1. Why so few female figures in the line? Any in the works?
--Grant

Getting more females into the line (Does Captain Phasma count?) is definitely a huge priority for us. In a toy line aimed first and foremost at kids and parents, it just means working with the right retailers and the right timing, but getting to more females (and droids) is a big push around here and the JAKKS BIG FIGS line is only going to keep growing. We hear you loud and clear!
--ToyGuru

 

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2. In regards to your post about the Jakks Pacific offering, I had talked to one of the Jakks reps back at Star Wars Celebration 2015 and asked about a 31” Sandtrooper and he told me it would definitely happen. Was just wondering if we could find out when? I am dying to customize a large Sandtrooper in the same style that I did the 501st Clone Trooper. I’m just afraid that the TFA offerings are going to slow it down now. Not that I would’ve mind a 31” Flame Trooper with flame cannon.
--Dan

On this one, it may be a case of a small misunderstanding or mishearing your request (the event was loud after all!). We DO have a 20-inch: BIG FIGS Sandtrooper with orange pad that is currently shipping in our Classic SW assortment (in Ep 7 packaging but without Ep 7 call out). I’ve seen this figure at Target a few times in the past few weeks. As for a 31-inch we don’t have one currently planned or being promoted. But that doesn’t mean it is off the table. A good chance something like this will work its way into our Massive BIG FIGS 31-inch line in time. Sorry for any confusion at the convention!
--ToyGuru

3. Is there any chance we could see an 18-21" scale Rancor beast that's semi posable? It would be a darn near perfect fit for the 6" Black Series Luke Skywalker Jedi Knight figure. Are scaled creatures out of bounds for Jakks, even if they have limited articulation like the large scale figures?
--Chuck

Character wise, we would LOVE to think about this. It really is a matter of logistics. You see, a Rancor in our 20-inch or 31-inch BIG FIGS line would not fit into our standard shelf space/package. And likely would be a unique price point. For this reason, it means getting a unique space on shelf, and that is the fight EVERY toy line goes through every year. A Rancor wouldn’t just easily slide into the planogram space at retail, so we would need to find ways to produce this that retailers could carry it (I.e. Is it on an end cap? A special display? Bottom shelf? Things like that). Either way, after the huge success we have had with our BIG FIGS Massive scale 31-inch Godzilla, doing more “monsters” especially those from the SW Universe is something we love to explore and think about! We just need to find the right timing and the right retail partners to bring something like this to market. Any Rancor or other monster we did would not be scaled to other companies toy lines, but rather in the scales we have access to (20-inch, 31-inch and 48-inch).
--ToyGuru

 

FIN

Thanks again, Scott! I've had a heck of a rotten week, so your chiming in is most appreciated - and things are looking good. Heck, if you're a fan of Jakks, really good - you can get a 20-inch figure on sale at some stores for far less than what it costs for a Hasbro 6-inch action figure. Just be sure to check the sale tags and/or scan the figures. There's really no contest when you're comparing 12-inch Hasbro to 20-inch Jakks, although they have unique properties which work better in some formats than others. It's a good day to buy.

I saw two movies to escape over the last week - one was The Force Awakens, the other was He Never Died - a sort of horror-comedy starring Henry Rollins as an immortal with cannibalistic inclinations - I quite enjoyed them both, and hope to spoil neither. While Rollins' movie already has a continuation series planned, there's no merchandising - Star Wars does not have this problem, as additional waves of plastic are expected to be a thing in the near future. For those of you who aren't keeping up on dates, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story is due in December 2016, while Episode VIII - the sequel to The Force Awakens - opens just months after that, in May 2017. The Han Solo movie is expected a year after that, in May 2018. So far it appears there are no plans for two Star Wars features in a single calendar year, but that may change soon. Why waste these stories on the small screen?

When you look at the future of Star Wars films and collecting, it's going to weird places. In a year, it's very possible we'll have action figures of Forest Whitaker, Alan Tudyk, and Mads Mikkelsen to put in our toy boxes alongside our X-Wings and Landspeeders. Heck, maybe we'll even get Darth Vader in that Rogue One line - I kind of hope we do as much as I kind of hope we don't.

Right now, I feel pretty good about most of our future. My buddy Seth and I have been kicking a lot around behind the scenes - oddly, we've never met, but along with Phil and Daniel and Matt (and sure let's say Graham too) he's one of my closest friends made of 1s and 0s. Going through everything happening to all of us right now, it seems that we as fans have a pretty bright future - granted, it's a little less bright when you realize we're less fans than customers, and we're basically going through a restructuring through which we've already bought hundreds (or thousands) of figures and now we're potentially going to be able to buy thousands more. We're possibly on the hook for a while - so consider rethinking what you collect when you miss a few figures. Being all-in isn't all it's cracked up to be, so you can always just get what you like. It's a lot better.

--Adam Pawlus

Got questions? Email me with Q&A in the subject line now! I'll answer your questions as soon as time (or facts) permit.