I got the TFA one when it came out with all the 3D printed parts, but sold it once we found out that the TLJ one had fixed the mirrored sidewalls issue. I don't think I'll get the TROS one, as I just can't justify it.
SB
Bandai release schedule
- Thread starter TazMan2000
- Start date
I got the TFA one when it came out with all the 3D printed parts, but sold it once we found out that the TLJ one had fixed the mirrored sidewalls issue. I don't think I'll get the TROS one, as I just can't justify it.
SB
I did the same thing but never opened them. Heh. I'll just sale them and use that money to get the TROS one.
Just found the new Falcon for pre-order, on ebay.
Correction: It's in stock, it seems.
BANDAI Star Wars Millennium Falcon (der Aufstieg Skywalker) 1/144 Maßstab 581952 | eBay
Finden Sie Top-Angebote für BANDAI Star Wars Millennium Falcon (der Aufstieg Skywalker) 1/144 Maßstab 581952 bei eBay. Kostenlose Lieferung für viele Artikel!
www.ebay.de
Correction: It's in stock, it seems.
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Just found the new Falcon for pre-order, on ebay.
BANDAI Star Wars Millennium Falcon (der Aufstieg Skywalker) 1/144 Maßstab 581952 | eBay
Finden Sie Top-Angebote für BANDAI Star Wars Millennium Falcon (der Aufstieg Skywalker) 1/144 Maßstab 581952 bei eBay. Kostenlose Lieferung für viele Artikel!www.ebay.de
Correction: It's in stock, it seems.
Hmm, I would be suspect. Bandai doesn't usually release their kits until the last couple of days of the month.
Hunk a Junk
Sr Member
Looks like there's also a new open panel on the port rear quarter next to the engine deck.
...It's also Force Friday today...
Speaking of which, this is the first year Revell has had NOTHING for Force Friday. They had kits for Force Awakens, Rogue One, Last Jedi, and Solo. But not Rise of Skywalker.
CT1138
Sr Member
I didn't want to believe it, but it's kinda staring me in the face. Disney has done the impossible - they've killed SW merchandising.
Let Star Wars merchandising die, kill it, if you have to.
Again, sorry, I can't help myself.
Part of me would say this is hyperbolic, but after reading numerous reports of this morning's Force Friday push, I might be inclined to agree. When Force Awakens came out, Force Friday was a HUGE event of merchandising.
This morning, I'm reading about several Walmarts and Targets who hadn't even put stuff out yet. Pallets just sitting in the back or some that didn't have merchandise whatsoever. Of course some places have stuff, but it's decidedly not even close to as big as previous Force Fridays.
Analyzer
Master Member
Don't forget, Revell went through some major downsizing after they were sold when the parent Hobbico went bankrupt
The deal to distribute Bandai is probably the only kits we are likely to see. I don't think their Rogue One or Last Jedi kits were exactly flying off the shelves
Likewise, I don't think the Hasbro stuff was moving that much as Walmart always seemed to have a lot sitting around as well
I think it's a combo of things.
Kids these days do not really seem to be into the merchandising (as far as action figures/models) but I think Legos do better in that regard. Plus I don't think Star Wars is the game changing thing it was back in the 70s and 80s.
There is so much content now and so much special effects that Star Wars as a franchise can no longer rely on being the groundbreaking forerunner that everyone wants to follow. It is no longer "special" in the sea of Marvel, Harry Potter etc...
I hate to say it, but I suspect most sales these past few years are from adults who collect, or are trying to get their kids into it
The deal to distribute Bandai is probably the only kits we are likely to see. I don't think their Rogue One or Last Jedi kits were exactly flying off the shelves
Likewise, I don't think the Hasbro stuff was moving that much as Walmart always seemed to have a lot sitting around as well
I think it's a combo of things.
Kids these days do not really seem to be into the merchandising (as far as action figures/models) but I think Legos do better in that regard. Plus I don't think Star Wars is the game changing thing it was back in the 70s and 80s.
There is so much content now and so much special effects that Star Wars as a franchise can no longer rely on being the groundbreaking forerunner that everyone wants to follow. It is no longer "special" in the sea of Marvel, Harry Potter etc...
I hate to say it, but I suspect most sales these past few years are from adults who collect, or are trying to get their kids into it
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Someone on SSM said that they think they are holding things back because of spoilers. I say the designs of the Sequels have been dreadful so there aren't any ships/vehicles people want to build models of.
SawbonesAdmiral
Active Member
Speak for yourself; I've been waiting for the Silencer and a 1:144 AT-M6 for years now.
robn1
Master Member
Fixed
monsterpartyhat
Sr Member
Hasbro stated that what they revealed so far was only about 30-35% of what they're making for TROS, and the rest is being held back to avoid spoilers. That means twice as much stuff as has already been revealed is yet to come. It's entirely possible that goes for other licensees as well.
It's an interesting strategy, because with the film coming out only 5 days before Christmas it's going to kill their Christmas sales of all that merch, so it's risky. Interesting times.
That's why attacking those adults for whatever reason was moronic on their part.
but I slightly disagree with you. Yes, you're right that kids are more into Marvell or digital stuff than SW. BUT that's disney who decided sold all rights for SW games to EA (deal for a whole decade and they just make only three games, two of them being controversial for inclusion of gacha, hazard-like mechanics with real money; Also, they were both strip out of content and not really good) and made four medicore and/or divisive movies and one attrocious show for kids that lasted only two seasons. If they only put more effort into it and plan anthing things might looked better (every intrview with Johnson and Abrams I saw, even the recent ones, clearly stated that they had opposite visions what to do with trilogy), because let's be real - marvell movies arent really that great (and some of them, like the first Thor, are outright boring), but the man behind them has at least vision for the universe, he's trying to do his characters justice and proudly incorporate source material into the movies instead of throwing everything into the trash bin like KK did.
that's probably dineys fault, not their own decision.
Hunk a Junk
Sr Member
We're really only 2 years into the "Disney ruins everything" era. Prior to TLJ, we were in the "Disney knows how to do Star Wars right, thank god George Lucas retired" era. If TROS is a good movie, we'll be in another era and fans will create some new narrative to bring order and balance to their universe. Bottom line is this: If the movie is good, people buy stuff. If it isn't, they don't. Disney knows this. They know what TLJ did to sales and they know it carried over to tank Solo. So they're being cautious. The last thing they want right now are stories in the media about large quantities of Force Friday merch sitting unsold on shelves while people wait to see if the movie sucks. Basically, everything is riding on JJ. If he makes another TFA, everyone's happy again. If he makes another Into Darkness, all bets are off. Given that Disney just parachuted Kevin Feige in to supervise a Star Wars movie, that's a pretty clear sign the studio is nervous. But we'll know in December.
I just wish the people calling the shots were a little more knowledgeable about the various merch categories than they seem to be. Like, getting that one company (Bandai) is becoming preferred over another (Revell) when it comes to serious modelers, and why. Or Hasbro maybe not diffusing their action figure lines with all those scales. Just stick with the one that redefined the entire industry back in 1978. I'll accept different "trim levels" -- basic for the kiddies and highly detailed and articulated for the adult collectors -- but if you release a character in one, do it in the other, too. Bonus points for realistic versions of animated characters in addition to the animated style. Tighten down the accuracy and playability of everything from the action figure vehicles to the play accessories like lightsabers and blasters. They don't have to be Nerf crossovers.
And so on and so on. We're going through a messy transitional period, where fewer 10-and-unders are playing with action figures and/or building models. As long as the economy stays broken, I expect that trend to continue, for various reasons. I don't expect action figures or model kits to die. Even if the big companies stupid themselves out of producing them, there will still be garage kits and Etsy sellers (or the less-abusive successor{s} to Etsy). This is where the companies that have lasted so long need to be smarter than I see them being, or they'll end up like Sears rather than Amazon.
Bandai know there's a huge market for their model kits over here. Even if a lower percentage of the American population builds models, the total is still vastly greater than their home market. But they also can't alienate that. They know what we want -- we certainly haven't shut up about it over the last forty years. Highly detailed and accurate models in as consistent a scale as possible. 1:72 is kind of a universal standard for aircraft. So it makes sense to release all the Rebel and Imperial fighters in that scale. So why do we have the oddball of the U-Wing in only 1:144 and smaller? I know they could find a way to do those wings on runners that would fit one of their standard boxes at 1:72. Why is the Bandai Spirit Sandtrooper figure kit only available in Japan? Why are their so many Figuarts releases that haven't made their way to the figure kits? The Mimban Stormtrooper would be exactly as difficult as the Stormtrooper/Sandtrooper thing -- one black and one white runner of the basic shared pieces, one runner of the Mimban-specific bits, one runner of backpack pieces.
I think it's smart to wait to see how well a given installment is received before deciding how much to make, but I feel like the number should never be zero. Even if the movie was sub-par, model-builders will still find designs they want to build. The Prequels are still woefully under-served. To say nothing of Clone Wars, Rebels, and Resistance. Or even wildly popular video games. Republic Commandos, Range Troopers, V-Wing starfighters, Z-95s, TIE Reapers, ROTS Jedi starfighters, Captain Rex, clone armor Obi-Wan, LAAT/i gunships, ESB AT-ST... People respond to interesting designs. If they're put out there. Half the things I ask about (and end up special-ordering through) my LHS they hadn't heard of -- and they're pretty dialed-in on the industry.
And LFL/Disney need to get a little more draconian with squabbling license-holders. Let Bandai have standing figures in their 1:72 kits. It is not competition for the MicroMachines market. Many, maybe most, who want one won't want the other, regardless of the other's existence... or they'll want both, for one reason or another. Get rid of "territories". It's as obsolete a concept as region-coding on DVDs. If people want it, they'll get it, and ignore the local offering (if any). Revell shouldn't be able to get grouchy about Bandai "stealing" their sales and claim a home turf. No, guys -- you just make inferior product and the buyers are voting with their wallets.
And this is just scratching the surface. I like to think there are intelligent people at places like Bandai and Hasbro and LFL Licensing watching what's going on. Hasbro's made more bank with their Black Series helmets than with their Marvel Legends line of similar products, and it's not hard to see why. Bandai were surprised by the insane popularity of the PG Falcon and had to issue another run to supply demand, even while 1:144 kits of the ship gather dust on store and warehouse shelves. Star Wars isn't dead. Its merch isn't dead. But the makers and sellers of said merch need to pay a little more attention and do the math.
And so on and so on. We're going through a messy transitional period, where fewer 10-and-unders are playing with action figures and/or building models. As long as the economy stays broken, I expect that trend to continue, for various reasons. I don't expect action figures or model kits to die. Even if the big companies stupid themselves out of producing them, there will still be garage kits and Etsy sellers (or the less-abusive successor{s} to Etsy). This is where the companies that have lasted so long need to be smarter than I see them being, or they'll end up like Sears rather than Amazon.
Bandai know there's a huge market for their model kits over here. Even if a lower percentage of the American population builds models, the total is still vastly greater than their home market. But they also can't alienate that. They know what we want -- we certainly haven't shut up about it over the last forty years. Highly detailed and accurate models in as consistent a scale as possible. 1:72 is kind of a universal standard for aircraft. So it makes sense to release all the Rebel and Imperial fighters in that scale. So why do we have the oddball of the U-Wing in only 1:144 and smaller? I know they could find a way to do those wings on runners that would fit one of their standard boxes at 1:72. Why is the Bandai Spirit Sandtrooper figure kit only available in Japan? Why are their so many Figuarts releases that haven't made their way to the figure kits? The Mimban Stormtrooper would be exactly as difficult as the Stormtrooper/Sandtrooper thing -- one black and one white runner of the basic shared pieces, one runner of the Mimban-specific bits, one runner of backpack pieces.
I think it's smart to wait to see how well a given installment is received before deciding how much to make, but I feel like the number should never be zero. Even if the movie was sub-par, model-builders will still find designs they want to build. The Prequels are still woefully under-served. To say nothing of Clone Wars, Rebels, and Resistance. Or even wildly popular video games. Republic Commandos, Range Troopers, V-Wing starfighters, Z-95s, TIE Reapers, ROTS Jedi starfighters, Captain Rex, clone armor Obi-Wan, LAAT/i gunships, ESB AT-ST... People respond to interesting designs. If they're put out there. Half the things I ask about (and end up special-ordering through) my LHS they hadn't heard of -- and they're pretty dialed-in on the industry.
And LFL/Disney need to get a little more draconian with squabbling license-holders. Let Bandai have standing figures in their 1:72 kits. It is not competition for the MicroMachines market. Many, maybe most, who want one won't want the other, regardless of the other's existence... or they'll want both, for one reason or another. Get rid of "territories". It's as obsolete a concept as region-coding on DVDs. If people want it, they'll get it, and ignore the local offering (if any). Revell shouldn't be able to get grouchy about Bandai "stealing" their sales and claim a home turf. No, guys -- you just make inferior product and the buyers are voting with their wallets.
And this is just scratching the surface. I like to think there are intelligent people at places like Bandai and Hasbro and LFL Licensing watching what's going on. Hasbro's made more bank with their Black Series helmets than with their Marvel Legends line of similar products, and it's not hard to see why. Bandai were surprised by the insane popularity of the PG Falcon and had to issue another run to supply demand, even while 1:144 kits of the ship gather dust on store and warehouse shelves. Star Wars isn't dead. Its merch isn't dead. But the makers and sellers of said merch need to pay a little more attention and do the math.
