Posted by Chuck | September 26, 2008 at 11:08 PM ET
Don't forget, you can submit questions in our forums and we'll try to get as many as possible submitted to Hasbro. We can send only three questions per week, so make sure they are good ones! Now, on to this weeks Questions and Answers directly from Hasbro.
Q.
Ever since the inception of the VOTC line, collectors have been pleased to get a
series of well-articulated Imperial troopers in both the Vintage and Basic figure
lines. We've seen Stormtroopers, Scout Troopers, Snowtroopers, AT-AT Drivers,
Death Star Gunners and the like over the past several years. And we were pleasantly
surprised by the upcoming Space Trooper, which is probably one of the coolest easter
eggs in A NEW HOPE. But we're left to wonder which OT Imperial trooper are
we likely to see get this treatment next as a Basic Figure? The AT-ST Driver? The
TIE Pilot? The uniformed Imperial Officer?
A.
We do like to add in new upgraded imperials every year. Next year should
see the introduction of three, including an upgraded officer (although he
will be named, and not generic). One of our choices will surprise you, as
he is one of the more minor troop-builder potential imperials we have
wanted to see re-done for a long time. Also, a super-articulated generic
TIE Pilot will be featured in the last wave of Spring 2009 Evolution
packs, so he will not be out on the basic figure card next year.
Q.
We see a lot of fan chatter about Expanded Universe characters that people would
like to see made into figure form. But all too often, some of these characters
have only come to life on the pages of novels. The Hasbro Star Wars team seems
to have embraced the EU through the comic 2-pack concept, but what about the novels? Are
team members chomping at the bit for Dark Horse to adapt some of the novels into
comic form in order for some of these characters to take shape as figures? And
which novel characters are at the top of the Hasbro Star Wars team's wishlists?
A.
This is a question that has come up time after time in the Q&A, and the
simple answer is that we would like to do more figures from the novels,
but we lack the proper reference and context to do many of them. The
comic packs work because of the visual nature of the medium (many novel
characters lack good visuals for us to design from) as well as a
much-needed story context to flesh out some of these characters. Even
Jacen and Jaina Solo, which are high on our wish-list, are difficult to
do because they are so scarcely depicted. Fans of the novels should take
some heart in the fact that we are listening and looking to work in
figures when we can (the basic figure line makes the most sense but has
very few slots available for EU figures). In addition, fans should enjoy
the novel-based figures that we are doing in the comic packs, including
Rogue Squadron figures, the upcoming Yuuzhon Vong/Kyle Katarn comic pack,
and more.
Q. We've
done a little digging through the history of Hasbro's Fan's Choice Polls. And
in the process we've discovered that over time a startling number of the candidates
in the polls have been produced. Of the 47 Fan's Choice Poll candidates over
the years, 33 of those have been produced or have been confirmed to be on the way
in the near future. That's over 70%!
That leaves us wondering about the remaining 30%. Are these remaining Fan's
Choice Poll candidates still on the Hasbro Star Wars team's radar screens? And
how likely are we to see these remaining Fan's Choice Poll contestants immortalized
in plastic?
A. If all goes according to plan and if schedules hold, next year will see five of these figures finally make it, with another four of them possible for 2010 (they are high on our wish list, but 2010 has yet to be nailed down). By the way, we see "Padme Lake Retreat" complete with the"fireside" outfit from the 30th Anniversary Collection.
Check back in a few weeks and we'll post the next round of Questions (and answers) as soon as Hasbro offers them.
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