Two Bad will have no day of sale!

[Science Friction]

Two bad for those who don't sub it, but no Two Bad for you!

Seriously, I don't see the reason for a negative backlash here. There will be no figures for cherry pickers or non subbers to buy if the sub doesn't go forward. This is becoming one of the best years to sub ever. A Quarterly shipping option, lots of accessories, and now Two Bad is a sub exclusive. I think this is Mattel pulling out all of the stops and I don't blame them.

[Prince Adam's Dad]

Losing what? When he loses we all lose. This move might make him a king maker.

Not another Randor....

[Orkomage]

Two-bad just helped pay for the BBTS company picnic!!

[scott metzger]

Why would it tick off people who might have subbed? It just made the sub more valuable. And there shouldn't be a backlash cause they let us know 5 months in advance with plenty of time to sub still. I think it was a great move personally. And later they can sell off the CS stock to subbers via early access. Hopefully they save guys like Clamp Champ and Fang Man for next years early access to give people that didn't sub this year and missed out a chance or so MOC and loose collectors can get a second if they haven't already. That should entice even more people. And resellers are probably over the moon as they just got a golden ticket so to speak. They should make Modulok a subscriber only figure too.....we'll be at 100% in no time.

We've seen the reaction before; people don't like being manipulated and bullied, which is exactly what this move reeks of. It gives people who weren't sure a reason to give Mattel the finger they feel Mattel is giving them. This is not smart, long term marketing (and we do want to look at the long term, at least into 2015).

As I said, until this move, TG and Mattel had been running a very positive campaign for the subs, with a great showing at SDCC and announcements about things like the Filmation power sword. Now they bring out the cave man's club again and leave a bad taste in the mouths of a lot of fans.

The more heavy handed Mattel has gotten over the years, the more the subs have dropped. Hard to call that an effective strategy.

[kolobosrexx]

...Whew! Glad I finally went for the sub this time! As long as it goes through, but I think this will help!

[Madison Carter]

Also, got a feeling he's not the last 2014 heavy hitter that will see no DOS.

[ash]

CONFIRMED: Since they have already made the figures there will actually only be enough Two-Bads for the people that have already ordered a sub. If you order now it is too late.

Can you provide a source for this?

[markatisu]

We've seen the reaction before; people don't like being manipulated and bullied, which is exactly what this move reeks of. It gives people who weren't sure a reason to give Mattel the finger they feel Mattel is giving them. This is not smart, long term marketing (and we do want to look at the long term, at least into 2015).

As I said, until this move, TG and Mattel had been running a very positive campaign for the subs, with a great showing at SDCC and announcements about things like the Filmation power sword. Now they bring out the cave man's club again and leave a bad taste in the mouths of a lot of fans.

The more heavy handed Mattel has gotten over the years, the more the subs have dropped. Hard to call that an effective strategy.

Positive got us to 57%, Panic inducing methods will probably get us to 100%. Mattel only cares about the now. If it reaches 100% its effective, morality and ethics really does not matter.

And why should you care, you buy all your figs from BBTS. This probably made them smile since they will most likely order more and upcharge even more than they already did the last time

Would it be better if they did not say anything then next Spring said "Two-Bad is no DoS, shoulda subbed!" and then have people be mad they could have gotten him at cost during the sub period??

[Wakko]

This is brilliant. It's good business.

Biting the hand that feeds you is good business? It might help the sub go through, but for someone like me who has supported MOTU since the 200x line, but cannot afford the MOTUC sub, it's a slap in the face. Once DCUC and MOTUC are done, I will never, ever support another Mattel collector line. Even if they offered up my dream line -- ThunderCats Classics -- I won't support it. They've burned me too much with stunts like this.

For you subbers who can afford it, I'm glad for you. But it does suck for the rest of us. I've been cherry-picking up until now (due to finances). If obtaining Two-Bad proves to be financially impossible, I'll probably stop cherry-picking as well. It's time to stop buying Mattel's line that there's only one way to get the job done. They can make the sub survive without punishing those who absolutely love the line but can't afford to be all-in.

[Prince Adam's Dad]

We've seen the reaction before; people don't like being manipulated and bullied, which is exactly what this move reeks of. It gives people who weren't sure a reason to give Mattel the finger they feel Mattel is giving them. This is not smart, long term marketing (and we do want to look at the long term, at least into 2015).

As I said, until this move, TG and Mattel had been running a very positive campaign for the subs, with a great showing at SDCC and announcements about things like the Filmation power sword. Now they bring out the cave man's club again and leave a bad taste in the mouths of a lot of fans.

The more heavy handed Mattel has gotten over the years, the more the subs have dropped. Hard to call that an effective strategy.

That "positive campaign" has yielded a need for 43% in a week. The argument could be made that the people who would have left because of a move like this have already left. I hesitate to draw a direct correlation between Mattel's heavy-handedness and sub reductions. There are far more prominent reasons for the decline.

EDIT: DAMMIT, markatisu! Stop typing faster than me!

[oehtam]

wow...just wow. I just bought 3 subs to support the line even though I'm basically done with all my wants (Strong-Arm being the last). I will be cancelling my subs because of this as I really can not support this kind of tactic.

[sirsniffy]

I applaud this decision. It's time to pull out all the stops here. It seems harsh, but it's necessary especially when things aren't shaping up the way we'd like!

Everyone PLEEEEEASE subscribe if you can! If you can't financially, I understand this, but if you are trying to prove a point, or punish Scott or Mattel, it is not really going to help anything! WE ARE IN THE FINAL STRETCH OF THIS LINE OF FIGURES! This is the time when everyone should be subbing so we can complete this line.

You wouldn't stop before the finish line, right? So why stop now at the most crucial time?

[Zodach]

As I said, until this move, TG and Mattel had been running a very positive campaign for the subs, with a great showing at SDCC and announcements about things like the Filmation power sword.

And where has that very positive campaign gotten them so far for 2014? They are sitting at 57% with less than a week to go. More incentive is clearly needed for people to subscribe.

[jibernish]

Why would it turn off folks who might sub? "Matty is trying to save MOTUC, it makes me so mad. I was going to sub, but now that they are making Two Bad a sub exclusive, which rewards me for subbing, I'm not going to sub!". I've never understood that argument, sorry.

I'm not sure I follow that logic. "I was gonna sub, but then they made it so that only subs get this, so I'll go without."???

Really? So the subscription has just been made more valuable and those people are now going to drop the sub in protest? I don't see that happening to many people. It doesn't make any sense.

Why would it tick off people who might have subbed? It just made the sub more valuable. And there shouldn't be a backlash cause they let us know 5 months in advance with plenty of time to sub still. I think it was a great move personally. And later they can sell off the CS stock to subbers via early access. Hopefully they save guys like Clamp Champ and Fang Man for next years early access to give people that didn't sub this year and missed out a chance or so MOC and loose collectors can get a second if they haven't already. That should entice even more people. And resellers are probably over the moon as they just got a golden ticket so to speak. They should make Modulok a subscriber only figure too.....we'll be at 100% in no time.

Everyone has their own reasons and their own priorities. But you won't see a lot of those reasons being mentioned here because those customers have mostly been driven off by now. The anger over this decision is way way lower than it has been in the past because so many customers have quit the line. Not all of it is because of Mattel's strong-arming, but quite a bit of it is. Look at last year's thread about the no DOS statement that came out around SDCC time - much more anger in that post. This relative quiet feels kinda sad. There should be more angry people here mulling about, but I fear so many have just moved on. That's not good for anyone, and that is in large part Mattel's doing.

Some people have higher priorities than collecting a toy line and were on the fence already about subbing, especially in past years. One move could sway them either way. A Filmation sword swings them one way, being strong-armed swings them the other way. It happened with Shadow Weaver, it happened with last year's threats of no DOS, and it will probably happen some this year too (though I would bet those people are already long gone).

I'm not saying it's not a good business decision. I think they've driven off everyone they can drive off at this point. I actually thought they'd do sub-only in 2014.

[undeadplastic2711]

I'm ordering my sub tomorrow so yes there will be a Two Bad for me, I'm not buying into the whole they've already made him so if you order now it's too late. Rubbish

[Jubilation]

I like this move and it's great for people who buy multiple subs as they can charge a fortune for Two-Bad now. People who don't sub and support the line should not expect to be able to get everything and if they have to pay loads more for one figure then that's just how it goes.

[Capt_Piett]

Very heavy handed; at this point, there is NO other reason to limit the availability than to pressure folks into the sub (the whole reason for ending the subs when they do is to start production based on the number of subs). That approach has tended to turn off fence sitters as much, if not more, than it has attracted subbers. Their focus had been a positive one thus far, but I see this ticking off some folks who might have subbed.

Scud, I don't think they've likely produced the full amount of figures, or else they could likely get in a great deal of legal trouble for saying he's only available if you sub and then saying there are only X amount. As I said, I can understand why they would limit themselves like this as he probably is one of the bigger new tooled figures they've put out. Don't worry, I'm certain if you sub you will get one.

Scott, I see your point. This could hurt/help. But IMO it will likely help more than hurt, as Two-Bad is a highly sought after figure. The thing of this is, if they waited to announce/determine after the subs closed there would be no DOS and thus no way to acquire him but the secondary market, people would riot far more than they likely will over thinking this to be a push to sell subs.

[Madison Carter]

Biting the hand that feeds you is good business?

How is it biting the hand that feeds you if the people you're ticking off aren't, y'know, "feeding" you by subscribing?

[MegaGearMax]

Also, got a feeling he's not the last 2014 heavy hitter that will see no DOS.

Yep. Betcha no Modulok DOS might be announced next.

[Wakko]

Scott, I see your point. This could hurt/help. But IMO it will likely help more than hurt...

Help this particular sub? Yes. Help Mattel launch future subscriptions? Not a chance. Mattel is killing off their customer base with tactics like this, and it will come back to bite them. Maybe not with MOTUC, but definitely with future collector lines.

[bigassbuzz]

I would have thought the Hyve would be happy about Two-Bad now being able to fetch Shadow Weaver prices

I'd prefer to sell Two-Bads to LOTS of Hyve customers rather than to just one or two that are willing to overpay.
It's always great when a toy appreciates in value, but it's a bit of a 2 sided coin.

Subs are a GREAT investment for a store like mine, but I'm only one Foe-Men / Karatti type of month away from bankruptcy at any given time.
The risk is HIGH now that the Hyve is my only source of income. This year had BUMPS in the road. We all know this.

"All A-List for 2014 and 2015" sells me on the sub WAY more than this cheap sucker punch of false scarcity on Two Bad.
Up until this news, I wasn't feeling the panic and fear about "Will the lien die?" though I had yet to sub in.

I probably WILL still buy my usual 4 subs, but more hesitantly than before.
The folks selling us the subs have shown us some quite unsavory tactics.

[Wakko]

How is it biting the hand that feeds you if the people you're ticking off aren't, y'know, "feeding" you by subscribing?

So, all the money I've spent on the 50+ MOTUC figures I own hasn't fed Mattel's coffers at all? That's what you're saying?

[seth-man]

....Because here at Matty Collector, We love leaving money on the table!! Which is why we continue to $cr3w you poor saps over with planned shortages of fan demanded figures such as Shadow Weaver, Ram-Man, Clamp Champ, and soon to be 2015 Rio Blast!

...Club Eternia subscriptions are up till August 19th....get yours today, and we'll see you in the the Toy Isle...at Big Lots, oh I mean on the Matty Forums.

[powerofGS]

Best news yet!! Just make all figures Sub only with 2-3 figures for day of Sale. Didn't TG say they don't make much from DoS anyway.

[He-Dude]

wow...just wow. I just bought 3 subs to support the line even though I'm basically done with all my wants (Strong-Arm being the last). I will be cancelling my subs because of this as I really can not support this kind of tactic.

That makes a lot of sense considering the after market price of your extra 2 Two-Bad figures will probably pay for half of one of your subscriptions... I guess your honorable logic trumps intelligent sales tactics. Good for you!