Boycott the new Vintage figures!

[El Chuxter]

"What? Is he crazy? No way am I passing on that IG-88!"

No, I'm not crazy. I'm asking this for a reason.

Simply put, there is no reason these should be $10 figures. Hasbro has demonstrated many times over the past few years that they are capable of putting out figures that are as good or better than the Vintage throwbacks for less than $7. In some cases, they've released the same figure for $7!

And with the 2006 and 2007 waves, they've shown that they're totally willing to produce figures that have already been done a few times and have totally adequate sculpts available (esp. Greedo and Bossk). They'll continue producing these as long as you buy them. Soon, they'll be making "Vintage" Yak Face and Rancor Keeper.

Every time you buy a "Vintage" figure, you say to Hasbro, "Yo, I'm willing to pay more for a figure you could produce at the $7 price point, simply because it has a card that looks sorta like the one from when I was a kid."

Soon, the $7 figures will be totally rehashes and inferior sculpts. Decent figures will only be released as Vintage. Bear in mind that this completely precludes any prequel or EU characters, or any classic trilogy characters who weren't produced by Kenner.

Keep in mind also that inflation will result in higher prices for these soon. I would not be surprised if the 2007 VTAC figures are $12 at the cheapest retail outlets.

So please give this some thought--particularly if you're an opener and will be throwing the card away anyhow. We have to send a message to Hasbro.

[JON9000]

So please give this some thought--particularly if you're an opener and will be throwing the card away anyhow. We have to send a message to Hasbro.

Thank heavens for target clearance sales. I only bought the Biker Scout and Luke at full retail last year, and that will likely be the case again this year.

[bigbarada]

Sorry but no way, these are just too awesome to pass up.

I don't have a huge collection of stuff and I never plan to buy everything, so an extra $2 here and an extra $3 there doesn't bother me at all. In fact, boycotting these figures would just give Hasbro the idea that we don't want vintage-style figures anymore. If you want to complain about pricepoint, start a petition.

I'd buy a vintage-style Yak Face for $12 in a heartbeat. Heck, make it $15, I'm feeling generous today.

[Old Fossil]

Well, seeing as how I really don't army build, I can afford to spend a little more per figure when I DO buy one.

Seeing as how I plan on displaying these Vintage-style figures MOC and (some) opened for the forseeable future, it's worth it to me to pay a little more for a figure that displays well both loose and MOC.

Also, since I love the Vintage style cardbacks, but cannot afford to buy the genuine articles off the secondary market, these are a logical alternative. For $10 each, I can enjoy the Vintage look, but not have to pay possibly several Benjamins to have it.

I totally get your point, Chuxter, but these are geared towards the collector side of the market, which typically can better (or is more willing) to absorb the higher prices.

I might draw the line at the Rancor Keeper, though.

[Blue2th]

I tend to agree with BB. Plus if these are of the quality of past Vintage style figures, I am willing to pay the difference. Sure some of these sculpts might appear later in the regular line, but I feel the amount we pay for these might be justified for the expense of producing them. Though some of them like Han may have parts from previous sculpts, and some previous ones were craptastic like C-3PO. Stiil I like the cards also and the whole concept. These are for me, the adult collector. I will probably buy two of each. One to open, one to hang on the wall with the rest of them.

[JEDIpartner]

I totally agree with you. I honestly don't think the IG-88 is that special but the other ones look like they will be a vast improvement over their standard counterparts. Erhm... "Depends" General Leia Organa, anyone?

[decadentdave]

There's no way I'm passing these up. Han Hoth looks sweet and IG and Bossk look amazing. Bespin Luke is... meh. Anyway, you are paying $10 for the retro packaging and the protective clamshell which increases the cost over the $6.99 regular figure. $3 more for the special packaging on these is not that big of a deal to me. Besides, my Walmarts have had VTSC figures on CLEARANCE for $9.96 (I think the were originally $10.99) since November and nobody is buying them. Target will probably clearance new assortments after a few weeks so I'm not too concerned about finding them.

[Rocketboy]

Well, I haven't bought one yet, so OK.

[bigbarada]

Also, since this is a collector's line, they are probably produced in smaller numbers than the regular release figures. Which means that Hasbro has to charge more per figure in order to show a profit.

I know that might be hard to believe with these things sitting on clearance shelves, but remember the POTF line rotted on clearance shelves for years (I saw POTF figures in stores as late as 1987 for $1 each), and they're some of the rarest Star Wars figures around.

Down here in central Illinois, some of the smaller retail outlets charge way above the $6.63 that Wal-Mart charges for the standard figures. I paid $7.99 for Chief Chirpa and have no regrets because it was the first figure I had bought in months.

[Ji'dai]

I agree, I don't think 3-3/4" figures are worth more than $5 each. I didn't buy any VTSC figures last year and have severely cut back on even basic figure purchases since the price hikes. I can afford to pay what Hasbro is currently charging, but I simply won't do it any more. Hasbro's loss.

This from a collector that used to buy two of each figure like some half-mad plastic-collecting Noah.