hellpop

Yeah, that would have made for a much more compelling show. Throw in Nuke too.

This should be a little scary for Marvel, since their entire model (both in movies and comics) is predicated around shared universe continuity. If people were willing to tune into at least part of this overall story but not willing to stick it out to the end, that's bad. It suggests that if one or more of the Marvel movies is a dud, their whole house of cards may come tumbling down. I know that's a bit of a stretch, but I'd still be worried if I were them. Personally, I found the Defenders to be a bit dull, and certainly not the culmination of these series we were expecting. Rather than the Hand, they should have brought back the Kingpin and populated the show with a large array of recognizable villains from across the Marvel Universe.

My wife always says THE SAME DAMN THING. Even though I have Amazon wish lists for them to check AND I will put things I really want as a high priority item.

Haven't gone in a couple years. I used to be able to get a pro pass (as a librarian) that made it cost effective to go, but they jacked the price up on those a few years ago and I haven' been back since. And honestly, much as I enjoy cons this one has gotten so big that it's really not a lot of fun. Too many damn people around; it's impossible to do almost anything.

He's the head of Diamond.

If you were/are not blaming Mattel, you are in the vast minority.

Is that a zipper in the middle of Batman's forehead?

I was pretty involved in the JLU fan base at the time, which was mostly centered around the Action Figure Insider forums, and MAN you wouldn't believe how bad this was. People were OUTRAGED about this whole thing. It was nuts. I've never seen anything like it. Here, by the way, is the original article about Holiday Hal: http://www.actionfigureinsider.com/it-hits-the-fan-holiday-hal-revealed/ If you're really curious, go back into the AFI forum archives and read the reactions. My recollection at the time was that Mattel wasn't allowed to make Hal as a regular release. Not sure exactly why, but I think Zach's theory of a licensing holdup is probably right. There were a number of other characters that Mattel was originally unable to make that were much more important to the show (such as the Question). Eventually Mattel obtained the master DC license and that all went away, and JLU expanded to include all the show characters, and even non-show characters like Blue Beetle in the JLU style. The one holdout, though, was Hal Jordan. We were told that DC/WB had specifically said that Holiday Hal would never be released to the general public. The SDCC exclusive was Mattel's way to get around the issue and put a Green Lantern in everyone's hands... and that didn't go over any better. People were almost as outraged to get an inferior Hal Jordan as they were to get no Hal at all. JLU was my first action figure love... at the time, it was the most comprehensive line of DC characters we were likely to ever see (though DCUC at least approached it). Eventually, I soured on the line; it was a HUGE pain in the ass to collect. Seriously, if you think Minimates are bad, JLU back in the late 2000s would have driven you to despair. I sold off my collection for quite a handsome return, keeping only a few key figures. And then, a few years ago, I started to find the Matty Collector sets in the discount stores, and on Amazon, and suddenly I've got a big JLU collection again. Don't tell my wife. BTW, I do have a Holiday Hal of sorts... I bought the SDCC set when it turned up at a discount store, then bought a headcast of the Holiday Hal head made for those bodies. Perfect. It's the only non-Minimate custom I've ever made.

I know I will regret asking this, but what has been all that hard to get? I realize that it's very different for anyone outside of the US, but the only con giveaway that I'm aware of that can't be picked up fairly easily on the secondary market is the Steve Geppi Minimate, which is a whole different thing. I haven't really been following these things that closely, so I apologize in advance if I'm missing something.

My guess too. Guillotine was in the comics series that spun off from this game, and she's pretty cool (and that was a pretty good comic). My hunch would be that these are promos for figures that will see a regular release if/when the line debuts, much like the first Jack Skellington. Even if not, I doubt that these will be all that hard to get.

I can't really back you guys up on complaints about the Collector Corps boxes; you literally have two months to purchase a box, and most of them can be backordered (B:TAS is a notable exception, as that sold out), and Funko has even been leaking the Pops for the last several boxes, so you really have every opportunity to decide if you want it. I realize that outside of the US that might be a little bit different. Oh, and last year at Christmas they had a discount for past boxes too, so if you're missing one you want keep that in mind. As for the quality of the other items... well, Funko does make a whole bunch of other products. Most of those things I do end up giving away or donating. But there's still usually some cool stuff in there. As for con exclusives, they are hit and miss (again, at least in the US). Funko now makes so many damn ones for each show that I can't imagine there's anyone trying to get them all. And they do at least make most available to other outlets. But that can still be a pain. Last year Gorilla Grodd was sold at Hot Topic, but apparently sold out first thing in the morning. This year, the only SDCC Pop that I wanted was Man-Bat, and I did have to drive around to get him Pops have become such a THING that I think you really have to pick and choose. Most regular releases are super easy to come by, and really have no value (if that's your thing). I unbox mine, so I'm not really worried about value as much as I am getting characters I like. So I buy the superheroes and some of the animated ones and the occasional movie Pop, but for the most part I pick and choose. But it's weird. I would not call myself a Pop collector, but that being said I have dozens and dozens of them. I think you've got to let go on trying to be a completest, or you'll just drive yourself mad. Spring for the occasional expensive HTF one, but for the most part keep it casual.

Zach I'd gladly pay you Tuesday for a shot of the Infinity Gauntlet today.

Dammit, I never did take those pics of my Valiant customs. I never should have returned to this thread! Well... anyway... the reason I'm here is to mention that my favorite place for trades, InStockTrades, has a big sale on a bunch of Valiant books. Great chance to get caught up and check out some books you may not be reading (and I STRONGLY recommend Harbinger and the Imperium). https://www.instocktrades.com/specials/249/ValiantSale

Found the TRU sets today and picked up the exclusives (I prefer to buy the shared packs from Luke when I can). Those of you that appreciate Minimate innovations will be VERY excited by Igor.

Really very scary. Hard to believe we could have two storms of the century a week apart, but here we are.