Exclusives No More!

[Buffanatic]

Hey, guys......I agree that SS Willow was "not so hot", Faith too.( Maybe a couple of others, in my own personal opinion.) But limiting purchase to one each on the SS site, and then getting messages from Cinequest, et cet. is just plain dumb! I'd have bought at least two of each figure straight from the start, if they'd have let us. And my advice to SS on this matter is to let the regular customers of the Buffy/Angel line do just that for any further new figures that may come out. I really doubt that the scalpers are hiding, just waiting to snatch up all these figures. Die-hard, longtime fans are the ones who treasure these figures the most. If the scalpers want to make a fast buck, they can do it on sw figs.

 

[MiskatonicNick]

Lots of doom-mongerers here aren't there?

I wouldn't have thought it was a totally negative sign if there's a company out there who reckons that there's still a market for 12" BTVS figures instead of just as Sideshow web exclusives?

Nick

 

[Firefly Flanatic]

Lots of doom-mongerers here aren't there?

I wouldn't have thought it was a totally negative sign if there's a company out there who reckons that there's still a market for 12" BTVS figures instead of just as Sideshow web exclusives?

Nick

Actually, I think it's a better idea to offer it at different stores. I've heard so many people say they can't buy from Sideshow's site and were pretty upset that it was exclusive to them. Now more people can get them.

 

[TheObsoleteMan]

Sideshow makes more money on exclusives. If they're willing to sacrifice that profit to sell them to online retailers I'd say that's a bad sign. It can only mean they are selling very poorly, I can't imagine any other motivation for them doing this.

 

[Firefly Flanatic]

Sideshow makes more money on exclusives. If they're willing to sacrifice that profit to sell them to online retailers I'd say that's a bad sign. It can only mean they are selling very poorly, I can't imagine any other motivation for them doing this.

I don't know if I agree it's a sign they are selling poorly. I think that most of us just assume the average collector is an avid visitor of the Sideshow website but reality probably is that the average collector probably buys all their Buffy goodies from a store they are familiar with. And in most cases may not even be aware of Sideshow's actual website.

For instance, I get stuff from the Buffy's Collectors Club from T&S toys. They have a lot of Buffy merchandise and a fan of Buffy may not even bother looking at another site figuring whatever Sideshow sells next will end up there. So it's a smart move for Sideshow to make these available to other merchants. If people don't know they are out there they can't buy them

Now, I could be way off but that's just how I see it.

 

[waverly94]

Grrr, does this mean I will never see my Wesley?

 

[Firefly Flanatic]

Grrr, does this mean I will never see my Wesley?

I'm betting we see a Wesley. They are making us a Lorne and Wesley is a more popular character.

 

[waverly94]

I'm betting we see a Wesley. They are making us a Lorne and Wesley is a more popular character.

Good!
Now does this mean I will never see my Lilah???

 

[Mookeylama]

anyone have any pics of the Willow proto they showed that had everyone thinking it looked like her? i've seen this deformed thing they released.

 

[Firefly Flanatic]

anyone have any pics of the Willow proto they showed that had everyone thinking it looked like her? i've seen this deformed thing they released.

Here's a photo comparison I found on the web quite awhile ago. I didn't put these three shots together or the captions (which seem pretty appropriate imo). The Willow on the left (or the "Greek Goddess" one) is how the prototype looked and is still the photo being used in the catalogue. "Matt Damon" is the figure we got.

The middle picture is a squished version of the actual figure I guess to demonstrate that the figure had it's head stretched out during the manufacturing process. The middle picture with a better paint job could possibly look like the first picture.

I wouldn't even say that the first photo/proto was a spot on likeness but it definitely captured the cuteness and personality of Alyson Hannigan.

 

[darth dypshyt]

Yep, with sooo many collectables out there begging for our hard earned $$$, StarWars, LOTR, etc. etc. Buffy has taken a back seat, and especially with the show/s no longer in production, it is hard to sell these to people other than diehard fans....which we ALL are here.....but, I dunno if there are 1500-2000 out there willing to collect the Buffy line..

Star wars and LOTR are 2 entirely different phenomenons...as we all know...Buffy/Angel have their fans...but, nowhere in the numbers of the other 2.

I think that will be the end of the Buffy/Angel line.

 

[Mookeylama]

thank u so much for those pics Firefly! i'd heard about the Willow fiasco but wasn't entirely sure what'd happened. i always wondered how in the hell the sculpt coulda been off by that much what w/ SS having such talented sculptors. so it was a manufacturing mess up. i believe i heard about the Frank Black fig having similar problems w/ the sculpt being stretched during SS tries at rotocasting. was Willows rotocast too?

 

[deanandre]

Was Willows rotocast too?

Yes. But SSC did this with some of the previous releases too, so I'm not positive that rotocasting is to blame necessarily. Agreed, had they been cast in resin like earlier Sideshow figures, the Willow fiasco may not have happened. However, I'm not sure they could have had the hair sculpted as a seperate piece of plastic if they used resin.

I also got the run around from Sideshow customer support at the time of the Willow fiasco, but I have a feeling this is how they were instructed to respond after seeing some of the negative backlash.

I returned my Willow figures to SSC (exclusive and standard) and cancelled all my pre-orders after the Willow fiasco. However, I got sucked back in with the SDCC Werewolf Oz. I was able to get him, so I slowly started getting the ones I had missed when I saw that SSC wasn't going to be releasing another Willow anytime soon.

I wish Sideshow was faster in releasing another Willow, but I know why they aren't. They and many retailers are still stuck with too many "Matt Damon" Willows. Even though that head sculpt looks nothing like Willow (except for the awesome clothing), it's still labeled "Willow." And as far as SSC is concerned, "Willow" isn't selling, so why make a new one.

I really think SSC would have generated some good faith had they offered another Willow soon after the "Matt Damon" Willow. but offered a version with an additional head for the existing Willow. Yes, they may have lost some money, but it would sure have made them look better in the eyes of many fans. But again, folks could have complained over that. "Why do I have to buy another of the same character to get a fix for my existing bad figure?"

Sideshow took the easy road out and did nothing. To me that's worse than any of the alternatives that were discussed after the Willow fiasco.

 

[ffl1940]

I wonder how many of a figure Sideshow would have to have sitting in a warehouse to make it worth it to them to have a part such as the headsculpt redone and replaced in the hopes that the improved sculpt would clear out the stock?

 

[JoeSweden]

Here's a photo comparison I found on the web quite awhile ago. I didn't put these three shots together or the captions (which seem pretty appropriate imo). The Willow on the left (or the "Greek Goddess" one) is how the prototype looked and is still the photo being used in the catalogue. "Matt Damon" is the figure we got.

The middle picture is a squished version of the actual figure I guess to demonstrate that the figure had it's head stretched out during the manufacturing process. The middle picture with a better paint job could possibly look like the first picture.

I wouldn't even say that the first photo/proto was a spot on likeness but it definitely captured the cuteness and personality of Alyson Hannigan.

Damn. If you look at the mouth and nose area of the first picture it looks like a real person! Put your hand over the top half. Perfect!

 

[Darklord Dave]

Willow wasn't rotocast, it was the standard PVC they use for most other heads.

It was a pincing in the mold that probably caused the deformity. And I have to say that the proto looked pretty, but it still didn't look that much like Aly.

 

[deanandre]

I agree. The original didn't look like Aly, but at least it was cute and had the feeling of the Willow character.

Do you know why the "pinching of the mold" missed quality control? I really hope this never happens again.

I'm so looking forward to You're Welcome Cordelia, and I really hope the production version looks exactly like the pictures on their site.

 

[Alice Adrenochrome]

This is a pretty sad story. "Willow" Alyson Hannigan really deserved better than this... I also never liked the garb the 12" wears. Especially the sweater.


https://members.tripod.com/~Little__Willow/alynews.html

 

[Mookeylama]

Willow wasn't rotocast, it was the standard PVC they use for most other heads.

It was a pincing in the mold that probably caused the deformity. And I have to say that the proto looked pretty, but it still didn't look that much like Aly.

the 1st and 2nd pics in that comparason are as gooda sculpts as MANY other SS figs. at least she was recognisable as Willow

 

[Firefly Flanatic]

My husband works in an injection molding company. He thinks it could have been caused by the head not cooling enough before it was injected from the mold. It would still be too soft and could have been "pulled" then. I worked at the same place he did as a machine operator and know what he means but probably am not describing it good enough.