1.) Dayraven asks: It seems a lot of fans are having more frequent issues w/ the QC of the MOTUC figuress they’ve received, with loose ankles and biceps swivels being the most frequent complaint. Is Mattel addressing these issues with the factory?
Yes, we constantly work with our vendors to improve these issues.
2.) Too-Man-E-Faces asks: Is it possible to print the CE certificate on MOTUC and other collectible items’ packages, as it was done with the MOTUC/DCUC crossover sets? Some European collectors have problems with customs saying that MOTUC figures are not fullfilling the safety requirements of the European Union. (Which they actually do. It’s only that the CE sign/certificate is missing, which in some cases results in customs not handing the items out to Matty’s customers.)
This is a great suggestion and we will do what we can to ensure our Mattycollector.com items can ship to as many countries as possible.
3.) RocketPunch asks: The Ghostbusters 2 Winston with Slimer Blower is missing the football pads-style chest armour, will this be corrected before release?
This is not a detail we are able to add for the initial release, but will look at making this improvement down the road!
4.) Damien asks: Are Superstars currently signed with WWE’s competitors still options for the Legends line; such as Razor Ramon, Double J, Diesel, or Mankind?
We do have access to their look when they were signed with the WWE and this would be great for our Legends line, but nothing to announce at this time.
5.) Zach asks: I know you’ve stated before that it would not reduce the cost of figures, but to reduce the environmental cost, would you ever consider reducing the large amount of packaging used on DCUC and MOTUC figures? Especially the two-packs? There is so much space in the packaging and this just seems so wasteful.
Many times pack outs like this are done to increase the value on-shelf. We are always very environmentally conscious and do our best to keep the pack outs dynamic while looking out for unnecessary packaging as well. Great suggestion!
Mark
@Newt: You are 100% correct.
Newt
I should add for clarification, Dayraven, you confused video & TV rights with likeness rights. Jeff Jarrett couldn't use footage of his time in WWF because WWE owns that footage and would have to give him permission to use it. However, he can use photos from that time (again so long as someone other than WWE took them) and any video that wasn't shot by the WWE.
The WWE can do anything they want with their video library, but that's the cutoff point. They can't use Jarrett's face beyond video without consent from him.
This is why WWE could release a DVD making the Ultimate Warrior out to be a lunatic (not hard) but had to make nice (through Jakks) with him when it came time to make a figure of him. They own the video, not the man who played the character.
Newt
@dayraven: Unfortunately, you're completely wrong with everything you just posted. I'm not going to continue to argue it, but your assessment is completely wrong.
No figure has ever come out of Diesel, Razor or Jarrett while they were under contract to another promotion. Jakks very first series of WWE Superstars had Diesel and Razor in the set, but they were released when Hall & Nash were still under contract to WWF. When the jumped to WCW, Jakks stopped shipping them, making them very rare figures at the time.
Secondly, it's not WWE policy to release products of wrestlers not under contract. If a WWE wrestler is working elsewhere, WWE completely ignores them. This goes well beyond merchandise. WWE actually removed Victoria their website Alumni section when she signed with TNA. Brought her back on the site when she quit TNA and took her away when she resigned with TNA. If you are working for the competition you don't exist. ESPECIALLY when it comes to advertising and products.
I have NEVER said that a wrestler owns his rights to a character. Although actually many do.
However, they still own the rights to THEIR LIKENESS. IE: DC Comics can not release a George Reeves Superman, just because he played Superman at some point. Even though DC owns all rights to Superman, they don't own George Reeves face. Wrestling works exactly like that.
You can not under any circumstances release a "Double J" figure that looks anything like Jeff Jarrett without the consent of Jeff Jarrett. It's just that simple. It's never been done and it never will be done, because it's against the law.
As I originally said, in some bizzaro universe WWE could release a John Cena figure wearing, say Diesel's outfit with Diesel as his name, but it couldn't resemble Kevin Nash.
In most cases WWE owns THE NAME of a character and very little else. In the case of Double J Jeff Jarrett… They own the following:
"Ain't I Great"
"Double J"
That's it. They don't even own Jarrett's tights. More often than not, WWE doesn't own character's tights.
In the case of Diesel and Razor, they own the name, Razor's fake accent and presumably Diesel's glove.
If the WWE creates an entire gimmick for someone, like say Goldust or Mankind, that the gimmick itself (How they act and their costume) go hand in hand, then they own that entire part.
If Shawn Michaels left WWE for TNA, he actually could take his name with him (Michaels had that name prior to WWE, so unless he allowed WWE to trademark it, he can take it. That's the rule) actually.
But for the sake of your scenario, let's say he can't. WWE has rights to release videos of HBK without HBK's consent. This is true. However, ANYTHING with HBK's likeness in terms of merchandise… Michael Hickenbottom gets money from. If the WWE decided they wanted to make a new t-shirt of him, they would have to contact him. They could in theory sell a t-shirt that says HBK, but they couldn't sell one with his face. HE OWNS HIS FACE.
To even further drive this point home… If WWE worked the way Dayraven and Rainyboy suggest, why would Mattel or Jakks before them ever have to contact any old wrestlers and pay them for their Legends line? Because while WWE may own certain gimmicks, they do not own the likeness of the wrestler underneath said gimmick.
No Ax and Smash of Demolition, without permission and money to Barry Darsow and Bill Eadie.
Darren
I read an interview with Keri Fisher. She said that Harrison Ford was the only actor that didn't sign away his rights. Lucas dose have to pay Ford royalties. Not the other actors though.