MisterPL

I like what I'm seeing so far. Most of Snyder's previous work has seemed a little claustrophobic to me because it's used a lot of green screen work. Using some actual locations is definitely adding some scope to his palette. I'm missing the S-shield on the cape. That's the only nitpick from me so far. I'll reserve judgment on the story until I see the other 120 minutes. Reportedly, Michael Shannon insists he does NOT say the line in the film. That said, it's all over the merchandise for the film so it's possible someone says it.

I've never liked Venom and I'm tempted to pick up two of this set.

I don't know that DST would release the exact same Hulkbuster figure but I'd be surprised if it didn't show up in a "Best of" wave somewhere down the line.

Fair enough. Can you identify the armor that's second from the left? I see some from the movie and some that look like Hasbro's concept series but that big guy eludes me.

"Pretty good job?" No, I'd argue DST has done an exemplary job of getting secondary characters out there. I was a die-hard 3 3/4" figure collector up 'til very recently but ended up switching my focus to Minimates because I couldn't get figures of Tony Stark let alone Rhodey and Pepper and Coulson, et al from Hasbro. I know there are dozens of armors you could be doing from IM3 (I've seen them) and while I'm sure Hasbro will be loading the pegs with them, I look forward to the variety of characters DST has come to offer. We may see Hulkbuster armor with or without Banner in the film. After all, Cap's shield showed up in the first two films. And call it "The Cellar." (Which is also a fun homophone for "the seller!")

Q&A's like that make me appreciate the interaction we get from DST. I'm reminded not to take Chuck and Zach for granted after reading such a pathetic, dickless response to DCC's consumer base. In all fairness their nebulus reply may have something to do with being a division of a publicly traded company but it's still a shitty way to interact with collectors.

I'm not looking forward to Carl. He's going to look soooo out of place using the same body as the rest. I really don't get the double standard of sculpting new pieces to make 'mates significantly taller but refusing to do the same to make them shorter. I'm just asking for a shorter set of forearms, thighs, and a slightly truncated torso. We've already got slipper feet but they don't do much.

I finally found these 'mates in the wild at my local TRU. They only had Rick and the walkers, no sign of Shane and Glenn. Not giving up hope!

I'd love to see a Borg 4-pack with Seven, the Borg Queen, Locutus, and a random drone. Maybe that's the best way to get Trek 'mates out there from different series and movies; do sets of captains, First officers, Klingons, etc. Just a thought.

You're right, Cap. I don't have one in front of me but now that you mention it I do recall the shoulder joints giving the arm a bit more range. I think AA left out the notch that allows for that in favor of a more aesthetically pleasing shoulder. Personally I'm still amazed they got as much articulation out of the 2" body as they did.

Went to another TRU and came up empty-handed again. This place has even more 'mates in stock than my local one. Not sure whether that's a good thing or a bad thing because plenty of them were old releases. I mean, if they've got 'mates warming pegs, they're probably not going to bother ordering more. Still, they didn't even have McFarlane's WD product, unlike my store. I'll keep looking...

Over the years, the 2" body has actually enjoyed a greater range of motion even compared to their 3" predecessors. I agree with Twisted Two-Face; we'd need another point of articulation like a bicep cut in order to be able to hold rifles better.

DC Minimates, March 2007. Just sayin'. Glad the line is doing well. Wish I could find some. Hopefully soon. Patience...

Electronics is where my TRU is merchandising the McFarlane figures and I've seen those pegs full, emptied, and replenished this week alone. No 'mates though.

From what I understand, licensing wasn't an issue with the DC Direct Minimates. As divisions of DC Comics, DC Direct (and now DC Collectibles) didn't have to pay any licensing fees. They hired Art Asylum as they would have any other freelance designer/sculptor for figures or statues. I believe the added cost came in when they used DST as a third-party manufacturer as well. That made the retail of the DC Minimates roughly $2 more than the Marvel 'mates. But it wasn't just about price either. If memory serves, there were some significant delays getting the first waves to retailers. What was supposed to be spread out over the course of two years ended up coming out in one and the market was quickly overwhelmed. Character variety was impressive but figures that could have easily anchored an entire series (Superman, Batman, et al) were offered within the same wave. I'm sure DST/AA had some input in the character selection but it was probably minimal since DCD ended up offering characters like Superman, Batman and Green Lantern in the same wave. As for the current situation, DC Collectibles is still a small group of people but now they're working on the west coast under the DC Entertainment banner instead of on the east coast in the same building with DC Comics. While Warner Bros. Consumer Products has taken over licensing duties for DC Comics, it's my understanding WBCP and DCC aren't as "tight" as DCD was with the licensing group at DC. We can keep telling DCC how much we miss DC Minimates but I think we'd be preaching to the choir, just like bringing it up to DST with every Q&A. That said, DCC is certainly in a better position to remind WBCP from time to time but like I said, a retailer like TRU is going to carry much more weight as a buyer. DCC might try offering DC 'mates but they'd be up against the same licensing restrictions that DCD was up against; Mattel's toy license. That's something DCC can do nothing about but WBCP can. Anyone wanting to contact TRU about how much they LOVE Minimates and buy them ALL the time but wish that they would offer DC Minimates (hint hint) can do so via this link. In the meantime, the Ask DCC venue isn't necessarily a bad idea, it's just that there may not be much they'll be able to do if folks are expecting a mass market line. I'd certainly be interested in what they CAN do, though. The fact that there's even an "Ask DCC" signifies a positive shift in collector relations.

Still no Walking Dead Minimates ANYWHERE, either at TRU or my LCS. I do know that they sold out immediately at my comic shop but there's no sign of them at TRU, not even an empty peg. Still waiting patiently and wondering if TRU would order another run of their first series since these are apparently flying off the pegs. My LCS is ordering more.

Thanks to Zach's heads up, I was able to run back to TRU today and get the Mummy/sarcophagus set I was hoping to get in the 4-pack. Production problems in China, huh? Would DST consider moving manufacturing to another country?

I'd rather see DST get the DC license through WBCP, just like Mezco has with their Mez-Itz. The third-party deal didn't work with DC Direct and I have no reason to believe it will work any better now under DC Collectibles. The profit margin simply isn't there and I'm pretty sure the line wouldn't be able to be sold into the mass market, just to specialty. That said, I think fans should flood TRU's customer service inbox with requests for DC Minimates. In my professional experience, nothing gets a licensor's attention better than a major retailer requesting a specific product. It's a guaranteed sale. If TRU sees the demand, they'll task WBCP to find a way to make it happen. Have fun storming the castle!

Patience has usually paid off for me. I was at my local TRU yesterday and there were no signs of the Walking Dead 'mates which, in my experience, tells me one of two things; they haven't come in yet (my store always gets them in three weeks later than others) or they're not stocking them (they didn't stock Expendables 1 or 2 either). I'm trying hard to not panic. I'd like to think there are plenty out there for us, the most deadicated collectors. (See what I did there?) I'd also like to believe that if TRU knows it's got a hot seller on its hands, they'll ask DST for another run to see where the ceiling is on this property. That said, as a collector I know that there are plenty of scalpers and speculators out there who are attracted to anything with a number 1 on it, especially if it's labelled "hard to find." Hopefully this scalper frenzy (if that's what's happening) will die down with future waves. In the meantime, I'll wait and keep checking my store, cautiously optimistic that I'll get the figures I want.

Invisible Man Clear variant Abbott Costello

As much as I was NOT looking forward to adding yet another Wolverine to my collection, this one has become The Definitive Wolvie 'mate, in my opinion. I really like the sculpting on the boots and the mask/hood accessory is a great touch. If he'd come with retracted claws, it would be perfect. The uniform chest piece that Colossus wears in the pack looks a little too big. Mine was a bit warped in the blister so when it came out, it looked more like he was wearing a coat. This is one of those instances where I wish I could have gotten a 2.5" body instead. Still, for some reason, he looks a little better in the alternate chest piece but he suffers from chicken legs in both. That would be a great look for Hellboy, not so much for poor Piotr.

I just missed out on the chase set at my LCS but I've already got oodles of Wolverine so I'm not sweating it too much. I'll probably end up regretting it later when my wallet isn't aching as much but for now I'm content.

While the show is currently off limits, Kirkman has expressed interest (after receiving a lot of prompting from fans) in introducing Daryl into the comic.

Marvel is the reason AA created a 2" Minimate body. Because of Toy Biz, AA wasn't allowed to offer figures over 2". Good eye on the elbow joint, though. I'm pretty sure that's unique to the 3" 'mate.

East coast.