Vader, 2 Saga Legends figures, 2 different battlepacks, the TAC coin album, 2 different comic 2packs, and the McQuarrie Concept version. Out of those, all but the McQuarrie version are pegwarming in many areas; some areas also have older Vader figures from as far back as 2005; and there are more Vader's on the way. Have you considered that such oversaturation may be problematic to the line, as collectors are less likely to buy the same character over and over (especially when most are rereleases of earlier molds) while casual collectors (who might only need 1 or 2 Vaders) might find the sheer number of them confusing?Also, Hasbro commented on the photos ActionFigs sent in regarding the Luke Jedi cloth vest issue from the Sept 28th Q&A.
Hasbro Q&A for the week of December 21st
Q: With collectors clamoring for playsets the last few years and Hasbro's take being that there's no market for them at this time, might the Ultra Battlepack concept be used to get us a little closer to playsets by including larger environment elements instead of vehicles? We could have Dagobah with Yoda's hut and the tree (where Luke battles his demons); and a Death Star with trash compactor, corridors & doors, and cellblock. So, might the Ultra Battlepack line be purposed for this need?
A: We certainly look a the Ultimate Battle Pack concept as a way to deliver more play features but at the same time not weigh down a product with a massive tooling burden. As has been well-documented, playsets are backbreakers from a tooling and product costing perspective, and their return on investment is still not justified relative to the higher level of interest in figures and vehicles. That's why there were new elements to these sets, but they were not the sole focus of the sets themselves. By using a considerable amount of existing items, we were able to justify some tooling expense, which we spent on the turret and the logs. Surprisingly, the turret did not take up that many tools and was very efficient from that standpoint compared to some of the other suggestions which are more intensive from a tooling and piece price standpoint. The exception might be Yoda's hut, which is a pretty good suggestion and one we should look into. So the sucess of the UBPs (and they have been very successful) does not mean a change of format to more playset-dominated sets, but it does open the door to opportunities that have a similar type of format - i.e. some newness mixed with a good dose of existing to keep our costs down.
- -
Q: Back in October, Hasbro said that getting a Corran Horn figure in the comics 2packs line was unlikely because he "only appears in one comic series (X-Wing Rogue Squadron: Family Ties) as a security officer, well before his most iconic stores in later novels." However, that's not accurate as he's in the SW:Union mini-series, in at least 3 different outfits - training gear, civilian clothes, and trademark green robes during Luke & Mara's ceremony (which would also be a great way to sneak in a Cilghal figure). Does this up the odds at all for Corran Horn?
A: It still doesn't change our belief that the comic packs might not be the best place to deliver a Corran Horn figure. He's still high on our wish list with some other prominent figures, but we'll have to wait a while longer yet before we can look to do something with him.
- -
Q: With Commander Neyo from the Treachery on Saleucami set being among the winners of the Saga Legends fan choice poll, would you please pack in a second, generic belt with him the way you're doing with the Gray Clone Commander figure in the Saga Legends line? That way, the Neyo-style troopers could be represented by this same figure (remove the pauldron, swap the belt, voila), leading to more sales of the guy.
A: Excellent suggestion, but too late to impact this figure, which is being built now for shipment soon.
- -
And the questions at ActionFigs.com (http://www.actionfigs.com/index.php?categoryid=12&p2_articleid=1384):
We understand your current stance on playsets, but if you go back to making beasts, would you consider a Sarlacc pit? It's got a big gross mouth, tentacles, and the special editions have added a large beak (which, should you make this figure, we'd hope could be a removable aspect), yet this is one Star Wars creature that's always gotten the short end of the merchandising stick despite being a major part of ROTJ. It could be done as a beast pack, maybe an ultimate battle pack, or even part of a boxed set with a Tatooine Skiff.
A few Battlepacks have featured Jedi, a Clone Commander, and three Clone Troopers. Will we see this concept applied to more sets in the future, perhaps something like Ki-Adi-Mundi, a grittier repaint of Commander Bacara, and three Galactic Marines? What about extending this idea to the other films beyond Ep III?
In the past, Hasbro's stated that main characters should always be available to casual collectors, which makes sense, and Lucas has stated that the saga is about Darth Vader. That said however, there are currently at least 9 different Vader figures available on shelves - TAC Vader, 2 Saga Legends figures, 2 different battlepacks, the TAC coin album, 2 different comic 2packs, and the McQuarrie Concept version. Out of those, all but the McQuarrie version are pegwarming in many areas; some areas also have older Vader figures from as far back as 2005; and there are more Vader's on the way. Have you considered that such oversaturation may be problematic to the line, as collectors are less likely to buy the same character over and over (especially when most are rereleases of earlier molds) while casual collectors (who might only need 1 or 2 Vaders) might find the sheer number of them confusing?Also, Hasbro commented on the photos ActionFigs sent in regarding the Luke Jedi cloth vest issue from the Sept 28th Q&A.