pappymojo

Never read Doom 2099 but think he is making an appearance in Uncanny Avengers currently.

I know I had to buy TRU Wave 18 off of Amazon because it wasnt sold near me or on the TRU site. That is very clearly a problem.

This article made me sad:

http://seekingalpha.com/article/2179943-toys-r-us-has-major-problems

Summary

• Toys "R" Us is failing in its core consumer promise of best assortment and competitive prices.
• Sales continue to fall, and the company is cutting staff and
  closing stores in response to intense profit pressure from the owners.
• This can turn into a vicious circle that could doom the company and severely affect the major toy manufacturers.

Toys "R" Us (TOYS)
has basically three main businesses in the United States: toys, video
games and baby products. None has done particularly well,...

This is how one of my esteemed colleagues described it:

"They
now have color coded clearance. Each box gets a different color
sticker. Yellow is 20% off the marked clearance price. Brown is 30% off.
Green is 40% and blue is 50%. So… simple "clearance" is not enough. We
now have tiers of clearance. Furthermore, the stickers have the old
price, but don't have the new clearance price. Nor do the stickers tell
you how much off the clearance price you get. You have to know that
yellow means an additional 20% off. So if you see a toy for clearance at
$8.99 and it has a green sticker, the price is actually $5.39. But,
again, you have to know green means an additional 40%, and then you have
to do your own math."

First reactions from consumers
are mixed. A lot are simply confused and there are, according to my
retailer panel contacts, continuous discussions at the checkout counters
about pricing. Also, the Service Desks report numbers of unhappy
consumers arguing that they have been misled and wanting to return
merchandise. It would appear that somebody in the company's Wayne, N.J.,
HQ was just too clever for their own good when designing and
implementing this approach.

However, there is little doubt that Toys "R" Us' management is trying
to adapt its business model to accommodate pressure from the company's
owners for greater profitability. I understand that a number of changes
are in the offing to achieve this. Specifically, following the lay-offs
already implemented at its Wayne headquarters, staff cuts are slowly
being carried out on the shop floor level. Secondly, the closing of a
significant number of unprofitable stores is under consideration. And
finally, a greater emphasis on more profitable private label toy
products is likely to become apparent as we move towards the 2014 fourth
quarter selling season. This is likely to be only the beginning - all
the three leading rating agencies Moody's, Fitch and Standard + Poor's -
downgraded Toys "R" Us' debt this year, which means significantly
higher borrowing costs starting in 2016. In short, Toys "R" Us' outlook
over the next few years will be characterized by cost cutting, store
closing, store staff lay-offs and other measures designed to boost
short-term profit at the expense of long-term life expectancy.

It
could well be that Toys "R" Us' overriding consumer promise of broadest
product selection at competitive prices is no longer practical in the
face of competition from Amazon and others who have a built-in economic
advantage.

The comments made me nod my head and/or laugh.

Toys
R Us being a big box brick and mortar retailer can never compete on
price and on selection with online retailers especially Amazon. Rather
Toys R Us should thrive on sales knowledge and physical shopping
experience yet that's what it lacks. Rather than spending money on
marketing ploys they should spend it on employee education and customer
service improvements. Until it proves its actually going there to look
and see the product it will continue to lose out on market share.

Why
do I go to stores? Because I want to look, see, try out, or try on the
product and know there's someone I can ask questions or return something
I don't like. So far I have not had a hankering to go to Toys R Us. For
one thing, it should sell premium toys and models with a knowledgeable
staff, and less junk. In the end, if you entice the adults shopping to
also see something they like you are liable to get more traffic.

The
Toys R Us stores near us have one thing in common: Every one is a
complete dump. When were any stores last renovated? My guess would be
the 1970's or 1980's as they look exactly the same as I remember being a
kid during that time. Why would customers want to go to stores that
feature poor lighting, HVAC units that make so much noise I can't help
but think one is imminently going to come crashing into the store, worn
out floors, and dated fixtures? All this while having high prices. I'm
not sure what the high prices pay for, but the money certainly is not
being invested into making shopping at TRU a pleasurable experience.

And readers like me who have stayed with Ultimate Comics for a while considered it sacrilege that they'd get rid of the last decent thing that the Ultimate U had left. I don't like Morales much, but part of that came from how attached I was to Parker. Yes the Death of Spider-Man was a good story to end him on. And I consider that story THE ending of Ultimate Spider-Man. Goodnight sweet prince and goodnight Ultimate Universe as I believe that Parker's death was the beginning of the last gasps of that side of Marvel.

That seems like a valid reaction to the death of ultimate Peter Parker, and I can see why that would turn you off of whatever character replaced him but I dont see how Miles' race or sexuality factors into the discussion.

I am happy to let writers artists and creative types take chances. Without chances or reinterpretations of characters there is no ultimate Peter Parker.

My last post on the subject

How did Miles Morales kill off Spider Man? What about Miles Morales being biracial is not organic? What makes you think he is half gay? That last question is serious. I never got that impression. Even if he was gay though why is that automatically a cash grab? Did Marvel market him as gay or biracial?

Are creators never allowed to change or update characters? Why are they not allowed to introduce new characters that reflect a different interpretation of an established character? Shit, SpiderMan is going in 50 years many with two or more monthly comics in production. Dont you think it will be boring if Peter Parker cant change or if a different character cant assume his identity? Nevermind that Peter Parker in the standard universe is still here. It was ultimate Peter Parker that died and some old school readers probably considered Ultimate Spider Man (Peter Parker) sacrilege from the start anyways.

As to the DC stuff I still don't understand your point or comparison. When comparing Batwoman being gay to Power Girl's character and/or cleavage, what two of the three are you comparing? Are you saying that being gay is a physical attribute of Batwoman? I honestly cant follow the way you built your last paragraph to understand your point.

As for me, I dont read DC but I have enough respect for Gail Simone as a writer to believe in her integrity. As for Miles Morales, I like him. Havent read him since the Galactus cross over event started though. The rest of the Ultimate Universe is too much of a mess.

Miles Morales greatest claim to fame: Not that he killed off the best Spider-Man in recent years (pre-Untimatium) but that he's half black, half hispanic, and possibly half gay! How insulting to the character that that is all people focus on. :/ That's like having Powergirl be a well rounded and interesting character, and not being able to get past the boob window. Or Batwoman being gay. I'm so glad we live in a culture where focusing on the characters takes precedent over physical characteristics.

Oh, wait...

I have no idea what point the post above is trying to make, what side of the argument TM2 is on, or what the argument is really.

Then it is off to TRU for free Star Wars LEGO!

What's this about?

I love minimates because of the creativity that such small and "simple" toys can inspire - from the designers themselves, to the customizers, the photographers, the webpage moderators and hosts, and finally to the children, both big and small, who play with them in all of their articulated awesomeness. Pow! Zoom! Thwip!

After another round of emails, I got the following reply:

Thank you for contacting RUS.com regarding the regional-stock issue we
are having with the new Marvel Minimates Wave. We appreciate your
insight on the situation and will be transferring your case to a party
that has greater authority and knowledge on these issues. In the
mean-time, I would recommend calling the stores that you believe have
the items - sometimes stores can ship from store to store The SKUs you
provided could not be found on the website. These are the products we
found when searching "winter soldier"

http://www.toysrus.com/product/index.jsp?productId=23873836&cp=&parentPage=search

http://www.toysrus.com/product/index.jsp?productId=34162106&cp=&parentPage=search

http://www.toysrus.com/product/index.jsp?productId=34162116&cp=&parentPage=search

http://www.toysrus.com/product/index.jsp?productId=33862396&cp=&parentPage=search

I
apologize for any inconvenience this may cause, Andrew. Since your case
has been forwarded, you should be hearing from us within 3-5 business
days

If you have any further questions or concerns, please feel
free to contact us at either of the numbers listed below or just email
us and we will be happy to assist you.

I bought the ones I wanted online but would be happy if they finally showed up in my area (along with the Tomb Raider 'mates).

I tried to send a question to Ask DST but the site wouldn't accept my typed in response to the security code needed to submit the request. I am sure I entered it correctly, but it never changed to a different code.

I think the promo package shows the Lizard from the wrong angle. If it were looking down, the size of the head would be less blatant.

I hope, hope, HOPE that Doctor Octopus comes with at least one tentacle that grab another minimate figure in some way.

How great would that be?

The first Saturday of May.

http://www.freecomicbookday.com/StoreLocator

The rather predictable reply.

We apologize for the difficulties you have encountered in attempting to
locate Marvel Minimates with Captain America and the cast from Winter
Soldier in your local Toys “R” Us store. We regret to inform you that
this item is currently out of stock and may no longer be available for
purchase. Unfortunately, we are unsure if or when this item might be
available in the future.

Again, we regret any inconvenience you may have experienced in this regard.

If you have any further questions or concerns, please feel free to email us and we will be happy to assist you.

I sent the following inquiry to Toys R Us through their online Contact Us page:

I have a question about a toy line, specifically Marvel Minimates. I understand that Wave 18 of this toyline which includes figures based on the Captain America comic book characters including additional figures for Hydra agents, the Falcon and the Winter Soldier (all characters that are featured prominently in the Captain America movie) started appearing in stores in January 2014 but never appeared in stores in the North East of America (New York, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, etc.). Furthermore I understand that the figures are listed under a matching SKU from the previous wave. Despite the duplicate SKU number the figures have been sold in other states such as Texas, California, etc. Additionally, these figures never appeared online.

No employees at the various stores I have visited seem to understand what the issue is. With the Captain America movie currently performing so well in theaters, it is surprising that these figures should be so hard to in the specific North East area of the country.

Please investigate as I am very interested in purchasing these products. Thank you.

All I want to know is will this wave be sold in Massachusetts?

With all the material that's been released from the film already, from trailers to behind-the-scenes videos and pics, I was already leaning toward passing on this film. After these accusations and all the crap I've seen posted supporting them, I'll be honest; I'm going to have trouble separating the artist from his art.

Thats where im at too.

There was a scene at the end of a recent issue of Uncanny where sabretooth and mystique were discussing dazzler.

I want an updated Magik even if I like the original. Plus they look to be taking on Sentinels in the near future.

For anyone in MA and NH Newbury Comics is 25% off everything this weekend including sale items. They wont have Wave 18 but you may find some cheap minimates.

I'm creating a separate thread for updates on those of us in the North East who are still hoping to find this wave in stores.

http://www.minimatemultiverse.com/index.php?showtopic=12770

I'm sick of seeing the Marvel Wave 18 thread getting bumped, hoping that someone in this part of the country has found these at a Toy R Us only to be disappointed. So hopefully this thread sees some action when the dam gets lifted.

Wonderful.

I hate the 'Bono' style sunglasses so much.

Maybe one for a space ship control room Guardians of the Galaxy / Star Trek style.

They should offer free shipping for online orders if delivered to their store. Everyone offers this.

Haven't seen these in Boston. Haven't seen Tomb Raider at Toys R Us. Haven't seen Walking Dead Wave 5, although someone else said they saw those in Framingham. To top it off, my LCS never got wave 54. There's a sh!t ton of old stuff on sale though. I hate Toys R Us.