Monday, September 26, 2011

New Masters of the Universe and the Fate of the Ghostbusters

POWERCON was this past weekend, celebrating all things Masters of the Universe and Thundercats in the LA area for all 16 of you rabid fans out there. WOO! (I kid) Mattel took the opportunity to show off some sexy new medieval/futuristic warriors and released pics of them today. Here's the skinny...

"Traveling Convention" Figure: Temple of Darkness Sorceress®
This is an all-white redeco of the Sorceress, as she was shown in the vintage mini-comic "The Temple of Darkness." She'll arrive with her white magic staff and new Orb of Grayskull™ stand (the Orb itself was included with our King Grayskull® figure in fall 2010). This Sorceress will be our 2012 "traveling convention" figure, much like the three JLU 3-packs are for 2011. We haven't locked down the itinerary yet, but we expect NYCC and Power-Con to be two of the shows we attend in 2012. Any unsold units of this special redeco of the Sorceress will be sold on Mattycollector.com in late fall 2012, but you can get her first at Mattel's traveling shows! (P.S. She will not be sold at SDCC or in any subscription.)


April Club Eternia® Figure: Stinkor®
It's the henchman with stench, man! This servant to Skeletor® really smells just like the vintage toy (think patchouli with a little extra sumpin' sumpin'). Comes with two interchangeable heads, backpack, shield and all-new blaster. Included with 2012 Club Eternia subscriptions.



April Club Eternia® "Oversized" Beast: Griffin
Take to the skies with the evil winged steed of Beast Man® and reign terror throughout the light hemisphere! Based on the Battle Cat® buck (new head, rear legs, neck, saddle, head and tail), this new beast is the perfect choice for sending wicked warriors soaring into battle. Included with 2012 Club Eternia subscriptions.


April Non-Subscription Item: Snake Mountain® Stands
Can't stand your evil warriors? Here's your chance to get them in fighting position with this great non-sub item featuring reconfigurable base and rock spikes.



May Club Eternia® Figure: Slush Head™
The evil goon squad member from the Tri Solar System enters the MattyCollector.com universe at long last. Another great mutant warrior to add to your collection, Slush Head comes complete with arm tentacles, axe and removable head dome you can really fill up with water! Included with 2012 Club Eternia subscriptions.



May MOTU 30th Anniversary Series Figure: The Mighty Spector
Created by our very own Toy Guru, Scott Neitlich, from a childhood sketch, The Mighty Spector is the heroic master of Time Travel. He’s an undercover agent ready to serve the royal household any time, any place. Comes complete with blaster and swapable laser whip/knife (not shown). Included with 2012 MOTU 30th Anniversary Series subscriptions.

Mattel has announced that figures purchased day of sale (AKA rotten dirty cherry pickers) will cost more than figures included with subscription purchases to Club Eternia and the 30th Anniversary series. Many fans see this as a shake down as prices climb on figures already fairly expensive ($20 a pop plush shipping!) and though the Griffin will be snapped up eagerly alongside Stinkor, I'm not sure these announcements are going to do much to boost those subscription sign ups. For me personally, I've got most of the characters I was hoping would be released with my subscription purchase this year and don't feel a great urge to own all of She-Ra's Skittle colored pals (though I will be buying Swift Wind. Don't judge. THE LADY HAS TO RIDE SOMETHING!!) or a guy with a camera for a head (his name is Fearless Photog. I shit you not.) I'll admit Demon-Man and Draego-Man are pretty sweet, but with no retro context to pull on my heart strings, the bump up in price may force me to decide I don't need them for my collection.




Speaking of subscriptions, I also did not re-up my sub for Ghostbusters this year, even though it is one of my favorite movies. I had expectations of 6 inch action figures of the key ghosts and demons from both films in this line, but Mattel continually releases the Ghostbusters themselves with their somewhat annoying smiley faces atop different bodies and swapping in accessories that should probably be in every release (like a proton stream, ya know?!) Ghosts have been packed in with these figures, but to cut costs they are undersized and underwhelming. Many fans may share my thinking, as numbers on this coming year's subscription have forced a cancellation.



Ghostbusters™ Fans,

You know how much love the Matty team has for Ghostbusters, and although we were ready to support a subscription in 2012, sales were lower than we expected. We regret to announce that we have to cancel the 2012 Club Ecto-1 subscription. All 2012 orders will be promptly refunded. If you purchased a 2012 subscription, you should see the refund in your account within 5-7 business days of your refund being processed, depending on your bank. All 2011 subscriptions will continue to ship as scheduled.

Like you, we're disappointed that the subscription will be going away for 2012, but to show our appreciation for you fans who stepped up and bought a 2012 subscription, we're working on a "thank you" just for you. Stay tuned as we'll have something special coming for you in appreciation for your support.

Please know that the Ghostbusters line isn't over! To do right by all Ghostbusters fans, we're still moving forward with the previously announced figures for 2012 (Ready to Believe You Peter with Taxi Cab Ghost, The Rookie, Dana as Zuul) and a fourth figure in the fall, to be announced. These figures will be available at our regular monthly sales. Like our other lines, costs have risen since the brand was launched and the price of the 6" figures will increase to $22 each.

Now on to brighter news. In celebration of the boo bustin' boys' favorite time of the year, we're going to re-release some of your favorite figures during a special Ghostbusters Halloween sale. The sale will run from 10/17 through 10/31, and it's the perfect time to fill in any missing characters in your collection and stock up on favorites. But wait… yes, there's more! Not only will we have a great selection of characters, the October 17 sale will also bring the long-awaited Ghost Trap prop, plus the return of the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man!

Again, on behalf of the team, thanks for being a loyal fan. Long live the Ghostbusters!

—Matty

Honestly, Mattel would be a lot easier to love if their mascot wasn't a giant head that looks like it is mocking you for buying their toys.

Note: MOTU pics from the Mattycollector Facebook, credit to whom ever they might have been re-posted from, as is the nature of the FBooks.

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