After all of the poor luck with locating the Holiday Season's exclusives at Walmart Yo turned me on to the Jabba's Playset still available on Walmart's website by which I then found the Green Lantern 5-pack. So with a little free shipping (FedEx locations count for the free "ship to store" option - sweet!) two very significant holes are filled. Then, Target continued to be the go-to Mattel destination by providing the other goodies you'll see below.
Hasbro - Star Wars: Jabba's Throne
Ho boy have I been dying for this! I'm kinda surprised it came out as an exclusive, but whatever it takes to be released. Everything but the armrest/hookah and Salacious Crumb here is a new sculpt! All-new Jabba, all-new Oola, all-new throne and a shocking number of throw-pillows! This is really just a perfect centerpiece for the display and of the sculptural quality we have come to expect in the current iteration of the line. Now, all is not perfect, Jabba's body is hollow and rubber allow for some pointless tail articulation - pointless because it cause the rubber torso to warp excessively. Also, the arms, highly articulated though they are, just don't quite have the range one would like. And Salacious Crumb is the same as the one that came with eye-out C-3PO so the arms and legs are a bit wonky, but considering how much else is new with this set it's a-okay! If you collect Star Wars this is a Must Have!
Jakks Pacific - Pirates of the Caribbean: Angelica
The fifth and final figure of Series 1 has the worst likeness of the batch. Clearly that's Penelope Cruz cause the figure has the same costume as the character in the film. Like Jack and Blackbeard her rubber hat fits on her head surprisingly well and, all things considered, she looks "natural" both with and without it on - a rarity in action figure-y. Also, these figures comes with scabbards that likewise look fine without sword and also hold the sword very well. Here black-light accessory is Jack’s ring cast in darker metallic plastic with a blue jewel - cost savings on Jakks' part or insight into significance for the film?
Mattel - DC Action League Series 2: Batman & The Joker
The balljointed shoulders promised at SDCC finally show up, and they're so tight they can barely be manipulated. It's a fine selling point for Batman, since we have an army of him already, though this design is more elongated to differentiate him from the Brave and the Bold iterations. Joker, though, is just a new head on the old body. This is a fairly pass-up-able set.
Mattel - DC Action League Series 2: John Stewart vs. Atrocitus
Atrocitus - what, what! I love me some Lanterns and this marks Mattel's first crack at the main Red one. He's a pretty good sculpt but something feels lost in the red plastic. The black on John's suit is painted in gloss, which is aesthetically nice, but the flat green doesn't look so hot next to it, nor do the rest of the Corps what also have flat black.
Mattel - DC Action League Series 2: Low vs. Tomar Re
I really like Low and this is the figure that really sold me on the new Action League line. Of course, because he's cast in yellow plastic it's nearly impossible to find one with good paint. He also has a weird "smile" in his mouth I very much wish he lacked. Tomar is pretty cool and is essentially just what you'd expect.
Mattel - DC Action League Series 2: Prometheus vs. Green Arrow
This is the forgettable pack of the series (which reminds me I never got Flash & Boomerang from Series 1). Green Arrow is neat but his pose is pretty derivative at this point (and its only Series 2!) and Prometheus... well I've never heard of him, but he does look kinda cool.
Mattel - DCUC: Green Lantern 5-Pack
Mission Accomplished! Corps elaborated! Tomar Re and Guy Gardner are the new additions and welcome they are. John and Hal are repaints and not totally unwelcome, but at the same time not totally exciting. The fifth is GL Sinestro kit-bashing the Sinestro head onto the Hal body. It doesn't look as bad as I expected considering the scale issues, but is still a pointless figures as GL Sinestro always wore a raccoon mask. I understand that they cant spend a whole lot on these mutli-packs but come on. Tomar Re looked like a repainted Romat Ru head but is actually different, which is nice - but I can't help but think a repainted Romat head and a different character from Sinestro would have been a better use of money. Still though its really like Walmart had any substantial problem moving these sets. Guy is a decent figure, the new "torso" is just a rubber sleeve over the existing body, which is kind of a bummer. And that head... Like OMAC it just looks... off. Too stylized to fit in with the rest of the line. The paint is only okay across the board, with lots of white bleeding.
Mattel – JLU: Future Superman
Such a cool figure that is greatly appreciated and goes wonderfully well with the Batman Beyond three pack that came out last year. As if the figure itself wasn't enough he also comes with an awesome Starro accessory. Starro is by far one of the best accessory in the JLU line, it captures incredibly well the famous Bruce Timm Style, and hey - it even has sculpted on suckers in the underside. Superman is a very welcome addition to the collection but he has two big flaws: like all figures his feet are sculpted up-angled which means standing is not his strong suit; moreover though, the neck terminated in a flat line, which does not take into account that the torso is at an angle, thus, Superman can never look directly forward, only done. I'm very happy to add this figure to the collection, and yeah yeah Neitlich kept the line along forever and ever but seriously... no wonder it's dying, the rest of the series consists of previously released figures and made-up costumes. Oh, and he cost $8.99 - two dollars more than the Action League. You know... maybe I won't miss JLU after all.
You've got a small typo in your review, there: where it says Prometheus/GA is "the forgettable pack of the series," you meant to type "the only two-pack that's a must buy." Clumsy fingers!
Sure, the various GL figures are fine (and the Batman/Joker pack is garbage), but Prometheus is just a cool character, and getting an Action League version of him is super-exciting! He's never had any toys before.
I really wish Target would have a sale on JLU. I want that Superman, but I'm not paying $9 for him...
You know what's really funny about the Prometheus/Green Arrow pack?
GA killed Prometheus by shooting an arrow through his head.
Hahaha, I noticed that too.
hahaha, awesome
Yeah, it's funny until you read the comic where it happened. Which was terrible.
The local WalMart had all kinds or trouble moving the GL 5-pack, they languished on the shlves until they dropped down to $15 or so. You know, the same price as a single figure in the line...
you got them to $15? Man, I thought $30 was a good buy!
Man, you were lucky to find one of those damn 5 packs. Local toy store around me is selling it for 90 bucks. I'd rather eat my own ear.
It was nuts. The store got in four of the sets - I didn't pick one up, and they sold out. When I finally decided to buy one, I had to go to a WM two towns over to find it.
A few days later, I learned from Jin Saotome that the price had dropped in half. Soon after, my local store got in more than THIRTY of the things! They were instantly piled up in the post-Christmas clearance aisle, away from all the other toys. If I'd only looked near the other DC figures, I never would have seen them. By the time Rustin asked me to look for the set for him, sadly, they'd all sold out...
I didn't even bother at my local Walmart. My area has more then a few seedy scalpers who play alot of games. One is to hide the Mattel scalper-bait DCUCs (single carded and sets) under shelf panels or behind the baby furniture and wait until the clearance prices kick in and then flush out their stash. With the stuff hidden the store never orders in new swag so the real fans suck it. Another game is to buy the DCUC set and play toy aisle troll with it by swapping out key figures for old Jakks wrestling figures. Funny stuff but again the real fans suck it. One dude hid a full set of DCUC15 for me and even drew me a map to navigate its Walmart hiding spot. Problem is it's an hour drive away and I'm not interested in dropping a C-note on a full series. I'ld like to score an the UltraHumanite BAF though and think I can do so for around $40.
That's pretty amazing, and surprisingly "patient" of them to hide stuff for clearance. I think we non-scalpers should just do "store sweeps" and flush all that stuff back out to the toy aisle. Scalpers are such little _____________
Back when I worked at Toys "R" Us, it was way too common for people to hide things on top of shelves or behind items. From an inventory stand point, it absolutely sucks.
"The system says we have 24 Marvel Legends in stock."
"I see six on the shelf - they're all Silver Centurion. How did we lose a case and a half?"
Yeah, it makes everyone think a bunch of stuff is getting stolen. We started getting in the habit of climbing on ladders to get a downward look at the store and eventually it got so bad that corporate forbade us from even using the storage areas above the shelves.
One time I found an entire assortment of Marvel Legends series 8 hidden above the Barbie section. A few of us collected and split up the wave between ourselves and bought them that day. Two days later a scalper came in yelling about where his hidden figures were. My manager told him we do not hold items.
That same guy would come in weekly and always yell at us to open fresh cases for him. He'd always try to swipe rare variants. Eventually we would just start lying to him and say we never had what he wanted.
Moral of the story, be nice to people who work retail. And don't be a dick.
that guy deserves to be beaten with bamboo canes. Love that he complained about not finding his hidden figures.
I do remember back in the day when one had to check the overheads for hidden figures, so that makes sense why stock isn't held up there. Interesting to know that it is specifically for the "hidden stock" thing.
At C2E2 Chuck was saying that TRU is saying they have alot of MAX minimates in stock, but no one can find them in stores - wonder if thats cause alot of people have hid them (possibly waiting for mark down)
I still stash stuff overhead, but usually only for a few days. After that, I either get it or put it back out. I did it with the Minimates MAX figures, for instance - I knew I had one of those Rewards Bucks certificates coming, so I stowed the ones I wanted.
Last Christmas, though, I saw someone stashing one of those big G1 Optimus Prime sets up in the storage area, several aisles away from the Transformers. As soon as he was wandered off, I retrieved it and put it with the other TFs...
My go to layaway hiding spot is behind the Bandai 12" Godzillas.
Hand to heart I was in a Target toy aisle yakking with one of the more notorious fools in my area and he pulls the lone DCUC series 4 (or whatever) figure off the peg and just tosses it behind the Bakugan boxes on a low shelf without even batting an eyelash. It was more of a reflex then a careful motion which would indicate he was putting it on layaway for himself. I checked with a buddy who knew that clown and he said "yeah, it's a rare figure right now so even though he didn't want another one to flip on the 'bay he also doesn't want anyone else finding it". Keep it hard to find so them ebay prices stay inflated. It was kinda sporting with Marvel Legends "chase" figures but stoopid Mattel ruined the brick n mortar retail 6" superarticulated action figure game first with lazy distribution and then with insane price hikes. The scalpers in my area spread this sh$% on toast and eat it up whilst I have to try and 'splain to my 8 year old why his Validus will forever have his head clicked and connected to his waist! 😉
Quick side now - Joker is entirely a new figure, none of him is reused from his Brave and the Bold AL figure. Comparison shot can be found here: http://jestergoblin.com/?p=8492
the Jabba the hutt is super bad ass..i paid about $65 aftermarket for him,but it was before it it retail.I love when i find peoples stashes..being an old school toy collecter i generally know where to look and have had some of my greatest come-ups from searching...when i worked at toys r us,id stash the hot items and before the world of the internet,the local toy and comic stores would direct customers to me.kids id give the hot stuff to for free,but collecters slipped me a $20 and id go get what they wanted from the back.i had to find some way to support myself on $4.25 hr and yes i eventually fired for it.but toys r us didnt keep very good records and i worked at 3 more toys r us before they caught up to me and i had to get a real job..
So you're saying you're a dickhole and proud of it?
Seriously, though, you know it's impossible to pay "aftermarket" BEFORE something hits retail, right? I mean, it's right there in the name: AFTER market...