Joe Amaro Brings The Manta Raider to Power-Con

July 31, 2012 | Poe

You may recall Joe Amaro teaming up with vintage He-Man packaging artist Rudy Obrero to create a MOTU-themed vehicle called the Manta Raider. Well, Joe’s got some good news for those who wished they could get their own:

At the He-Man.org Power Party I finally got a chance to sit down and talk to Rudy Obrero face to face.

At the party Rudy told me that he wants to make the Manta Raider available to the fans!!! I need to figure out the logistics and price but it will be a very very limited run, definitely under 100. We talked about having it in some type of packaging so we can use Rudy’s awesome painting!

The plan right now is to have it ready for Power Con in September. Rudy will have a table there with some prints for sale. Best of all you can have all the items signed by Rudy!

Note: This is just a fan project and not associated, licensed or in any way affiliated with Mattel or Masters of the Universe.

Subpocalypse, Cont’d

July 27, 2012 | Poe

A Poester writes in:

I was chatting to a friend of mine today [who owns a specialist collector toy shop in England] – mostly Transformers, Star Wars etc.  We where chatting and the whole situation with MOTUC came up, as I know he collects them. During our conversation he told me that last year, he contacted Mattel and wanted to be a supplier for MOTUC in the UK. They replied and told him that unless he was willing to purchase $55,000 worth of each figure, they would not supply him. Realistically he was willing to spend £500-£1000 on each figure, but he said there was no way he was going to order $55,000 worth of one figure.

It puzzles me they would turn down a retailer willing to spend £1000 on one of their monthly figures, yet they are claiming there is not enough support. Mattel must really want to keep retailers and customers away from their products.

Obviously this is entirely unsourced, so it’s nothing but hearsay without actual corroboration. Still, it doesn’t sound made-up to me, and it also sounds entirely plausible. (more…)

Subpocalypse, Cont’d > The Four Horsemen Make a Personal Appeal

July 26, 2012 | Poe

The Four Horsemen have been asked by Mattel to intercede on behalf of Masters of the Universe Classics. They posted the following on the He-Man.org forums today:

Hey, all of you He-Fans and She-Ravers!

As we’re sure you’ve all heard by now, the number of subscribers to the 2013 Masters of the Universe Classics Club Eternia at Mattel has dropped drastically from last year to this year. This has put the future of the line in danger of being cancelled altogether.

We’ve seen a lot of the discussion on various message boards and blogs surrounding this issue, and many people have commented that this may be some sort of ruse by Mattel just to sell more subscriptions and that there’s no true danger of the line ending. Well, you should know by now that we’ve always tried to be as open, honest and transparent with the fans as we could possibly be, and we’re telling you now that the Masters of the Universe Classics action figure line IS currently in danger of ending sooner than expected because of a sudden and drastic drop in the number of subscriptions to the line.

Continued after the jump… (more…)

Club Eternia 2013, Cont’d

July 25, 2012 | Poe

Scott Neitlich posted the following on the Mattycollector forums last night in response to a question as to where the MOTUC subs stand right now:

We have over 50% to go. We are at 46% of the min orders we need as of right now.

If we don’t hit 100% of the min it means fewer figs at higher prices (i.e. 30-35.00 per figure and likely only 4-6 figs for the whole year)

Forty-six percent of the required minimum tells me that all the discussion of the Star Sisters, QC, and CS issues is fairly inconsequential. The QC and CS issues have been around for almost the entire life of the line, yet they easily hit the required number last year. I have a difficult time believing that Star Sisters are holding anyone back, because the truth is, they were part of last year’s sub, not this year’s – if they were going to hold anyone off subbing, it would have been last year. (It could be argued the incentive figure, King He-Man, is no Shadow Weaver, but I think Ram Man makes up that difference.)

The SS/QC/CS stuff may have eaten away at the margins, but I think the main reason for the lower sub numbers was the price and international shipping increases, plain and simple. If it had been just the price increase of just the shipping increase, the damage might have been more mitigated. But with both hitting at once, MOTUC may have been dealt a mortal blow.

There’s not going to be another rush of subscribers – those happen in the first few days. I don’t like being a downer, but I just don’t see how they double the sub numbers by August 6 – unless there are some e-tailers who hop on board and save the line.

There’s been some talk that many people have been holding off to get paid at the end of this month or the first of August. I’m skeptical that 50% of the needed subscribers are in that boat, but I guess we’ll see.

UPDATE: On second thought, the total cost of the 2013 sub (before shipping) is $505, while the total cost of the 2012 sub was $510. It’s pretty much identical to last year, it’s just more per figure. So now I’m not sure how much the price increase figures into it, although I’m sure there’s a certain psychological resistance to paying an extra $5 per figure that factors in to collectors’ thinking (including mine, but I went ahead anyway).

Odds ‘n Ends > Poe Subscribes & Why, Digital River Mini-Rant, & More

July 24, 2012 | Poe
Megacon 2012

Megacon 2012 by ArmoredFoe, on Flickr

  • I finally subscribed to 2013 Club Eternia, for two primary reasons. The first is I found out that those vehicle-themed chestplates on the Fighting Foe Men can be removed – I wasn’t aware of this fact, and I really disliked those. I just thought they were too cheesy. Without them, the figures look much better. The second reason is that I’ve found my MOTUC reviews are one of the main sources of traffic I get here on PGPoA; and especially since so many of you may not be subscribing this year, I’ll be providing more of an actual service by reviewing them so you can decide whether they’re worth tracking down on the secondary market.
  • Speaking of Club Eternia, NoisyDvL5 over at IAT has written an editorial on the topic. It’s the kind of editorial I might have written four years ago before I got so old and jaded and lazy.
  • Speaking of lazy, it never even occurred to me to get an interview with the creator of Castle Grayskullman like Pixel Dan did. I do have some other interviews coming, though.
  • I’ve been wondering whether S.H.MonsterArts would continue past King Ghidorah. The answer appears to be yes; Godzilla Jr. and Burning Godzilla (both from Godzilla vs. Destroyah) are coming. The Burning Godzilla appears to be a new mold, or at least have some newly-molded parts.
  • I will be reviewing The Dark Knight Rises eventually. Hopefully this week, if I can carve out the time.
  • Because I forgot to change my address on my specific Club Infinite Earths order that I made last year, my CIE order for this month was sent back undelivered. This despite the fact that I did change my address on the main Mattycollector site – which, as we all know, does not change your address for existing orders, only future orders. To change the address for existing orders, a feature found on almost every modern retail website, is apparently far beyond the capabilities of Digital River. How I loathe that company. Why, why would you go with a company best known for delivering digital product fulfillment rather than physical? I’m guessing the answer is contained in two words: lowest bidder. You get what you pay for. Anyway, theoretically I’ll be refunded for my two CIE items and I don’t plan on fighting to get them back. I’d rather have the money.
  • Notable reviews: Fox Sports Baseball Robot (Dayraven), Spikor (Michael Crawford), 3.75″ Brock Samson (Michael Crawford), Funko Exclusive Batman Vinyl Invader (Battlegrip), Fall of Cybertron Jazz (OAFE)

MOTUC 2013 Sub in Jeopardy?

July 20, 2012 | Poe

Following up from the earlier post, there are two notable posts over on the Mattycollector forums.

First up:

Subject: MOTUC on the chopping block?

Q: With all due respect Toyguru, how could MOTUC possibly be on the chopping block when it’s the highest selling line on Mattycollector.com? Is this an edict handed down by corporate or is this a brand decision from yourself? Do you feel Mattycollector could even exist without MOTUC?

A: In 2012 it was/is one of the hottest. But the 2013 sub has not sold the min yet. Until it does, it is on the block. We need sub support to continue it.

And:

Subject: Can you do a sub meter for MOTUC?

Q: Like the one you have on DCUC? Clearly, we need it.

A: We’ll look into it. At this point we may need one. We were not expecting to which is why one was not prepped.

(more…)

MOTUC Bio Discussion > Dekker

July 20, 2012 | Poe

Dekker
Heroic Trainer-Of-Arms
Real Name: Dekker

Originally a mercenary from the Dunes of Doom, Dekker switched sides during one of the early battles of the Great Unrest and fought with King Miro against Marzo’s tyranny. His wisdom and courage quickly lead to his appointment as Miro’s Man-At-Arms, leading and training the royal soldiers. Throughout these battles Dekker took a young prodigy named Duncan under his wing, traveling through Eternia, fighting evil together. In time, Dekker retired to Orkus Island, passing his title and duties to his former apprentice and sidekick. Although he now enjoys the simple life of a fisherman, the ever-present forces of evil occasionally call him back to fight for justice alongside the heroic Masters of the Universe.

Before we go further, let me take this opportunity to remind everyone once again that I absolutely hate the use of the term “Masters of the Universe” to describe the good guys. Why can’t they just be the Heroic Warriors? Can’t be trademarked, I suppose.

Moving on, Dekker appeared in the episode “The Island” of the Millennium He-Man and the Masters of the Universe cartoon. Nothing in this bio contradicts what was depicted in the episode, though I believe it adds the bit about Marzo and the Great Unrest (at least in terms of Dekker’s involvement).

Honestly, I don’t think there’s a lot to comment on here. Thoughts?