MEGO Gandalf

[Adam West]

I haven't seen anything posted here yet about the long awaited Gandalf figure and saw that it was available for preorder on EE. I then went to BBTS and it is available for preorder there as well.

[CrimsonGhost]

Good luck with that.

[palitoy]

Yeah, I'm thinking Gandalph may be in limbo.

[enyawd72]

That's one area I really wish Mego would address. They really haven't committed to completing any one series of figures.
They're just kind of all over the place. I mean, it has to hurt sales of the other figures in each series.

Still no regular Kirk, McCoy, or Scotty for TOS Trek. Two LOTR characters...what is anyone supposed to do with those? Pretty hard to make a LOTR display with only two figures.
Gandalf, Frodo, Saruman, and Gollum would make for a nice six figure collection that at least feels somewhat complete.
I wish they would focus on just two or three licenses at a time and see them through to completion, or at least a minimum of the main characters.

[CrimsonGhost]

But if Aragorn and Legolas stiff on the shelves, it’s not worth it to make 6 more figures that will likely also stiff.

I think at this point, “lines” of figures are passé. This is such a niche market that committing to more than a couple figures at a time is too much of a risk monetarily.

[palitoy]

I know the approach is perplexing to collectors because we're used to waves but it's kind of wise from a start-up perspective. They're trying to grow a figure format and they don't have the history or shelf space of a Hasbro or a Mattel (or the back end dollars to make certain things happen) so they take the "Funko Pop" approach and each wave has some differing genres in there. What sells, they renew what doesn't, gets left by the wayside.

If Mego had thrown all of their money on a huge wave of LOTR, it could have seriously hurt their ability to get more figures to stores.

[sprytel]

If they put out Gandalf and Frodo and Gollum and they didn't sell, I'd agree. Those are the Fonzies of the line. If they don't sell, then nothing will sell.

But Aragorn and Legolas are the Happy Days Gang figures of that franchise. I suspect a lot of collectors took the attitude of "maybe... let's see how Gandalf looks" before diving in. Especially with the uncertainty that any more figures would follow.

[enyawd72]

But if Aragorn and Legolas stiff on the shelves, it’s not worth it to make 6 more figures that will likely also stiff.

I think at this point, “lines” of figures are passé. This is such a niche market that committing to more than a couple figures at a time is too much of a risk monetarily.

I disagree. When you only offer a partial series without a commitment to finishing it, that's WHY they're still sitting on shelves. Those two figures alone are absolutely worthless from a play or display standpoint.
If they're going to pay for these licenses, then DO something with them. You wouldn't make TWO of the Three Stooges and expect people to buy them knowing they won't ever get the third. If they can afford to keep paying for more licenses like Candyman, Jeepers Creepers, Silence of the Lambs, etc. they can afford to make more characters with the licenses they already paid for. The entire direction of the company seems extremely haphazard and unfocused. I cannot believe they wouldn't have sold more Gollum or Gandalfs than Hannibal Lecter.

[enyawd72]

If they put out Gandalf and Frodo and Gollum and they didn't sell, I'd agree. Those are the Fonzies of the line. If they don't sell, then nothing will sell.

But Aragorn and Legolas are the Happy Days Gang figures of that franchise. I suspect a lot of collectors took the attitude of "maybe... let's see how Gandalf looks" before diving in. Especially with the uncertainty that any more figures would follow.

Bingo. That's exactly why I didn't buy them. What good are those two by themselves?

[CrimsonGhost]

I disagree. When you only offer a partial series without a commitment to finishing it, that's WHY they're still sitting on shelves. Those two figures alone are absolutely worthless from a play or display standpoint.
If they're going to pay for these licenses, then DO something with them. You wouldn't make TWO of the Three Stooges and expect people to buy them knowing they won't ever get the third. If they can afford to keep paying for more licenses like Candyman, Jeepers Creepers, Silence of the Lambs, etc. they can afford to make more characters with the licenses they already paid for. The entire direction of the company seems extremely haphazard and unfocused. I cannot believe they wouldn't have sold more Gollum or Gandalfs than Hannibal Lecter.

Of course you wouldn’t make two of the Three Stooges. That’s a ridiculous comparison.

[enyawd72]

Of course you wouldn’t make two of the Three Stooges. That’s a ridiculous comparison.

Is it? You wouldn't make Spock without regular Kirk and McCoy either but there you go.

[CrimsonGhost]

Is it? You wouldn't make Spock without regular Kirk and McCoy either but there you go.

Haha! Eh, maybe. The thing about Trek guys is they’re not going anywhere.

[LonnieFisher]

Who wants random figures that will never have other figures to compliment them? Monster figures don't really need something to go with them, but Sci-Fi seem to need to. Who wants three figures from a movie that should have ten figures made from it? The Star Trek original series had a Gorn, but no Kirk to match the look from the episode he was on. There is not much play value to figures that don't go together, I'd say. Hannibal and no Clarice? What's the point? Rocky and no opponent? Why? Regan and no Priest? It's easy to stop buying if you are a completest and there is nothing to complete.

[CrimsonGhost]

That has always confused me. Is my POTA collection incomplete because there’s no Taylor or Nova or is it complete because I have all the figures that were released?

This is an honest question. If you’re a completest, isn’t pretty much every line incomplete on some level?

[monitor_ep]

Well I can tell you the Walmarts I shop at (7) they have plenty of Picard figures sitting on the shelves. So I do not think I will ever see another STNG figure released.