First hand news from SDCC

[hulk197]

I dug up this

for those of you who are still not to familiar with the brand.

As far as how these will fair as minimates... I don't know. I'm just hopefull for some great customizing parts with these guys.

HA! Water beats fire, wood beats water... what an amazing concept to throw at 10 year olds! Your "battle" is over in 7 seconds. I think fire would beat them all, FIRE MELTS PLASTIC!!

[Danny]

I really love how the First Appearance X-Men turned out. They are just perfect!

[Trekker 42]

Don't forget the Goblin Glider, Ghost Rider's Hellcycle, the Avengers Quinjet, the Fantasticar...

But not this... anything but this!

That'd be perfect for the Oldman Logan mate in the through the ages set.

LOL. Hell yeah!!

Absolutely yes. Old Man Logan needs his wheels. How else can you do a great rendition of the best Marvel road story of all time in Miniform? And who else here wants a Venomsaurus Rex?

[Twisted Two-Face]

Hey Twisted, being a part of the human race... I take offense to that...you don't like how fast the news gets here...stop being lazy, get off your arse , and go to the con yourself. then you don't have to rely on the lazy folk and get the news first hand.

I am annoyed at a lot of the negativity around here, and am seriously considering giving up participating here. I want to see these pics pretty bad too, but i don't feel i should have to sift through all this whining to do so. sorry to anyone who has to read through my post, but i am surprised at how greedy we as a community have become, with the demands on dst, and fellow collectors, to give us up to the second news...shit, i have wanted a proper angel from day one, but you will not find a post from me demanding we get one. where do we get the nerve these days.

sorry guy/gals, i apologize for the rant, but we are getting news, sorry if its not as much as most of you would like.

sorry, nervous

Nervous, it was a joke. I'm pretty sure the rest of us are part of the human race too, including myself. Okay, maybe not BHM, but most of us. () I wasn't whining, i was implying that instead of having EVERYONE GO OFF TO AFI to look that I'D TAKE AN INITIATIVE and POST THEM FOR EVERYONE. In no way was i trying to imply that i was whining about anything.

And i'm sorry that i can't get off my arse and go. I'm 15, have two parents with full-day jobs, and are having a little trouble making any large amounts of cash. Second, my Dad keeps saying no to SDCC because he wants me to save any large sums of money i get for COLLEGE. In two years. It's not my fault i can't go.

And lastly, i'm not upset with DST. I'm upset with people like Marvelous News or Cornerstore Comics because of leaked info on new sets, preventing any REALLY BIG reveals at the con. Because of that, DST doesn't have much new to show, which is why i was depressed by the lack of news at the panel. (if there was any news, i don't know yet. this is the first post i saw in the thread, and will continue to look after words.). That's all.

Are we okay now, because the one thing i hate is arguing with people.

EDIT: Going back and reading the rest of thread, i just want to say, i do like being here. It is a wonderfully great place to belong to and to share our little money-stealing obsessions. I wasn't trying to be whiny (word??) or negative towards anything. Before this goes anywhere else, i apologize. for anything i've said that could affect the community. I hope you accept it. :(

Edited July 26, 2009 by Twisted Two-Face

[Lobsterman]

- yeah, the license restriction on Marvel vehicles sounds like it's still in place. Someone suggested making "a motorcycle that just happens to be on fire" and got a good chuckle out of Matt and Chuck.

- I asked Chuck about the heat change decals for battle beasts, and he said they were looking into it, but it probably wasn't going to be feasible.

- Just to clarify my comments on the mood of the panel: I didn't mean to disparage Chuck or anyone else there. When you've been going to panels all week that have hundreds (thousands?) of uncontrollable screaming fans in a room, you kind of lose perspective when you enter a room with a normal, civl conversation going on... . Especially during my conversations with Chuck and Matt at the DST booth, they both seemed genuinely happy to be talkng with a fan, and you can tell they love what they do. A lot of the Q&A stuff, fan polls, commenting on the Multiverse, etc is generally done on their own time, when their work duties are done. They really are doing it for us.

- That segues into my thoughts on Nervous' comment. Chuck gets it, he really does. He knows we all want what we want, when we want it. He knows we get emotional about Minimates because we're fans, and he's at peace with the fact that we're going to be pissed with some of the decisions he makes. He's not making decisions like packing Bullseye and Moonstone one per case as a personal "fuck you" to the loyal fans, he's really not. He knows more about the casepacks that will move product than we do because it's his job. And, like it or not, although we're the most passionate and voracious audience, we're not the only audience. He's going to make decisions to try to bring seven-year-olds into the fold, and it's going to hurt our feelings, and we can deal with it or stop collecting.

Rest assured, DST is not forgetting about us as a result of these business decisions. The fact that they planned ahead to create a boxset of silver age x-men and worked one of the characters into a retail wave so we could have all five, for example, is evidence of that. But they simply don't have the financial luxury to create an entirely fan-driven (and probably loss-leader) line like Mattel's MOTU. We're going to have to make room for the kids.

All of that said, the things we rant about here are only going to affect us. Yes, Chuck and Matt read about what evil bastards we think they are when we can't find a set at retail. But, like I said, they've made their peace and they're still getting up in the morning and making Minimates. All that's left is us poisoning the environment here, and making each other feel miserable. We can be a fun place to hang out and chat about our shared passion, and do amazing, fan-driven things like custom contests and exclusive reveals, or we can become one of those appalling places with nothing but trolls, and people will stop coming, and the brand will move on without us. Great stuff happens (Ghostbusters mates) and shitty stuff happens (chase figures), but in the end, we've still got Minimates to collect.

/sermon

Also, on a sidenote, can we do like armbands or something next year? I hate being in the same room with my board chums and having no idea who they are.

Edited July 26, 2009 by Lobsterman

[Cappy]

While I understand and share Nervous and Donster's view on things (must be an old guy thing), quoting Twisted Two-Face was poor timing. Frankly, I saw him as helping, since I was too lazy to track down that excellent Silver Age X-Men panel pic. TTF is one of the good guys.

[Danny]

Great post Lobsterman.

For every line there's gonna be ups and downs. Getting Minimates into TRU again is massive for the brand as a whole, and gives DST the potential to do so much more. The new website, the Battle Beasts license, are evidence that they are trying hard to capture the kids market again. Collectors will not sustain any Minimates line because there simply aren't enough of us, not in the same way the Masters Of The Universe figures can be collector-led.

[RSIxidor]

Quick question to anyone who went... which minimate did they give out at the end of the panel??

I don't think anyone answered this, the answer is Spock.

When he said the battle beasts license was there's, he asked a question like, "What would you want?" I guess he meant ideas on which ones to release, but all I could say was "MOAR!!! MOAAAR!!!!!"

Edited July 26, 2009 by RSIxidor

[buttheadsmate]

If it's confessional time I might as well say that my comment on Chuck which I tried to qualify as not being personal .....may have not come across as I'd wished but I was purely agreeing with Lobsterman. I've met Chuck & Matt , they are great guys. In all fairness to myself I can only say that I went to SDCC last year ,purely for Minimates,to meet Minimate Multiverse members & go to the AA/DST booth & meet Matt & Chuck......no other reason whatsoever. I enjoyed every moment .

If I sound cynical at times fair enough..I am....but negative about Minimates ?????? Total Bollocks.

[MiniFiend UK]

Also, on a sidenote, can we do like armbands or something next year? I hate being in the same room with my board chums and having no idea who they are. smile.gif

Pink Borat Mankini's would work as well.

[TBT!]

Likewise, I agree that's a great post Lobsterman!

Trust me I'm as frustrated with the BE/MS TRU wave as anyone but just the fact that these are in TRU and apparently selling is pretty huge.

I think the Battle Beasts is a great step in brining in kids, but will need some serious shelf space or marketting for DST to get the message out.

As for Chuck, I have spent a lot of time talking to him at shows ( I even got a hug once, but that as they say... is another story) and he can blow hot and cold but that is mostly the enviroment at SDCC, he's trying to run the DST booth and sometimes he needs to get serious to keep things on track. The best examples of his extremes that I can give are the "firespitting evil eye'd chuck" from a few years back when the lines for the giveaways got really out of hand, compare this to the laid back "hey look here's my posse" & grin as Shane & I walked into the booth a couple of yrs back (Yes DST recognise some of us on sight these days!), It's just dependant on what is going on that the time.

T.

p.s. Armbands.. now there is a smart idea! We've done T-shirts in the past but AA were looser with letting us use the minimates brand on shirts than DST is.

[Amazing.JL]

Great post Lobsterman. All is true, there will be ups and down (like any relationship and product line), people whining because they're not happy, frustrated(like me ) and such. I think some get too wound up when someone displays their frustration and vice versa. I only do so for information purposes(hey somehow they've got to know) and usually will only do it once or it's a parade. I'd like to think some of us like to make comments funny and sarcastic. I know DST Chuck & Matt are big boys and won't lose sleep over some evil bastards

I've known for years that the presence of Mass Market Retail is necessary for continuing the brand and making it worthwhile. There needs to be more minimate fans. I think it's all great in what DST Chuck and Matt do. You'll find it hard to find a company that interacts with fans and do what they do. I appreciate they've continued the brand and I support them(in all their licenses.)

edited

[bilbofett]

Eddie Wires, Minimate Painter Extraordinaire, was also on the panel and mentioned and complimented Mystery Man's Conan Quick Custom. He liked the use of existing parts and thought the idea of selling blank customizing packs could hurt the creativity displayed in the customizing community.

Boooo! Booooooooo! Give us more parts and tools to use!

I was thinkin'. I know some licensces have expired(i.e. Ghost Rider, X3), if stars facial likenesses are parody(not needing approval). What if DST(through minimates.com) offered a sheet of decals to print. A movie Rogue or Magneto would be neat additions to the line.

[Twisted Two-Face]

Agreed with the above, Lobster. That post was beyond fantastic; way to go. And thank you, Cappy, for the compliment. Made me smile.

I also agree with the whole mass market thing; sure, BE/MS really isn't the best choice for a TRU set, and it's just there as a peg-mover. But if it's not meant to be a great TRU set, why make such obscure characters TRU exclusives?! That's where i'm lost. Great figs like them deserve to be found and enjoyed at a reasonable price; the Hunt isn't all that great when it makes people leave stores saddened and mad at scalpers.

Matt and Chuck are great guys; i may have met Matt at NYCC, but i really can't remember. What they do is incredible, especially with the Q & As, listening to fans, and the OUTSTANDING customer service. If i had a glass, i'd give them a toast right now.

Edited July 26, 2009 by Twisted Two-Face

[BrobotC]

i got the black fanboy key chain mate,what did everyone else get?

[buttheadsmate]

.......... i may have met Matt at NYCC, but i really can't remember.

........... and the OUTSTANSING costumer service. If i had a glass, i'd give them a toast right now.

You probably didn't recognise him because of his (aforementioned)..... outstanding(?) costume

[Twisted Two-Face]

.......... i may have met Matt at NYCC, but i really can't remember.

........... and the OUTSTANSING costumer service. If i had a glass, i'd give them a toast right now.

You probably didn't recognise him because of his (aforementioned)..... outstanding(?) costume

I need to learn to type slower...or somehow make my posts unread by you...

[Lobsterman]

Actually, Matt gave attendees a choice of Spock, a DST blank or an AA blank. They were also nice enough to hand out various sets to people who asked questions -- Dark Avengers, Iron Man Through The Ages; I even saw Matt hand someone a wave 24 variant set (the Tarantula one)! They were very gracious with the freebies, and almost everyone got something cool in addition to the handout at the end.

Just remembered something else, not directly Minimate related: Hasbro was showing a lot of new Superhero Squad stuff at their booth, and in a diorama with all of the figures they had a Shield Helecarier prototype! The guy I spoke with said they really want to do more comic-based vehicles like that, but the cutsey bump-and-go stuff is what drives sales with kids. They're working on trying to get the Helecarrier into production, though. It's a sweet looking vehicle and would be awesome for an army of Shield 'mates.

Edited July 26, 2009 by Lobsterman

[Amazing.JL]

Just remembered something else, not directly Minimate related: Hasbro was showing a lot of new Superhero Squad stuff at their booth, and in a diorama with all of the figures they had a Shield Helecarier prototype! The guy I spoke with said they really want to do more comic-based vehicles like that, but the cutsey bump-and-go stuff is what drives sales with kids. They're working on trying to get the Helecarrier into production, though. It's a sweet looking vehicle and would be awesome for an army of Shield 'mates.

The Helecarrier would be cool! Any idea of how big it was?

[jjwspider]

I imagine Marvel still won't allow vehicles, so best not to get your hopes up too much until they actually show one off somewhere.

Regarding Obama, I'm surprised there was no retail interest there. Lord knows they've crammed him down our throats every other way imaginable, through action figures, bobbleheads, comic books, etc. Maybe Obamania is wearing off.

One can only hope......

Although Doctor Who, shame that their isn't enough interest to produce those.....

Edited July 26, 2009 by jjwspider

[jjwspider]

Agreed with the above, Lobster. That post was beyond fantastic; way to go. And thank you, Cappy, for the compliment. Made me smile.

I also agree with the whole mass market thing; sure, BE/MS really isn't the best choice for a TRU set, and it's just there as a peg-mover. But if it's not meant to be a great TRU set, why make such obscure characters TRU exclusives?! That's where i'm lost. Great figs like them deserve to be found and enjoyed at a reasonable price; the Hunt isn't all that great when it makes people leave stores saddened and mad at scalpers.

Matt and Chuck are great guys; i may have met Matt at NYCC, but i really can't remember. What they do is incredible, especially with the Q & As, listening to fans, and the OUTSTANDING customer service. If i had a glass, i'd give them a toast right now.

I think DST see's this as a way of getting a set out there that will drive the collector's into Toys R Us, whereas a wave of all Spidey/Wolverine/Iron Man may not have that affect. By the same token, the line would likely dwindle at a comic store as it would be tougher to sell as an individual set. As much as some people complain whenever there is a new Spider or Wolverine, their strategy seems to be paying off so far.

[Marquis de Carabas]

Hey Twisted, being a part of the human race... I take offense to that...you don't like how fast the news gets here...stop being lazy, get off your arse , and go to the con yourself. then you don't have to rely on the lazy folk and get the news first hand.

I am annoyed at a lot of the negativity around here, and am seriously considering giving up participating here. I want to see these pics pretty bad too, but i don't feel i should have to sift through all this whining to do so. sorry to anyone who has to read through my post, but i am surprised at how greedy we as a community have become, with the demands on dst, and fellow collectors, to give us up to the second news...shit, i have wanted a proper angel from day one, but you will not find a post from me demanding we get one. where do we get the nerve these days.

sorry guy/gals, i apologize for the rant, but we are getting news, sorry if its not as much as most of you would like.

sorry, nervous

No need to apologize Nervous, I feel you. The attitude on the forum has changed a bit, but I see it on several forums lately. It's kind of like the "me" generation is making a comeback or something. Either that or the age of the members combined with maturity filter is faulty. With me being home for the moment, I've had more time to actually sit down and read threads more carefully. In regards to DST Chuck, the guy is alright in my book. You've got to remember, he has a lot of things going on during the con's and probable get's little rest. Since he, DST Matt and the rest of the team probable have to keep in touch with the office too. My suggestion is let's get back to the fun that made this community and leave the negativity to other boards that have nothing better to do with themselves.

I agree with you guys. everyone will more than likely get what they want eventually, so there really isn't any point to going "why battlebeasts, why not ********???" it's absolutely futile, IMO, and it lowers morale a good deal. if you don't like what DST has to offer, maybe find something else to collect? I have made peace that I will never get a deadgirl mate, but you'll never hear me complain.

[Chazwinski]

Hey Twisted, being a part of the human race... I take offense to that...you don't like how fast the news gets here...stop being lazy, get off your arse , and go to the con yourself. then you don't have to rely on the lazy folk and get the news first hand.

I am annoyed at a lot of the negativity around here, and am seriously considering giving up participating here. I want to see these pics pretty bad too, but i don't feel i should have to sift through all this whining to do so. sorry to anyone who has to read through my post, but i am surprised at how greedy we as a community have become, with the demands on dst, and fellow collectors, to give us up to the second news...shit, i have wanted a proper angel from day one, but you will not find a post from me demanding we get one. where do we get the nerve these days.

sorry guy/gals, i apologize for the rant, but we are getting news, sorry if its not as much as most of you would like.

sorry, nervous

No need to apologize Nervous, I feel you. The attitude on the forum has changed a bit, but I see it on several forums lately. It's kind of like the "me" generation is making a comeback or something. Either that or the age of the members combined with maturity filter is faulty. With me being home for the moment, I've had more time to actually sit down and read threads more carefully. In regards to DST Chuck, the guy is alright in my book. You've got to remember, he has a lot of things going on during the con's and probable get's little rest. Since he, DST Matt and the rest of the team probable have to keep in touch with the office too. My suggestion is let's get back to the fun that made this community and leave the negativity to other boards that have nothing better to do with themselves.

I agree with you guys. everyone will more than likely get what they want eventually, so there really isn't any point to going "why battlebeasts, why not ********???" it's absolutely futile, IMO, and it lowers morale a good deal. if you don't like what DST has to offer, maybe find something else to collect? I have made peace that I will never get a deadgirl mate, but you'll never hear me complain.

Personally, I don't see anything wrong with ranting about the things that piss us off on here. That's part of why you get together and talk to your fellow collectors, right? I'm certainly not going to walk around on pins and needles, afraid that I may offend DST. I don't even know how much attention they pay to us, but they do need to hear the things that aggravate us, like the fact that the minimate lab looks cheap or that we think them leaving out the top vote-getter for the AA Secret Wars poll is bullshit. At the end of the day, you're right. These things are just pieces of plastic and DST are just a bunch of guys making a living and can't satisfy everyone. Toy lines come and go and one day it will fade away just like all the lines before it, no matter how successful (Mego, 70's Star Wars, Masters of the Universe). I GET it, and I know we're not entitled to anything. I love Minimates...I've drawn over 600 of the little devils...but I'm still going to bitch when I want to.

Edited July 27, 2009 by Chazwinski

[minimadman]

Hey Twisted, being a part of the human race... I take offense to that...you don't like how fast the news gets here...stop being lazy, get off your arse , and go to the con yourself. then you don't have to rely on the lazy folk and get the news first hand.

I am annoyed at a lot of the negativity around here, and am seriously considering giving up participating here. I want to see these pics pretty bad too, but i don't feel i should have to sift through all this whining to do so. sorry to anyone who has to read through my post, but i am surprised at how greedy we as a community have become, with the demands on dst, and fellow collectors, to give us up to the second news...shit, i have wanted a proper angel from day one, but you will not find a post from me demanding we get one. where do we get the nerve these days.

sorry guy/gals, i apologize for the rant, but we are getting news, sorry if its not as much as most of you would like.

sorry, nervous

No need to apologize Nervous, I feel you. The attitude on the forum has changed a bit, but I see it on several forums lately. It's kind of like the "me" generation is making a comeback or something. Either that or the age of the members combined with maturity filter is faulty. With me being home for the moment, I've had more time to actually sit down and read threads more carefully. In regards to DST Chuck, the guy is alright in my book. You've got to remember, he has a lot of things going on during the con's and probable get's little rest. Since he, DST Matt and the rest of the team probable have to keep in touch with the office too. My suggestion is let's get back to the fun that made this community and leave the negativity to other boards that have nothing better to do with themselves.

I agree with you guys. everyone will more than likely get what they want eventually, so there really isn't any point to going "why battlebeasts, why not ********???" it's absolutely futile, IMO, and it lowers morale a good deal. if you don't like what DST has to offer, maybe find something else to collect? I have made peace that I will never get a deadgirl mate, but you'll never hear me complain.

Personally, I don't see anything wrong with ranting about the things that piss us off on here. That's part of why you get together and talk to your fellow collectors, right? I'm certainly not going to walk around on pins and needles, afraid that I may offend DST. I don't even know how much attention they pay to us, but they do need to hear the things that aggravate us, like the fact that the minimate lab looks cheap or that we think them leaving out the top vote-getter for the AA Secret Wars poll is bullshit. At the end of the day, you're right. These things are just pieces of plastic and DST are just a bunch of guys making a living and can't satisfy everyone. Toy lines come and go and one day it will fade away just like all the lines before it, no matter how successful (Mego, 70's Star Wars, Masters of the Universe). I GET it, and I know we're not entitled to anything. I love Minimates...I've drawn over 600 of the little devils...but I'm still going to bitch when I want to.

Good point. I don't really rant about character selection but I do get tired of seeing it. I could go the rest of my life without reading "Where's Kang?" again.

[murderofcrows]

Yeah, but seriously where is Kang ?