1/6 Hot Toys - MMS - Star Wars: Episode V ESB - Yoda Collectible Figure

[Cocoboloboy]

I'm still completely on the fence for this. Can someone push me off into one direction or the other? On one hand I feel like Yoda is a pretty necessary character to have. But on the other hand, I'm feeling fairly underwhelmed by it. But on the other hand, Hot Toys almost always look way better in person. But on the other hand, I mean, damn, $200 for this? But on the other hand, when will there be another 1/6 Yoda that looks any better?

But on the other hand...


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Well, if anybody looks at this figure and thinks that they don't want to spend $200 for a figure that's a little smaller than other $200 figures then they'll never buy it.

But if you look at like your spending $200 for an iconic figure with two extremely nice sculpts, exceptional paint job, newly designed body, great articulation and one of the best dio bases yet then it's money well spent.

 

[galactiboy]

Judge me by my size do you? Can't do it with the real Yoda, or with smaller 1/6 figures. Like you said Coco, this is an all new body which means it likely has more cost involved than the standard HT figure as well as coming with a lot of extras. $200 is a lot for any figure; but with HT you know the quality (almost always) will be worth it.

I have the original Yoda and while it's a pretty great figure for $75; this one completely blows it out of the water. I hoped I could be strong and not buy, but after seeing Yoda at Celebration in Orlando I could no longer delude myself in "settling".

Now, on the plus side... if you are looking for a good, cheaper alternative I imagine the price of the Sideshow Yoda will be plummeting.

I got my 2 week notice today as well

 

[ali032373]

Reward points from ssc are a con job if you look at it like youre getting a figure for less than what ssc is selling it for. You're paying more for other figures to accumulate points. SSC takes that overpayment (reward points) and applies it to the purchase of your choice. So youre not getting the figure at some discount. Youve been paying for that figure at full price already with your previous purchases.

Why not just pay less upfront (ie- other retailes) and use the saved money to buy whatever you want? Or save it? Or gamble it away? Point is you have a choice.

 

[Darth Fok]

Hope those eBay prices go down now that they'll be shipping from SS soon

 

[jedijim3002]

I'm still completely on the fence for this. Can someone push me off into one direction or the other? On one hand I feel like Yoda is a pretty necessary character to have. But on the other hand, I'm feeling fairly underwhelmed by it. But on the other hand, Hot Toys almost always look way better in person. But on the other hand, I mean, damn, $200 for this? But on the other hand, when will there be another 1/6 Yoda that looks any better?

But on the other hand...


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[Brett Banner]

Here is my issue with the size thing. Just hear me out.

Most collectors just seems completely accepting of a higher price point when a figure is larger, like the Ultron Prime. "It's a bigger figure, so I understand why it costs more." Most collectors also, whether they prefer them or not, seem to be pretty understanding of die cast Iron Man figures costing more simply because they have die cast in them. "I don't like how expensive these die cast figures are getting. I wish it were just plastic so it would be cheaper." So those two very common reactions stem from the notion that most collectors inherently associate a figure's price with it's size and the materials it is constructed from. But it seems only as long as it is justifying why the price is higher than normal.

But then we come to a smaller figure, like this or Rocket, and people don't expect the price to go down to match the size or lack of physical material it's made from. In fact, if you even bring up the suggestion that you think the same rules of price scaling should apply to smaller figures, you just get ridiculed for not understanding how figures are made, or how development costs are the same, etc.

Now, all that said. I'm leaning towards ordering this and really only think it's like $20-30 overpriced when it's all said and done. Not so much because of the size, but more because I think the head sculpts are kinda underwhelming and the robes could have had much more wear and tear. I imagine it will be like my opinion on the Obi-Wan figure, which could have been much better but will have to do for now since it's probably the only Obi-Wan we're getting for a long while.

 

[Darthrazz]

Reward points from ssc are a con job if you look at it like youre getting a figure for less than what ssc is selling it for. You're paying more for other figures to accumulate points. SSC takes that overpayment (reward points) and applies it to the purchase of your choice. So youre not getting the figure at some discount. Youve been paying for that figure at full price already with your previous purchases.

Why not just pay less upfront (ie- other retailes) and use the saved money to buy whatever you want? Or save it? Or gamble it away? Point is you have a choice.

I see your point, in my case I had points accumulated for about two years from the reward points giveaways.

 

[darth toffeeman]

The price difference is only a factor of 100.

These days that 99p carded, Kenner Yoda would cost many times more than the Hot Toys version

 

[loki2371]

Reward points from ssc are a con job if you look at it like youre getting a figure for less than what ssc is selling it for. You're paying more for other figures to accumulate points. SSC takes that overpayment (reward points) and applies it to the purchase of your choice. So youre not getting the figure at some discount. Youve been paying for that figure at full price already with your previous purchases.

Why not just pay less upfront (ie- other retailes) and use the saved money to buy whatever you want? Or save it? Or gamble it away? Point is you have a choice.

When your buying $200+ collectibles price isn't the only concern for me. I understand what your saying about buying them from other retailers but for me there's more factors than price. Buying from Sideshow has several advantages. For one you get it much sooner than any other US retailer, but mainly there have been way too many QC issues in the past with both SS & HT figures. I'd much rather spend a couple bucks extra to have piece of mind that any flaws or defects will be handled directly by the official US distributor than some person working at at retailer who will "look into a solution for you". It's a lot more hassle for them, as they have to go through the same procedures as we do for replacement parts or figures. I'd much rather go right to the source. And as far as rewards, yes the discount is towards future purchases, but there's nothing like holding out and getting a free figure. That feels better than saving an extra $10 here or there. It's not like I'd take that money and put it aside for a future purchase myself.

 

[FlyAndFight]

Hypnobrett, I know this sounds crazy, but I was fine with keeping my "Hasbro" Yoda and calling it a day. I passed on the SS Yoda using that mindset and was prepared to do the same with the HT version. But as someone else mentioned previously, Yoda is iconic in the Star Wars universe and I felt it was finally time to upgrade. A discount code definitely helped with the decision.

As for justification of pricing, over the many years of collecting, I've heard all of the reasons and in the end, it always come down to supply and demand. If the people are willing to pay these amounts, they'll continue to charge it and even allow price creep and/or less accessories help their profit margins. You've been seeing it from the main figure manufacturers for some time. We're on to them but still cave in, at times...

 

[pjam]

Yikes! You should have the option to pick it up. It's $20.24 From CA to NJ.

I called SSC CS about a year ago on this topic, asking them "How can you charge such an exorbitant rate to ship an item only 20 miles and charge the same effective rate to ship the same item over 2,000 miles?" They said the rates were pre-negotiated and they can't change them.

Wor Gar is right, they used this BS to cancel out my $20 coupon, which was the ONLY reason I PO'd this from SSC. I will NEVER PO an item from SSC again unless it's a must have exclusive OR it has a free shipping/flat rate $10 shipping.

 

[Wor-Gar]

As for justification of pricing, over the many years of collecting, I've heard all of the reasons ...

Yep. The only question regarding price that truly matters is: what are YOU willing to pay for your doll?

 

[TonTon]

Reward points from ssc are a con job if you look at it like youre getting a figure for less than what ssc is selling it for. You're paying more for other figures to accumulate points. SSC takes that overpayment (reward points) and applies it to the purchase of your choice. So youre not getting the figure at some discount. Youve been paying for that figure at full price already with your previous purchases.

Why not just pay less upfront (ie- other retailes) and use the saved money to buy whatever you want? Or save it? Or gamble it away? Point is you have a choice.

If you purchase with a $20 code each time you order/pre-order Sideshow is usually the cheaper retailer in the US. And you get the points as well. Then of course there's the free points that Razz mentioned to. Often get $50 for free during Spooktacular.

 

[Zenjay]

If you purchase with a $20 code each time you order/pre-order Sideshow is usually the cheaper retailer in the US. And you get the points as well.

That is the only time I preorder with them. No $20 coupon, no deal. I figure the coupon essentially gives me free shipping and then I bag the rewards points to eventually get a free fig, or at least a heavily discounted one. That makes it worthwhile for me to do business with them.

 

[Adam1138]

If you purchase with a $20 code each time you order/pre-order Sideshow is usually the cheaper retailer in the US. And you get the points as well. Then of course there's the free points that Razz mentioned to. Often get $50 for free during Spooktacular.

I keep seeing this Spooktacular thing being banded around. Could someone please explain what it is and how we could all benefit from it?

 

[TonTon]

I keep seeing this Spooktacular thing being banded around. Could someone please explain what it is and how we could all benefit from it?

Follow this thread. This is the place to be: https://www.sideshowcollectors.com/forums/the-sandbox/127217-current-discount-codes-ssc.html

Throughout the year it's now used to swap the $20 codes that come on the outside of boxes (you can only use one per month and some people get multiples or just don't plan to use theirs). But come mid-October it's the place to be for sharing the rewards points Spook codes and other discount codes.

 

[bmarz1000]

Sideshow Yoda standing by for head numero dos! It's like two whole new figures!

 

[loki2371]

Sideshow Yoda standing by for head numero dos! It's like two whole new figures!

I was thinking of doing the same, but I'm afraid the green of his head and hands will be too much of a contrast of different colors.

 

[TurdFurgusonsHat]

I was thinking of doing the same, but I'm afraid the green of his head and hands will be too much of a contrast of different colors.

Might be able to swap the extra hands too?

 

[TaliBane]

I was thinking of doing the same, but I'm afraid the green of his head and hands will be too much of a contrast of different colors.

Might be able to swap the extra hands too?

Quoted FYI:

A warning for those thinking of placing the HT head onto a Sideshow Mentor Yoda body - while the head affixes just fine, the HT hands are another story. The joint is totally different to the SSC, and the SSC hands have their joint permanently attached (so you can't swap the HT hands onto SSC pegs.) While you can just keep the SSC hands, I think SSC Jedi Master (Prequel) Yoda is a better color match to the HT head, whereas the Mentor hands are a somewhat different, brighter green.

I would say that the mentor hands look a touch better to me in terms of realism versus the HT hands (eg. fingernails painted more realistically.)

In looking at the HT vs. SSC heads, I would say that the SSC size looks more accurate. The HT head feels about 20% bigger overall, and sculpt-wise it just seems fatter somehow, like Yoda is a bit overweight. The HT sculpt detail and paint is astoundingly good (other than that red dirt wash) and is a MASSIVE improvement over SSC's soft detail and unsubtle lime-like green paint but the HT head does seem a bit too large for Yoda - and maybe a bit too big for the ears the head has (like proportionately, the ears should be a bit bigger or the head itself a bit smaller.)

I did manage to get the glued-on hair to a point where it looks okay in terms of the Yoda "messy hair" look, but it still isn't 100% due to the too-straight hairs (a bit of the "finger in power socket" look.) Will post pics later.

I also swapped the robe to a modded (hoodless) SSC Jedi master robe because it seems a better match and doesn't have the bathrobe look the HT one has. Out of all the 1/6 Yoda robes I've had (Medi, HT, SSC Mentor/ESB, SSC Master/Prequel, Hasbro) I think the SSC Master/Prequel one is the best fabric and drape, but you have to cut off the hood and mend it.