Hasbro is certainly the King of the Toy Aisles, and while they have Star Wars, G.I. Joe and Transformers, their Marvel master license is what has really cemented their claim to the throne. Thus it was that the most packed Toy panel of 2012 (that I attended) was easily the "Hasbro: Marvel" one.
Thanks to a long line I got into the panel a couple minutes late so I missed the names and titles of the first two panelists (but the guide book indicates we have Adam Biehl and Kristin Hamilton), but second from the right is the unstoppable Jesse Falcon with Dwight Stahl, head of Design on the Marvel Brand for Hasbro, next to him at the right. They started the panel with a video highlighting comic art, toys and fans in costumes set to a rap song about superheroes before going into the Powerpoint.
Ultimate Spider-Man
- 2013 sneak peek - 6" animated style Spider-Man, Iron Spider and Nova - all new sculpts, all new tooling.
- all Spider-Man toys will switch over to focus on the animation.
Marvel Universe
- 2012 digital comic exclusive - Old Man Logan with Hulking. Giveaway for registering at NYCC
- Team 3-pack: Colossus Juggernaut with Emma Frost and Cyclops
- Future for both Universe and Legends is strong and golden
Marvel Legends
- Wave Series 3: X-Force Deadpool (variant red), US Agent, Neo-Classic Ironman, Punisher/Blade, Mystique/Moonstar, Dr. Doom/FF Doom (same sculpt as previous ML figure but new coloring - 90% painted), no BAF
- 2013 is the year of the mini-BAF, one for each wave series. Jesse points out that these will be fully articulated figures, unlike Howard the Duck or Doop in the past.
- Wave 1 Series 4: miniBAF = Hit Monkey, Savage/Red She-Hulk (all new bigger body sculpt), Ultimates Cap, original X-Force Wolverine (matches the warpath deco from a few years ago), Protector, Iron Fist, Sentry, Hyperion (new bigger body sculpt), Archangel in classic & Apocalypse colors
- Wave 2 Series 5: '90s Jean Grey, Wrecker (same scale as previous wrecking crew but new tool and like the previous two a 50/50 with Bulldozer)
- Moonstone will come at some point in 2013 with all new "powerhouse" female body and starts a new team for Hasbro.
Iron Man 3
- introducing "micro muggs" - 2" tall, permanently attached to base, blind bagged
- 6" scale comic-style Iron Monger BAF
Q&A
How is the decision made on who goes into revision cases? They look at past sales data, what went out in low qualities. No rhyme or reason to it, really. As they bring back older figures they're finding they appealing more and more to kids not just collectors, which is good news.
Finish Legends Alpha Flight any time soon? Jesse lists missing characters and says "we have our list and we have our homework"
Little kid asks "what's that blue thing in the background?" (of the Iron Man 3 BAF teaser image) everyone laughs, "it's called a tease," "ask your neighbor when you sit down" [The kid didn't recognize comic Iron Monger, is the point of this story. --ed.]
Same kid asks why the Bonkazonks are so small? You can fit more in your pocket and backpack.
Any Marvel Universe dioramas, specifically Avengers Mansion? Definitely not for Legends, not looked at it before for Universe. Jesse recommends that the kid learn how to make a diorama on his own - it's lot of fun and much cooler than any company could make.
Will you redo any figures that ToyBiz already did? Yeah, it's always possible, it just comes down to doing a new character or doing some updates. Will probably see some more of that kind of thing (re-do's) in 2013.
More articulation like in the ToyBiz days? It's a balance of cost because each joint adds cost, and Legends and Universe need to fit within a specific pricepoint. Could do it for a limited product possibly, but not across the board.
Rocket Racoon possible as a mini BAF? "I wouldn't bet against that horse" says Dwight
Any chance of large scale like 30" Batman and Superman? Stay tuned for next year
Whats up with the Fing Fang Foom showed last year? On hold until they can find a home for him. Was planned for this SDCC but then decided to support the Avengers and didn't want to do two high price items.
What head sculpt does Marvel Universe Mysterio have? You'll have to wait till you have it to find out
Any chance to redo early Universe characters like Skrull, Daredevil, Bullseye, Vision? Yeah, we're aware and will update them
Was Universe held back for the movie lines and is this it for the movie line? Didn't intentionally hold back but maybe overshipped movie product and thus the Universe sell-through didn't happen as quick as usual (plus with Legends return could have slowed sales)
Where's Stryfe and please do bigger BAFs? Dwight pulled Stryfe because he'll work much better on the new Hyperion body so they're re-doing him.
Will the same bases always replace BAFs as needed? No plans for bases in 2013, all build a figure waves series.
What is the chance of bringing back the ab-crunch on the female figures? Not in the plans, but never say never
"Not a fan of mini-BAF or no-BAF" comment - gets applause.
