6″ Titanium Man at TRU: $18

Wow.

$17.99 for Titanium Man at TRU.

That’s $3 more than DCUC. Could this be a cataloging error? (It’s not.) If not, what does this mean for the relaunched Marvel Legends line next year?

I’m a bit surprised to see this from Hasbro–Mattel has been the one with price creep over the last few years, especially on their 6″ lines. I know the Hulk Legends line had a big price jump, but wasn’t that revealed to be an error later? Or am I remembering that wrong?

Update: As Valo487 points out in the comments, Green Lantern Classics figures are also $18 apiece. DCUC is still $15, though how long that lasts remains to be seen–future waves may see the new price.

The predicted price hike, due to rising production costs, seems to have happened. After decades of holding out against major price increases, the action figure industry has caught up–and then some. The question is quickly becoming, will these prices ever plateau? Without some decently cheap non-petroleum-derived plastics, I’m not sure. (I’m also not sure what the expense mix is between plastic costs and labor costs. It’s possible that the labor costs are what’s really pushing these hikes.)

Can action figure collecting, as a hobby, survive in a world where a single figure costs 1/3rd of the price of a videogame–which can, potentially, offer many hours of active enjoyment?

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18 Comments

  1. sadman2000

    @WTR

    Strangely enough I've only had one Neca figure break and that was my Endoskeleton. I thought it had a Ball-jointed head, forced it and it broke at the top of the neck. Had to glue it, but at the swivel joint still works. That said I was irritated with the Big Sister too, the lack of bicep swivels made for some awkward posing.

  2. Nik

    19.99 at Target.com… πŸ™ http://www.target.com/s?keywords=087062283&se

  3. Enigma_2099

    Unless you REALLY want a figure, they will shelfwarm… until you drop the price.

    And they're gonna do all this, and not make sure that they stay in stock?

  4. The Flash III

    When Mattel announced earnings this month, they said they were raising prices around 10% across the board on all products due to material and production costs, so I'm sure DCUC will not escape.

    Since all I collect is DCUC, I don't have as much of a problem with a few extra dollars a figure. This might also explain why Mattel has reduced the wave sizes to 6 figures with one variant that will just be an extra head/hands.

  5. Mark

    @Fengschwing: Paris Pursuit Snake Eyes is one of the best figures you can get….and Arctic Threat Storm Shadow. πŸ˜‰

  6. Fengschwing

    @Mark: @Henry: Thanks gents, yeah Sainsburys do pretty well for MU from time to time. I'm not really into Joes though.

  7. dayraven

    BTW, i think was already posted, but the listing for the same fig on HTS is 10.99… so this markup is ridiculous.

  8. dayraven

    @WTR: sorry to hear you've had such a rough time w/ NECA product man. i love my stuff, and since kratos, i haven't had issue one. they're certainly sturdier than my mattel products. πŸ™‚

  9. Zach

    Hey guys, if you're a TRU Rewards member, they sent out a 20% off coupon that drops the price on Titanium Man to around $15. Not too much better, but better than $18. The coupon starts today and expires March 5.

  10. Mark

    @Fengschwing: Yeah as Henty said the GI Joe stuff in Poundstretchers at £2.99, some grat figures. Yeah I got DC IH Batman around the same price, Poudstretchers have them aswell….man those are not in the same league as MU LOL, but I would get a Shazam if I ever come across one. I want to get MU Thing and movie Thor and maybe a couple others. Also the new Thundercats will be 4" so….. πŸ˜€

  11. Henry

    @Fengschwing: If you know where to look, you can get 3 3/4 stuff much cheaper than that. I've been able to get loads of movie joes for £3 from poundstretcher, and supermarkets have semi-regular 2for£8 and other deals.

    I admit the regular price is hard to work with, but 1/18th stuff is plentiful enough that you can find them for a price you'll like.

  12. Fengschwing

    @Mark: I must admit I've bought a few, mostly to sort of go with the Masterworks Galactus, but at a tenner a pop, they're expensive for what they are.

    I must admit that MU Thanos and King Hulk look great. MU is the only 3 3/4 I can see myself getting interested in though. I did buy a couple of the DC ones but only cos they were 60p at TK Maxx.

  13. Mark

    @Fengschwing: Go 3.3/4". I like 6" figures to but man in the UK we just ain't getting them. 3.3/4 is whats in now and seems to be staying.

  14. Fengschwing

    I'll probably stick with DCUC till the run ends, after that, I'm out. I'm getting more into 1/6 stuff and the frustration of trying to find 6 inch figures in the UK and the rocketing prices has really soured the hobby for me.

    I sold all of my Marvel Legends before Christmas and really haven't looked back, now I'm ditching my Star Wars and Transformers stuff too, it's quite liberating.

  15. WTR

    Yeah, I think a lot of it is just TRus ripping people off…. The prices for their SW Vintage collection figures is like $2 over the nearest competition, iirc, and that's at a much lower price point. But yeah, I was almost going to pick up some GL Classics figures there when I thought to check the price. When online resellers start to look cheaper than retailers, there's a serious problem.

    @sadman2000:

    I'm the opposite way, since I've just flat-out boycotted NECA between their inconsistent quality, pricing, and production issues. The BS2 Big Sis whose arm snapped after moderate use was the very last straw.

  16. sadman2000

    I bought a few DCUC figures (Wave 14 GL, Zantanna, 13 Superboy and BB and a wave 9 Black Canary – I know… crazy on the BC being at target) for the first time since wave 12, which I only bought for Darkseid and hated ALL OF THEM for being 15 bucks. I thought they were pushing it a 13 but 15? NOW 18?! I am soooo glad I gave these up for NECA.

  17. TRU prices among TRU stores themselves can be inconsistent. The TRU store nearest me has many action figures that are actually priced $0.50-$2 cheaper than a Target in the same shopping area. However, about three miles away is another TRU with action figure prices $2-5 higher than the other TRU. One example is NECA's Alien & Predator 2-pack. I got it for $22 at one TRU while it was $26 at the other.

  18. Lovable-Bill

    TRU prices are always high, why does this come to a shock to people still.

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