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Q&A With JTA: Our Thirty-Seventh Column!

Posted by Paul | June 05, 2012 at 08:58 PM ET

Q&A With JTA continues! Click through to access the Q&A database with our latest batch of questions!

Hot Topics: The sad state of affairs that is The Vintage Collection, Stormtrooper (VC41) and Sideshow Collectibles 1:6 Scale Figure line....

Q&A With JTA: Our Thirty-Seventh Column!

featuring Paul Harrison

We always need your questions! Please e-mail them to [email protected]. Thank you!

1. I've found your reviews quite helpful in sorting through the many different figure choices. I wanted to ask you if army building would be problematic
mixing the the new VC41 stormtrooper (with ball-jointed hips) with the prior version that has no such ball-joints. Seems they may not look right with each other. I am very excited by the extra articulation offered by the new joints. However, I'm having a hard time figuring out which ones will have the improved helmet design: http://www.potf2.com/potj/forums/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=16504

I was told only ROTJ carded VC41's will have it. Is that right? I recently purchased the joker squad set because of the unique heads and female trooper, but again they have no ball-jointed hips. Would you say this is a deal-breaker in light of the new versions? Maybe this explains why the sets are still so widely available and not terribly expensive? (Joseph K.)

JTA: What you were told about the Stormtrooper (VC41) is actually incorrect. The revised helmet version can be found on The Empire Strikes Back card back. (But the Revenge Of The Jedi and Return Of The Jedi versions are ALL the corrected helmets.) I actually own a dozen of the corrected helmet on the TESB card back, so I am definitely not misleading you here. We haven't had a chance to update our review yet toinclude the revised version, so we hope to get to that ASAP.

As far as mixing this figure with other Stormtroopers? Well, that may be a decision only you can make. While I love the aesthetics of the 2004 VOTC Stormtrooper, it really isn't too practical as an action figure. A Stormtrooper must have ball-jointed hips if you want my humble opinion. The 2004 sculpt looks very nice, butI challenge you to get it in a believable pose while articulating the legs. (Spoiler: It's impossible.) Right now, The Vintage Collection (VC41) Stormtrooper is your best bet. It certainly isn't perfect. I want to see a non-removable helmet Stormtrooper at some point, and this figure's helmet is a little too loose, but you can't beat the ball-jointed hips.

2. I'd love to get my hands on a Imperial Navy Commander, but cannot believe the high prices it is fetching. Didn't this just come out? Is it already so rare? Is there any store where this can be found for $10-15? (JK)

JTA: The reason why it appears rare at the moment (and it's very possible it could remain in this state) is because he comes in a case assortment with only 5 new TVC figures and 7 rehashed The Phantom Menace figures. People (collectors) are VERY unwilling to plop down over $100 just to get the new figures, especially when companies ike Brian's Toys are dumping The Phantom Menace wave case assortments for 50% off. To say I am outraged by this particular case ratio is a severe understatement. I am not alone in my feelings of angst. I don't like calling any one person or any company a liar, but Hasbro promised us that they would make better decisions by including multiples of figures that are fan favorites (Darth Vader, Imperial Navy Commander and Luke Skywalker (Lightsaber Construction) are all viable candidates) and reducing the amount of carry-forward figures, but I don't see this happening. I do see shimmers of light in upcoming case assortments later in 2012, but as of this Q&A date, the Imperial Navy Commander is not on tap for a release in another case assortment but its original one. So yes, I am furious about this. This is a key army-building action figure, a modern update to one of the original 12 vintage Kenner figures and a character from multiple Original Trilogy films. To me it's a no-brainer that this figure should have been in every carry-forward case assortment until The Vintage Collection comes to a close the end of this year. But what do I know? Heck, I am still miffed about Hasbro not carrying forward any figures from wave 9 (the Ponda Baba wave).

3. Just curious on something. The Movie Heroes Clone Trooper with the winged jetpack is basically a repack of the deluxe figure from 2005. Remember that figure didn’t have pegholes in the feet? Do you know if this figure does include them? Thank you! (RollaJedi)

JTA: The new Movie Heroes Clone Trooper (with jetpack) DOES have peg holes at the bottom of his feet. Thank you for your question as I didn't bother to look for that beforehand. I am not peg-hole obsessed like many other collectors I know, so it's not something I normally verify. Maybe I should make a mental note of this to include in my Research Droids Reviews going forward if our readers are interested in this particular detail.

4. I am doing my best to stay away from Sideshow Collectibles' 1:6 scale figure line. But every time I check in with JTA, more often than not, I catch the random RDR image advertising one of their many unbelievably cool 12" figures. So I check the review and it makes me want them more. Obviously I am very far behind at this point, but are there any recommendations you can make that would be a great start for me. (Michael V.)

JTA: Hey Michael! You are indeed very far behind, but I feel it is never to late to start with this line. I think a wonderful first start would be one of their many clone troopers. Not only would one make a great first figure, but Sideshow still has plenty in stock and a nice selection to choose from. I am most impressed with their Scum & Villainy line. I think Momaw Nadon is probably their crowning achievement to date. (But it looks like the soon-to-be-released Boba Fett may eclipse it.) I would recommend to just take the plunge. Start small and see if the figures grab you and make you want more. But be forewarned, if you get infected with the Sideshow collecting virus, there is no cure I have been able to find. Spend some additional time catching up on our reviews and visual guides on these figures too. I think we have made very fair judgments of the products in this line and I think the reviews are a pretty fair guide to where you should begin your journey.

5. Is there anything you can do to let Hasbro know the sad state of affairs the Star Wars line is in at retail right now? It's the worst I have ever seen it. (Edward H.)

JTA: Edward, I have basically waved my white surrender flag at Hasbro since last month. Hasbro has won (not that it's a battle they wanted to fight in) and I can no longer stress out about the lack of "anything" on shelves anymore. Philly used to be the greatest show on Earth with new stuff hitting consistently, even when most other areas in the country were getting nothing. Well, my area has finally joined in with the rest of no man's land and I have been forced to buy full cases to get figures to complete my Star Wars collection. I am currently a very depressed, angry and downright miserable collector right now. My joy of hunting figures on the pegs has been killed. And I really don't even no who to blame any more. Hasbro doesn't seem to share the same concerns about the Star Wars line as us collectors. That annoys me terribly. I don't know how 90% of retail in my area has nothing but the January 30th street dated product. I mean, how can 3 waves of TCW and now 5 waves of TVC be nowhere at all? It's maddening. All I can say is that expect to see Value Packs of two TVC figures bound together for $9.99 or expect closeout prices of $4.99 at Marshalls, ROSS, Tuesday Morning and Five Below. Hasbro makes "x" amount of figures. They have to produce "a lot" otherwise it's not worth their time to produce them. "A lot" hasn't come close to arriving at retail yet and they have to end up somewhere. Where that "somewhere" is is not something I can predict. But they WILL end up somewhere.

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!

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