Lo and behold, Toys”R”us employees have come up with an alternative to taping the bubbles back onto The Black Series figures… a few well placed staples will do the trick as I witnessed today. Before getting upset with retailers for this, remember – this is a manufacturing issue on Hasbro’s side; not the fault of stores that receive faulty packaging from Hasbro.
Swapping figures and returning an undesired item in a different package is the same as stealing, and what’s worse is sometimes a kid ends up with something as a present that they didn’t expect.
I always shake my head in disgust when I come across a figure hanging on the pegs like the example image above – but forum member dj121 puts it rather well when he says, “That swap make absolutely NO sense at all.”
With The Black Series line having issues with their bubbles falling off the package, we might soon be seeing scumbags resort to this practice even more this Fall and also more suspicious ebay auctions like the one our friends at Jeditemplearchives recently pointed out.
So, be on the lookout not only for new figures, but figure swaps unfortunately! And share your thoughts and recent finds in our forums!
We’re only a few weeks into the launch of The Black Series, and the very figures that collectors said would pile up and prevent later waves from reaching retail are already seeing the first signs of pegwarmer dust in my area.
Funny how that works… but, maybe it’s not that bad everywhere else and Hasbro knew what they were doing by doubling up on certain figures rather than throwing in the new Emperor’s Royal Guard or something ultra cool and in demand like the TVC Magna Guard?
Maybe the market is wrong about what the market wants to spend their own money on? Just maybe we all want to buy multiple Anakins and need armies of Biggs? Share your thoughts and reports on this first wave in the forums!
Reports have been coming in left and right regarding new figures at places like Toys”R”us and Target, and now Yakface reader Bryan P. sends in details of new Hasbro figures hitting Walmart too. Head on over to the forums for more details!
The new 31″ tall Darth Vader from Jakks Pacific has been found at retail – thanks to reader Evicerous for the heads up! Head on over to the forums for a closer look!
Target stores (and likely soon, Toys”R”us) are putting out some great new LEGO displays to help promote the LEGO Star Wars line. These displays really show off the greatness that LEGO has to offer and to help boost sales of their bigger toy offerings – check out a couple images in our forums.
Hint for Hasbro: This is yet another avenue you may want to consider exploring as you look to regain the interest of kids in your product lines.
“Of course I’m not going to be buying much of the new Star Wars line coming out,” Chewie told his wife multiple times over the past several months. “I don’t collect 6″ scale toys, and most of the new 3.75″ figures don’t interest me at all.”
Then, after seeing new figures in person today at Target, reality set in. Well done, Hasbro. Now I’m angry with you for winning me over with product I swore I wouldn’t buy. I was mad at you through all of 2012 for how bad you managed the brand, and now I’m somewhat upset at you for kicking things off so well with your new lineups.
Are you feeling the same way as I am this evening about Hasbro’s new launch? Or have I gone completely crazy? Share your thoughts in the forums!
Do you have a Five Below store in your area? If so, it may be worth your while to swing by your local establishment and see if they are receiving TVC figures these days – the local store I’ve hit in the St. Louis area received a heavy shipment of the Malgus/Imperial Navy Commander wave about three weeks ago, and restocked again over this past weekend.
The only problem is, each case contains seven Episode One carry forwards from Wave 1 (unless, of course, you need an infinite army of Qui Gons and Obi Wans!).
UPDATE – Yakface reader Chris H., who is an assistant manager at Five Below, tells us that the stores do not have the power to order these on their own. These cases are distributed throughout the company by how much sells at that particular store.
New Star Wars product has finally started to surface at retail as reports have been trickling in with collectors spotting Hasbro’s new Black Series figures at Toys”R”us stores and Target (as well as Legends/Mission Series).
Good luck seeking out these new figures, and remember to share your finds with us in the forums!
While on a toy run today, I swung by TJ Maxx… and stumbled onto a ton (and I mean a ton) of 2012-2013 Star Wars Hasbro product. Deluxe size vehicles, Angry Birds, Fighter Pods, Role Playing blasters, etc… and these are all items that Hasbro really thought would appeal to kids this past year.
In my humble opinion, this is just another sign that Hasbro has lost touch with their consumer base. I am hoping for a really strong showing at SDCC from the folks at Hasbro, because Hasbro, retailers and the fan base does not need another 2012 (or another first half of 2013).