Coming out of Toy Fair, Hasbro’s PR team was kind enough to set up a brief interview with the Hasbro Marvel brand team. We took the opportunity to touch on a range of subjects, including the upcoming movie figures, Marvel Universe, and what’s in store for us with the Marvel Legends re-launch. Thanks to Scott George, David Vonner, and Dwight Stall for participating.
1) Coming out of Toy Fair, it looks like it will be another fantastic year for Marvel in the 3.75-inch scale. With so much focus on the Thor and Captain America (pictured below) movie lines, how will that affect how much product we see on shelves from the Marvel Universe line?
The Marvel Universe line continues to perform incredibly well at retail so there should be minimal impact to the number of pegs when we add these new blockbuster properties to the mix. If anything, you should find more MU product in the Fall – just as soon as the new team packs hit shelves in August.
2) Will the 3.75-inch figures across the Marvel lines share a common articulation scheme? We really like what we’ve seen in recent Marvel Universe figures – lots of improvement in the necks, thigh swivels, and rocker ankles. The articulation scheme will vary.
No, there are no plans for one common articulation scheme across the entire line. Certainly, with every new sculpt and tool, we’re pushing the limits of detail and range of movement, so you should in fact see small improvements with every single brand new body. However, after three great years of MU 3.75” figures, we have an incredible tooling library to leverage. The plan is to offer as much variety as possible by striking a balanced diet of new and re-use.
3) We know the Marvel Universe Masterworks Galactus knocked it out of the park at San Diego Comic-Con last year, and that you’re coming back with the Sentinel this year. How has Galactus been doing at retail? What’s the outlook for more large scale figures at retail or con exclusives?
These massive figures have generated a lot of buzz with both collectors and our retail partners. Galactus was highly sought after last year and the feedback we’ve received thus far on the Sentinel (Convention Series #00110010) has been amazing. We’re planning to continue using larger scale figures where appropriate to round out the Marvel Universe collection, but there isn’t a defined formula. Come to think of it, you should be able to find the latest wave of Gigantic Battles (Frost Giant, Bill Foster) on shelves right about now!
4) San Diego Comic-Con this year will serve as the re-launch of Marvel Legends with the Heroic Age Thor exclusive. We want more info! For example, will it come with a Build-a-Figure piece, and if not, what kinds of extras will it have? Will it reveal the packaging for the 2012 figures or be special for SDCC, or both?
The SDCC Thor will be a stand-alone figure and will not include a BAF component. It’s going to feature a “lightning charged” deco pattern, a very unique package and a special add-in for comic art fans, but we can’t reveal all the details just yet. We think you’re going to like it…a lot.
5) We know Heroic Age Thor and Iron Man Legends are coming out this year, but when are you going to give us more details on 6-inch figures for the Thor and Cap movies? Throw us a bone here!
There will in fact be some exclusive 6” figures coming out to celebrate both films. You’ve probably already seen some images of the 6” Cap and Thor Movie Figures with Chris Hemsworth and Chris Evans at 2011 Toy Fair. High res images will be forthcoming for all of these very shortly, but we’ll have to ask that you wait just a little longer!
6) Hasbro’s run of Marvel Legends has shown steady improvement over time, most notably in the Legends 2-packs. What have been the key takeaways from that experience that you’ll apply to the re-launch of the line?
Based on the performance of the exclusive 2-packs, the biggest takeaway… IS the re-launch. It’s become increasingly evident that there’s a still a big collector appetite for Marvel Legends and that two fan favorite figure scales (6” and 3.75”) can, in fact, co-exist together. We’ve also amassed a much larger tooling library over the past few years which enables us to utilize the absolute best of the best base bodies while creating many more character specific sculpts. The bottom line is that we’ll be pushing the levels of variety, detail, articulation and deco as far as we possibly can for the price.
Stay tuned for part 2 of our interview later this week on TheFwoosh.com.
“and that two fan favorite figure scales (6” and 3.75”) can, in fact, co-exist together.”
So where the heck are my 6″ Joes and Star Wars figures?
good news about the legends scale thor and cap, hopefully they out with red skull and loki movie legends scale
where is part 2?!
And again….Where is the FALCON?? How is he not included when you have USAgent and Crossbones?? Bucky, my @$$.
“and that two fan favorite figure scales (6” and 3.75”) can, in fact, co-exist together.”
Not really. MU figures suck and those of us who collect 6 inch figures ONLY have grown to hate you, Hasbro, for abandoning us. Stick your new wave where the sun doesn’t shine.
That’s a good point about the Falcon. He was Cap’s partner for years, moreso than Bucky. And Captain Britain has almost nothing to do with Cap. So how do you make a figure of him, USAgent, Crossbones, but NOT the Falcon??