Wave 78

[thereasonsy]

2 hours ago, AFMcGill said:

Does anyone have a pic of Val Cooper in her X-Factor outfit? I'm remembering it as basically just being Polaris' but with Havok's rolled up sleeve arms. Am I remembering right?

Hey there:

 

It's an easy kitbash. Basically I ordered a second set specifically for this.

 

With the second set of X-Factor 90's Take Lorna's chest piece and put it on a Havok body add a blue eyed female face and blonde pony tail to get this:

With the Havok chest piece, put it on Lorna's body add on a Quicksilver hear piece to get:

Take the extra Wolfsbane and add human piece and a spare Rahne head to get her human form.

For the three 80's X-Factor folk, Cyclops comes with an alternate head, you can kit bash Beast in his ape form taking the Secret Wars trunks and hair if you don't mind a different blue. Finally add a blonde hair piece to Jean and you have a Husk figure.

 

 

 

 

 

Edited May 26, 2019 by thereasonsy

[Nessex]

On 5/24/2019 at 5:06 AM, MisterMiracle said:

Marvel Legends has been absolutely killing it with their figures (especially X-Men).

I stopped collecting ML a while ago. But the last few waves of X-Men themed figures have looked amazing.

On 5/25/2019 at 2:12 AM, luke314pi said:

Those of you who guessed a Madrox 2-pack were correct! We were able to get 500 army builder 2-packs from Diamond.

YAASSSSSS! I have gone ahead and ordered a couple of sets with my Wave 78 order.

On 5/26/2019 at 11:07 PM, MisterPL said:

You know, back in MY day, an assortment only had seven different Minimates, one of them was a chase figure, and the duplicate wasn’t an army-builder. 
This wave has NINE characters and our favorite retailer is getting a complementary army-builder 2-pack at an affordable price. 
You whipper-snappers are spoiled!

THIS!

In lieu of alt heads being available, does anyone have any recommendations for unmasked heads? I'll happily mix in some random, male brunettes for a little diversity in the display.

@luke314pi - this set is *such* an awesome exclusive. I know it's early days, but do you think this is the kind of deal you might be able to do with DST for future waves that include an army builder? (assuming the Madrox sets sell well).

[karamazov80]

Very cool exclusive, Luke.  Has any toy line been more attentive to the needs of those with 90's nostalgia than Minimates?  I think not! 

[hellpop]

On 5/25/2019 at 2:50 PM, stack32 said:

It adds about as much as passive aggressive whining about those comments. There is actually a worthwhile conversation that could be had about perceived value per pack or in the wave as a whole that goes far beyond "nitpicking", so why not discuss it? Personally I think buying a two-pack to get one character is pretty much the standard a minimate collector should expect for value but I can understand why others might feel differently. The build-a-minimate approach changes that too since each individual character is likely losing a little bit of value to make up for the extra figure. DST also chose to pack this wave in a way that would maximize their sales but also force people to buy two different teams which could obviously be a source of frustration for some, though I'm a little surprised anyone would want one half of the wave and not the other. Still, any fan ought to be able to express their opinion about what they want to buy without "you're killing the line!" nonsense.

This is a perfectly reasonable point, and you expressed it well. I went too far in saying something about Minimates dying, but I was grumpy. So I take that back.

On 5/25/2019 at 4:25 PM, Freaqualizer said:

I get what you’re saying and no one is saying you can’t have an opinion and voice said opinion. I think the point that @hellpop was making is that there’s a whole lot of negativity in almost every thread. It’s been kind of a bummer, and any time someone says that the atmosphere is negative they get a comment about complaining about complaining. Everyone is entitled to their opinion, even if the opinion isn’t popular. But this is a community. A community of people who share a common passion.  A community should care about everyone’s feelings and not just their own. I try not to shit on someone else’s opinions because I don’t want someone to shit on my opinion. Just some common courtesy goes a long way. If everyone in the world would just be more considerate and treat people how they want to be treated the world would be a much better place. My comments are not directed at any specific person, I have no one in mind during this tirade, it’s a general plea to not let negativity reign supreme and squash someone else’s good time.  

Yes, that's basically my point. I dunno, I've certainly become more sensitive to this kind of stuff as I've gotten older and online discourse has gotten worse and worse. Furthermore, because I've gotten to know several of the DST staff and designers over the years I tend to want to defend them in a way I don't, say, Mezco. I guess I just think it's cool that we have a community here devoted to an obscure brand of minifigure, and it just bums me out when we're overly negative. I do feel that Minimates is on the decline, and that if TRU's closure wasn't the nail in the coffin the looming trade war will be, so every release is something to celebrate, even if it's not exactly how we'd like it to be.

[luke314pi]

13 hours ago, Nessex said:

@luke314pi - this set is *such* an awesome exclusive. I know it's early days, but do you think this is the kind of deal you might be able to do with DST for future waves that include an army builder? (assuming the Madrox sets sell well).

Yes, and I feel like I should give some context here on how this exclusive happened. We have been wanting to do a new Marvel exclusive for a long time, but the 3000 minimum order quantity was always a stopping point for us - it's just too many for us to sell. We were able to sell 1800 out of the 3000 units of our Deadly Foes exclusive, and had to sell the rest back to Diamond to be offered to comic shops and other specialty stores. I reached out to my Diamond sales rep to see if there was any way for us to get a lower production run. He talked to DST, who said the only way that could work is if it was producing more of the exact same figure that was already set for production in a different set. I asked Zach back in January about any upcoming possibilities, and he told me about Series 78 and that Multiple Man was one of the characters. Zach got Chuck's blessing on an exclusive Multiple Man 2 set for us, and my Diamond sales rep took care of the rest. I really appreciate Zach and Chuck helping to make this set happen for our store. We are hoping to be able to offer this same type of release for future army builders, but no guarantees. We have gotten a lot of requests for a 2-pack like this for past army builders, like AIM agents, but unfortunately that is not a possibility unless DST re-releases them as part of a wave or box set in the future.

[Mysterious Stranger]

On 5/24/2019 at 9:22 AM, luke314pi said:

No, only the one head. We tried to get alternate expressions for the 2-pack, but we would have had to order 3000 instead of 500, which was too many for us. We are very happy to be able to have gotten these 500.

So... mini sticker set of some alternate expressions?

[luke314pi]

1 hour ago, Mysterious Stranger said:

So... mini sticker set of some alternate expressions?

Possibly! 

[MisterMiracle]

On 5/25/2019 at 2:13 PM, hellpop said:

Saying things like "I don't like these pairings so I'm not buying them" adds nothing to the conversation. But sure, if you want Minimates to die, keep nitpicking.

So, that first comment was directed at me.  I have to disagree with you on that in that I do think it adds something to the conversation.  Look, I love Minimates and I've been collecting them for YEARS...it's just getting harder and harder to justify buying them.  I never said anything about wanting Minimates to die but personally it's a little annoying to have to buy an entire wave just to get the few figures that I'm actually interested in.  Especially now that you can't even find these in stores and you have to pay additional shipping costs on top of having to purchase two sets instead of just one.  We're talking what...almost $25 after it's all said and done for two figures that are maybe slighter better versions of figures I already own?  

I feel like X-Men fans aren't necessarily X-Factor fans but X-Factor fans are probably X-Men fans so you can get away with different pairings and probably sell even more sets since the people that just want the X-Men characters could just buy the set they want and then the X-Factor fans would still buy an entire wave anyways to build their precious Strong Man.

Edited May 29, 2019 by MisterMiracle

[stack32]

While they obviously packed these the way they did to maximize sales I suspect it never occurred to DST that anyone would have a problem with it. I'm a little surprised myself.

[Heinous]

I don't need Jean or Scott, but I definitely want the BAF. So I'd be buying them all regardless 

@DSTZach have we seen all the accessories for this wave? Just the effects for Polaris and Havok? 

[Shanester]

Thanks to the DST guys, especially Chuck and Zach, for making this happen for us fans.

[Mystery Man]

Absolutely fantastic!

I’m delighted that Luke, Zach and Chuck made this happen!

[Polarboy]

Time goes by so slowly 

[MisterPL]

On 5/26/2019 at 1:44 PM, Zak Katz said:

I came back to see how things are going. Nothing has really changed. Life’s to short to argue over nothing. I hope everyone is well.

 

It was nice to see a few names are still active. Hey PL!

Barely active!

(Hey, Zak!)

[CortherX]

I feel like I dont really need the original team as I have the first X-Factor box set (minus Angel, of course) I might just replace the first X-Factor set with this one. I'll have to see them side by side first 

[thereasonsy]

On 5/26/2019 at 9:04 AM, Ronan The Accuser said:

 

That's a pretty weak point considering how hard they are to find at any Walgreens. They may be top 20 in overall sales but that ranking wasn't earned on the merits of how they handle minimates. Their distribution is terrible at best.

To the point of the thread, I ordered a set and the extra Multiple Man 2 pack. I can't wait to see them in September! While I normally don't feel the need for multiple Madrox, having 3 for this grouping of the 90's team feels right. Plus I wanted to support the exclusive 2 pack in hopes of getting more in the future.

Looking forward to more comic waves!

Look I appreciate that there are distribution problems but I am exhausted with the narrative that minimates are dying. They have had far worse years. This deal with Luke is extremely positive and I really hope it sells out quickly to justify more deals like this in the future. 

I cannot wait for these toys to come out! I have wanted them for years and am thrilled to see them. It’s also the first poseable Jean in her red costume ever! 

[Trekker 42]

1 hour ago, thereasonsy said:

Look I appreciate that there are distribution problems but I am exhausted with the narrative that minimates are dying. They have had far worse years. This deal with Luke is extremely positive and I really hope it sells out quickly to justify more deals like this in the future. 

I cannot wait for these toys to come out! I have wanted them for years and am thrilled to see them. It’s also the first poseable Jean in her red costume ever! 

God have they ever had worse years. Remember that New Avengers wave? At least minimates tend to actually be a quality product now. 

[Mattallica]

4 hours ago, thereasonsy said:

Look I appreciate that there are distribution problems but I am exhausted with the narrative that minimates are dying. They have had far worse years. This deal with Luke is extremely positive and I really hope it sells out quickly to justify more deals like this in the future.

[buttheadsmate]

The narrative that Minimates are dying hasn't really been discussed (enough or constructively) here IMVHO .   I think I'm a tad more prepared for their ending than most purely because I'm probably  the oldest member on the forum & perhaps the most cynical . I'd love to discuss the 'end is nigh' re: Minimates in a constructive manner in a separate thread but .......

Talking about the 'end' of Minimates  is not the same as wanting their 'end' .   

 

[WookieFodder]

Walter Kovacs minimate, put down that sign!

[Mattallica]

9 hours ago, buttheadsmate said:

.....Talking about the 'end' of Minimates  is not the same as wanting their 'end' .   

 

Excellent point.

I have been buying/a fan of Minimates since i first bought the Kiss and LOTR ones at Spencers gifts and the Marvel 5 packs at TRU way back in  the day so i   will deeply miss MMs when they are gone, and am not encouraging their demise. it  just that it seems more and more likely based on bad decisions by DST and the market in general

IMO theres Nothing wrong with talking about that rather than burying ones head in the sand, Hell maybe  talking can promote better practices and help MMs endure that much longer.

[PrinceCuseCuse]

Awe man, I'm gonna be so sad when Minimates come to end! I'm not ready for it. ?

[MisterMiracle]

2 hours ago, Mattallica said:

I have been buying/a fan of Minimates since i first bought the Kiss and LOTR ones at Spencers gifts and the Marvel 5 packs at TRU way back in  the day so i  will deeply miss MMs when they are gone, and am not encouraging their demise. it  just that it seems more and more likely based on bad decisions by DST and the market in general

IMO theres Nothing wrong with talking about that rather than burying ones head in the sand, Hell maybe  talking can promote better practices and help MMs endure that much longer.

100% agree.

My first memories of Minimates date back to seeing the LOTR figures and the DC C3 stuff at Media Play. I eventually went all in and started collecting these back in 2006 with Marvel 13.  I have a huge collection after 13 years.  I love these things as much as everyone else on here but I've noticed my Minimates purchases have greatly decreased over the past two years which is probably not a good sign if other hardcore collectors have been slowing down too.

[Turtle]

The end is nigh thread.  So we can leave this thread to discussing the awesomeness of a 90s X-Factor wave.  

[Nessex]

On 5/29/2019 at 3:27 AM, Mysterious Stranger said:

So... mini sticker set of some alternate expressions?

 

On 5/29/2019 at 4:51 AM, luke314pi said:

Possibly! 

Ah - if this requires additional sets to be bought in order to make this happen, just say the number! LOL