1. Back in the POTF2 days there would be (16) figures to a case with 5-8 different characters. At some point the case size was reduced to (12) and now a case will have 6-8 figures with 4-6 different characters. In the POTF2 days a tier 1 character (Darth Vader, Darth Maul, etc.) would be packed three per case, a tier 2 character (Chewbacca, C-3PO, etc.) would be packed two per case, and tier 3 characters (droids, aliens, etc.) would be packed one per case. Now a tier 1 character is packed two per case and the rest are packed one per case. The figures ratios are now quite different than they used to be. How do you think the number of figures in a case affects what Hasbro produces? Is this a problem?
--Ted

If you want bigger casepacks, you need lower prices, less detail and articulation, and a big kid market in addition to a fan market that spans generations. That is much tougher in the Disney era given just how much Star Wars there is combined with a disagreement as to what counts as "good." There's also the reality of costs, as the retail price of a 16 figure, $5 per case was $80. And an 8 figure, $17 per case is $136. That's a lot more money for a lot less product and more risk, so stores want quick turnover and the chance to reorder if needed rather than have a case of 16 (or 24, as was the case with TMNT much of the time.)

The entire business of 2024 is very different than that of the 1990s. In the 1990s, the market was developed to be kid-driven, with lots of adult collectors - who were not the intended audience - buying a ton of product, with parents/kids/other fans also hopping on board. In 1995 there was a hungry market of fans for action figures, which were largely off the market from 1986-1994, so being able to get Star Wars figures - which some viewed as an investment - for $4.99? It was easy to sell stores on bigger cases, and customers on two (or more) of each figure.

If Hasbro went down that path again - a line for kids and collectors, with figures and vehicles, and a decent variety released at a good clip? Maybe we'd see a need for bigger cases again, but the new Epic Hero Series come at 6 per box for $9.99 figures. So far Walmart is the only place I've seen them in stores, and you can get them online. They're good, too, but higher ratios were replaced by solid cases of Vader and Mando going to stores. It's not a bad solution, either. We're going to see the sane some more with The Black Series, Marvel Legends, and others - you can just get a Spider-Man, Iron Man, Mando, or Vader. It's a start.

Pegwarmers are hard to get right, and even at 1 per case, they can be problems. If a one-per-case figure doesn't sell, and a store gets 4-8 cases, then the store stops ordering the assortment. If there was a genuine kid audience showing up for these things in big numbers, it wouldn't be a problem. From what I see in Target, most figures seem to be made with collectors in mind and we have an incredibly short attention span and increasingly varied wants. 25 years ago, literally every collector saw Darth Vader and said "YES!" or had a similar response to the few dozen figures based on the three movies they'd seen on a loop for 10-20 years. Now a lot of us see it and go "I have 50 Darth Vaders at home." Or "I didn't watch Ahsoka so I don't know who that guy is." For whatever reason, most likely a glut, there's less reason to dig into the classic trilogy and the timing for new Disney+ streaming shows may not be the best for figures that often come out late.

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2. What do you think is the best advancement in 3.75 figures? Neck posts, super articulation or headshot accuracy?
--David

Since the neck posts aren't a massive change from the ball joints we started to get 20 years ago, I would say the head detail. If you look at the just-released Count Dooku head, it's crazy how impressive it is - the 2002 one based on Gentle Giant facial scans of a real human were good, but this is just so far beyond it that it's ridiculous. It's almost unthinkable how good these are, and now we just take it for granted.

While I am a massive advocate for lower prices on product, I won't deny that the brand-new The Vintage Collection figures - not the repacks or repaints, but the 100% new figures since 2021 or so - are amazing. Bo-Katan Kryze, Count Dooku, Fennec Shand, and their ilk have exceptional articulation, more than average accessories, and the kind of fabric elements that make you go "yeah, OK, you can have $17 for this." Even Lando Calrissian - unfortunately, a slow seller - has an amazing fabric cape that's thin with an incredible liner. We're getting some amazing work here, but it's tempered with repacks of $10 figures with old articulation that you look at and go "you have to be kidding me, I have this" sometimes. And sometimes they'll sell to new fans - but when the originals can be had cheaply, it can be a tough sell.

If Hasbro is reading, there's one thing I would recommend doing to inspire more sales: put back the cardboard punch-outs in figures fans order online. And if you can find a way to make the repack old tooling figures in a slightly different, cheaper assortment than the newest ones, I think a lot of people would find that to be a very fair way to keep the line interesting.

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FIN

Another week, another round of reveals! We got a Star Wars The Vintage Collection Dark Trooper 3 3/4-Inch Action Figure, which is the deluxe figure (sans alcove) for regular Vintage pricing. That makes me feel bad as a fan. Star Wars The Vintage Collection HK-87 Assassin Droid (Arcana) 3 3/4-Inch Action Figure seems fine, and looks pretty cool - I like the design, as it's an old one brought out of the sketchbook pages, it fits in nicely with the stuff from the late 1970s and early 1980s. I admit I have no interest in the Star Wars The Black Series 6-Inch Phase II Clone Trooper & Battle Droid Action Figures - I got plenty of Battle Droids at that size and I think the continued proliferation of Clones feels less like fun products and more like some sort of loyalty test. "Do you like Star Wars figures? How about now? OK, how about now?" Meanwhile Masters of the Universe Origins - a line I thought would be dead inside four or five years - is not only still going, but fascinating. It's not in Targets or Walmarts in a significant way as much, but there are multiple new Filmation figures. And a vehicle. And Cringer. Plus new characters, more Turtles of Grayskull, and what feels like a good balance of reruns for people who missed the first releases of Orko and other figures in the past.

Over the weekend we also found out Hasbro has plans to do a lot more stuff, including a The Last Command set of The Black Series with Joruus C'boath, Luuke, Luke, and Mara. Plus single-carded different Vintage Kanan Jarrus and Ezra Bridger. Depending on your taste for some of the repacks/reruns/retools, it's a pretty welcoming mix for the newer lapsed fan and a great chance to get some figures in collectors' hands who may have missed them before. But I would like an alien or a droid I don't already have thrown in.

One of the more fascinating reveals from Hasbro was a set of Ghostbusters from 1984 with what seem like modern head sculpts and 1983-ish swivel-arm battle grip G.I. Joe bodies with a matching (but probably slightly too big) Ecto-1. This is a good idea. Stay tuned for pre-orders.

I would love to see Hasbro (and anybody else) ape Mattel's "let's remake old vehicles, playsets, and creatures" attitude because on the whole, prices aren't bad. You don't get all the action features, but it's decent enough to be worth the trouble to pick up as opposed to "here's another Speeder Bike, also it's $50." I'd love to see what Hasbro pushing some sort of Kenner-flavored agenda with slightly improved/remastered figures (maybe knee or elbow joints) with remastered vehicles would do as dads (and granddads) buy them for kids. And my kids, I mean themselves. LEGO still does great business and action figures probably aren't ever going to do amazing business ever again, so something that really tugs at the nostalgia heartstrings is probably all that's left to do. If Disney can't make it happen on the screen, the toy aisle is probably the last place to really get one big push before maybe - just maybe - the action figure line starts to really disappear. It seems to be going along but I'm really curious if there's a long-term fan here or if the modern younger adults are going to buy it until it suddenly just loses appeal for some unknown reason.

--Adam Pawlus

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