Store Reports

It’s the Twilight Zone for Hasbro distribution anymore. The Black Series Scout Trooper (Holiday Edition) has finally been found in a Fishkill, NY Walmart. It’s only 6 months late. Thanks to LJ Wood for the report!

Dion M. from Auckland, NZ shared a great find to the TVC Facebook group: Darth Vader (Dark Times) (VC241). This figure has not been announced yet and will probably be officially revealed as a part of tomorrow’s Obi-Wan Wednesdays. This figure will likely round out Wave 35. He also found Reva (Third Sister) (VC242) and the rest of the wave as well at Farmers. Crazy that these figures are listed as shipping in September but are already on shelves in New Zealand! There are also quite a few reports of the rest of the wave in the SWNZ Facebook group.

Reports are beginning to pour in that collectors are finding The Black Series [Phase IV] Antoc Merrick 6-inch figure at their local Walgreens instead of Target. Special thanks to JTA readers Chad R. and Glenn W. for the images and reports.

First Target, and now Walmart. The new Retro Collection figures from The Mandalorian Season Two are hitting Walmarts. JTA reader Chad found them at two different Alabama Walmarts this morning. One in South Huntsville and another in Scottsboro. Happy hunting! Let us know if you are seeing these in Walmarts in your area in the comments. 

JTA reader Aaron H. found the latest Retro Collection figures at his local Target in Eastern PA. Although the box had a street date, they were not register-locked.

Reports are popping up across social media with The Black Series Wave 7 showing up (early) at various Walgreens across the country. This wave includes Ahsoka Tano, The Client, Death Watch Mandalorian, Omega, and Echo. Let us know in the comments if you are finding this wave in your area. 

When you start hunting for pre-order links on Amazon, beware that their current TVC Bib Fortuna listing has the incorrect picture. The listing has a picture of the new Shae Vizla figure. Make sure to read the title to ensure you are ordering the correct figure. Thanks to JTA reader Craig for the PSA! Craig contacted Amazon about this and the listing is indeed for Bib Fortuna and NOT Shae Vizla. 

JTA reader Michael W. found The Vintage Collection Remnant Stormtrooper figure at his local Walmart for a mere $3.50. Keep in mind, this was the first time Michael ever saw the figure in brick and mortar. It makes you wonder what’s the point of retail anymore (on so many levels).

The modern Hasbro Star Wars brand has been in existence for over a quarter of a century, and it appears that Hasbro still cannot understand the need to release case assortments with even ratios of action figures. (more….)

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It’s official. The Vintage Collection Clone Wars wave has ht brick and mortar. JTA reader ShipGirlLover found them in Philadelphia. Now is your chance to find mint samples of these figures!

It looks like order delivery updates are going out for the Amazon exclusive TVC The Bad Batch 4-Packs, arriving a few weeks earlier than their original estimated delivery date. 

Is anyone else sick and tired of not seeing any The Vintage Collection (or The Black Series) merchandise at his or her local brick and mortar? Yet the worst crap Hasbro could make still makes its way to shelves without a hitch? Click through to check out the latest nightmare Hasbro is trying to sell to “kids and gift-buying parents.” LOL, Hasbro, It’s not 2010 anymore. Oh, and they’re still trying to pimp Rey as a viable Star Wars character that everyone wants to see reflected in the action figure line. LOL again.

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We’ve received several reports, and many have posted on social media, that GameStop is canceling pre-orders for the Gaming Greats The Black Series Nightbrother Warrior. And, they are doing this without any notifications. Without the widespread reports, most would not even realize theirs was canceled. JTA reader Darth Matt writes in with his frustration after finding out his was also canceled. Click through for his report, and let us know in the comments if yours was canceled (or if it is still on order). 

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In case you haven’t seen it yet, Mattel released a plush Voice Cloned Boba Fett plush doll and they’ve been arriving at Walmarts. They’re very colorful. Special thanks to JTA reader Mike F. for the report and image.

If you missed out on buying the Target exclusive Droids See-Threepio online, start checking your local targets. JTA reader Jeff reports that he found these at his local Auburn, AL Target. Let us know in the comments if you find these in your area.

Target’s Droids exclusive See-Threepio (C-3PO) is shipping (and arriving) for those that managed to get a pre-order in. Mine arrived with minimal damage, even though they still managed to cram them into an undersized box. Let us know how yours arrived in the comments! Still no updates on exactly when the others will begin to ship.

I’ve seen several reports across social media of The Vintage Collection wave 32 showing up at Targets on the west coast. Jeremy posted his find from a Target in Bryant, AR over in the TVC Facebook group. Let us know in the comments if you are finding these, and where. Thanks for sharing, Jeremy!

This sounds like an excellent setup for a fantastic joke, doesn’t it? Well, it is. File under “you can’t make this crap up if you tried.” JTA reader and dear friend Jim. H. was going wild looking for the new Target exclusive TVC Rogue One Antoc Merrick’s X-Wing Fighter at his local Target. No luck anywhere, whatsoever, just like most of us. But in the same shopping center that has his local Target is another discount store called B2. In B2, Jim found the Target exclusive  The Vintage Collection Antoc Merrick’s X-Wing Fighter on CLEARANCE. It’s hilarious. Receipts below. The Hasbro Star Wars brand is a mockery of itself.

You know things are extremely terrible with the supply chain and the Walmart distribution center, in particular, that a retail chain gets stock that was never theirs from the start. Walmart is now receiving Target exclusives before general marketplace stock or even their OWN exclusives! They’ve gone to plaid!

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Longtime JTA reader and friend Robert F. visited his local Ollie’s only to find a slew of new discounted Hasbro Star Wars products. Two are Walmart exclusives, and the other didn’t make it further than online. It’s amazing to see how much product never arrived in stores by visiting your local Ollie’s. Many never saw the “Force Spirit” Yoda at their local Walmarts. No one wanted a 5POA cardboard playset. And even fewer collectors anted a new scale of rubbery hyper-articulated action figures known as Hyper Real. if Hasbro is smart, they’ll stick to what sells: TBS6, TVC, and stay away from the ST like it’s the toxic wasteland it is. You have to wonder what the heck is going on at the distribution centers.

This is what the Star Wars section now looks like at my local Walmart. Now, to be completely transparent, it didn’t look any different for a couple of years now, it’s only been relocated now. This is an image of an inner endcap that is sectioned off from the rest of the aisle. Where the Star Wars section once was has been completely removed, and in its place are He-Man and other action figures from other lines. I can’t think of worse mismanagement of a toyline. This is one of many reasons why brick and mortar shouldn’t be carrying Star Wars toys. Gift givers are NOT buying or looking for Star Wars. At all. I will never understand the defense of that argument for as long as I live.

Exclusives have been hitting homes the last couple of days, but they’re not arriving in pristine condition. Click through to read what JTA reader Tom R. received to his home recently. As he says, we should all be used to this now, but it’s still unacceptable.

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Hasbro reached “expert” status when it comes to pouring salt into the wounds of collectors. After a fantastic run of 6-inch Bad Batch characters, JTA reader icatch9, as well as I, found the Bad Batch Mission Series set over the weekend at Target. And the number of figures produced for The Vintage Collection remains a big, fat ZERO.

It’s been wonderful seeing the few store report across the web of collectors finding the latest The Vintage Collection and The Black Series figures. But in my neck of the woods, this is the only Star Wars stock that does make it to brick and mortar. And for those that did find the new figures, once that stock is gone, it never seems to come back.

JTA reader Travis C. went to his local Walmart o find new Star Wars toys. There wasn’t anything in the toy aisle, but he found multiples of the new wave in the clearance aisle, marked down to $9.30 each, no less. And the Walmart employee who put them here took the time to sort them too!

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