1/6 Sideshow GI Joe line on Hiatus

[Kibagami]

I'm going to rage if they don't go deep into the DC line.

If you mean deep then expect their maquettes and PFs.

 

[tkiv18]

You know what killed the sideshow GI Joe line?

• Figure stands.
• Dioramas.
• Environments.
• Premium formats.

All of this craps' a waste. Plus:

• GI Joe Rise of Cobra and its sequel movies.
• GI Joe itself is dying.

That and excess ninjas and trooper rehashes that seemed completely unnecessary when so many green shirts could have been done instead (like others have said countless times) with subtle changes in gear and weaponry and unique sculpts.

And how Sideshow can close up shop on this line without giving us just one of the female Joes and some of the other true mainstays of the series and comics is beyond me. Scrap Iron is very similar in garb to the Vipers, seems like a no-brainer. The twins would have likely been an easy $250-plus set to sell. And there are easily another 10-20 Joes that almost anyone of us would have bought. (Although he's a decent figure) we got Falcon instead. Oh, and how about gear and weapon sets, like we've all been asking for...? Collectors would jump at that, even if they were overpriced. Clearly Sideshow didn't fully grasp its target market or understand what makes Joe popular. I love the line, and have fewer problems with their releases than others, but they missed a lot of opportunities. We were more or less lining up to give them our money. But instead of finding new, better ways to take it, they kept feeding us more and more ninjas and dioramas. I don't get it.

Who here would've paid for a VAMP or Striker, or even a Cobra Ferret? I would've. Sure they would've been pricey but true Joe fans would find the money for them. Look how many Arashikage temples they sold. Better than most of the other dio's, but IMO lame none the less.

Sorry for the rant, I'm just feeling bitter. I'd like nothing more than to see the line continue.

 

[Fuzzhead]

That and excess ninjas and trooper rehashes that seemed completely unnecessary when so many green shirts could have been done instead (like others have said countless times) with subtle changes in gear and weaponry and unique sculpts.

And how Sideshow can close up shop on this line without giving us just one of the female Joes and some of the other true mainstays of the series and comics is beyond me. Scrap Iron is very similar in garb to the Vipers, seems like a no-brainer. The twins would have likely been an easy $250-plus set to sell. And there are easily another 10-20 Joes that almost anyone of us would have bought. (Although he's a decent figure) we got Falcon instead. Oh, and how about gear and weapon sets, like we've all been asking for...? Collectors would jump at that, even if they were overpriced. Clearly Sideshow didn't fully grasp its target market or understand what makes Joe popular. I love the line, and have fewer problems with their releases than others, but they missed a lot of opportunities. We were more or less lining up to give them our money. But instead of finding new, better ways to take it, they kept feeding us more and more ninjas and dioramas. I don't get it.

Who here would've paid for a VAMP or Striker, or even a Cobra Ferret? I would've. Sure they would've been pricey but true Joe fans would find the money for them. Look how many Arashikage temples they sold. Better than most of the other dio's, but IMO lame none the less.

Sorry for the rant, I'm just feeling bitter. I'd like nothing more than to see the line continue.

Well said! I 100% agree.


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[Deeznutz6]

That and excess ninjas and trooper rehashes that seemed completely unnecessary when so many green shirts could have been done instead (like others have said countless times) with subtle changes in gear and weaponry and unique sculpts.

And how Sideshow can close up shop on this line without giving us just one of the female Joes and some of the other true mainstays of the series and comics is beyond me. Scrap Iron is very similar in garb to the Vipers, seems like a no-brainer. The twins would have likely been an easy $250-plus set to sell. And there are easily another 10-20 Joes that almost anyone of us would have bought. (Although he's a decent figure) we got Falcon instead. Oh, and how about gear and weapon sets, like we've all been asking for...? Collectors would jump at that, even if they were overpriced. Clearly Sideshow didn't fully grasp its target market or understand what makes Joe popular. I love the line, and have fewer problems with their releases than others, but they missed a lot of opportunities. We were more or less lining up to give them our money. But instead of finding new, better ways to take it, they kept feeding us more and more ninjas and dioramas. I don't get it.

Who here would've paid for a VAMP or Striker, or even a Cobra Ferret? I would've. Sure they would've been pricey but true Joe fans would find the money for them. Look how many Arashikage temples they sold. Better than most of the other dio's, but IMO lame none the less.

Sorry for the rant, I'm just feeling bitter. I'd like nothing more than to see the line continue.

Well said

And like said earlier, it was complete mismanagement of the line, which for those of us that collect SSC stuff, should have known this would happen

 

[teemu]

I still think their now dead GI Joe line is their best 1/6 line...way more fun than their Starwars 1/6

 

[Deeznutz6]

I still think their now dead GI Joe line is their best 1/6 line...way more fun than their Starwars 1/6

100%

Once the hoth stuff comes out SW will exciting again, but it still feels like clone after clone

 

[Bardoon]

What do you mean, after retaliation? We at least have the 50th ann. packs coming, or are you saying they're folding on this after wave 1?

The 50th Anniversary packs are shared exclusives between TWO places: BBTS and Toys 'R Us. And just being at TRU isn't confidence enough for Hasbro to "widen" the figure line again...

Other than that, the only way to get "new" Joe: RAH figures is to be part of the GI Joe Club's "Subscription Service" figures. Which will release thirteen figures, two every few months or so. And every figure is approximately $30+, even more if you want to "go around" Master Collector and go with BBTS.

But basically, that's it. Is there a CHANCE that there might be a 50th Anniversary Wave 2? Perhaps...but we'll have to wait until SDCC to find out because Hasbro didn't show ANYTHING at the Joecon...they didn't even SHOW UP TO THE JOECON! Which they've attended for YEARS. I've been to two Joecons myself and Hasbro always loved showing new product and getting feedback from the fans.

Essentially, it doesn't look promising for G.I. Joe. And if the MAIN toyline from Hasbro isn't getting attention, then it will likely extend out towards the 12" line by Sideshow and all other G.I. Joe products. Granted, Sideshow LOVES doing their "army-builders" and their own craziness that essentially put the line on hiatus, but it doesn't help that Hasbro is tossing out a "limited" line of 50th Anniversary figures AND most of the figure molds are being re-used from previous figures or releases of the same character (not another good sign because it means there's "nothing new").

Does this mean Hasbro will kill it? No. But it might go on hiatus or might go into extremely limited releases (like the Joeclub's Subscription figures and Online Exclusives) but not being in WIDE retail (more than just TRU) is usually not a good sign for the "future" of a toyline.

 

[Deeznutz6]

The 50th Anniversary packs are shared exclusives between TWO places: BBTS and Toys 'R Us. And just being at TRU isn't confidence enough for Hasbro to "widen" the figure line again...

Other than that, the only way to get "new" Joe: RAH figures is to be part of the GI Joe Club's "Subscription Service" figures. Which will release thirteen figures, two every few months or so. And every figure is approximately $30+, even more if you want to "go around" Master Collector and go with BBTS.

But basically, that's it. Is there a CHANCE that there might be a 50th Anniversary Wave 2? Perhaps...but we'll have to wait until SDCC to find out because Hasbro didn't show ANYTHING at the Joecon...they didn't even SHOW UP TO THE JOECON! Which they've attended for YEARS. I've been to two Joecons myself and Hasbro always loved showing new product and getting feedback from the fans.

Essentially, it doesn't look promising for G.I. Joe. And if the MAIN toyline from Hasbro isn't getting attention, then it will likely extend out towards the 12" line by Sideshow and all other G.I. Joe products. Granted, Sideshow LOVES doing their "army-builders" and their own craziness that essentially put the line on hiatus, but it doesn't help that Hasbro is tossing out a "limited" line of 50th Anniversary figures AND most of the figure molds are being re-used from previous figures or releases of the same character (not another good sign because it means there's "nothing new").

Does this mean Hasbro will kill it? No. But it might go on hiatus or might go into extremely limited releases (like the Joeclub's Subscription figures and Online Exclusives) but not being in WIDE retail (more than just TRU) is usually not a good sign for the "future" of a toyline.

But SSC paid for the license

Does Hasbro go back and refund them for the years they didn't want product out?

I don't think Hasbro has anything to do with this hiatus, this I'd all a SSC decision

 

[teemu]

But SSC paid for the license

Does Hasbro go back and refund them for the years they didn't want product out?

I don't think Hasbro has anything to do with this hiatus, this I'd all a SSC decision

But did Sideshow actually pay for the license??

perhaps borrowed it and Hasbro gets a fee from every figure they produce,hence the higher prices....so they could still have the permission to make figures,but not making figures gives both Sideshow and Hasbro No money

 

[JediJones]

I don't know if Sideshow's to blame entirely. That Baroness should've sold out the exclusive in pre-order and the regular should be at low stock by now. Instead, the exclusive is now gift-card eligible. Baroness is obviously the hottest potential female seller in the line. They did a pretty darn good job on capturing the character. If they can't sell out of her then why would they expect Scarlett would sell out?

There's also the very real issue that even as Joe hits its 50th anniversary, the brand seems to be on the decline. Walmart and Target dropped the 3.75" line, the 2nd movie did worse domestically than the first, Hasbro's new cartoons have ended, IDW is cancelling some of the comics, and now Sideshow is putting the line on hiatus. Even a great remake of a classic vehicle, the Tomahawk, pretty much sat on the shelves at TRU immediately upon its release until hitting clearance a few months later. On the flipside, the Joe Club appears to have upped production on its convention sets for 4 years straight and sold more of its second subscription series than the first. And the last Joe figure waves that just hit Five Below and Ross on clearance have been selling briskly. Plus at least TRU still is interested in carrying both movie figures and the 50th line. I don't have a great theory on why some fans seem to be abandoning the brand. I definitely believe the movies hurt more than they helped, by getting in the way of product collectors liked to make way for unpopular movie designs. But the decline in enthusiasm seems broader than that.

One thing I don't understand is why SSC raised the prices on SE and Bludd at the same time they hiked their production numbers up to respectively the heaviest produced and 4th heaviest produced in the line. One of them was a remake of a character thousands of us already had, and the other one was not quite an iconic fan-favorite villain. I'm not sure why they expected them to sell so well. Especially since it seemed like they were already scaling back the environments and giving away free Cobra grunts with orders to clear them out at the same time.

I wouldn't be surprised if the line did come back. It seems like they're overstocked with too many Cobras and Hot Toys figures from the unpopular movie. But G.I. Joe is a strong brand name and with the discounts, they could slowly move that stock. If they can count on the line being a slow but steady seller, they may want to add another character to the ranks once their current stock depletes. Plus it should be easy for them to deal with Hasbro on the license on an irregular basis, unless another company steps in and picks it up.

I could be satisfied with the line if they got Scarlett, Lady Jaye, Shipwreck and Gung-Ho out. A personal favorite would be Recondo. If they just want to do a Joe that will sell great, then Low Light's the smartest next option. Maybe Serpentor for the next Cobra, but we need a break from Cobras at this point. I sure wouldn't mind if just the Cobras went on hiatus. It was definitely a mistake to spend the last couple years since Falcon doing nothing but the most comic-booky looking characters and none that look really military. Where did all the green go? Not that I would've been excited for the pure 1982 greenshirts. That would get a little dull too. Plus the ratio of Cobras to Joes is 2 to 1 at this point. What sucks for anyone who might be feeling warm fuzzies over the 50th anniversary and decides to get into the line now is that there are no Joes available to buy from SSC other than SE and the other 2 Retaliation heroes.

I'm personally pretty happy with the design work overall on the figures. I don't think the 3.75" designs as is would scale up properly to modern 12" in an appealing way with enough detail. So I think the reimagining is the right approach to take. I don't think they strayed too far from the essence of the characters. And it's always been interesting to see how they tweak the designs. Incidentally, I find it hard to imagine how they'd fit Tomax and Xamot into the aesthetics of their line unless maybe they went with the business suit look. Their costumes are some of the most flamboyant of the 1982-1985 years.

 

[kl241]

How hard could it have been to make 1:6 translations of the classic ARAH 3 3/4" figures? I think most die-hard Joe collectors since the 80's have been waiting for their 12" counterparts. Even Hasbro couldn't do it with their 1993 HOF line and on which is truly perplexing since they were the ones who originated Joe as the original 12" action figure to begin with and instead gave us cheap looking 12" toy counterparts that looked almost nothing like their 3 3/4" representations.

Then comes Sideshow with plans to "modernize" them for the 21st century. I would have had no objections as long as they gave us both display options and accessories. Instead, I ended up having to kitbash and customize most of them right out of the box. Baroness was the only complete figure I have purchased since Zartan. It made absolutely no sense to drop $200 on a figure (that's including shipping and taxes, btw) when it just made more sense to buy the parts I needed here and there from TA and Monkey Depot since I had to replace the crappy Prometheus bodies with Hot Toys truetypes at $60 a shot. It became apparent that many other customizers ended up going that same route too. TA and MD would always sell out of parts as soon as they went up while the figures, including the "Elite" editions remained in-stock at Sideshow. Of course, they use that as an excuse to "retire" the line while punishing collectors for not buying their ridiculously priced and silly polystone dioramas, statues and their vague "interpretations" that only marginally resembled the classic iconic characters they were supposed to represent. Remember when they announced they had the Jurassic Park license and everybody had high hopes and then nothing when it became apparent they would rather offer their Dinosauria interpretations instead of licensed iconic film versions everybody wanted.

 

[devilof76]

I don't care why the line ended up where it is. All I care about is the amount of energy wasted on environments, statues, and rehashes that could have been invested in figures before things reached this point.

 

[kl241]

Such a big deal made about developing a new female Prometheus body primarily for Baroness and Scarlett and so far it's only been used on Baroness and Catwoman. And Bischoff teased us by saying Snow Job and Snow Serpents were in development and will never happen now.

 

[Natrix]

Such a big deal made about developing a new female Prometheus body primarily for Baroness and Scarlett and so far it's only been used on Baroness and Catwoman. And Bischoff teased us by saying Snow Job and Snow Serpents were in development and will never happen now.

Oh come on.....it was used on Harley Quinn as well! Three figures not two!

 

[teemu]

I think its not so much the lack of interest in the line itself,but it's the prices of things....The Economy still sucks and necessity prices are going UP! (Food,Electric etc)...

I generally think folks have to pick and choose what to buy considering all the collectibles that exist and that people's spending budgets are getting taken up by living expenses, having less money to spend on entertainment....those are FACTS that are hitting hard on MANY people

 

[kl241]

Oh come on.....it was used on Harley Quinn as well! Three figures not two!

Yay 3. You'd think they would want to make use of all that R&D. Should have at least given us Scarlett before calling it quits.

 

[karamazov80]

I'm going to rage if they don't go deep into the DC line.

As long as you are a Batman fan first and foremost, I don't think you have anything to worry about. Anything else, though. . .

 

[Davestro]

I'm wondering since Sideshow is not using the G.I. Joe ARAH license, would it be available to purchase by another company? Or did they buy it for like ten years and can sit on it until it runs out?

I'm bummed about no new Joes. I was really hoping for Scarlet or Lady Jaye. I guess I'll have more money for Hasbro Joes....no wait...LOL

 

[EVILFACE]

Another company would just start of with what we already have: Snake Eyes, Storm Shadow, Duke, Cobra Commander.....

 

[Fuzzhead]

Another company would just start of with what we already have: Snake Eyes, Storm Shadow, Duke, Cobra Commander.....

Silly but true!


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