Your Future Collection

[Daryl VayDar]

I've found that the future of my collecting is actually now. A few weeks ago, I purchased my 4th and final piggy from the new wave. I knew that I wanted 2 for Jabba's Throneroom, 1 for the droid torture room, and 1 to be eaten by the Rancor. I was happy to find him, but after I opened him a really big moment happened for me.
I typically clip elements of the packaging when I open the figures so that I can later identify the sources of my loose figures. As I hunted around for some scissors, I was suddenly hit with an overwhelming sense of frustration. Not because I couldn't find the scissors, but because I realized that all of the 'things' that I had to do to maintain my collection had become tedious and unwelcome. I went down to my basement where I store my collection and looked around with growing disgust and despair. I own WAY too much stuff.
Over the years (I've been actively collecting since the line re-started in '95) the act and process of collecting took on more of a life than the collection itself. I opened a few boxes and realized how many things I own that have NEVER once been displayed. So many things have been displayed briefly and never seen again...
I closed the door to my collection room and decided to spend a day mulling over how and why I collect and see what I came up with. It actually took me about 20 minutes to realize that in some ways I hated my collection and what it had become. At some point in the past it moved far beyond buying what I wanted and became a job.
I forced myself to look at what things about Star Wars that really attracted me on a truly personal level to determine how I would handle my collecting moving forward.
I am a diorama builder. I really like to recreate the scenes from the movies that resonated with me, it makes me happy to walk through the room and see a great recreation of the battle of Endor, or Jabba's Palace. I prefer that over simply standing figures in a line on a shelf. To me, a diorama is a work of art. It requires some thought- composition, construction, content... it allows creativity within the act of collecting. Toys on a shelf are just that... toys on a shelf. You are required to open the package, stand them up, and try not to bump them and knock them over.
I asked myself what scenes I found iconic, what things that I wanted to invest the time and creativity to construct. It turned out that list was pretty small. I love Hoth. To me, Hoth is the perfect realization of the struggles between the rebels and empire, and has some of the greatest designs of the saga in it. The Cantina and Jabba's palace are awesome because of the alien angle. Endor, again, shows that the little guy can actually succeed against the evil empire....
That was about it. I have gathered hundreds of figures, vehicles, playsets and stuff to re-create dozens of "scenes" that don't actually mean much to me.
Wow.
In the course of about an hour, I took a hobby that has been a part of my life for the past 15 years, looked at what it honestly means to me and my attitudes and dedication to it and changed my entire outlook on it!
I currently have about 200 auctions on ebay, and will have hundreds more before the end of the year. I'm done with the Clone Wars, I'm mostly done with the prequels, and I'm really only looking to buy new things that complement the dio's that I want to make. I know a lot of you already have that attitude, but I just found it, and can honestly say that I'm happier about my collection and collecting in general than I've been in a decade.

[bigbarada]

I closed the door to my collection room and decided to spend a day mulling over how and why I collect and see what I came up with. It actually took me about 20 minutes to realize that in some ways I hated my collection and what it had become. At some point in the past it moved far beyond buying what I wanted and became a job.
I forced myself to look at what things about Star Wars that really attracted me on a truly personal level to determine how I would handle my collecting moving forward.

I've gone through very similar experiences several times over the years. It actually took me a few years of journaling about my Star Wars memories for me to discover what really pulled me into Star Wars in the first place. A lot of it was learning to separate what actually happened during my childhood and what I simply wished had happened.

I took Psychology in college and I learned that human memory is easily manipulated. The older the memory, the easier it distorts. Memories get switched around, events that took place at different times get merged together, people get transplanted on top of other people, we can even absorb other peoples memories as our own. If you don't take proactive steps to document your memories (journaling is the best way) then they WILL get distorted over time.

So I wanted to learn about what REALLY drew me into Star Wars and exactly when that happened. Like I've mentioned earlier, I was 5 years old when I got my first Star Wars toy in 1978, but to me Star Wars was never anything special. It wasn't until 1983 and the enormous media push that surrounded ROTJ that I really got sucked in. Prior to that I thought Star Wars was cool and we had a few toys, but I was much more familiar with Battlestar Galactica, Star Trek, Buck Rogers, The Outer Limits, Planet of the Apes, etc. I have some vague memories of seeing early parts of the Holiday Special in 1978, but I'm pretty sure my parents would have changed the channel very early on.

In 1983, as mentioned, there was the massive marketing push for ROTJ, plus the network television premiere of Star Wars on CBS. The earliest promotional images from ROTJ that really captured my imagination as a kid were photos of the Skiff Guards (primarily the two Weequays) and that famous photo of the Gamorrean Guard sitting in front of the cannon on the Sail Barge. Shortly after that we got ahold of the Return of the Jedi Storybook and I think I read that cover to cover at least once a day for several weeks. And I poured over the photos and studied every single one of them.

My earliest favorite characters from ROTJ were the Gamorrean Guards, the Weequays, Ephant Mon, and Kithaba (known only to me as the "bulldog-faced guy") - all clearly visible in the Storybook. Later on I also started to really like the Ewoks, Admiral Ackbar, Chewbacca and Darth Vader. Darth Vader turning from a bad guy into a good guy was the reason that I liked the character so much.

I didn't like Jabba that much at all back then because he was asymmetrical. For some reason I had this weird obsession with symmetry as a kid (I probably still do to some degree). So I was also never a big fan of the asymmetrical ships from Star Wars, like the Millenium Falcon, B-Wing, etc. It also bothered me a bit that the Weequays draped their ponytails over one shoulder instead of evenly distributing them over both shoulders (plus guys weren't supposed to be wearing ponytails anyhow), so that's probably one reason that I never formed a very strong attachment to that alien species as a kid. Very strange, I know.

Oh yeah, and I was totally freaked out by Bib Fortuna's head tails. I didn't even like looking at him until years later.

Anyways, as I got further into the Star Wars films, I developed a real appreciation for the AT-ATs and the Cantina aliens. Especially the Cantina Band, which I always thought was available as a mail away action figure set and wouldn't learn differently until about 1993.

When we finally go to see Star Wars on television in 1983, I developed a real attachment to See-Threepio and Artoo-Detoo and started to look up to Han Solo. Han shooting Greedo first made me respect him a lot. Even my Vietnam-veteran father, who hated Star Wars, liked Han Solo for his no nonsense practicality.

Anyways, long story short, I find that I enjoy my collection much, much more if I only focus on characters that meant something to me as a kid and STILL mean something to me as an adult.

Unfortunately the oversaturation of Darth Vader, Han Solo, Chewbacca, Artoo-Detoo and See-Threepio toys has really hurt my esteem of those characters. Unless I can find a reason to get excited about a new release, then there isn't much incentive for me to buy new figures of those guys.

But when I really get down to it, what pulled me into Star Wars in the first place was the alien designs for ROTJ. Particularly those created for Jabba's Palace and the Skiff Battle. As long as I focus on those, then my collection NEVER feels old or stale or burdensome.

[Qui-Long Gone]

I didn't like Jabba that much at all back then because he was asymmetrical. For some reason I had this weird obsession with symmetry as a kid (I probably still do to some degree). So I was also never a big fan of the asymmetrical ships from Star Wars, like the Millenium Falcon, B-Wing, etc. It also bothered me a bit that the Weequays draped their ponytails over one shoulder instead of evenly distributing them over both shoulders (plus guys weren't supposed to be wearing ponytails anyhow), so that's probably one reason that I never formed a very strong attachment to that alien species as a kid. Very strange, I know.

That's not strange at all, I had the exact opposite aesthetic attraction....I loved the asymmetrical quality of the SW universe and never got much into the designs that were symmetrical! In contrast, I was a late fan of Star Trek because it was too neat and symmetrical. Of course, now I love them both, but as a kid, I was strongly drawn to the "earthy" quality of the OT. I think that is part of why I progressively resist the prequels (nothing to say of the plot/writing)...the digital world is way to tidy!

[Tauntaunt]

I like the vintage style cards,I think they`re the best ever(The vintage) and the Vintage(modern) need to have a cool cardback just like the real vintage used to have(with lots of pictures of the figures,not just 5 or six).

While Hasbro keep producing Vintage style cards I`ll be interested.

[dindae]

I don't know when I'll stop collecting. I know that I have cut back several times. I haven't sold anything except the when I sold all of my carded figures and stuck to just loose figures. Right now I collect the main line and new movie vehicles. Any new figure is a buy for me. Resculpts are hit and miss. They can do some amazing upgrades and other times I'm not sure why thy bothered. I am thankful that the pass has slowed. The 60+ figures a year plus vehicles, plus battlepacks, etc was insane. Every year there are fewer and fewer new character to due and resculpts needed. And while I am one of those people that would buy a moisture farmer figure I figure that when Hasbro gets to the point where that figure is a solid pick the line probably will die. I don't know if I will collect older figures at that point or not. I do plan on working on my dioramas more. If I ever got rid of my collection I would probably give it away to a child if any were interested at the time. I suppose I could sell it but selling loose figures is barely worth it.

[Obsession is Nute]

For me it is a complex formula. When I move into my new place, I am turning one room into a Star Wars museum room and will use 5 professional display cases that I bought from Sharper Image when one of their local stores liquidated everything, to display my figures (need tables or stands for to stand the cases on though). I will have bookshelves in there as well. My goal will be to represent, artistically and materially, the whole Star Wars universe the best I can, within the constraints of space.

I have found that in spite of a rising disposable income the past three years, I have actually spent less and less each successive year. My love of Star Wars has not diminished, but I feel like Hasbro is releasing less and less product that demands my attention in 3 3/4 inch line. Part of it is natural. Once you have bought that AAT tank, you don't need to buy another. Since we are limited to the six movies and the CW series (which I buy sparingly) Hasbro is equally limited to what it can produce as it has a clear adversion to EU. I feel with a few outstanding exceptions, Hasbro has mined the films pretty well, so the likelyhood of me spending more decreases.

I will always keep my eyes glued to my computer screen during SDCC and TF for the latest news and images from Hasbro. I will continue to remain on the lookout for new SW stuff, but right now it is more about maintaining and displaying the boarderline unmanagable leviathan that is my Star Wars Collection.

"Stopping" collecting will never, ever happen. Even if I lost an interest in Star Wars, which is unlikely, I could never live with myself knowing how much money I have spent on Star Wars for no reason. Out of self respect, I will always collect, even if it is small additions each year.

[Mr. JabbaJohnL]

Hasbro is equally limited to what it can produce as it has a clear adversion to EU.

It's not really up to Hasbro. They released an absolute ton of EU product in the last few years, but the majority of it didn't sell as well as movie and Clone Wars-based items, so they had to kind of back off from it for a while.

[Obsession is Nute]

It's not really up to Hasbro. They released an absolute ton of EU product in the last few years, but the majority of it didn't sell as well as movie and Clone Wars-based items, so they had to kind of back off from it for a while.

True, true. I didn't mean they had a personal issue with EU, they are in the business to make money after all. Poor word choice on my part.

[bigbarada]

I think that is part of why I progressively resist the prequels (nothing to say of the plot/writing)...the digital world is way to tidy!

This is kind of off topic, but your comment about resisting the Prequels made me think of a theory that exists in the field of robotics called the "uncanny valley."

What it basically says is that the closer robots get to mimicking human appearance and actions, the more likely they are to inspire revulsion and distrust in humans around them.

The theory is linked with computer generated people as well. The closer to photorealistic humans they appear the less endearing and more unsettling they are, especially if they are moving in a realistic manner.

So I kind of wonder if that is a factor in why audiences didn't really connect with the prequels as much and the CG characters like Jar Jar, Watto, Yoda, Dexter Jettster, etc. just feel wrong to audiences and are more likely to be disliked compared to the less realistic aliens from the OT, like the puppet Yoda, Gamorreans, Greedo, puppet Jabba, etc.

The Uncanny Valley

[El Chuxter]

I still say that Hasbro could've done better with the EU if they'd listened more to fans instead of making what they personally wanted, and avoided multipacks altogether, particularly those that make you buy a re-release, resculpt, or boring figure.

I mean, really, people clamor for Jedi Knight Corran Horn, so they slap a new head on X-Wing Luke Skywalker and call it Pilot Corran Horn, then sell it for $18 as a HTF exclusive with a part for an unrelated Darktrooper, while releasing their entire design team as Mandaloreans and that "Crimson Empire Power Rangers Crossover Spectacular" set, and they wonder why people don't line up for them.