Hot Toys is a boring Company

[Darkseed]

Good post. They are toys, I feel no need to get angry about what they make or dont make.

If they make it and i want it…i buy. If not, i dont. The circle of life….

 

[CrankbaitJon]

Cater?

Its more like they cater to the Trooper Iron Man OCD buyers and nothing else….

Oh an the Marvel guys buying 6 Thor figures…

Thats catering. And I would wager, they could make alot more money if they did another Alien Dog, or maybe another horror figure.

HT makes the figures that they think they will make more money on. If they keep making Troopers and Ironman, they must be making good margins on them. They released Pennywise. If you don't see another horror figure for a while, I think it's clear it doesn't come close to troopers nor super heroes.

 

[Ramatuelle]

I would not say "boring" so much as I would say, HT often makes choices that I find inexplicable. Morbius is just such a release: did so much as one person make a request for this? Even ONE? Or what about that Lone Ranger stuff just what the hell was that?

Or Cosbabies, which are so alien to my mindset that they strike me as something thought up by a poorly designed AI: Here, humans. These are things you will enjoy. All hail Skynet.

I do not get it. But, they often make things that I DO love, so there's that.

 

[DarkChocobi]

quit it then

 

[MeatHookGekko]

Yeah, I am kinda over them. Especailly considering all the wonderful 3rd party releases that are way cheaper and right up there in value.

Marvel, Star Wars, Batman…..over and over….with a lazy “throw them a bone” release every few years…

Not to mention skyrocketing prices.

HT has to justify the cost of the licenses.

If you pay out the nose for the Star Wars license, like The Mandalorian, then you need to milk that right good. I'm not sure it's a choice.

What can make a huge difference is amping up the number of accessories in a set. There was an Agent Coulson figure way back. OK, give him damn near every gun you can squeeze into the box. Reuse the molds from when HT did it's military line.

This supports the loose parts market that gives dealers a fighting chance to survive. Also a more robust loose parts market keeps more collectors in the game longer.

Before inflation hit, Five Guys would, and they were known for this, filling a paper bag with fries. Even more than the "cup" you ordered. Nothing is stopping HT from putting in sheets of Cut/Fold/Paste paper craft items for fun. Or making a "stock" accessory card, mass produced, they give with every boxed set purchase of a specific line.

Fill each set with value. There are 20 buck sets I've bought in the hobby that were grossly overpriced, even on clearance. There are 300 buck sets that I thought were a bargain. Price points mean very little to a large segment of existing HT collectors compared to what's in the box itself. Make it enough of a value and people will show up and be excited.

It's not related to what's in the film! I've seen people say that before. Who gives a ***** Just fill the box up. It doesn't have to have three headsculpts. But what's stopping each set from having an extra couple of rifles and pistols, etc, etc.

If your prices kill the entire loose parts market in 1/6th, you lose long term collectors over time.

 

[agonistes86]

For me much of the fun in collecting 1/6 is not knowing what's around the corner from whatever company.

I generally don't have a desperate need for something to be made, so I don't get angry, like some do, when things don't materialise as expected/desired.

It's more of a case of, "Okay, 1/6 producers, what are you going to tempt me with today?" Occasionally the completely unexpected gets teased, and I can't wait for one of my favourite drug suppliers (usually Kit) to put it up for pre-order so I can add it to the list of things I'm waiting for.

There's a minor caveat because there are things I wish will be made. However, I'm not desperate for them, but I know it'll be a good day if they do go up pre-order.

Good post! I've shifted more towards customizing my existing figures in recent years, and I hadn't really thought about my behavior regarding buying new figures. What you're describing is pretty much exactly what I'm doing. None of the 4 1:6 pre-orders I currently have were figures I was "waiting" or "hoping" for. The Kaustic Plastik Nosferatu is the perfect example of this. Completely out of left field, but he will likely be the second pre-order I put in this year (other than InArt Joker).

Good post. They are toys, I feel no need to get angry about what they make or dont make.

If they make it and i want it…i buy. If not, i dont. The circle of life….

Completely agree. Getting angry because of your hobby defeats the entire purpose of the hobby for me.

 

[xipotec]

I dont think anyone is angry. Boring was the word used….

Perhaps the title should have been, “Hot Toys is a boring company and there are alot of other manufacturers doing more varied and interesting lines then they are…..”

Seems a but wordy to me….

Boring works, and as far as them making figures that sell??? I still say thats not defense to them being predictable and boring…

 

[Darkseed]

Kinda boring hobby choice if u think about it. Year after year same stuff gets pumped out in different formats….Marvel, Dc, Star Wars, Horror, TMNT etc. A co picks their poison and remakes until sun goes down….

 

[Asta]

Kinda boring hobby choice if u think about it. Year after year same stuff gets pumped out in different formats….Marvel, Dc, Star Wars, Horror, TMNT etc. A co picks their poison and remakes until sun goes down….

That's why I'm gaining more interest in the historical genre of 1/6.

I was into WWII when I started collecting seriously, but sold almost all of them. Now I have the chance to do it over again, but with higher quality figures.

Every new figure that interests me prompts me to research the subject, which then determines whether it's a figure that fits the area I want to focus on (e.g., whether a uniform was worn in the WWII campaigns I'm focussing on; or with knights they have to be within the fifteenth century).

It helps to put a curb on the temptation to order anything and everything as I've ended up doing with Star Wars.

 

[Dave_W]

Kinda boring hobby choice if u think about it. Year after year same stuff gets pumped out in different formats….Marvel, Dc, Star Wars, Horror, TMNT etc. A co picks their poison and remakes until sun goes down….

And in the case of HT it's never quite right so you buy it and wait for a better version to come out down the line.

 

[Asta]

And in the case of HT it's never quite right so you buy it and wait for a better version to come out down the line.

It's a never ending process, as with the franchises themselves that go on and on, like Star Wars.

Seems easy to tell yourself to stop with the classics, until a new series or film catches your attention and you're back in again with an expanding collection of 'non-classics'.

 

[CrankbaitJon]

Hot Toys is highly likely to announce a figure or two for the Hong Kong movie Warriors of Future. Look at how people will trash them for trying something new and supporting their local film industry by then.

 

[KitbashOfficer]

Good post. They are toys, I feel no need to get angry about what they make or dont make.

If they make it and i want it…i buy. If not, i dont. The circle of life….

Anger? Nah, never been on that level. Definitely has become indifference or ambivalence.

 

[Asta]

Boring?

They're the company to bring a smile to everyone's face.

I laughed out loud.

 

[chrisstbh]

Still boring? Here’s your boomer dolly

 

[DarkChocobi]

better delete this thread ...old man

 

[Asta]

Still boring? Here’s your boomer dolly

View attachment 591222

Hot Toys going back to the classics?

What probably happened was that Howard got up one night recently for a glass of water, took a wrong turn in the dark and found himself in the vault with all the old moulds...

better delete this thread ...old man

 

[Bo Shrek]

With the recent SDCC Phase 5 & 6 Movies and Streaming I wonder if the creative team at HT HQ are jumping ship and screaming “no more….no more”! Even with D+ SW, I wonder if their screaming no more Mando’s, Asoka etc etc.

Yes its good for HT business but the creative team must be bored too *****!!!

 

[Gipetto0812]

I mean look at the Facebook groups. There are a lot of Marvel centric collections. Also look at the forum. The Marvel subforum probably moves the most with the Star Wars one a close second.

Exactly. Not to mention, everytime a new movie or series happens in either of those properties, ppl start new threads for potential figures. And folks start clamoring for figures from them even if they don’t like the show/movie persay, they want the figure representation still.

I can see how HT can be stale for someone who’s been collecting them from the get go and remember the days of getting the 80s action/SciFi figures (myself included). But then considering the prices these days, I’m sort of glad we only get a bone thrown here or there b/c I pass on a lot of stuff already therefore I have the excess money to get the really special stuff when they do pop up. Let the ppl who buy every version, varaint etc have their fun and spend all their money doing it I’m cool just sitting back and chillin until something that interests me pops up.

 

[Asta]

Exactly. Not to mention, everytime a new movie or series happens in either of those properties, ppl start new threads for potential figures. And folks start clamoring for figures from them even if they don’t like the show/movie persay, they want the figure representation still.

I can see how HT can be stale for someone who’s been collecting them from the get go and remember the days of getting the 80s action/SciFi figures (myself included). But then considering the prices these days, I’m sort of glad we only get a bone thrown here or there b/c I pass on a lot of stuff already therefore I have the excess money to get the really special stuff when they do pop up. Let the ppl who buy every version, varaint etc have their fun and spend all their money doing it I’m cool just sitting back and chillin until something that interests me pops up.

There was a time when I would be itching to hit the pre-order button on the new battle-damaged Vader.

But now I'm unmoved.

I can see what Disney are doing. Make a slightly battle-damaged Vader to grab a first round of merchandise. Later on Vader will probably appear in a show and get much more beaten up, and there'll be merchandise for a much more impressive figure.

I can wait. Whether it happens or not doesn't matter. It's up to Hot Toys to impress me if it does, otherwise it's variations for variation's sake.

My mindset has moved on, but it's fine if that's what some people want, because it's their collection.