ODD: For years now, Red Kryptonite and I have been exchanging 100-email Gmail threads. Around the 100th email, Gmail forces you to split off into another thread, so at that point we just start a new “volume.” I think we’re on the seventeenth or eighteenth volume now. Anyway, at some point we got in the habit of distinguishing them with sequel subtitles, and now I’ve decided to rip that off for future Odds ‘n Ends posts. Mostly because I hate trying to come up with those “Edition” titles.
END: Rumored line-up for DCUC Wave 6:
2601100194 DC Universe Wave 6: Dr. Impossible Action Figure
2601200194 DC Universe Wave 6: Hawkman Action Figure
2601400194 DC Universe Wave 6: Killer Moth Action Figure
2601000194 DC Universe Wave 6: Mr. Miracle Action Figure
2601300194 DC Universe Wave 6: Shazam Action Figure
2600800194 DC Universe Wave 6: Superman (Black Suit) Action Figure
2600900194 DC Universe Wave 6: Superman (Red Suit) Action Figure
Not sure what a “red suit” Superman is, but one guess is it may be a new “standard” Supes to replace the one from DCSH. I’d be more excited–Captain Marvel (Shazam) and Killer Moth are great news–but I’m too impatient from waiting for wave three.
Incidentally, my new must-have figure for DCUC is Deadshot. Given his appearance in Justice League Unlimited and the JLU line, I feel pretty confident we’ll see him in DCUC soon. Incidentally, in case you missed it, the Fwoosh has a sneak peek at a DCUC Blue Beetle (wave unknown). Congrats to VeeBee of Fwoosh, who’s been lobbying for this figure since day one.
ODD: I took a couple of nice pics of my Movie Masters figures last night; you can see them in my Flickr feed. These are fantastic figures, probably the best movie-based action figures I’ve ever owned. And now that I’ve seen The Dark Knight, I like them even more. I think the Joker should have come with a pencil, though.
END: A shout-out to my comrade (and first cousin) Ed Humphries, who’s been blogging about E3 and numerous upcoming videogames over on The Ed Zone. As today’s videogames are tomorrow’s action figure lines, it’s important to keep abreast of what’s happening in the industry. And where are my Sam & Max figures?!
ODD: Looks like Hasbro’s prices will be going up. The Bloomberg article states for the record that production costs for action figures in particular are soaring. (Thanks to Toy Bender for the link.)
July 21 (Bloomberg) — Hasbro Inc., the maker of Monopoly and Transformers, fell 1.7 percent in New York trading after the toymaker said it will raise prices for a second time this year to counter higher costs to make action figures.
Second-quarter profit jumped almost eightfold following costs a year earlier to end part of a contract with “Star Wars” director George Lucas, Hasbro said today. The world’s second-largest toymaker said a “mid-single-digit” price increase on a percentage basis will go into effect Sept. 1.
Unfortunately, barring a worldwide breakthrough in some new form of plastic production, I don’t see this situation getting better anytime soon. Higher prices for quality action figures are here to stay.