Fritz
My muse is a fickle b**ch
Frank, no doubt we all have our own preferences but the fact remains, not voting for a complete Fellowship in PF will do nothing to guarantee you ever get any of the PF's you want. Personally speaking, there's alot of PF's I'd like to see SS produce before the remaining Hobbits, but I've also watched three LOTR lines flatline in the past fews years and I think it's time we as LOTR fans/collectors rally around each other, as opposed to going our own way. Who knows, the day may come when you need the help of other collectors in order to get SS to consider some of the PF characters you've listed above, just as 'maquette only' collectors may need the assistance of PF collectors 2-3 years down the road when there's not a Hobbit maquette in sight.....and if that day ever comes, good luck to any of those who sat by and did nothing to help out their fellow LOTR collectors when they had the opportunity to do so. And if we, as LOTR collectors, can't be bothered to prove SS wrong concerning Hobbits, I think it safe to say you can kiss goodbye any hope of Sam, Bill, or Bilbo.
I don't necessarily disagree with anything you said above and your passion is commendable as usual. But personally I don't think a write in campaign for characters that may just sit in a warehouse (IMHO of course) does nothing to show Sideshow how passionate us Lord of the Rings fans are. The big problem with the flatlining lines is that they were providing products that simply weren't desirable. I think it's important to let Sideshow know that us Lord or the Rings fans are serious about supporting this license but to honestly let them know what items we want and will purchase with our hard earned cash. Say we can get enough people to write in and influence Sideshow to produce Hobbit PF's and/or finish the nine. What happens if when it comes time to actually put up the cash to buy these products not enough collectors do and they sit in the warehouse collecting dust? Won't that do more to damn this license than a show of support? I know the saying is the pen is mightier than the sword, but in Sideshow's case, it's the dollar is mightier than the pen.
I used to collect everything but in the last couple years I've stayed my madness. and now pick and choose. As a matter of fact, the Morgul Lord is the first PF I haven't purchased because I just don't like the way it looks. So basically to make a short story long, I believe it's important to give feedback that is honest which will hopefully sustained this line the longest with our purchases.