SSG's Bi-Weekly Hasbro Q&A - February 27th

[JediTricks]

A few days late due to Toy Fair, but it's still Hasbro's answers to SSG questions for February 27th, 2008. 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 February 27th

Q: Would Hasbro ever consider releasing figures based off artist Feng Zhu's Imperial Recruitment posters which appeared in the Star Wars: Visionaires comic series, perhaps as Comic 2-Packs? There's 2 designs in the official series, and 4 more posters drawn but not released. Besides the sexy female recruits in the posters, the SW: Visionaries comic has other great characters like cyborg Darth Maul, Darth Sidious and the Sithisis Worm, Corporal Jobin just to name a few that would make great action figures, especially coming off the heels of the TAC concept figures since the comic was done by ROTS concept artists.
A: We love those posters, but it's very doubtful that we'd do figure versions of them. We will confirm that at least one of the figures you mention will become a figure before too long based on a Visionaries story.

Q: Concerning pegwarmers and Saga Legends taking up TAC shelfspace, back on Sept 28th you told us "stores will be resupplied based on what has sold down, not based on what is sitting on what pegs, which is invisible to the automated ordering systems. So if Saga Legends is selling in those stores, it will be reordered. If 30th Anniv. is selling, it will be reordered. To finish that discussion - the stock of one has no impact on the other." Understanding that you have the 2 separate SKUs and assortment numbers in place to avoid these problems, what your argument seems to miss is the rampant amount of human error in the process, pegging Saga Legends on TAC pegs (whether done by store employees, or customers who simply don't notice the difference between the red accents vs orange accents of the basic cards), so in your argument, if Saga Legends takes up all the pegspace, TAC can never sell down and be reordered because it never leaves the back rooms to hit the pegs in the first place. Keep in mind, the TAC & SL cards are pretty much visually identical, and the assortment numbers which are supposed to separate them don't stand out on packaging and at a quick glance appear the same (87500 vs 85770) especially for an overworked, underpaid retail employee who is trying to get too many things done at once. So how can sales be generated for a specific product if it doesn't reach the floor in the first place?
A: What you outline is a problem if *only* one (or the other) of the assortment is put out at the exclusion of the other. The same risk - that of human error - has always existed with side-by-side figure lines in Star Wars. Since all case packs are clearly marked by assortment, and replenishment is directed automatically, the impact of human error is minimized.

Q: What are the chances of seeing an Evolutions set of the Seperatists' droids, consisting of updated, all-new versions of the Battle Droid, Super Battle Droid, and IG-100 MagnaGuard (aka Grievous' Bodyguard)?
A: We just did a new Super Battle Droid in the 30th Anniversary Collection, so we do not have plans to do a set like this although we acknowledge that both regular BD's and Magna Droids are in need of a new sculpt at some point.

- -

And the questions at ActionFigs.com:

• With photos confirming Tsui Choi from the Order 66 2packs now out there, are we likely to see Ratts Tyrell - another member of the same species - in 2008? Could we see 1-2 Podracer figures per year the way we're now seeing Ewoks?
• Do you have any plans to release the V-Wing Fighter in Imperial colors as seen at the end of ROTS?
• Now that we're getting an ROTS-specific 2-1B droid, is there any chance we'll be seeing an updated ESB-specific version in the near future? There are many differences between the two designs, both large and small, including head, torso, arms and legs - which is pretty much everything - so the ROTS one wouldn't really fit in an ESB scene. 2-1B is one of the rare OT non-hero droids to actually have lines, and is quite memorable, so an update would be much appreciated.

[JediTricks]

I'm unbelievably annoyed at the answer on that second question about pegspace. All the bulletproofing that I did got completely ignored in place of the same answer we already have which didn't take any of those factors into account.

[JediTricks]

Oh, and on the Visionaries question, I strongly suspect we're finally getting cyborg Maul!

[Battle Droid]

About the Imperial V-Wing repaint being made, they made a Titanium version of it already, what gives?

[Sinscia Fat'o]

Originally Posted by JediTricks

Oh, and on the Visionaries question, I strongly suspect we're finally getting cyborg Maul!

Yep that's what i thought as well, which is good news, I wonder if they will do this as a comic pack...or a single card? Good news though!

[Battle Droid]

I hope it's in a comic 2-Pack with old Ben Kenobi.

[jedi master sal]

Originally Posted by JediTricks

I'm unbelievably annoyed at the answer on that second question about pegspace. All the bulletproofing that I did got completely ignored in place of the same answer we already have which didn't take any of those factors into account.

Yeah, pretty lame answer indeed.

However for the first question, I'm banking on us getting the Cyborg Maul. I'd be psyched to get that figure. It was a VERY neat idea and would definitely translate well to a figure.

On the Sep Droids, I'm really hoping for a much better Battle Droid. Articulation for one. (And NO NOT the animated version)

[bigbarada]

Originally Posted by JediTricks

Hasbro Q&A for the week of February 27th

Q: Would Hasbro ever consider releasing figures based off artist Feng Zhu's Imperial Recruitment posters which appeared in the Star Wars: Visionaires comic series, perhaps as Comic 2-Packs? There's 2 designs in the official series, and 4 more posters drawn but not released. Besides the sexy female recruits in the posters, the SW: Visionaries comic has other great characters like cyborg Darth Maul, Darth Sidious and the Sithisis Worm, Corporal Jobin just to name a few that would make great action figures, especially coming off the heels of the TAC concept figures since the comic was done by ROTS concept artists.
A: We love those posters, but it's very doubtful that we'd do figure versions of them. We will confirm that at least one of the figures you mention will become a figure before too long based on a Visionaries story.

That's the first I've ever seen of those posters. All I can say is that I'm glad Hasbro has no plans to make action figures based on them. Talk about cheapening the franchise, that's just disgraceful.

[El Chuxter]

Woo! Cyborg Maul!

$8 more I can save.

Cyborg Maul is an affront to human decency. Whoever contributed that story to Visionaries needs to be kicked in the nards by every member of the human race, then sent to Mars to die.

Seriously, Cyborg Maul makes me long for S***-Kicked-Out-Of-Him P**** Vader.

[Sinscia Fat'o]

Originally Posted by bigbarada

That's the first I've ever seen of those posters. All I can say is that I'm glad Hasbro has no plans to make action figures based on them. Talk about cheapening the franchise, that's just disgraceful.

How's asking for a female Tie Fighter Pilot, Scout Trooper or a Sith Witch disgraceful to the OT? Is the empire a boy's only club even in the modern era of the franchise? Apparently it's not by Juno Eclipse being added to the line...Oh but wait she wasn't in the holy trilogy.