JediTricks
08-17-2007, 06:25 PM
Like magic, out goes the fans choice poll results and in comes the Q&A. It's Hasbro's answers to SSG questions for August 17th, 2007. Thanks again to Hasbro for the answers, to all the folks who sent in questions and especially those who voted on them.
Hasbro Q&A for the week of August 17th
Q: We appreciate the extra attention that Jabba's Palace has been getting recently, however there is a group of characters from Jabba's henchmen who have been seriously underrepresented in action figure form: the Skiff Guards. They are featured in one of the primary action sequences in ROTJ, but we haven't seen a new sculpt of any of these guys in over 8 years, and a majority of them have never been made in action figure form. Out of the 5 skiff guards on the "prisoner skiff" (the one bringing Luke, Han, & Chewie to their doom), we've only seen one made into a figure - Weequay - and even that figure is over ten years old. Any chance that we'll get figures of the other four and maybe an update of Weequay at some point in the near future?
A: Yes, over the next few years you will see some more of these cool guards either get their turn for the first time or get a resculpt. You'll have to be patient though - we'll only be able to get to a couple new ones a year.
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Q: Seeing as how we're getting obscure, non-canon figures in the Comic Packs such as the Dark Woman and Infinities Vader, what are the chances of getting figures from the early Marvel storyline about the Star-Hoppers from Aduba-3, particularly a figure of Jaxxon? You could even base their appearances off the cover of the Star Wars Gamer magazine from a few years ago that featured them, which showed many of them in a less cartoony way.
A: We look for characters that have interesting or important subplots or are uniquely iconic, so that explains Dark Woman (who appeared in numerous comics and who is tied to the origin of Aurra Sing) and a new take on Vader. We have looked at the Marvel stories again, but just don't see the characters from this storyline making the future cut - they did not have much importance to the Marvel run. It is more likely that other new characters from the Marvel run will be selected before these guys.
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Q: Since the AAT has been rereleased with the mid-sized vehicles, will the similarly-sized TX-130 Saber-class tank - seen in the Star Wars: Clone Wars and Battlefront videogames - ever be made? The vehicle was even used for both Republic and Imperial troops in Battlefront II.
A: We have looked at the TX-130 and it is a cool vehicle, but right now would only go after it if it was featured in the upcoming Clone Wars animation.
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And the questions at ActionFigs.com (http://www.actionfigs.com/index.php?categoryid=12&p2_articleid=1384):
- Now that we've gotten updated versions of Luke Endor, Leia Endor, and the Biker Scout, that is everybody who has ridden a Speeder Bike in ROTJ (minus Paploo if you want to get technical). While asked before, now all the other pieces are in place so it bears revisiting: can we get an updated Speeder Bike vehicle for these guys to ride on? The one used most often is nearly 25 years old and the mold's showing its age with the legs and flaps, plus the giant incorrect handgrips and t-bar. Even more importantly, the Saga Ep 2 Speeder bike is already close enough and hasn't seen a major rerelease - adding clear positionable stands to go with it would be the icing on the cake. So, new Speeder Bike chances?
- While we've gotten Evolutions sets for some pretty major characters, and now we're seeing more Evolutions concepts coming down the pike, how about Evolutions sets developed specifically for the 2 main protagonists of the saga, Obi-Wan and Luke? Obi-Wan Evolutions could have Ep 1, Ep 2, and Ep 4 versions of the character with all the deserved articulation and accessories (which would fill some pretty big voids in the modern line); while Luke Evolutions could involve Luke perhaps in his Snowspeeder pilot outfit, Dagobah with removable jacket and holster belt, and Jedi covering all the accessories and articulation these versions could need.
- Unleashed 7" figures are now found in Transformers; both Attacktix and Galactic Heroes-styling is now found in Marvel, Spider-Man, Indiana Jones, and Transformers; Titanium Series is now found in Transformers, Spider-Man, Marvel and Battlestar Galactica -- all these lines started as Star Wars offshoot lines before branching out into new franchises. How did this happen? Is this intentional, is Star Wars a guinea pig for Hasbro's testing of new ideas?
Hasbro Q&A for the week of August 17th
Q: We appreciate the extra attention that Jabba's Palace has been getting recently, however there is a group of characters from Jabba's henchmen who have been seriously underrepresented in action figure form: the Skiff Guards. They are featured in one of the primary action sequences in ROTJ, but we haven't seen a new sculpt of any of these guys in over 8 years, and a majority of them have never been made in action figure form. Out of the 5 skiff guards on the "prisoner skiff" (the one bringing Luke, Han, & Chewie to their doom), we've only seen one made into a figure - Weequay - and even that figure is over ten years old. Any chance that we'll get figures of the other four and maybe an update of Weequay at some point in the near future?
A: Yes, over the next few years you will see some more of these cool guards either get their turn for the first time or get a resculpt. You'll have to be patient though - we'll only be able to get to a couple new ones a year.
- -
Q: Seeing as how we're getting obscure, non-canon figures in the Comic Packs such as the Dark Woman and Infinities Vader, what are the chances of getting figures from the early Marvel storyline about the Star-Hoppers from Aduba-3, particularly a figure of Jaxxon? You could even base their appearances off the cover of the Star Wars Gamer magazine from a few years ago that featured them, which showed many of them in a less cartoony way.
A: We look for characters that have interesting or important subplots or are uniquely iconic, so that explains Dark Woman (who appeared in numerous comics and who is tied to the origin of Aurra Sing) and a new take on Vader. We have looked at the Marvel stories again, but just don't see the characters from this storyline making the future cut - they did not have much importance to the Marvel run. It is more likely that other new characters from the Marvel run will be selected before these guys.
- -
Q: Since the AAT has been rereleased with the mid-sized vehicles, will the similarly-sized TX-130 Saber-class tank - seen in the Star Wars: Clone Wars and Battlefront videogames - ever be made? The vehicle was even used for both Republic and Imperial troops in Battlefront II.
A: We have looked at the TX-130 and it is a cool vehicle, but right now would only go after it if it was featured in the upcoming Clone Wars animation.
- -
And the questions at ActionFigs.com (http://www.actionfigs.com/index.php?categoryid=12&p2_articleid=1384):
- Now that we've gotten updated versions of Luke Endor, Leia Endor, and the Biker Scout, that is everybody who has ridden a Speeder Bike in ROTJ (minus Paploo if you want to get technical). While asked before, now all the other pieces are in place so it bears revisiting: can we get an updated Speeder Bike vehicle for these guys to ride on? The one used most often is nearly 25 years old and the mold's showing its age with the legs and flaps, plus the giant incorrect handgrips and t-bar. Even more importantly, the Saga Ep 2 Speeder bike is already close enough and hasn't seen a major rerelease - adding clear positionable stands to go with it would be the icing on the cake. So, new Speeder Bike chances?
- While we've gotten Evolutions sets for some pretty major characters, and now we're seeing more Evolutions concepts coming down the pike, how about Evolutions sets developed specifically for the 2 main protagonists of the saga, Obi-Wan and Luke? Obi-Wan Evolutions could have Ep 1, Ep 2, and Ep 4 versions of the character with all the deserved articulation and accessories (which would fill some pretty big voids in the modern line); while Luke Evolutions could involve Luke perhaps in his Snowspeeder pilot outfit, Dagobah with removable jacket and holster belt, and Jedi covering all the accessories and articulation these versions could need.
- Unleashed 7" figures are now found in Transformers; both Attacktix and Galactic Heroes-styling is now found in Marvel, Spider-Man, Indiana Jones, and Transformers; Titanium Series is now found in Transformers, Spider-Man, Marvel and Battlestar Galactica -- all these lines started as Star Wars offshoot lines before branching out into new franchises. How did this happen? Is this intentional, is Star Wars a guinea pig for Hasbro's testing of new ideas?