Would You Buy The Dianoga Trash Compactor Monster From ANH?

[Tycho]

I am starting a new thread series!

This series will now ONLY discuss the beast in the title of the thread (in this case the dianoga trash compactor monster from ANH).

It is time Hasbro returned to making a standard beast assortment for the toys for the 3 3/4" action figure line!

I will cover several unmade beasts for the toy line per week, choosing them from a rotating schedule through anything from the movies that still has not yet been polled for and a few from the Expanded Universe.

I'll order it ANH, ESB, ROTJ, TPM, AOTC, ROTS, and the EU, and then keep going back through the order in that manner.

So here I'm only asking you if you'd buy Dianoga Trash Compactor Monster From ANH?

I'm not sure what the MSRP for the beasts should be - but I think there might very well be cause for there to be several price points.

Do you think the beasts should include a figure to interact with them?

I want to say "No" myself, as most of us collectors already have the figures that go with these unmade beasts.

The dianoga creature could be made for the $24 price range, similar to the starfighter assortment's price.

A good trash compactor monster figure should be larger in size.

The body or "plant bulb" of this thing should be large enough to swallow a figure whole. I think sticky-bendy-gummi tentacles should encircle it and the eye stalks should be presented that way as well.

I don't think the beast needs any more features - so maybe it could even retail at a lower price - say $17?


So do you want a trash compactor monster from ANH to be made?

What other features would you want on it?

Why would you NOT want it?

How do you think it would sell if produced?

Should this be expanded to a playset of the trash compactor itself - similar to the removeable one that came with the vintage Death Star playset but colored like the later Wal-Mart exclusive box sets?

Then where do you see the retail price going?

I really don't want to see pack-in figures. Chewie, Han, Luke, and Leia are the only figures that really belong with this set - but I seriously doubt anyone here reading this thread doesn't already have several versions of them already, and we all know that exclusive pack-in figures never measure up to what Hasbro could push out as carded figures.

Below is what a dianoga-out-of-water look like

[Darth Metalmute]

Can we get one that has a replaceable Meg Griffin head?

[DarkJedi5]

I love the idea of a beast assortment. I've always been a fan of the Star Wars creatures and think it's about time we saw more of them released up to the standard of the recent Dewback.

I would buy a large scale Dianoga at the drop of a hat. While most of the creature is not seen in ANH it does resurface (get it?) in several EU sources such as Darkforces and Shadows of the Empire which might give it context for collectors outside of the OT. I do think that all beast should probably be packaged with a regular figure. The Dewback came with a sandtrooper and Jabba is coming with Oola and I think that's pretty much the way it's gotta be. With the Dianoga I would repack Luke in stormtrooper armor, a figure Tycho correctly points out, everyone already has. For the sake of freshness I would repaint him so that he is flecked with trash and perhaps sculpted with wet hair (basically an SA version of the figure that came in the Walmart set).

The Dianoga itself may not need to be large enough to swallow a figure whole but it should be big enough to be a threatening creature. All of the tentacles must be flexible so that it has playability outside of the one rigid pose the present model suffers from. A bonus feature that I think would make for an awesome toy would be if Hasbro could figure out a way to make this guy float along in water so that the body was submerged but the eye stalk was above the surface. I think that would help take this item out of the collector only category and help move it over into a kid friendly range.

Unfortunately because of how little we see of the actual creature on screen this one seems like it would struggle. As unhappy as I am with the original (and don't read this as a no vote), I see stronger beasts out there that would sell better. I think with a creature such as the Dianoga, having a really cool pack-in character is what is gonna sell this piece. In fact, the best way to present it is probably in a battle pack like the Scramble on Yavin. Put the Dianoga in as the large piece and then stick in two rehashed figures such as a redeco'ed Han and Luke and bam! You've got two very recognizable characters (which kids would buy and if it's a good repaint collectors could swallow) with a beast that is probably more desirable to collectors. I think I've convinced myself that this could do well in such a battle pack.

[bigbarada]

I would buy it, but I think it would do best as a battlepack or a deluxe figure. If it was released as a battlepack, then Hasbro could include more than one figure. Probably a wet-Luke and a wet-Leia, along with some trash to fill the scene out.

[Mr. JabbaJohnL]

I really don't think we need another one. The illustrations make it look bigger than I think it physically can actually be, given the somewhat small space of the trash compactor - the 2003 one is already pushing it, in my opinion.

[bigbarada]

I really don't think we need another one. The illustrations make it look bigger than I think it physically can actually be, given the somewhat small space of the trash compactor - the 2003 one is already pushing it, in my opinion.

I always assumed that the monster would be just big enough to consume a human body; but it would cause the Dianoga to become bloated. Kind of like a boa constrictor eating a rabbit. In that sense, it would be slightly larger than an average action figure, but way smaller than a figure like Ephant Mon or Hermi Odle.

The EU drawings of the Dianoga kind of remind me of the drawings of the Sarlacc. They take a simple creature design and totally blow it out of proportion to the point of ridiculousness.

[Fat Valentino]

But what I'd really like is a Galactic Heroes version of this figure, which in my perfect world is basically a flat bottomed pile of death star trash, with a rotating eye stalk and two moveable tenticles poking out...

[Mr. JabbaJohnL]

I always assumed that the monster would be just big enough to consume a human body; but it would cause the Dianoga to become bloated. Kind of like a boa constrictor eating a rabbit. In that sense, it would be slightly larger than an average action figure, but way smaller than a figure like Ephant Mon or Hermi Odle.

The EU drawings of the Dianoga kind of remind me of the drawings of the Sarlacc. They take a simple creature design and totally blow it out of proportion to the point of ridiculousness.

That makes sense. Given the small space of the compactor, and the fact that only one of the heroes even comes into physical contact with it (Luke feeling it against his leg and then getting pulled under) leads me to believe that it's not the biggest thing ever. I'm not even sure it needs to consume the entire body at once; it could easily eat Luke piece by piece, I think, and perhaps it was just trying to kill him during ANH for later snacking. I don't know.

And yeah, the Sarlacc becoming this absolute behemoth is bothersome. How is something that huge supposed to also move around the desert (as it does in EU) and survive on whatever Jabba decided to kill lately, even if it does have an extremely slow metabolism? I feel that the designers kind of took them both and ran way too far with them.

[JediTricks]

The Dianoga's strength in pulling Luke under the water as easily as it did suggests a larger creature. Using an octopus-like body design is ingenious, that's the kind of large body creature which can shrink itself or expand itself into any number of sizes and shapes, giving it the ability to squeeze through small openings while remaining large, then living within the trash. It also seems to have the ability to escape the masher entirely, you hear a trap-door-type sound after it gives up trying to eat Luke, just before the walls start smashing together. Octopi are pretty smart about such things, from what I've read.

That said, I wouldn't likely buy another, the existing set may not be perfect, but the thing is an eye and a tendril, and that's all I really need it to be. I can't picture it being a fun plaything or in any way useful for display purposes beyond what we already have.

[Tycho]

Well putting it in a trash compactor playset with foam garbage and some pipe parts is an option. But I don't know if Hasbro would invest that much (though they should as this would sell in my opinion - closing walls included).

Any playset should be designed with connectors to show some foresight of adding this thing into a build-a-Death Star playset for the 3 3/4" line - but modeled after the old Kenner Micro-Collection sets.

I really wonder if Hasbro has that rabbit to pull out of their hats as a hugely guarded secret they have planned for the return of the vintage styled collection. (Dang I'd pose for the kid on the box with a huge vintage smile if I ever got offered that gig. I'm still 5 years old when it comes to this stuff!)

Anyway, a Trash Compactor Playset with Dianoga would be at least $60. But they sold the pathetically under-featured Lars Moisture Farm at that price. Why not re-invest some of that profit (if they charged Toys R Us a lot to get those in the first place)?

But yes, the octopus / jellyfish comparisons to the dianoga are just as I always figured too.

In a playset, this certainly could be offered without more Han, Luke, Chewie, or Leia. (It could feature an exclusive Imperial Garbage Man, though. Why not? We have an Ice Cream Maker Guy.)

I do think some of the beasts I'd suggest necessitate having a pack-in figure - for a rider or something of that sort. But we'll get to that shortly.

I would really like to see a lot of creature / beasts brought back in the toyline's fold.

BTW, ANH suggestions I am not going to dicuss are Jabba (as a ROTJ version is on the way anyway) and the Dewback - as that has just been offered and might be scheduled for re-release IIRC. Meanwhile, I don't know if the Ronto needs to be revisited or re-released, but you guys let me know if you'd like to see that. Oh - and there's the Bantha of course, too.

Believe it or not, while I'm going to take a little EU liberties with MOVIE selections because I'm going to have to, (the EU has enough creature possibilities on its own), ANH has a few good offerings that aren't represented, or well-represented amongst the beasts yet.