NECA: Predator Movie Franchise Figures

[a-dev]

i think i'm being fair to NECA and you people expect them to be an impossible combination of HT and Tonka. you can't have affordable super detailed accurate collectibles AND have durable toys. it's one or the other.

Well how widespread were QC problems of this kind with McFarlane stuff years ago. Its possible, like you with NECA, that I was just very very lucky with my McFarlane figures because the only McFarlane item I ever had trouble with right from the off was the Matrix APU. Any other breakage I ever had occurred years later.

So against that backdrop I'm having a hard time seeing why this:

you can't have affordable super detailed accurate collectibles AND have durable toys. it's one or the other

has to be so - other than ''the times we're in''

 

[demorathis]

even if there was a magical kind of plastic that would be both durable and maintained sharp details, it would jack up the prices considerably. the materials NECA uses are as high quality an durable as physically and financially possible.

"magical plastic" are u kidding? Every company decides what quality of material to use based one what they want to spend.
It's a matter of cost -- its always a matter of cost. That's the reason why they have to do their homework before they make something to decide if it is worth making -- the bottom line is always cost, not nostalgia -- it's sales -- will the figures sell at a higher price based on higher cost, or will we bealienating a portion of our market?...Unless you're inside NECA and privy to the decision-making, you won't have any clue if they are working to the highest cost possible (that's unlikely)-- every company usually wants the lowest possible cost based on its ability or inability to risk. Most companies will keep a strong gap between its costs and returns...they try to keep it as wide as possible and that's contrary to using the highest quality possible, because highest quality possible usually = most costly materials available....not possible, but willing

like there's one MAGICAL ANIMAL that you can get Bacon, Ham, pork chops, ham hocks, and pig snacks from...oh right, pigs...

 

[sprig0701]

The last NECA figure I bought was Skorge. I think it's a great figure. It's detailed, durable and the joints flexed perfectly out of the package. Zero problems. It just seems through recent problems with these new Predator lines coming out, that they've been trying to accommodate in one area and have completely taken away from the quality of other areas.

Some people want to have their cake and eat it too, and in NECA's attempts to do so they've made soup sandwiches.

 

[prefused]

ok i don't think any of this is sinking in. you guys can keep treating these like toys and get mad when they break. i'll continue to enjoy displaying mine and call it even.

 

[greygoose]

Some people want to have their cake and eat it too, and in NECA's attempts to do so they've made soup sandwiches.

I see what you mean. Soggy yet still tasty; but still not quite what you want.

 

[a-dev]

ok i don't think any of this is sinking in. you guys can keep treating these like toys and get mad when they break. i'll continue to enjoy displaying mine and call it even.

I don't play with my figures. And the posing demos in some people's youtube reviews makes me recoil in horror. Yet still most of my many T-1000s broke.

 

[demorathis]

ok i don't think any of this is sinking in. you guys can keep treating these like toys and get mad when they break. i'll continue to enjoy displaying mine and call it even.

yes but see, you're assuming everyone here is ham-fisted and all bangers for fingers...
I'm extremely careful with my toys - have been since I began collecting star wars figures in 77 -- I 've never lost an accessory to any figure and I've never broken anything to such a high degree -- 3 aliens -- and that was with a very light hand - some of these are factory defects -- in many instances the joint is ALREADY split, or twisted in its socket -- in 2 other cases, they fell apart as soom as the blister was opened.
In Most cases I ahve been lucky and maybe you have too, but it doesn't mean people havent had horrible luck with the QC...and are understandably irked

can't blame folks for receiving defective pieces -- and they are if they break when they are supposed to be able to be articulated by someone over 17.

Toys r Us's policy is you can exchange them when they break like that...so I've been told by a Toys R Us employee...

 

[sprig0701]

I see what you mean. Soggy yet still tasty; but still not quite what you want.

Yeah, something like that. Old term I heard numerous times in the military for something being completely messed up. But think more of trying to eat soup like you'd eat a sandwich. Quite messy, you think?



And these are toys. Hot toys are toys. If you buy them and treat them as such, these recent Predator waves seem as though they're not going to hold up. If you treat them as collectibles, then yes they'll stand up to the test of time way better.

What separates the two is HT targets theirs more as high-end collectibles to adults in their campaigns. I'm still not clear on who NECA is targeting. Thy go to major retailers in an attempt to up their clientele, and sales. They make them more affordable to the masses, and seem to advertise them more as toys, but yet try to sell them side-by-side with HT at most of their on-line retailers. They say we're not trying to compete with HT. What are they trying to do??

If you keep teaching it to walk like a duck and quack like a duck, then people are going to start calling it a duck. Don't be pissed when they don't call it a horse.

 

[Reefer Shark]

Jeez, you guys are still going at the "impatience" angle for the limbs breaking? Unreal...

The arms on mine snapped like a dried out twig. Brittle plastic is at fault here, not us collectors. Trust me, been in this hobby forever, I know how to be careful with my toys (especially the Neca/McF stuff).

 

[Lord Freezer]

 

[greygoose]

Quite messy, you think?

Depends on the soup.

If you keep teaching it to walk like a duck and quack like a duck, then people are going to start calling it a duck. Don't be pissed when they don't call it a horse.

 

[PharOOO]

"Slightest pressure"...I call bullshat.

You got over-eager...even the worst of the stuck joints requires more than the "slightest pressure" to break.

Ummmm ... yeah. Because you were there right next to me as I attempted to move the elbow joint ever so slightly up. Great job there, pal.
Just like a Shark pointed out, the elbow snapped like a dried out twig. Nothing could have been done to prevent that from happening because it was defective from the start.
By the way, prefused. So, are you saying all your NECA figures come perfectly ready to display on your shelf right out of the package? Absolutely no tweaking of the joints whatsoever to line up articulation seams or joints? Yeah right. Come on. Just because you've had good luck with your NECA figures does not mean there isn't a problem with the overall QC of their recent products.

 

[demorathis]

I don't understand why it is so difficult to accept that the QC is not consistent - just because some of us had great luck with our figures doesn't mean nobody had issues.

I've witnessed it myself -happened to me thrice- even the paint jobs vary -- I go through a few boxes of these just to pick out the ones I want and all the paint jobs vary across the board from excellent to pretty bad.
I went through 2 boxes to pick an Elder Predator that was just perfect - no cross-eyed ones and it was a chore to find a classic without weird anomalies on his helmet or netting paint apps...

 

[tankman]

Figures, articulated statues, however you refer to them... if you should in theory be able to pose with what little joints you get, QC needs to be stepped up so that snapping doesn't occur.

It's been like this way back in my days at McFarlane and it flat out sucks. The factory have us by the balls and they know it.

 

[jayiw]

Went to FYE today (Phila PA Franklin Mills Mall) and they got a case of the new Preds in. I picked up Pred-Dog and Elder. I have not opened them up yet but as far as paint Dog looks good, Masked Pred looks good, but Elder not so much as far as the netting paint goes. It almost looks as if he has a seem under his pecks and the tops of the legs are bad. All three in the case were the same way. Also they are packed in the bubble like they were in a major earthquake. Just a mess. One of them had the fingers on the right hand bent and squashed against the bubble. I'm going to try and fix the netting with a sharpie. I just hope when I open it nothing is broken from the sloppy packing. I attached a pic which is not the greatest as it was from my Iphone.

EDIT: Just opened them up. All is well somewhat... Elders skull sling was on wrong so I had to pop the head off and put it on correctly and I had to pill down the strapping, rearranging things, etc. Not a big deal really. I would not however make an attempt to bend the stiff elbow joints without a hot water soak. Now for the Dog Pred, the right leg pops off very easily. It's not broken at all though, the peg just doesn't fit the hole properly and is very loose. I must say the paint on the dog is superb. The only real complaint would be with the rear leg joint gaps. Way to much gap there.

Jay

 

[The Rider]

@Macularius and demorathis,
The Alien Warrior Skull must also be present at a Lost Predator.
Also, I would like the Predator Skull and super Predator Skull combined.

 

[crows]

Went to FYE today (Phila PA Franklin Mills Mall) and they got a case of the new Preds in. I picked up Pred-Dog and Elder. I have not opened them up yet but as far as paint Dog looks good, Masked Pred looks good, but Elder not so much as far as the netting paint goes. It almost looks as if he has a seem under his pecks and the tops of the legs are bad. All three in the case were the same way. Also they are packed in the bubble like they were in a major earthquake. Just a mess. One of them had the fingers on the right hand bent and squashed against the bubble. I'm going to try and fix the netting with a sharpie. I just hope when I open it nothing is broken from the sloppy packing. I attached a pic which is not the greatest as it was from my Iphone.

EDIT: Just opened them up. All is well somewhat... Elders skull sling was on wrong so I had to pop the head off and put it on correctly and I had to pill down the strapping, rearranging things, etc. Not a big deal really. I would not however make an attempt to bend the stiff elbow joints without a hot water soak. Now for the Dog Pred, the right leg pops off very easily. It's not broken at all though, the peg just doesn't fit the hole properly and is very loose. I must say the paint on the dog is superb. The only real complaint would be with the rear leg joint gaps. Way to much gap there.

Jay

are you sure about the sharpie? that tends to go blue and fade after a while, happened to me with a cheap clearance Mcfarlane toy thank god lol

 

[jayiw]

are you sure about the sharpie? that tends to go blue and fade after a while, happened to me with a cheap clearance Mcfarlane toy thank god lol

I was but now that I already displayed him I'm just gonna leave it be I guess. It's really not a bad figure at all. Aside from the netting paint issues the rest is really decent. I don't know why Neca just cannot get the factories to do a good netting paint job. No wonder Neca was so firm on using 'real' netting on the 18" ones.

Jay

 

[moleman01]

i picked up elder and masked predator today. i searched through a case and-a-half to finally find one well-painted elder. masked had less paint issues (probably because his face is covered). i haven't opened them yet, but overall, they look really good.

i might have to go back and get the hound. paint on all of them looked good.

keep 'em coming, neca.

 

[Valfar]

God damn POS Elders left arm snaps at the elbow..2mins after i open him..mutha____er!. And so, out of Elder, RoboCop and Freddy Kruger Part II..Freddy is by far the best of the lot.