Nien Nunb (VC106) - Hasbro - The Vintage Collection (2012)
Star Wars Collectible News, Photos, and Reviews

Broken Promises And Broken Spirits - Hasbro, We Need Action.... Now!

Posted by Paul | October 05, 2011 at 09:33 PM ET

It's déjà vu all over again for us and likely déjà entendu for you. And usually after we rant, the figures start showing up in droves, so consider this an Indian rain dance. Click through for our latest thoughts on the latest missteps of Hasbro.

Where the heck are the Star Wars basic action figures Hasbro? I typically ask this every week currently and between December 2010 and June 2011 at TARGET I asked the same thing seven months straight each week. (And I almost asked that every month at Walmart and Toys R Us too!) I have been collecting/playing with Star Wars toys since 1978 (minus that 10 year gap of the inactivity of the basic figure line). And when the neo-classic line started in 1995, figures have been relatively easy to find with only a few exceptions. (And this was the heaviest period of scalpers and Johnny-come-latelies). I have never seen a worse drought of figures than I do today. And it's been getting exponentially worse since 2008. Yes, I have heard all of the arguments and I have seen the fingers pointing all over the place. But I wonder if you [Hasbro] are aware of the three fingers pointing back at you when you point your finger at retail? You're the toymaker and the burden is on you to get these priceless items in healthy numbers out to retail. How can it be October 2011 already and I have only seen ONE OF EACH of the new The Clone Wars figures (waves 22, 23, and 24) in three separate stores - and each store got a different wave!? And let's not even talk about your sorely neglected The Vintage Collection. Actually, we are going to talk about it!

It's not just all about the poor figure distribution. The latest mail-away Boba Fett (Prototype Armor) figure is already a debacle. Are you really serious that you have refused to make the form available to people online going forward? Yet if we're lucky even to locate a form in the basic figures that contain them, we can use any UPCs we want? I have called customer service for the explanation and you know what they told me? They told me Hasbro did this to make people buy the NEW figures and not just use whatever remaining UPCs they have in their homes? This answer blows my mind in multiple ways. First, how about getting the figures into stores so we can actually purchase them and get the order form?? This stupid marketing decision would be fine if you actually bothered to get the figures with this required hard copy order form into retail stores. And if you advise me to buy full cases at e-tail again I am going to go insane and scream. Yes there are sporadic store reports, but the Revenge Of The Jedi wave (wave 8) and wave 9 (the Ponda Baba wave) should be flooding stores at this point. And they are NO WHERE to be found. How about just forgetting all about TARGET and Walmart for a little bit. Give Toys R Us or Hasbro Toy Shop exclusive rights to distribute your product. I am sick and tired of big box stores dictating the flow of product. And you're not doing enough to fight against this.

The Hasbro Q&As are essentially one word non-answers that don't really address any valid points. We know there is change in the way things are being run, but with all the FREE advertising you get from the Star Wars fan sites, don't you think direct answers a little more often would be appreciated? As you can see, I am so aggravated and jaded I am looking for anything and everything to complain about. But is it too much to ask just to have product in stores so I can give you more of my money? It seems like such a trivial concept so why is it so difficult? Our angst and our sadness is not a product of entitlement. We just want the opportunity to buy what we want. I shouldn’t have to stress about finding the definitive update of Ponda Baba. I think you would agree. Star Wars collecting should be a lot more fun. And walking into the Star Wars aisle in any random store should not have me sighing in despair on the way out. It’s a sad state of affairs. We’re glad to see the peg-warmer purge, but the problems are deeper. Stores should be getting more than one or two of each new cases of action figures. I think something else has to be done to get more Star Wars product into the stores. Maybe go a consignment route? This way the Hasbro representatives know on a weekly basis what is and what isn’t selling.

One more thing. Thank you for including all of the various fan sites to help decide the fate of the next Fans' Choice figure. May we offer a suggestion for next time? With all of the wonderful Star Wars fan sites out there and their even better candidates for the basic figure line, how about creating a special WAVE of Fans' Choice figures, one choice from each of the top Star Wars fan sites and out a sticker on each figure that says something like "....as voted for by the readers of [insert fan site name here]"? Not only would there be a great variety of figures to round out a truly diverse wave, but it would really stand as a testament that the voice of the people truly does matter. Maybe you can even set the parameters of the candidate selection. It would be a nice tribute to the sites who support your company for free and who devote countless hours to evangelize about your wonderful Star Wars toy line. And we hope you take our suggestion to really focus on the original 12 Kenner vintage figures in 2012 and hopefully 2013. You need to get back to basics and hardcore collectors care about nothing more than the Original Trilogy. As always, we love you Hasbro but we desperately need your action and a lot less of your inaction. Thank you!

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