Star Wars: Episode III: Revenge of the Sith: a bust, figuratively speaking?
With a huge amount of positive buzz, there's a good chance that Star Wars: Episode III: Revenge of the Sith will be the biggest film event of the year. The matching Revenge of the Sith action figure line should well be the biggest toy event of the year, too. However, within the past week I've seen some signs that the toys might not be living up to expectations.
Namely, there's already some discounting going on of the Revenge of the Sith action figures, even before the movie is out in theatres! It's up to 25% off in some places. I certainly don't recall that happening with many other action figure lines of the past. At a local Suncoast movie store, for example, their small stock Revenge of the Sith action figures were a full 25% off. Oddly enough, the same Suncoast had the R2-D2: Beneath the Dome DVD at 75% off, or just $2.48. Toys R Us and Amazon.com have their basic Star Wars figures at just $4.99 each, considerably lower than the $6.00 or so they were originally. Discounting action figures is nothing new, but right before the launch of the movie? Why?
One possibility is that the figures just aren't moving quickly enough. The Episode I: The Phantom Menace figures and Episode II: Attack of the Clones figures did respectably, but perhaps not as well as was initially expected in either case (it's not uncommon to see Episode II figures still sitting on the pegs at K. B. Toys, 3 years after its release). While there will always be diehard Star Wars fans who want one of each figure, the new figures aren't really seen as investments anymore, as very few of the figures of the past 7 years or so have appreciated much in value. Also, it seems that unlike the previous two, Revenge of the Sith doesn't bring many new characters to the table. This can cut into casual purchases, as parents may figure that if Junior already has an Episode II Obi-Wan Kenobi figure, he doesn't need the slightly-different Episode III version as well.
Of course, it's possible that the Revenge of the Sith toys will ultimately be seen as a success, but it's also possible that they'll still be sitting on store pegs, collecting dust, three years down the line. It's up to you, dear reader, to decide the ultimate fate of Star Wars' four-inch final curtain call.
Namely, there's already some discounting going on of the Revenge of the Sith action figures, even before the movie is out in theatres! It's up to 25% off in some places. I certainly don't recall that happening with many other action figure lines of the past. At a local Suncoast movie store, for example, their small stock Revenge of the Sith action figures were a full 25% off. Oddly enough, the same Suncoast had the R2-D2: Beneath the Dome DVD at 75% off, or just $2.48. Toys R Us and Amazon.com have their basic Star Wars figures at just $4.99 each, considerably lower than the $6.00 or so they were originally. Discounting action figures is nothing new, but right before the launch of the movie? Why?
One possibility is that the figures just aren't moving quickly enough. The Episode I: The Phantom Menace figures and Episode II: Attack of the Clones figures did respectably, but perhaps not as well as was initially expected in either case (it's not uncommon to see Episode II figures still sitting on the pegs at K. B. Toys, 3 years after its release). While there will always be diehard Star Wars fans who want one of each figure, the new figures aren't really seen as investments anymore, as very few of the figures of the past 7 years or so have appreciated much in value. Also, it seems that unlike the previous two, Revenge of the Sith doesn't bring many new characters to the table. This can cut into casual purchases, as parents may figure that if Junior already has an Episode II Obi-Wan Kenobi figure, he doesn't need the slightly-different Episode III version as well.
Of course, it's possible that the Revenge of the Sith toys will ultimately be seen as a success, but it's also possible that they'll still be sitting on store pegs, collecting dust, three years down the line. It's up to you, dear reader, to decide the ultimate fate of Star Wars' four-inch final curtain call.
posted by Andrew Lenahan at 9:49 AM
1 Comments:
It will be really interesting to see where this goes. I for one...LOVE most of the new figures. The only ones that I am not happy about are the vehicles and riding beasts...They each come with a figure that could only be used for riding.
No articulation ... just a fixed sitting posed. I never did care for that sort of thing.
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