MOTUC 2013 Price Increase Discussion

[Saved]

It is funny that everyone assumes we were getting a good price in 2008, maybe they were overcharging us, remember no licensing fees and no middle man to mark up the product. So now they are raising the prices to maintain the level of profit from 2008!

Another good point. As far as the price of small online exclusive lines please the website of the Four Horseman. The 7th Kingdom & Gothitropolis stuff is way beyond MOTUC and the price diference was/is minimal.

[markatisu]

And I know there are price increases across the board in all areas, but remember, we've been paying a premium on these figures. $20 for an ACTION FIGURE is a premium

Tell that to Target who just upped Legacy DCU figures to $19.97 on a line that is dead and has a massive amount more production compared to MOTUC

$20 is going to be the standard at retail very soon, its already trending that way very quickly with $15.97-17.97 base prices and small sized lines becoming $9.99

Another good point. As far as the price of small online exclusive lines please the website of the Four Horseman. The 7th Kingdom & Gothitropolis stuff is way beyond MOTUC and the price diference was/is minimal.

Keep in mind not all action figures are made identical. Not saying Mattel is not making a profit, but you cannot cookie cutter in the industry as its different for all companies and lines.

People want to ignore that if the line takes a dive in profit the shareholders will not be happy, there is more to the lines health then if the customers are happy.

[fball13z]

Another good point. As far as the price of small online exclusive lines please the website of the Four Horseman. The 7th Kingdom & Gothitropolis stuff is way beyond MOTUC and the price diference was/is minimal.

I love the 4HM but i think you got your facts wrong

Most of their figures have even more part reuse then MOTUC figures, plus each year their figures have gone up and up. Started at $15 then $20, then $25 and now $30 for the current figures and they have already said their next ones will be more

[Lipster]

I am thinking $24 is where it's going to go, maybe $25. Hopefully beasts and oversized figures don't go up anymore, they are already over priced, $40 for a giant with limited articulation, plus I can't see Arrow costing $36+. If profit goes up a little for Mattel maybe they will do the...


BATTLE RAM! BATTLE RAM! BATTLE RAM!

[Zodach]

Another good point. As far as the price of small online exclusive lines please the website of the Four Horseman. The 7th Kingdom & Gothitropolis stuff is way beyond MOTUC and the price diference was/is minimal.

The latest release from them was the Scarabus figure from the Gothitropolis line. He was released last year for $30 per figure plus shipping. They made 9 variants which only had unique heads, nothing else. I would hardly say a $10 or 50% price difference is minimal. I'm not knocking the Four Horsemen because the figures are excellent, but they are even more expensive than MOTUC.

Everyone has a limit. But when will mattel draw the line (as best)?

Mattel will draw the line when the subscription numbers get too low to support future product. We already know that. They will continue to pass on increasing costs to us and it's up to us to decide when the price is too high. It's pretty simple.

Why is their shipping more expensive than most other online retailers. MOTUC is not their only product so its not about the size.

I don't have an answer for you and it has nothing to do with their price increase. Do they charge too much for shipping single figures? I would say so, but as a frequent shipper myself I know that UPS and USPS shipping prices go up every year too.

[Crusader]

Ypu guys can argue with each other all day and all night.

The facts:

- a "dramatic" price increase could lead to MANY people leaving the line, or, worse (bear with me), hardcore customers like us buying only one Subscription, instead of two or three.

- a "dramatic" price increase is BAD for foreign customers, who I think are very important to the success of the line. Customs fees will be higher. That's a problem.

- Mattel and Digital River have made it nearly impossible to exchange faulty figures. For example, if you had a faulty Fisto or Sorceress, and you returned the product to Digital River before an order had been created for replacement, you would have been out of luck. Formerly, Digital River would accept emailed photos of the faulty product, and you could return the faulty product at your discretion. They argue that this change was made to combat fraudulent claims of broken toys. I think it was implemented to scare customers into keeping their broken toys (rather than risk losing out on the figure), so they don't lose money on replacements.

- a "dramatic" price increase will lead to more complaints from customers who will absolutely NOT tolerate bad paint, reversed parts, broken pieces. So if Scott and Mattel are annoyed now, 8 hope they are prepared with the new team at DR.

I do not expect quality to improve because of a price increase. LOL

And I know there are price increases across the board in all areas, but remember, we've been paying a premium on these figures. $20 for an ACTION FIGURE is a premium

I am tipping you my hat, good sir !!!

[MOTU_Maniac]

Ypu guys can argue with each other all day and all night.

The facts:

- a "dramatic" price increase could lead to MANY people leaving the line, or, worse (bear with me), hardcore customers like us buying only one Subscription, instead of two or three.

- a "dramatic" price increase is BAD for foreign customers, who I think are very important to the success of the line. Customs fees will be higher. That's a problem.

- Mattel and Digital River have made it nearly impossible to exchange faulty figures. For example, if you had a faulty Fisto or Sorceress, and you returned the product to Digital River before an order had been created for replacement, you would have been out of luck. Formerly, Digital River would accept emailed photos of the faulty product, and you could return the faulty product at your discretion. They argue that this change was made to combat fraudulent claims of broken toys. I think it was implemented to scare customers into keeping their broken toys (rather than risk losing out on the figure), so they don't lose money on replacements.

- a "dramatic" price increase will lead to more complaints from customers who will absolutely NOT tolerate bad paint, reversed parts, broken pieces. So if Scott and Mattel are annoyed now, 8 hope they are prepared with the new team at DR.

I do not expect quality to improve because of a price increase. LOL

And I know there are price increases across the board in all areas, but remember, we've been paying a premium on these figures. $20 for an ACTION FIGURE is a premium

Hear you loud and clear good buddy...and agree with you 100%!!!

[orbles]

Sweet Jesus...


OP...please, for the love of God, buy an economics book and watch the news.

Priced SHOULD have gone up in 2009 or 2010. We got away with it for 2-3 years. Prices rise. It happens. If you don't like it, don't buy the toys. If $5-$10 more a month is THAT bad, perhaps this Adult Collector Line isn't for you.

$5-$10 per month on a single figure. This month I get 3 figures x 2 subs = 6 figures x $5-$10 = $30-$60 per month. That is a lot. And the thing is that people DO want to collect, but the higher cost is pushing them out, so they are upset. That is a reasonable reaction. I can still afford it, whether I choose to or not is another question, but some just cant and I can appreciate their position. I think also the price increase w/o any improvements in the line is unsettling.

[shadowfall1976]

Exactly! They are just toys and this is just a hobby. Nobody is being harmed by prices going up. Will some people be unable to afford these figures with each price increase, yes, but how many toys cost the same today as they did in 2008? When manufacturing costs go up, prices go up. The companies aren't just going to step in and take a hit on their profit margin especially when they are a publicly traded company who has to answer to shareholders on their profitability each quarter.

No one is harmed, but their ability to buy these things is....and why would I care about people who are already filthy rich. Point is the line will suffer because not everyone who has subs now will buy them again or as many as they once did, ones with 3 or 4 subs, will drop to 1 or 2. Price increases while may be neccesary for business are not huge jumps for many things, and I for one will never pay over $34 with shipping ($25) for one of these things, and you can argue all you like, fact is I will not be alone (although a few may see a bit higher as their cutoff, but many will follow). The Hardcore, hardcore collectors & 3rd party retailers will not be enough to sustain the line, no matter what anyone says. Mattel needs the smaller collectors to keeps subs afloat, as does MOTUC....so a heavy increase would not be beneficial to anyone involved, and to top it off, these things were high even at $20 in 2008, and now more so at $22, much higher will make them not worth it to too many, especially once the realism hits the subscribers come time to sub up again how much they will have to pay. Talk is cheap, just wait until you see the numbers, sure some will be big and bold and say "no matter what I will collect" but face it, it's not as many as you think, compared to the whole of the MOTUC collectors base.

Ypu guys can argue with each other all day and all night.

The facts:

- a "dramatic" price increase could lead to MANY people leaving the line, or, worse (bear with me), hardcore customers like us buying only one Subscription, instead of two or three.

- a "dramatic" price increase is BAD for foreign customers, who I think are very important to the success of the line. Customs fees will be higher. That's a problem.

- Mattel and Digital River have made it nearly impossible to exchange faulty figures. For example, if you had a faulty Fisto or Sorceress, and you returned the product to Digital River before an order had been created for replacement, you would have been out of luck. Formerly, Digital River would accept emailed photos of the faulty product, and you could return the faulty product at your discretion. They argue that this change was made to combat fraudulent claims of broken toys. I think it was implemented to scare customers into keeping their broken toys (rather than risk losing out on the figure), so they don't lose money on replacements.

- a "dramatic" price increase will lead to more complaints from customers who will absolutely NOT tolerate bad paint, reversed parts, broken pieces. So if Scott and Mattel are annoyed now, 8 hope they are prepared with the new team at DR.

I do not expect quality to improve because of a price increase. LOL

And I know there are price increases across the board in all areas, but remember, we've been paying a premium on these figures. $20 for an ACTION FIGURE is a premium

$22 for many of us, don't forget. People talk big now, but wait until it actually happens, and if the number is high enough, many will not be buying in 2013, let alone guaranteed they will raise the prices again in 2014, and again every year, maybe not as much as we're going to see next year, but the sticker shock will send many reeling. I'm telling you right now, anything over $25 will cause me to wait for my last 5, and I'm gone.

Too I wonder if the dramatically means sub prices and DOS prices will be the same at around the $25 mark, because $25 would be a dramatic increase for the sub buyers all at once, DOS buyers would have $3 more to pay while subscribers have $5, and face it your incentive to buy subs is not the price, it's getting every figure and the exclusives, that's all the incentive they care about giving you.

[Larry Waters]

Im sure Mattel loves the fact that the 1% will always support this line no matter the costs. But as economic experts like you are well aware of what happens to supply when demand diminishes. As we already saw that subs have gone down and even product has gone down this year. Will be interesting if this line survives past 2013. And no. I will choose not to buy (directly), just as many others already have. I am patient and I can wait to buy something somebody doesnt want at a better price.

Wow. You don't really spend too much time reading here, do you? I mean, that is evidenced by starting a thread that has already been done to death ("search" is your friend).


I am the FURTHEST from a 1%, support Mattel at all costs guy as there is. I'm a cherry-picker, don't have a sub and will call a spade a spade.

That's why I called your post ridiculous. The cost of this line should have gone up long before it did. If you can't hack and extra $5-$10 a month, maybe I should have recommended a financial planning book instead?

I guess you have money coming out of your ears, you do realize that many buy this line as a hobby, and have mouths to feed and bills to pay....and by your same statement with your economics book and news, you do also realize that people have limited funds. Just because we all love this line, doesn't mean we can indefinitely buy them if the prices go beyond a certain point we set. I find it so hard to believe the level of non compassion over a toy line for those who have lower capitol to buy them....

And for action figures....$25 + is a bit much to swallow, they are just toys after all.

I don't have money coming out of my ear, or any other orifice for that matter. What I have is the ability to budget and sacrifice. I pay my bills. I tithe. I contribute the max to my 401K and IRA, I put half of what's left in a separate savings account and THEN if I have some money for bullcrap like toys, I spend it.

I live below my means. THAT is what I do.

If you have "mouths to feed" and "bills to pay" to the point that a figure going from $22 up to $25/27 is going to break you, is collecting toys really that responsible an activity?

Compassion? Take that crap to the polls and vote Democrat. If you can't afford it, it isn't my fault.

If MOTUC were the ONLY line with such a price point your argument would hold water. But since I saw Marvel Universe at TRU yesterday for over $20, I have to say that your argument holds about as much water as a spaghetti strainer.

I think also the price increase w/o any improvements in the line is unsettling.

Cost of materials and production has risen EVERY YEAR and we've (to date) seen only ONE price increase....what are you people NOT getting about this??? You do NOT get "improvements" based on inflation.

[fball13z]

Wow. You don't really spend too much time reading here, do you? I mean, that is evidenced by starting a thread that has already been done to death ("search" is your friend).


I am the FURTHEST from a 1%, support Mattel at all costs guy as there is. I'm a cherry-picker, don't have a sub and will call a spade a spade.

That's why I called your post ridiculous. The cost of this line should have gone up long before it did. If you can't hack and extra $5-$10 a month, maybe I should have recommended a financial planning book instead?



I don't have money coming out of my ear, or any other orifice for that matter. What I have is the ability to budget and sacrifice. I pay my bills. I tithe. I contribute the max to my 401K and IRA, I put half of what's left in a separate savings account and THEN if I have some money for bullcrap like toys, I spend it.

I live below my means. THAT is what I do.

If you have "mouths to feed" and "bills to pay" to the point that a figure going from $22 up to $25/27 is going to break you, is collecting toys really that responsible an activity?

Compassion? Take that crap to the polls and vote Democrat. If you can't afford it, it isn't my fault.

If MOTUC were the ONLY line with such a price point your argument would hold water. But since I saw Marvel Universe at TRU yesterday for over $20, I have to say that your argument holds about as much water as a spaghetti strainer.





Cost of materials and production has risen EVERY YEAR and we've (to date) seen only ONE price increase....what are you people NOT getting about this??? You do NOT get "improvements" based on inflation.

Right to the point and my love for BC is growing even more still lol

[Minion]

I don't have money coming out of my ear, or any other orifice for that matter. What I have is the ability to budget and sacrifice. I pay my bills. I tithe. I contribute the max to my 401K and IRA, I put half of what's left in a separate savings account and THEN if I have some money for bullcrap like toys, I spend it.

I live below my means. THAT is what I do.

If you have "mouths to feed" and "bills to pay" to the point that a figure going from $22 up to $25/27 is going to break you, is collecting toys really that responsible an activity?

Amen brother. Best post i've read all day.

Simple answer is to walk away if anything in life gets too expensive for you. It's more important to pay the real bills. It's always a shame if you have to say goodbye to a luxury you enjoy, but at the end of a day it is a luxury.

[EldestSon]

Ypu guys can argue with each other all day and all night.

The facts:

- a "dramatic" price increase could lead to MANY people leaving the line, or, worse (bear with me), hardcore customers like us buying only one Subscription, instead of two or three.

- a "dramatic" price increase is BAD for foreign customers, who I think are very important to the success of the line. Customs fees will be higher. That's a problem.

- Mattel and Digital River have made it nearly impossible to exchange faulty figures. For example, if you had a faulty Fisto or Sorceress, and you returned the product to Digital River before an order had been created for replacement, you would have been out of luck. Formerly, Digital River would accept emailed photos of the faulty product, and you could return the faulty product at your discretion. They argue that this change was made to combat fraudulent claims of broken toys. I think it was implemented to scare customers into keeping their broken toys (rather than risk losing out on the figure), so they don't lose money on replacements.

- a "dramatic" price increase will lead to more complaints from customers who will absolutely NOT tolerate bad paint, reversed parts, broken pieces. So if Scott and Mattel are annoyed now, 8 hope they are prepared with the new team at DR.

I do not expect quality to improve because of a price increase. LOL

And I know there are price increases across the board in all areas, but remember, we've been paying a premium on these figures. $20 for an ACTION FIGURE is a premium

i pretty much agree with this. i could probably afford a $5 price increase...i just don't think it's worth another $5. i'm already paying $30+ for a single figure...which i already think is quite ridiculous.

if these were available on amazon w/ the super saving option, i'd buy at the $25 price point. too bad that's never going to happen.

[Inhibitor]

Yyyyeah. Collect 1/6 scale Hot Toys for a few months, then get back to me on price increases lol!

[JimPansen]

Amen brother. Best post i've read all day.

Simple answer is to walk away if anything in life gets too expensive for you. It's more important to pay the real bills. It's always a shame if you have to say goodbye to a luxury you enjoy, but at the end of a day it is a luxury.

But you still have the right to be upset about that situation and to pronounce it. If you´re well posed it´s often just luck and isnt it didainfully to condem those who are out of that luck? Just a little more sympathy for your MotU brethren who are not so lucky, would be nice.
I have to stop collecting if it´s getting to expensive, but i will be very,very ******, thats just how it is.

[redsquadron]

With me being ignorant of US retailing practices this is probably the dumbest question ever, but wouldn't it help profit margins to release some (not all) of the figures at brick and mortar retail? Even limited to certain stores? These are quality items that a lot of people seem to be clamouring for. Change the packaging, limit the amount of characters available to make the sub still worth while, but put something on the shelves?

Just wonderin'...

[Agent Gibbs]

Ypu guys can argue with each other all day and all night.

The facts:

- a "dramatic" price increase could lead to MANY people leaving the line, or, worse (bear with me), hardcore customers like us buying only one Subscription, instead of two or three.

- a "dramatic" price increase is BAD for foreign customers, who I think are very important to the success of the line. Customs fees will be higher. That's a problem.

- Mattel and Digital River have made it nearly impossible to exchange faulty figures. For example, if you had a faulty Fisto or Sorceress, and you returned the product to Digital River before an order had been created for replacement, you would have been out of luck. Formerly, Digital River would accept emailed photos of the faulty product, and you could return the faulty product at your discretion. They argue that this change was made to combat fraudulent claims of broken toys. I think it was implemented to scare customers into keeping their broken toys (rather than risk losing out on the figure), so they don't lose money on replacements.

- a "dramatic" price increase will lead to more complaints from customers who will absolutely NOT tolerate bad paint, reversed parts, broken pieces. So if Scott and Mattel are annoyed now, 8 hope they are prepared with the new team at DR.

I do not expect quality to improve because of a price increase. LOL

And I know there are price increases across the board in all areas, but remember, we've been paying a premium on these figures. $20 for an ACTION FIGURE is a premium

Well said that illustrates so much of what is wrong with a price increase, the service we get is barely worth the current price!


This Price rise needs to be announced BEFORE SDCC!
last year the subs suffered, Probably due to several of the main reasons (DR and Quality control) but also due to increasing figure counts coupled with price rises. If this year nothing has changed and a DRAMATIC price increase is announced (and not communicated before SDCC) we certainly will see lower sales of subs than any other year

And when Management now base decisions on the line on sub sales that will only be bad for the line

For me i need to know the price rise before SDCC.

Now if this price rise is really dramatic say $10 then i think this line cannot and will not continue in its current form, we'd need less SKU's per year and something tells me thats the plan.
TG has mentioned vehicles not selling well enough, running out of large scale beasts, and problems with variants (Snake MAA...) I'm even sure in other Q&A sessions he's stated the sub will be different in 2013
so i think in 2013 we won't see quarterly beasts and variants and maybe not even a monthly figure (since they've had trouble meeting that)
maybe we'll get 6 figures and 2 variants and 2 beasts/multipacks, effectively half the current line, which then theoretically would then mean people could afford a 100% rise

just some food for thought people

I really do think the announcement on a price rise needs to come ASAP or it will severly effect sub sales at SDCC, and that will only mean bad things for the line!, 2012's poor sub sales meant Greyskull is effectivly off the table, what will poor 2013 sub sales mean?

[Inhibitor]

With me being ignorant of US retailing practices this is probably the dumbest question ever, but wouldn't it help profit margins to release some (not all) of the figures at brick and mortar retail? Even limited to certain stores? These are quality items that a lot of people seem to be clamouring for. Change the packaging, limit the amount of characters available to make the sub still worth while, but put something on the shelves?

Just wonderin'...

Well they kinda did that already with the versus packs. They are so scared of MOTU tanking at retail that they had to throw in DC figs (not as high quality imo) to justify it. Now that those have been canceled, I don't see anything happening outside of a "movie year".

Besides, retail ain't what it used to be.

[Hosed Ovor]

f you have "mouths to feed" and "bills to pay" to the point that a figure going from $22 up to $25/27 is going to break you, is collecting toys really that responsible an activity?

No, it's not but is that what we are here to discuss? I'm sure you mean well, but focusing on that particular issue just detracts from your main point. A price increase isn't a surprise nor do I feel it is entirely unwarranted. I would much rather pay a little more than see additional corners cut. However, I would be shocked if the margins on this line aren't quite high since Mattel owns the property.

I do wish Mattel had never decided to offer subscriptions. It has robbed Mattel of the ability to adjust the price as needed on each figure. Without a subscription program Mattel could include extra accessories on a per figure basis by just adjusting the price on each release. For instance, Mattel could have offered Draego-Man for $25 and included the extra accessories. In the 1/6 scale collectible market, prices fluctuate greatly on each release, which has worked out quite well for companies like Hot Toys, Sideshow, and Enterbay.

Poor quality control has been a continual problem that Mattel has never fixed. Even when the issues haven't affected the entire production run it has been difficult to obtain replacement figures this year due to an inadequate amount of product being allocated for exchanges. Improvements need to be made regardless of whether there is a price increase. The number of fans willing to tolerate the quality control problems is likely to diminish as prices rise. As bcrduke previously stated a dramatic price increase will probably yield a dramatic rise in intolerance.

[Riddle of Steel]

This Price rise needs to be announced BEFORE SDCC!
last year the subs suffered, Probably due to several of the main reasons (DR and Quality control) but also due to increasing figure counts coupled with price rises. If this year nothing has changed and a DRAMATIC price increase is announced (and not communicated before SDCC) we certainly will see lower sales of subs than any other year

And when Management now base decisions on the line on sub sales that will only be bad for the line

For me i need to know the price rise before SDCC.

Now if this price rise is really dramatic say $10 then i think this line cannot and will not continue in its current form, we'd need less SKU's per year and something tells me thats the plan.
TG has mentioned vehicles not selling well enough, running out of large scale beasts, and problems with variants (Snake MAA...) I'm even sure in other Q&A sessions he's stated the sub will be different in 2013
so i think in 2013 we won't see quarterly beasts and variants and maybe not even a monthly figure (since they've had trouble meeting that)
maybe we'll get 6 figures and 2 variants and 2 beasts/multipacks, effectively half the current line, which then theoretically would then mean people could afford a 100% rise

just some food for thought people

I really do think the announcement on a price rise needs to come ASAP or it will severly effect sub sales at SDCC, and that will only mean bad things for the line!, 2012's poor sub sales meant Greyskull is effectivly off the table, what will poor 2013 sub sales mean?

How does immediate info. on the prices effect sub. sales? Sure we'd all like to know what the deal is and what's it gonna be, but let's be honest I'm sure they'll pull the same crap as last year and every one will have PLENTY of time to decide before it's all said and done.

We'll have the usual time frame of starting with SDCC to sign up along with the full month of August. Then I'm sure we'll here the boy who cried wolf line again about how this is your LAST and FINAL time to sign up, only to be followed by 5 extensions pushing through October/November.

Trust me, they'll be plenty of time to decide and prepare........

[Heidi]

Prizes go up, that's the way economy most often works and I can live with that. I'm hoping that "dramatic increase" is a carefully thought-out PR-term in this instance. I mean that if you state that the prizes will go up dramatically you have your customers fearing for the worst (like 30-50% increase in prizes). And when the prize increase turns out to be 15-20%, everyone is relieved and all ready to open their wallets. Eternal optimist I am.

[Flor2099]

Hey, based on the kinds of discussion that the price raise has caused, it's already fulfilled its promise of being "dramatic"!

[orbles]

Well they kinda did that already with the versus packs. They are so scared of MOTU tanking at retail that they had to throw in DC figs (not as high quality imo) to justify it. Now that those have been canceled, I don't see anything happening outside of a "movie year".

Besides, retail ain't what it used to be.

Well putting a reissued MOTU figure with a reissued figure from a different genre, that dont even share the same asthetics, at the worst toy store there is, gee whiz, it couldnt help but fail. You put these at WalMart for $17.99 and they will sell like crazy.

[Robogeek1973]

Well putting a reissued MOTU figure with a reissued figure from a different genre, that dont even share the same asthetics, at the worst toy store there is, gee whiz, it couldnt help but fail. You put these at WalMart for $17.99 and they will sell like crazy.

I seem to remember the first batch of two packs selling rather well. In fact if I remember correctly many folks on this site were complaining about the TRU online store never keeping them in stock long enough for everyone to get them. Did the second wave of two packs do badly?

[shadowfall1976]

I don't have money coming out of my ear, or any other orifice for that matter. What I have is the ability to budget and sacrifice. I pay my bills. I tithe. I contribute the max to my 401K and IRA, I put half of what's left in a separate savings account and THEN if I have some money for bullcrap like toys, I spend it.

I live below my means. THAT is what I do.

If you have "mouths to feed" and "bills to pay" to the point that a figure going from $22 up to $25/27 is going to break you, is collecting toys really that responsible an activity?

Compassion? Take that crap to the polls and vote Democrat. If you can't afford it, it isn't my fault.

If MOTUC were the ONLY line with such a price point your argument would hold water. But since I saw Marvel Universe at TRU yesterday for over $20, I have to say that your argument holds about as much water as a spaghetti strainer.





Cost of materials and production has risen EVERY YEAR and we've (to date) seen only ONE price increase....what are you people NOT getting about this??? You do NOT get "improvements" based on inflation.

Why do you think many as well as me pick, not only not caring about all the figures, but having limited budgets, I live below my means as well, but there is a realistic cutoff point that too many think don't exist or shouldn't. And that no one should be aggravated about a larger increase, which I know we don't actually know what it will be as of yet. And who cares about your crap attitude, being rude don't make points, and comparing prices at Rip offs R Us, isn't that great of an example, when the Targets, Meijer's and Wal-Marts around me still have Star Wars for $8.99 (they were $6.99 back in 2005 when Ep III came out, last time I bought one....$2 in 7 years), GI Joe's are $7.99, DCU for $16 & Marvel Universe for $9.99 & Transformers for $11 - $13 (which mind you they have been for the last few years), of course TRU is higher, if the MOTUC 2pks were in Target or Wal-Mart, they'd have been less than $30 too....so I am just fine with the Spaghetti I made with my strainer, it was good, and it had Meatballs & Garlic Bread, Thanks!

Point is I don't care if you care if I can afford it, point is, everyone thinks it's whatever when someone else can't and complains about it, luxury it may be, the toys these are are only worth so much no matter what someone else thinks they should be worth.

I can afford them now, and I actually can afford them at a little over $25 inflation be damned, I could care less, at that cost point to me toys are not worth it, these are not worth that kind of money no matter how much I could afford them over that point, they just are not worth the money to be spent. If you think $34 a figure + is worth it, by all means buy them, I will not be regardless if I can afford it or not, but I have a conscience and feel for those who just won't be able to afford something they like.

There is really a point where cost vs quality is reached, inflation has nothing to do with it, mind you am used to seeing toys go up, I go to the stores at least once a week and browse the toy aisles, so I do know the price points of certain toys, I look at them all the time, and I hardly ever shop at TRU due to the ridiculous prices they have. MOTUC is simply not the gold many think they are, a really good line, possibly one of the very best in terms of aesthetics (thanks to the 4H) and poseability, but quality is not up there among the high points of the line, and for a high end, high priced limited supply adult collectible line, it's really low on the list of good reasons to keep buying the line, and it's one of the most important things of a toyline, looks don't matter if the figure can't stand up....the price will cross a line soon where it's more pointless to buy than to be a hobby to too many.