F.O.O.M. Club

[thereasonsy]

I have been thinking about this for a while but, if Diamond created a line like Matty Toy Collector where they put out an exclusive two pack once a month (available online only) of figures that had a lot of fan love but may not have enough support for a wide release, who would you pick for the first year of releases?

My choices:

Jan- Vance Astro & Starhawk

Feb- 60's Marvel Girl & Bryne Cyclops

Mar - Bagman FF Spidey & Crystal

Apr - Black Knight & Mockingbird

May - Destiny & Blob

Jun - Speedball & Aracne

Jul - FF SheHulk & Wyatt Wingfoot

Aug - Strike Force Banshee & Storm (with parts to turn into Forge)

Sep - Tigra & Swordsman

Oct - She-Thing & Karnak

Nov - Toad & Avalanche

Dec - Medusa & Gorgon

[Valo487]

Sold American. I'd buy all of these.

[stack32]

I don't think I'd want DST to copy anything done by Matty Collector.

[bigvis497]

Been saying this for a while, I'm all for it since new characters just aren't happening.

[MisterPL]

I don't think I'd want DST to copy anything done by Matty Collector.

Same here.

[Mnemosis]

if this were to happen, I think that lineup is pretty amazing. I tend to lean towards the X folks, but that lineup has enough of everything I'd be interested in to get me on board

[bigvis497]

A two pack every month might be stretching, but one figure every quarter I could realistically see.

[DarthBurkie]

I don't think I'd want DST to copy anything done by Matty Collector.

Same here.

Third.

[thereasonsy]

I don't think I'd want DST to copy anything done by Matty Collector.

Same here.

Third.

What's with all the hate for Matty Toy Collector? I haven't used it but to me the fact it exists and is pumping out figures of characters that fans actually want is increduble. What's the beef?

[stack32]

The short version would come down to the actual user experience of the website and their marketing tactics. After dealing with them I'm strongly against any kind of collector club.

[MisterPL]

Mattel's club seems to draw infinitely more ire than praise. It's an idea that works on paper but has to be handled very carefully in order to be successful.

Series 50 should give folks an idea of how well fan choices do at retail.

[gambitron]

I gave up on Mattycollector sub because it was infuriating, I still get the occasional figure. For new minimates though on a monthly basis I would be all over this!

[Onyx_6]

Realistically, I think a figure per month would be reasonable. Or a 2-pack every 2 months. I would pay $100 + shipping for a year subscription if it got us obscure Marvel characters and variants.

Rules:

*No more than one 'main' character per year; it must be an obscure variant (Bag man, IM3 Mansion Assault Toni, house of M Cap, etc.)

*At least one supporting cast member each year (Jarvis, Foggy, Robbie, MJ, etc.)

*Use this to finish teams, not start them!

I'm excited just thinking about this!

[stack32]

Don't get too excited. DST has been pretty clear in the past that they didn't have the manpower to handle this kind of thing. I suspect they'd also say it isn't needed; I don't think a line that's found a way to release Stilt-Man and MODOK is going to be looking for an avenue to release minor characters even if they have slowed down this year.

[Zexion_Armando]

I would just use this as an avenue for finishing teams only first, lol.

We should just crowd source these damn things lol.

[Nessex]

I would be all over this - but lets have a little think about possible logistics for this: *Most* standard box set runs are between 2000 & 3000.

LCS Variant 2-packs might be a lower run, but one figure in most of those is a army builder who is produced in much bigger numbers.

So - with this in mind, would this subscription need either a) close to 2000 subscribers or a significantly higher RPP pre 2-pack?

If the later were the case, how much do you think it would be and how much would you be willing to pay?

I'm not trying to rain on anyones parade, but i think these are questions worth asking.

[Onyx_6]

As I said earlier, I would be willing to pay up to $100 (plus shipping) for 12 figures in a subscription format.

As long as we don't see the exact same figures we seem to get in every wave!

[Valo487]

For those who are opposed to such an idea because of Mattel's site Mattycollector.com, I would just like to point out that the problem there is less concept and more incompetence on the part of the company hired to run it as well as Mattel's deliberate ignorance of their failings.

[UK Collector]

Realistically, I think a figure per month would be reasonable. Or a 2-pack every 2 months. I would pay $100 + shipping for a year subscription if it got us obscure Marvel characters and variants.

Rules:

*No more than one 'main' character per year; it must be an obscure variant (Bag man, IM3 Mansion Assault Toni, house of M Cap, etc.)

*At least one supporting cast member each year (Jarvis, Foggy, Robbie, MJ, etc.)

*Use this to finish teams, not start them!

I'm excited just thinking about this!

Throw in a special members blank, and poster/small art brochure and I would be all over this!

[THE_CRIPPLER]

How about an exclusive Minimate Multiverse 4-pack released twice a year? Take donations, setting a minimum amount to guarantee that you get the four pack. If that wouldn't work, maybe do our own Minimate Multiverse collectors club with a yearly subscription. I'm not sure on the costs to do such a thing and don't know off hand if we have enough members to even make it possible. It would be a great way to finish off teams though. Just make a list of all the characters we want to see and then vote. The top 4 get made then. Once most teams are complete then maybe do something like a Brotherhood set or start on a 90's X-Factor set.

[stack32]

On the front page it says there are 2213 members. The SDCC exclusives are 3000 sets. If you assume some number of those members aren't actually active and that you can't count on everyone agreeing on any particular set I think it's pretty safe to say the hardcore fans alone aren't enough to support a product, which the Alpha Flight experience bears out. A lower run would mean a higher cost so I don't know that you could make the numbers work that way. I'm certainly not crazy about the idea of signing on to pay $10+ for a minimate.

While Matty has been hilariously incompetent I do think that many of the pitfalls are inherent in the service. Character selection, payment arrangements, customer service, shipping, and convincing people to buy in a second time are all legitimate issues that wouldn't go away just because DST is DST.

[MisterPL]

Does anyone else remember the debacle known as the Art Asylum Collectors Club?

[bzorio]

I don't think I'd want DST to copy anything done by Matty Collector.

Amen! Fu**ing "ToyGuru" always blames customers when sales didn't go well. I don't want that for the minimates.

Quoting thereasonsy's suggestions, I would buy 8 of 24 minimates only. It's 33% of "approval". It's too low for me to sign a line for the entire year. And the results of Marvel 2014 Toys R Us Fan Poll Boxset reminds me that (I want Thanos only, it's 25%).

The idea is really good but in the end...

[Nessex]

I *WOULD* sign up for something like this in theory, but i'd like to know that it's the sort of program that's going to see rarer or more obscure characters released. The line-up mentioned in the OP is great - i'd definitely be in. Even if it was only 1 2-pack a quarter, it could be a great idea.

I didn't meanto sound like a total nay-sayer. Just wanted to point out that there would be a few hurdles to a system like this.

Does anyone else remember the debacle known as the Art Asylum Collectors Club?

I actually don't - this may have been before i came onboard. Any chance of a brief re-cap?

Edited July 28, 2014 by Nessex

[MisterPL]

I *WOULD* sign up for something like this in theory, but i'd like to know that it's the sort of program that's going to see rarer or more obscure characters released. The line-up mentioned in the OP is great - i'd definitely be in. Even if it was only 1 2-pack a quarter, it could be a great idea.

I didn't meanto sound like a total nay-sayer. Just wanted to point out that there would be a few hurdles to a system like this.

Does anyone else remember the debacle known as the Art Asylum Collectors Club?

I actually don't - this may have been before i came onboard. Any chance of a brief re-cap?

This might be helpful.

Basically it was a way to get toys collectors really wanted but retailers didn't into the hands of subscribers. I don't have very fond memories of it. That said, we're talking about different players today. This was before DST took over so things might be different, for better or worse.

Personally, I think subscriptions are for hardcore completists because if AA/DST offered a Minimates subscription, it probably wouldn't just be for Marvel.