Q&A With JTA: Our Twenty-Second Column!

1. Hey Paul, I was wondering about the wonderful world of Ewoks, they seem to be very popular with collectors, but they are actually produced in smaller numbers now. Wicket was a huge seller last year, and Logray looks like it will be another homerun. My question...why so few Ewoks...I miss the 2-packs, comic pack, battle packs, etc. I heard Hasbro planned an Ewok multipack but never released it, is there anything we can do to get it? Also, they originally planned to release Kneesaa with Wicket but dropped her because of cost issues...how do we let Hasbro know we want her? A petition? Fans choice poll? HELP! (Tobias)

JTA: The two-pack you ask about was recently addressed by our friends at Rebelscum.com with their most recent Hasbro Q&A Session (link found HERE):

Rebelscum: You've mentioned an Ewok Multipack containing Chuka-Trok, Oochee and Widdle, as well as some other Ewoks (Princess Kneesa???) that was produced, but hasn't found a distributor yet. Is there any official word on that set? Can we expect it any time soon? I know that fans would eat it up. Every ewok produced goes for a mint on the secondary market. There is definately a market for them, and it would be a shame to have you not capitalize on that. When will we see the awesome Ewok Multipacks you've alluded to?

Hasbro: Right, you can never have too many Ewoks. No new news on the Ewok multi-pack. To your other point, we still consider Vintage to be a true collector line and throughout 2011 and 2012 we will continue to include highly sought after figures and some more specific favorites as well. We have A LOT of new Vintage figures planned for 2012.

As you can see, while Hasbro agrees that there is crazy demand for Ewoks, it seems that they are still a bit shy about releasing them more than 1 or 2 per year. Maybe they feel this is the best way to keep demand where it should be. Or maybe Ewoks have had such a lonstanding bad stigma for years that stores are passing on that incredible Ewok multipack that all of us desperately want to see. Be sure to keep buying the Ewoks that Hasbro does release and keep posting your wishes and desires for more in your home Star Wars fan site forums. Hasbro does read the feedback and comments, so if you document it somewhere, it likely will be read. While I want a ton more, I am actually thankful that we have so many main and obscure Ewoks to date. I never expected to have so many "super-articulated" versions of Ewoks by now. And they all look incredibly wonderful. Oh, and about Princess Kneesa? Since she was to be released with Wicket, she will absolutely be out at some point. It may take years like ti did for the running change Hoth Rebel Trooper from The Legacy Collection, but it will happen. I have foreseen it!

2. The newest Wedge TVC figure recently sold for 80+ dollars on eBay (as linked on your Facebook page.) Some [many] vintage figures aren’t even at the $80 price point – do you think collectors/scalpers are jumping the gun with this line, or is the Wedge figure *really* worth that much? Of course, distribution seems to be an obvious issue, but surely it gets better from here? (Peter)

JTA: "Jumping the gun" just isn't a strong enough phrase, Peter. The people idiots who have bid on this figure to make the price this high are essentially doing so on an item that hasn't hit 'en masse' at retail yet. Wedge will absolutely be difficult to find and maybe I am not concerned enough about him, but I believe I (and you) will be granted the opportunity to see him on the pegs and pick him up. I hope that this revision case of wave 3 is produced in greater numbers. Hasbro underestimated greatly the Return Of The Jedi wave. And while many have had the opportunity to pick up this great wave by now, there are still many others that haven't, especially the Gamorrean Guard. Let's all chill a little bit about Wedge Antilles, OK? When we panic, scalpers smell our fear (and proverbial blood in the water) and will join us in the hunt and attack. (And they certainly don't need to see us bidding $80+ for Wedge to encourage them to look for him as well!) We don't need any competition with this figure! Keep it together people!

3. Do you know if Hasbro has any plans on doing any other Corellian spaceships, like the outlander or the "Knight´s of the old republic ship" in a deluxe format, similar to the latest AT-AT or the Millenium Falcon. Those ships would be cool. I´m thinking that a lot of people will be buying those. Also they should be planning Darth Maul´s Sith Infiltrator. I believe that ship should be giving a lot more credit. (Fernando)

JTA: I don't think Hasbro would ever attempt the Outlander, but honestly what do I know. Hasbro has said 100 times now that ships must be popular, engaging, aggressive and have an important role in the Star Wars saga. The Outlander may satisfy one or two of these requirements, but I think overall doesn't meet many other prerequisites. I would say that 25%-50% of the people who read this column don't even know what the Outlander is! I think we should hold out hope for new versions to the most popular Original Trilogy verhicles, whether they be accurately scaled updates or all-new never-before-made vehicles (like the Sail Barge, cough cough). As far as Darth Maul's Sith Infiltrator, this vehicle was done in 2007's 30 (77-07) line so maybe you missed it altogether? Or are you asking for a more accurately scaled update? This vehicle I would agree with you needs a revisit and since the 3D version of the film is coming in 2012 it would be a great time for Hasbro to build this vehicle from scratch and get it released as an exclusive or include it in the mid size assortment. (But even better than this ship would be updates/rereleases to the Naboo Starfighter or the Queen's ship. I fear however the Queen's ship would cost us $150+ in this day and age.)

4. Why is it that some figures get pushed back? Such as Wedge, Commander Jet, and Cad Bane in clone trooper disguise. (Nicholas)

JTA: It all stems down to production issues. And production issues could mean on the actual figure or its packaging. Yoda (who was also delayed right along with Wedge) was easier to fix and get back into circulation because all Hasbro wanted to do was update his source and picture from Return Of The Jedi to Revenge Of The Sith (thank the Maker!). Wedge however required a last minute head retooling to do justice to the figure. New tooling needs a lot more time. Originally Hasbro was going to rerelease the Wedge figure from Wedge Antilles' X-wing Fighter TARGET exclusive from the Legacy Collection but since Wedge has been treated poorly in the basic figure line, they figured now was the time to do him right. (Well, let's see how widespread his release actually is first, right? Wedge is still getting kicked to the curb a little bit even still.) Cad Bane in Clone Trooper Disguise and also Clone Trooper Jet also saw production issues with their tooling (from what we were told last by Hasbro). But they are also seeing release finally very shortly. Cad Bane will be in the new format of Battle Packs (if you can even call them that any more - sigh/ugh) and Jet will be a basic figure in upcoming assortments.

5. Will Hasbro EVER re-release the VOTC Luke figure? (Anthony)

JTA: I really don't think we will ever see this figure released again unless it makes it to some commemorative set like Hasbro does for the Blu-ray and DVD sets. But honestly, do you really want them to rerelease him? I personally feel that the Resurgence Of The Jedi Luke Skywalker figure is infinitely better. No, it isn't perfect, but it's really good. The VOTC Luke Skywalker has that funky head that was used on almost every Luke Skywalker figure from 2004 through 2008 and thank God they have finally retired it. I always thought that portrait was a nightmare. Between the chevron pattern of his hairline to his rodent-like facial features, it really wasn't pretty and needed a lot of help. Hasbro just released a derivation of the Resurgence Of The Jedi Luke Skywalker figure as Luke Skywalker (Death Star Escape) (VC39) and that figure is also getting a lot of [unnecessary] flack. Interestingly, I actually like that figure a lot too. Do we all need a definitive Episode IV Luke Skywalker figure? Absolutely! And I hope it makes it in time for The Vintage Collection (as well as a definitive Episode IV Princess Leia Organa - this was addressed in our last Q&A With JTA.) But I think you have better options before you. Try to hunt down the Resurgence Of The Jedi Battle Packs set. It's one of the greatest things Hasbro has ever made for us. And in case you don't know, Obi-Wan Kenobi, R2-D2 and C-3PO (oh - and even the holographic Princess Leia image is in a different "hunched over" pose) have all been updated in that set as well and are different from their original releases!

Are you new to Q&A With JTA? Click HERE to see our previous installments of this column. Each session is chock full of all the things you ever wanted to know about Star Wars collecting and the hobby in general!