Hasbro Q&A
Posted by: Beedo Sookcool 05.28.08 12:01am
Wa tetu dat uta, gang! Okay, I was a bit naughty this week. I used TWO of my own questions this week, because I really, REALLY wanted to find out if my The Force Unleashed troopers would one day get accurate weapons and kit. But, I like to think I ask some questions that other people besides me want the answers to, so that soothed my limelight-hogging guilt a little bit. Anywho, before we begin, here’s a PSA from the Hasbro Dudes:

From the Star Wars brand team: We have noticed on some boards that some collectors are deciding to wait until the Target-exclusive Order 66 sets go on sale before pouncing. This year, Target has advised us that the order 66 sets will not go on sale when they come off the checklane endcaps and will extend at regular pricing in the planogram. We think that those fans waiting may be disappointed when the ones they want sell out. If there are certain army builders or characters that collectors had their eyes on, they might not want to wait…

And now, on with the questioning . . . .

CreatureCantina.com: The advances in your soft goods production over the last couple of years is pretty darned impressive, the 30th Anniversary Spirit of Anakin Skywalker being a particularly nice piece. Any chance we’d see similar rehashes of the Spirits of Obi-Wan and Yoda, based on their ROTS Pilot and VOTC bodies, respectively? Or some more equally super-poseable characters with shimmery soft goods done in light blue, so we can have some seated holographic Jedi Council members, for example? Also, have you given thought to using either the Sith Speeder Bike or Sith Accessory Pack Darth Maul robe templates (with slightly modified sleeves) for future releases of The Emperor? Those two robes seem to lie pretty well on the Evolutions Palpatine figure, the hoods especially.

- Beedo Sookcool, staff writer and unflagging proponent of soft-goods

Hasbro: Thanks for the comments. We really like the way Spirit of Anakin turned out too and hope down the road to apply that to more spirit figures. While they are not in the lineup yet, there is a very good chance you will see them someday. Interesting thought on the holo figures and getting sitting versions. Thanks.

CC: Can we have some new Admirals? More specifically, a new Ackbar and Piett with that lovely accurate sculpting and superb articulation Hasbro has been delivering since VOTC? Pretty Please?

- Steve “Solo” Rensi, staff writer and commander in need of better officers

H: The chances are pretty good you will see updates on both of these guys, although they won’t be in the short-term time frame.

CC: Okay, so I’m getting greedy with two of my own questions in one week, but I have to ask this while it’s still fresh in my mind. I remember reading in another Q&A session a while back that accessory packs might be making a comeback. Just a thought: might this not be a good venue for putting out the weapons that were to listed on the “Force Unleashed” figures’ bios, but you were unable to include due to developmental delays on the game, such as an attachable Jumptrooper jetpack and rail launcher, EVO Trooper flechette launcher, & And howzabout possibly some weapons from other “Star Wars” shoot-’em-ups, like the whacking huge Stouker Concussion Rifle, Tenloss Disruptor Rifle, PLX-2M Missile Launcher (and so on and so forth at great length) from the “Jedi Knight” series?

- Beedo Sookcool, staff writer and in need of some more WMDs. (Please don’t tell George Bush or Tony Blair.)

H: Actually, we hate to burst the bubble, but accessory packs are not on the horizon. You might have heard some discussion about adding in packs of Clone weapons (existing, from the Battlefront II Clone Trooper set) in with the Saga Legends figures, or our stated desire to add some interesting new accessories to the Battle Pack lineup over time (rather than pretty much a figure-focus as it has been). In either case, the weapons you suggest are interesting and make for possibilities the next time we get a chance to address those characters again, or look at new weapons possibilities.

Well, drat. If they would’ve made an accessory pack like that, I would’ve bought at least eight of the blighters myself to equip my squads. Oh, well, on the upside: possibly more swishy clothing and definitely more bossy military people! Yay! And at least I found one thing out without having to use up an allotted question to ask the Hasbro team: the “MF” in “BMF” stands for Millennium Falcon. So online references to “BMF Millennium Falcon” in Rebelscum’s forums were merely tautological, and nowhere near as rude as I’d thought. That’ll teach me to have a filthy mind. Until next time, folks, keep your hot side hot, and your cool side cool.

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