Here’s an interesting tidbit from BBTS – they are closing out some MattyCollector.com DC exclusives, including the DC Universe Classics Swamp Thing, which was Mattel’s San Diego Comic-Con DC exclusive in 2011. And get this – Swamp Thing is listed at BBTS for pre-order at $15.99, while he was $30 when sold at the show and later on MattyCollector.com. Of course, don’t expect the Un-Men with him, as they were an exclusive pack-in for the figures sold at SDCC.
I haven’t seen any news on this from Mattel or from any other retailers (granted I didn’t look that hard so let me know if I missed something), so at this point I’m assuming this is a BigBadToyStore deal direct with Mattel to clear out the warehouse of these DC items.
Mattel is releasing a number of items at closeout prices. These include the JLU Three-Pack – Toyman, Firefly, Dr. Destiny at $21.99, the JLU Three-Pack – Vandal Savage, Batman, Future Superman at $11.99, the Justice League Unlimited 7-Pack with Gypsy, Dr. Mid-Night and more at $17.99, the DC Universe Swamp Thing at $15.99, the Retro Action DC Super Heroes Sinestro at $9.99 and the JLU Justice Guild Four-Pack at $13.99.
DC Collectibles revealed four exclusives for San Diego Comic-Con via USA Today. They found the Superman in the Aardman style ($24.95) most interesting, but the four-pack of Green Lantern characters in the 3.75-inch scale ($49.95) is what caught my eye. It’s got Sinestro in his Green Lantern costume, Arkillo from the Sinestro Corps, Black Hand, and the feline fiend from the Red Lantern Corps – Dex-Starr.
Also of note, Hugo Strange from Batman: Arkham City ($29.95) – the only other Hugo Strange I know of was back when DCC was still DC Direct, but that was just his head on a Batman figure. This will be the first time I’ve seen him in action figure form in something resembling his normal lab coat / doctor’s get-up. Rounding out the exclusives is a 3-pack of Supergirl, Batgirl, and Wonder Girl in animated style ($49.95)
Hasbro has released their official pictures and description for what should be one of their more popular exclusives for San Diego Comic-Con. On top of the packaged shots of the Star Wars Black Series Boba Fett that were revealed through USA Today, they’ve included pictures of the Boba Fett figure and his bounty, Han Solo frozen in carbonite. The new pics give us a closer look at the articulation setup on Boba. Of particular note, it looks like he’s got wrist hinges – allowing more natural two-handed poses with his Blas Tech EE-3 rifle.
I’ve had a chance to do more thinking about the $44.99 price, which seems a bit steep. At more than double the $19.99 price point that’s expected at retail for single figures in the Star Wars Black Series, it might be tempting to wait for his eventual re-release in the line. I’m fairly certain they will do this, most likely with the Return of the Jedi deco – there’s a precedent with the Marvel Legends Thor that launched the Return of Marvel Legends line.
Toy Guru promised to make Early Access worthwhile to subscribers, and as it opens this morning I wonder if he it’s working out in practice. For one, there have been a couple of last minute changes – sometimes the emails and news updates on the site are inconsistent. Like this month, the email referenced the Masters of the Universe Classics Evil-Lyn, but at the last minute they’ve switched to Stinkor. And, for the most part, Early Access has been limited to older MOTUC figures that long-time collectors already have.
Of course, that changed when the convention exclusive MOTUC Strobo came and went in Early Access in about five minutes, causing lots of subscribers to scream bloody murder. And chances are good that we’re heading for another one of those this morning.
Update: Early Access got a late start. Spirit of Hordak was available for about 5 minutes – sold out now. By the clock on my laptop he was up for grabs from 8:13 – 8:18AM PST. Let us know if you were able to pick one up!
Toy Guru also hits on some that you might not want to know the answers, such as: how do Rokkon and Stonedar poop when in rock form? Answer: convenient butt flap. And: is Captain Marvel’s hood really that big? Answer: yes, but thankfully it’s removable.
