TOY HUNTER Returns April 10th. SEASON TWO STARTS WITH A BANG!

[toys2cool]

Love the wonder bread he-man..I've owned 3 and hated to give them up..

[B-Lister]

I have vague memories of the super hero cards that came with bread - I seem to recall stickers too.
Boy, that was a long time ago ;-)

Funny thing about the show (for me at least) is when I watch and see something like that, I immediately want to run to the Internet and start buying the stuff.

I have some of the Superhero bread stickers. Will have my extras at MEGO Meet!

[Mr. Hollywood]

I have to wonder if Jordan peed in someone's coffee over at TNI. No idea why such much anger at him.

error....sorry

[Hector]

Which giggling guy? The big bald guy who jumps up and down over the Boba Fett? Yeah, that guy can turn anyone into Ogre from Revenge of the Nerds.

He's the real life 40 year old virgin.

[Hector]

I only have one complaint about the show: That guy that jumps and down like a nut in the opening credits. He makes us all look bad. I'd like to see him go. That's my only quibble.

Chris

He comes out as annoying and creepy as hell, I'm with most everyone here, I'd like to slap him a couple of times as well, lol. I'd take out that scene during the opening segment for sure, he scares kids, seriously, lol.

[The Nawd]

Forget kids. He scares me!

[ZMOQ]

Hi Jordan,

After watching the first season of "Toy Hunter" and watching the second season in-progress, I have a few comments and questions.

Question:

In this day and age of ebay and instant communications, did you ever encounter someone who wouldn't sell you a toy after finding out (from you) how valuable it is? So, instead of selling it to you for 50-60% of its sale value, they decided to sell it themselves on, say ebay?

What works:
The background and history of the toys that you find in people's attic.

Watching you dig through plastic bins and cardboard boxes and see you uncover something of amazing rarity and value that the owner had absolutely no clue about.

Episodes where you have a client who knows specifically what they want, and then you go hunting to get it. When the buyer is united with a part of their long-lost childhood, it's a joy to behold. I enjoy watching the looks on their faces when they finally get what they've been wanting.


What doesn't work:
Buying rare vintage toys from serious specialty collectors who keep their toys locked in glass cases, and already know the market value of their toy. So, they'd sell it to you for 80%-90% of the market value and you'd go and sell it to a random person at an auction house. That just isn't very interesting to watch- there's no thrill of the hunt and no joy in discovery. It just looks like buying and selling stock at that point.

Celebrity clients (*ahem* Gene Simmons) who aren't clear nor specific about what they want ("Surprise me") and you end up on a wild goose chase hunting for stuff that you think they want, and fronting your own money for items that they may or may not have and may or may not even want. At the end of the episode, he finally said that he wanted one-of-a-kind prototypes. Now why didn't he say so at the start?

[CrimsonGhost]

Celebrity clients (*ahem* Gene Simmons) who aren't clear nor specific about what they want ("Surprise me") and you end up on a wild goose chase hunting for stuff that you think they want, and fronting your own money for items that they may or may not have and may or may not even want. At the end of the episode, he finally said that he wanted one-of-a-kind prototypes. Now why didn't he say so at the start?

I got a completely different vibe from that. It seemed to me that Gene was testing how good Jordan was at finding obscure items and put no parameters on him. Gene is the kind of guy that thinks big so he probably likes to deal with people that are like-minded. Jordan passed the test with the vintage van, but his thinking still wasn't big enough. Seriously, I'm betting there's almost nothing that was mass produced that Gene doesn't have. One of a kind prototypes would be about the only thing that would be difficult for Gene to locate.

Of course, reality shows are somewhat staged, so who knows how things went down behind the scenes.

[VintageMike]

People selling on the show are portrayed differently than those who sell on Ebay. Basically these people have a ton of stuff and are looking get quick cash and free up space.
They might make more selling on Ebay but it would be very time consuming.

[mvanis]

From my experience, a lot of people are afraid/don't want to mess with/don't know how/etc. to use eBay. In other cases, folks that I buy things from either are in a bind and need cash, or they got a great deal on something, and are looking to make a few bucks to free up cash for the next deal, some are completely clueless what they have, and others think they have absolute gold (like a 3 limb chewbacca with chew marks on his face or something) and need to be talked down a bit.

To each their own, I suppose. Sometimes I feel like eBay (even with it's issues) can be easier than dealing with people directly (just not as fun)- local folks who REALLY want something but don't have the cash for 'a few weeks' or want some insanely low price. The one thing I like about eBay is- if you price it right it will sell, if not it won't (on BINs) if you want to take a gamble, you post it as an auction and wait and see what happens.

I guess my point is, there are PLENTY of folks out there who refuse to touch eBay for whatever reason- there are also plenty of collectors out there who have no problem selling on eBay, they know what their items are worth, and just have no desire to sell it at 60% of value. Obviously price scales are a bit different- I'm sure Jordan has no problem paying a higher percentage of value for an item if he knows he can turn it and still make a few hundred- it's a hell of a lot easier than buying tubs full of $5 pieces.

[boynightwing]

I'm finally getting to see this show. It's on OLN here in Canada (Outdoor life network). Which I find funny only because a lot of comics and toy people are "indoor cats". The ones I know anyway...

I'm really enjoying it. There was a marathon of the first season on yesterday for the long weekend.

Keep up the good work!

[Byrnes]

Every time they show that dude my wife says "there's your people".

I really wish I hadn't told my wife about this. She laughs and says it all the time now. I told her I was gonna be at Denver Comic Con next weekend and she's like "gonna go visit YOUR PEOPLE". Me "shut up". Her "haha I need to have a beer with her, that's the best line ever".

Anyway, Jordan any plans to be at Denver Comic Con on May 31st, June 1st or 2nd?

[PNGwynne]

Hey Jordan. I think it would be fascinating to add Big Jim to one of your episodes. That figure line has such a rich history not only in America, but as a much broader line overseas. I think that would find broad appeal in every country your show is broadcast in. That would be very cool. Just my two cents.

I couldn't agree more .

[Den82]

How is Sellersville Auction in actuality? I love the look of those loose figure box lots. Don't care too much for the MIB high end stuff.

[Vinny0026]

I guess my point is, there are PLENTY of folks out there who refuse to touch eBay for whatever reason- there are also plenty of collectors out there who have no problem selling on eBay, they know what their items are worth, and just have no desire to sell it at 60% of value. Obviously price scales are a bit different- I'm sure Jordan has no problem paying a higher percentage of value for an item if he knows he can turn it and still make a few hundred- it's a hell of a lot easier than buying tubs full of $5 pieces.

I agree with you - I know most of us find this hard to believe - but a lot of people have no clue on how to use ebay. That goes for both buying and selling.


But besides that - I happen to really like the show - I like to believe that I know a lot about toys - but when he throws out some history on the products or companies I do not know about I find it to be very interesting.

I was shocked last night when they mentioned the world fair that there was no mention at all that Disneys "its a small world and I believe pirates" were both originally from there. I'm guessing they did not want to or could not use that history or the word "disney" on the show for some reason. I just thought with all the history they give on the show that would have been a golden opp. to mention some great Disney history. Most people have no clue that info.