Forum member darthmadonna has come across something Hasbro surely can’t be happy about – clearances already on their new 5POA Legends line! Head on over to the forums to share your thoughts on what could be an isolated incident, or very bad news for Hasbro.
Marshalls stores are now getting in the both the older Republic AV-7 Mobile Cannon and Plo Koon Jedi Starfighter, priced at $14.99 each. Head on over to the forums and let us know if you have been able to score these as well.
Personal Note: The cannon was cool; even at full price collectors and parents seemed to purchase them. The repainted Jedi Starfighter that has been rehashed over and over? We all know the answer to that and how those things kept the Mandalorian ship from hitting like it was intended. I would assume that Marshalls stores will sell the cannons fast, but the Plo Koon ship… not so much. They’ll continue to sit at this discount store just like nearly all Jedi Starfighters have for the past several years and will end up having to be clearanced.
Hasbro’s initial Class II Vehicle Assortment, after a very short-lived shelf life, started showing up at discount stores several months ago. Stores like Marshalls and TJ Maxx, unable to move these items, are now clearancing them down to $7.00 each. So if you have one of these stores in your area, and want to buy smaller versions of what you already have, now’s the time to get them on the super cheap.
Personal Note: One can’t help but remember how excited the Hasbro Star Wars team was when they announced these. It seemed in their minds, the smaller/cheaper scale was the answer to their 2012 problems. The overwhelming consense at the time from collectors across forums here and other sites was that this new scale was not a good idea, and look where we are now. Rather than understand the problem Hasbro created in 2012 by pushing product everyone already had, they appear to have made their mess even deeper… at least in my eyes. I’m not much of a fan of the 5POA style either, and am hoping that Hasbro isn’t planning on this sort of strategy with the Episode VII line.
The second wave of The Black Series has been sighted at big box retailers stateside… head on over to the forums for the full scoop, and thanks to forum member combatJedi for the report!
Reports are coming in from collectors finding Kmart’s outstanding exclusive sets across the country, and reports of those who ordered online receiving their orders as well (though some have received mixed orders).
Our friends at Jedi Temple Archives are also reporting these sets are showing up in good numbers.
For reference, the Ewok set’s UPC is 653569875550 and the Scanning Crew set’s UPCs are 653569890539 / 653569890485.
These figures may not be to everyone’s liking, but last year’s second wave of Movie Heroes had some really nicely sculpted figures with very acceptable articulation and they are showing up at Five Below locations, for the wonderful price of $5.00 per figure.
Personal Note: I can’t help but wonder if 2012 would have shaken out different if Hasbro had put this sort of effort into the Movie Heroes line at the 2012 launch; and supplemented the line with better figures for repacks rather than the direction they took. If Hasbro had put more effort into the kid line for 2012, and Movie Heroes had not crashed and burned, would we even be seeing 5POA figures at all?
If you have a Big Lots in your area, Legends figures are showing up there, and the price is nice… $5.00 every day.
TJMaxx and Marshalls stores are marking down the smaller scale vehicles – down from $14.99 to $10.00 (and even $7.00 in some cases).
You know the market isn’t accepting Hasbro’s lineup when discount stores, who already have their prices lower than standard retail, are clearancing Hasbro’s product.
Personal suggestion for Hasbro – Stop making smaller vehicles like these. The lower pricepoint doesn’t matter if everyone already has better versions of these toys. Instead, focus on making new items that haven’t been made before, or improving your product.
And it’s a collective punch in the gut to a large portion of your loyal fanbase to refuse to make dioramas/playsets, yet continue down this failed path with this line of vehicles. It’s bad business too. Just ask the retailers who are unable to move this type of product for a profit.
If you have a Kmart in your area, you may want to check out your local store… head on over to Jeditemplearchives.com for more details…
Hasbro’s disaster line from 2012 continues to show up at discount stores like TJ Maxx and Marshalls – as just today, I saw more of this stuff that wasn’t there just a couple days ago.
One has to wonder just how much of this stuff Hasbro produced… and it’s hard to not feel that Hasbro’s poor decisions with this line are the prime reason for the change in Hasbro’s business model to switch to cheaper, 5POA figures rather than their official reasoning of “changes in kids’ play habits.”