Ivan

It sounds like a coding bug. Perhaps someone sent you a PM, then deleted it before you could read it. Then the counter that holds how many unread PMs, was improperly decremented. That's my only guess. (Take it for what you will, because I've never seen the back-end of an Invision board )

You made it to Minus World! Congratulations.

Unfortunately, our princess is in another castle.

Actually, it's easy. Walk up to any price scanner. Punch in the numbers on the buttons. It'll say yes or no in the back. If yes, pick up the phone right there and ask them to go get them for you. That works even if there are some ont he shelf.

No, not (necessarily) that easy at all. Ask the Marvel Legends variant hunters, or the Hot Wheels guys if they can get Target employees to bring a fresh case of stock out to a full shelf.

And as much as they strive to be, not all Targets are the same. (i.e. Not all scanners have keypads.)

So, I can just walk up to someone and give them that number and they'll know right away if they have any in the back?

As long as that employee has a price-scanner-gun/mobile-terminal/PDT-thingies with them, that's how it is supposed to work, but employee apathy or ignorance might be a hinderance. Since the F4, Iceman, and GSXM packs share the same DPCI the PDT won't tell them exactly what Minimates are in the stock room. The only way to know which case breakdown they have is to open it up. They'll only do that if there is enough room on the shelf to put them out.

Good luck.

Yeah thanks, that's the DPCI number. I should have a receipt with a couple F4 packs on it around here somewhere to compare against.

If anyone wants to see if their Targets have Minimates in the back, just punch that number into the self-scanners and it should tell you. Not all Targets have scanners have the 10-digit buttons though, but if you ask a red-shirt they should be able to look it up on their PDT hand-scanners and tell you the same info.

Targets are a strange animal. They keep the stock in the back and only take more product out when the shelves are running low. It took my local Target to come out with the Gajin/Spidey packs about 2 months after the news broke out because they still were putting out stock. I hope it's just a matter of time that all Targets carry both assortments.

I haven't seen any of the "new" stuff at my Target, so I've been tempted to purchase the remaining F4 packs then return them once the GSXM stuff is actually on the shelf. The only thing holding me back is the thought of tying up that much money in Minimate futures, err merchandise.

Does anyone know the DPCI for these packs? Is it the same as the F4 because these are part of the rolling restock? The self-scanners at my Targets will indicate if there is any backstock. Maybe I can cajole the lone friendly team member into digging them out of the back if I show him that the shelf is empty.

And yet another last minute entry. Curse my poor time management skills.

All hail Lance Lewis, Space Detective.

For a while there, I thought I was going to be the only one without a Marvel or DC cover. It's nice to see all the variety sneaking in under the wire.

Absolutely.

Ulysses S. Grant vs. Robert E. Lee

Abraham Lincoln vs. Jefferson Davis

William Tecumseh Sherman vs. Stonewall Jackson

Monitor vs. Merrimack

I know, I know, old, tired joke. I'll be quiet now.

What? Someone is stealing my material? And I do mean my material. I'm entitled to it you see. Back in the day I worked retail, and my nametag was basically a printed piece of paper in a shiny plastic casing. So I took the initiative and rechristened myself Vinz Clortho (the Keymaster of Gozer). I would ask random customers if they were "the Gatekeeper."

None of them were.

Yeah, I didn't last long there.

So it is decided. The inevitable hellfire shall come upon this land with a vengence and fury not known since the third reconciliation of the last of the Meketrex supplicants. Many Shubs and Zuuls knew what it was to be roasted in the depths of the Sloar that day I can tell you.

Oh folly, my hopes are dashed. After seeing your login name, I assumed it was a thoughtful commentary about the ever-increasing rage in our anti-eco-politco-society concerning the lack of tightly curled hairstyles on the members of a current group of musically-inclined individuals. Your name alone has the power to convince those petulant masses that violence only hurts their cause, only hurts those who they wish to save. Alas, the disenfranchisement of these followers shall continue to grow (if you change it), threatening to destroy all that has been accomplished by those who have come before. I imagine that Ady would be able to change your name with a simple PM request and perhaps a minor contribution of a few pence in the donation bin. I must ask you, do you really wish to alter it? Do you desire all the trials and tribulations of all those who have toiled throughout the preceding centuries to be lost in the violent churnings of revolution? Think of the bloodshed. Think of the loss. ...all because you selfishly wanted to change your name. Have you no honor?

If someone etches "Minimate" on a TRU bathroom stall, I'd consider myself lucky.

Hmmm, a project for this weekend...

Make sure to take pictures or you don't get full credit on the assignment. Just don't let anyone see you. A grown man getting caught sneaking a camera into a Toys R Us bathroom is pretty much guaranteed a non-trivial amount of jail time.

So did we ever find out if there is a 2 player Lilith?

It's still uncertain, I think. Chuck said he would have to go back and check out the matrix to find out. Haven't heard anything since.

I did open the case (not a sealed case) I bought and came away with two Lilliths, both P1 versions. No conclusions there, just take it for what you will.

I realized I bought a case of these from AFX a while ago, and decided to let it go to another member.

EDIT: Wait, now where'd you go Amazing.JL?

EDIT 2: Oh there you are.

EDIT 3: Post deleting makes Ivan look insane... so much the better.

Oooh good idea. I have some socks I need to get rid of.

Excellent! Now I can make a Minimate version of that Pantone Kubrick set. (All those Twilight Frodos are safe, for now.)

Thanks for breaking the news Deadpool.

All the extra hands make for a crowded avatar, but I think they look good in the larger image. So I thought I would share.

I'm not sure if 'revolt' is the right caption ('rebel' maybe?)... I'm not even sure what I'm revolting against (whadda ya got?)... I guess it's just time for some all-around, good-natured revolution.

I had no idea that 'Obey' image would get so much play. Too cool.

I've always been a fan of the clean, simple look of the blanks. So these customs are right up my alley. They look great, very well done.

Next month Mr Fantastic is out and i hope he is better than the website picture as he looks like an adult man porn star gone wrong. you will know what i mean when you see the picture.

Ladies and Gentlemen, it's time for Pick Your Own Jokeâ„¢.

Joke 1: Whoa, what porn movies have you been watching?

Joke 2: A prehensile penis would be rather fantastic, wouldn't it?.

Joke 3: 88.5 mm? Even I could star in that movie.

Thank you, thank you. I'll be here all week.

Thanks guys.

Can I enter that pic in the Covers Contest? Spider-Man must have taken his pants off and run around half-naked at least once. Right? And if he hasn't, why not? I demand Peter Parker's ass! No wait, that doesn't sound right at all.

Anyone willing to do a GIS for 'nude Spider-Man'? I'm not.

...at least not while at work.

I am sad to say, I don't have a Gold or Silver Spidey in my collection. If I did own them; I would opened to allow them to breath and to run free naked.

My regular Spider-Man does that all the time.

Terrorizing all those innocent little Lego mini-figs like that.... damn shame.

It also means that we are now positioned to sell our company within the next 60 days or so, in time to have even more product for the holiday season.

I'm confused. If the company does get sold, does the money from the sale go to purchase new merchandise? I don't see how that works, but then again I'm not a contract law/MBA/financier type. (I even had to consult Google to find out how to spell 'financier.')

...and there was a great rush to open the blind packs.

Yeah, there are other variances, but at least they seem to be following a pattern.

My P2 Chun-Li and my P2 Akuma both came with P1 heads. I'm wondering if all the P2 colors come with P1 heads, perhaps? The P2 Demitri and Morrigan I got from the blind-packs are identical to the ones in my blistered Previews package. The pattern still holds because both the P1 and P2 Morrigan share the same head. (Same goes for Demitri.)

Does anyone have a blind-packed P2 fig with a P2 head, other than Demitri or Morrigan?

(As an additional oddity, neither of my M.Bisons were taped shut on top. For what it's worth.)

Who shall be the first to fill my barren PM Inbox with forbidden pixels that no man dare look upon? A shiny golden doubloon and a firm, salty, lick on the face to the first scurvy knave that dares transfer these embargoed bits to my crusty old eyes*. Yarrr.

*Offer not valid with any other offer. Must be 18 years, 2 months, 21 days, 6 hours, 21 minutes, 36 seconds old to enter. Limited time offer, see print ad for details. Submissions will not be returned. Not valid on weekends, religious holidays, secular holidays, fictional holidays, weekdays, additional blackout days may occur. Offer not available to those currently living on any continental landmass, island landmass, archipelago, isthmus, glacier, atoll, strait or peninsula. Potential winner must return signed, notarized, emblemified, cauterized, demarcated Affidavit of Eligibility before the next new moon. Winners agree to allow Ivanâ„¢ to use his or her name, likeness, voice, automobile, toenail clippings, and naughty bits in any way he sees fit.

I'd like to add a word of caution to those proselytizing on other boards:

Please don't be annoying.

Don't start a new thread saying "Check out this new Minimate board." Don't make multiple posts in different threads pushing this site. These kind of actions just end up pissing people off and give you, this site, and this site's members a bad image. (Learn from Shocker's mistakes.)

I think the ideal way to increase the views on this site is through being helpful. If somebody asks a Minimate related question, answer it. Then mention you found the information here, or that there is a large amount of Minimate information here.

Above all else, don't be a douche.