G.I. Joe Retaliation

Just wondering if anyone else has been collecting the new figures for the belated movie. Some of them are really nice and others are crap.

Why is it that Hasbro is getting cheap on the production of certain figures but they cost the same across the board? The $10 price tag for a single carded Joe is pretty high, I thought it was bad when they hit $8. The new 3 packs are by far the best buy at $20 for three figures that come with the same amount, or more, accessories. The "Rockblock" figure from the 3 pack is by far the better of the two released at retail now. It still has no ankle articulation but he doesn't have that weird thing molded into his hand. That pack also comes with two characters not on single cards, Kamakura and Beachhead. The ninja pack comes with Snake Eyes, Stormshadow, and a repainted red ninja.

The vehicle drivers all have five basic points of articulation, head, shoulders, hips. Many of the figures in the line now only have single jointed knees, and no ankle articulation as well. None of the figures are being released with stands like the previous modern Joe figures have. They have also done away with the file cards.

Now there are some very good figures in the line like the G.I. Joe Trooper. A "nameless" grunt or green shirt who comes with a lot of accessories, multiple heads, and has all the articulation we've come to expect from our Joes. The Red Ninja is a repaint of the Renegades Stormshadow figure now with a big zipline spring shooter thing and two swords. Yes it has less accessories but still has all the articulation from the Renegade figure. Snake Eyes and Stormshadow have all the same articulation and also have zipline shooter things. The Cobra Trooper is also a fun figure, no ankles and single jointed knees but he does come with a large working parachute with a big Cobra symbol on it.

Duke, Cobra Commander, and Zartan are okay figures. Duke and CC have been giving large shooting gimmick things and all three have single knees and no ankles.

With the movie being pushed back Hasbro has officially stated to retailers that only wave 1 of these figures will be released until March 2013. This decision, I believe, will cost them with the fans as the distribution of figures was poor before the movie toys were released and the previous lines were canceled for the movie and now they won't be getting any more movie toys for about a year.

*soapbox*

Decreased production cost by cheaping out on articulation and accessories for figures while raising the prices equals more cash in Hasbro's pockets which is every corporation's real goal but in doing so they have hurt the fan base. While I know the "target market" for toys is not adult collectors but Hasbro knows that's where a lot of their sales are coming from. The Hasbro Joe team, from figure designers to marketing managers, have been to JoeCon, I know because I saw them there and spoke to them. They have seen the mass amount of grown adults who pull wads of cash out of their wallets and pockets to buy small plastic men. They know it means a lot to people. I don't believe the team is responsible for what Hasbro does with line as far as delaying it or distribution it would be nice to know that someone there cares about the fans and gives them a voice to the company.