Toyguru Mattycollector.com MOTUC News Thread September 2011

[Heli88]

How can it be individual human error when it's happening in every single one including the 'secret accessory'!

Don't tell me, logistics right?

No, no. Like everything you don't like, it was a design decision by the Horsemen. They're the new "logistics."

[shadowfall1976]

Toybiz did a color change Mr. Freeze back in the late 80's and it was very cool! I remember it working well.... so you'd think Mattel could successfully do one now.

Yeah well, you'd think Hasbro could do more chrome on new Transformers...you
know since almost all of the original Transformers had chrome on them....from
Hasbro. Can't be that hard with modern tech, if it's been done since and before
then, by other companies. And other companies have had recent things that
color change, but yet Orko isn't even in the right shades, his hat is more orange
than red / maroon. Yet some things show great improvement, having a clear
plastic toy then, meant you'd break it just by looking at it, like CD cases still are
brittle, but now clear plastic is much more durable to mess with. But too a lot
of Plastic was brittle then, I broke so many TF Prowls, Megatrons & Mirages just
by turning something that was meant to be turned, but now you can be much harder
on toys.

One thing I do remember from the MOTU toys is that you could chew on the heads,
now how many kids did that, just because they could?

[MegaGearMax]

Lots of new answers are up!

[shadowfall1976]

Good News for everyone who likes their toy prices to go up, while QC work goes down,
now I get that in these days bad QC is the norm, but when did it become acceptable, to
me it never did, everyone accepts that a toy that is supposed to stand, bend and pose,
is unable to due to because of loose joints and looses playablilty, and for MOTUC it's a
COLLECTORS line, with a higher price, and now going to more higher prices, and we
should just accept that for the price the loose joints are OK? seriously people wake up.

I get that things today are crap everywhere, but seriously, if you raise the prices, at least
have the courtesy to make the figures better and tighter, I mean they are hand assembled
and painted....so why such bad workmanship on their parts, it's not like the guy putting the
friggin thing together can't say....um this one is too loose to use.

[markatisu]

Good News for everyone who likes their toy prices to go up, while QC work goes down,
now I get that in these days bad QC is the norm, but when did it become acceptable, to
me it never did, everyone accepts that a toy that is supposed to stand, bend and pose,
is unable to due to because of loose joints and looses playablilty, and for MOTUC it's a
COLLECTORS line, with a higher price, and now going to more higher prices, and we
should just accept that for the price the loose joints are OK? seriously people wake up.

I get that things today are crap everywhere, but seriously, if you raise the prices, at least
have the courtesy to make the figures better and tighter, I mean they are hand assembled
and painted....so why such bad workmanship on their parts, it's not like the guy putting the
friggin thing together can't say....um this one is too loose to use.

When you get the rest of the toy industry to wake up let me know, but Mattel is hardly the only ones guilty of this.

If we really cared as much as we protest we would not buy the product...but as long as we continue to buy and accept it nothing will ever change.

And the people in the factories overseas making this get paid cents a day, I think they could care less about quality. They need to meet a production number or they get nothing.

[TrimmTrabb]

The whole 6" scale thing always bugged me.
Who knew that 6" is a subjective term as opposed to an objective one?
Stupid units of measurement.

[shadowfall1976]

When you get the rest of the toy industry to wake up let me know, but Mattel is hardly the only ones guilty of this.

If we really cared as much as we protest we would not buy the product...but as long as we continue to buy and accept it nothing will ever change.

And the people in the factories overseas making this get paid cents a day, I think they could care less about quality. They need to meet a production number or they get nothing.

That being said though we get crap figures our money pays for, and our
money pays Mattel to stay in business, therefore the least they could do to
justify a few more cents to the person doing the QC work because in the end
we will end up with figures that completely go limp upon package
removal...and that is my point, I for one will stop buying these things if the
QC gets worse than it is, because to me the justification for the price will no
longer be worth it for them.

And I know about other companies, Hasbro is bad for it too, but Hasbro sells
their Transformers at much higher volume than the MOTUC, and honestly the
QC work is for the most part better than Mattels on a low volume Collectors
line. I have many loose Transformers lying around with perfect joints and the
only bad thing to them is maybe a little flashing not shaved off. But there are
a few bad ones Universe Galvatron, Animated Blitzwing for examples, but I
have seen many reviews about so many of the MOTUC that complain about
the same loose joints on each figure. Are there good ones...yes, but shouldn't
the bad ones be far and few between, instead of the other way around?

[eternia23]

since mattel employees seem to choose between "there" and "their" randomly, you'd think they'd get it right at least half the time... strangely, that is not the case.

[kup]

The whole 6" scale thing always bugged me.
Who knew that 6" is a subjective term as opposed to an objective one?
Stupid units of measurement.

They should convert to the metric system.

[Reboot]

The whole 6" scale thing always bugged me.
Who knew that 6" is a subjective term as opposed to an objective one?
Stupid units of measurement.

'6" scale' = 1:12 (i.e., a 6 inch figure in 6" scale represents a character who is 6 feet tall.)

[Toyguru]

And MOTUC figures are over 6 feet!

[RocketPunch]

And MOTUC figures are over 6 feet!

Yeah, on Eternia everyone is 7 feet tall, even Queen Marlena! Maybe the Sorceress cast a magical growth spell on her or something.

[midor]

And MOTUC figures are over 6 feet!

If the figures were 6 foot I'd hate to pay for the shipping.

Don't get me started about trying to get the mailer, let alone the package, open.

[TrimmTrabb]

'6" scale' = 1:12 (i.e., a 6 inch figure in 6" scale represents a character who is 6 feet tall.)

Yeah. I see what the intended meaning is.
I just think that 1:12 scale is a much better way to put it. Particularly because MOTUC are often referred to (in official Matty copy) as "6 inch figures" as opposed to even saying "6 inch scale". This obviously irks me becuase "6 inches" has a pretty specific meaning. I know that it's dumb and I'm just being nitpicky. I still love the figures. I'd love them even if they called them "8 inch figures"

[Tallstar]

Are there any new reveals coming to help bump up sales for the 30th Anniversary Sub.?

Will there be any reveals for the regular MOTUC sub?

We are going to bring everything the Horsemen are done with to Power Con. Hopefully that will include the next 30th fig. It all depends on how much they can get done in time.

How exciting. I didn't think they would be bringing everything that's finished.

[JonWes]

It is, though i wonder how many that could realistically be? It's been about two months since SDCC. I'm thinking... 3-4 max? Maybe 1-2 regular figure, the next quarterly and the 30th figure? They work on so many different lines I guess it could really vary. Whatever they bring I'll be excited to see them!

[wayneepoo]

How exciting. I didn't think they would be bringing everything that's finished.

I'm excited we'll be getting more reveals so soon after SDCC...but, then that may mean a longer drought of new reveals after that, which does not excite me...

[mk476]

I'm excited we'll be getting more reveals so soon after SDCC...but, then that may mean a longer drought of new reveals after that, which does not excite me...

I'm selfish. I'll still take as many reveals as possible now!

[Prahvus]

I'm excited we'll be getting more reveals so soon after SDCC...but, then that may mean a longer drought of new reveals after that, which does not excite me...

Yes. But on the other hand, there should be 6 more figures in 2012 than in 2011 (the 6 "30th anniversary" figures), so I guess they can reveal a little bit more without taking the risk of a very long silence.

After Power Con, I guess we probably won't be given any new reveal before February 2012.

[RockinHard]

I wonder how the new reveals will be shown. Meaning, I wonder if there will be a powerpoint presentation like SDCC, or if they'll just be put on a table like at NYCC?

[Arvulis]

Hello buddies,

For this time, I do the good job of our friend MegaGearMax

Some new questions answered by ToyGuru !!!!!!!!!
We are close to get Modulok and Multibot IMHO and we can hope for Horde Prime too !
Thanks to ToyGuru also to take time to answer our questions.

cape question

Toyguru, I know can't speak for other companies, but why aren't there anymore cloth capes in ANY line? It doesn't hinder articulation or weight causing the figure to topple. Is it a price issue or just easier? I realize I might be 10 years too late for this topic, but I've always wondered why.


Capes are a tough one. About half the fans want cloth, half want plastic. In the start of the line the Horsemen and Mattel design decided that as a general look they were going to avoid soft goods as a brand look for the MOTUC line and to keep all the figures with one unified look. Obviously if someone really calls for it we can always revisit this (as we did for the rooted hair on Megator's second head) but it won't be a regular thing.

Also, soft goods (and rooted hair) are generally more expensive and not doing them is a way to keep costs under control.

BEAST MOTU question for ToyGuru !

Hello ToyGuru,

You told us that Multi bot or Modulok would be considered like a beast.
I know that you can't discuss about figures not yet revealed but...
Would you consider Horde Prime like a giant (eg: Filmation) or like a regular figure (eg: UK Magazine version)?

Thank you very much !

Mutlibot or Modulock are necessarily a beast, but they would likely be more then a standard 20.00 figure due to all the parts. Whether this would be a beast/multipack slot, a convention item or a non sub item has yet to be announced, but it is true they would not work as a standard fig.

As for Horde Prime, sorry, but we just can't comment past Thunder Punch He-Man. Lots of ways we could do him, how and when and if remains to be seen!

Figure only sub option for 2013?

Hi,

I've been an ardent supporter of the MOTU Classics line since attending SDCC in 2008. I am not getting a sub in 2012 as I feel the DELUXE character selection announced so far, such as POP 3-pack, are too obscure.

With the introduction of a 30th Anniversary figure only sub, is there a chance of seeing 'figure only' and an 'all in' sub in 2013 to appeal to a wider cross-section of collectors?

Thanks,
He-Dan


No, we won't be offering a tiered sub in 2013. Most fans want MOTUC to work for their particular buying habits be it all in, monthly figs only, vintage figs only, pop only, etc...

In the end, we have to go with a system that makes the most business sense. While it will not work for everyone's individual buying habits, it does offer some flex and is what we can offer for a relatively low quota online collector line.

1987 Movie rights - did Mattel try?

Hi there. When Mattel announced that they had finally got the Filmation/Jetlag rights, ToyGuru then told the panel at SDCC that unfotunately that didn't stretch to getting the Movie rights.

Did ToyGuru/Mattel attempt to indeed obtain the rights to the 1987 Movie characters? I'm not asking for legal specifics, just whether or not the attempt was made to get them.


Yes, the movie rights are not available for the MOTUC line. If they were and it was logistically possible we would of course be interested.

Price Increase

Are you going to tell us how much the figures are going to cost if we don't get a subscription before the subscription sale ends?
If the cost isn't too much of a increase, I will be a "cherry picker" as you call some people, but if it is more, I may subscribe. I just hate paying for something I don't know what it will be

While we don't have day of prices to announce right now, obviously you will know how much you are paying by the time you make a purchase. We are still a few months from 2012, hang in there, we will know this sooner then later.

[MegaGearMax]

Thanks for your help, Arvulis! The new questions are now up in the front.

[julez6]

That's it! I'm done with this line. The QC is horrible, they lied to me about the size and there are chicken suits now, and to add insult to injury they are opening up the subs again. I'm done. Hasbro here I come.

[JonWes]

That's it! I'm done with this line. The QC is horrible, they lied to me about the size and there are chicken suits now, and to add insult to injury they are opening up the subs again. I'm done. Hasbro here I come.

I mean this entirely respectfully but...

uh... what?

[Paul Justice]

This is disappointing, I thought that Grayskull $300 price tag meant a large Neca Door size Grayskull, which I was happy to pay the price for, but if I'm getting something like the 200x at a $300 price tag just because it is a smaller shipment, then that sucks, and changes my entire outlook at wanting Grayskull. But then again, it is the Horsemen, and I should know it won't be disappointing.