Did Hasbro Overcharge on the G1 Reissues?

Professor Smooth · Post by **Professor Smooth** » Mon Jun 20, 2005 9:50 pm

Who says I only have to post NEW rumors? Nobody! This isn't some other TF site where I'm supposed to stick to current events! This is entertainment, damn it! So, here's some entertainment.

For years now (years!) we've complained (bitched, if you will) about the high cost of Hasbro's G1 reissues. This complaining was all-but silenced by the indefinite-postponement of the line. Fortunately for the balance of the cosmos, it gave way to bitching about the postponement. Same amount of complaining, slightly different angle. But did the fans focus their gestalt-like bitchiness in the right direction? Maybe not. Rumor has it that Hasbro, drunk off the success of the Transformers line since RiD and amazed at how well the Dreamwave G1 comic was selling (more on this at a later date) got greedy and charged through the nose for their reissues of classic G1 figures. Like many rumors, this one's not entirely true.

The reason the reissues cost so much had very little to do with Hasbro, says a source who's name wouldn't mean anything to you so I won't post it. The MSRP on the reissues of the Autobot cars was right around 15 USD each. Others have said that number was closer to 20 USD, but regardless, it was a far cry from the 30-35 USD that Toys R Us asked from their customers.

But why? Why would Toys R Us expect fans to pay so much for these figures? Well, the first wave could have had something to do with it. They charged closer to the MSRP for the first wave. 40 USD for Optimus Prime and Ultra Magnus respectively, and 18 USD for Rodimus Major. Guess what? They sold like hotcakes! Or, failing that, they sold like reasonably priced nostalgia pieces marketed to the adult collector. Given the choice between paying 20 dollars for whatever-the-hell Armada Scavenger turned into and having a flawless G1 Hot Rod in their collection, adult collectors (and, we can assume, some children with a bit of eyesight) made a choice. So what did TRU do? They doubled the price asked for the car-sized figures and added another couple bucks onto the jets. Now the choice was between Unicron, a figure that had been in-demand for nearly twenty years, and a set of Skids and Red Alert figures. In a rare display of collective intelligence, the Transformers Fan community left them on the shelves where many of them still collect dust today.

Let's examine that collective intelligence, shall we?

Transfans...COMBINE into DRUNKENMONKEYBOT...doing a bad Computron impression!

*picking up 30 USD reissue of "Auobot Grapple*

Datum: Reissue of figure is slightly different from original US release. Chrome is missing from hook. Name is not spelled correctly. Character was never a favorite to begin with. Price is 30 USD plus a 9 percent sales tax.

Conclusion: Leave item on shelf. Import a Takara reissue from Japan. Price will be nearly identical despite having to pay someone to have the figure flown across an ocean and another person to deliver it to door. Figure selection will be larger. Quality will be superior.

Secondary Conclusion: Toys R Us was responsible for the hilariously inflated price of the reissues and, by association, the line's near-cancellation. Hasbro still spelled "Autobot" incorrectly on Grapple's packaging, so there's still stuff to bitch about in regards to Hasbro.

I'm off like a prom dress,
-Professor Smooth

Post by **Kaylee** » Mon Jun 20, 2005 9:59 pm

AAAAAAGH!!! DRUNKEN MONKEYBOT!! BAN IT BAN IT BAN IT!!!

ah the good old days.

cool post

Shanti418 · Post by **Shanti418** » Mon Jun 20, 2005 10:27 pm

Word to thee, Master Smooth.

One, if they WERE marketed to adult collectors, then WHY must they still have crappy "clubbed" missles?

Two, it's about the packaging. I don't know what the little booklets say in the Bookstyle Reissues, but by jove, they are THERE and they are chock full of TF nostalgia goodness.

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Mon Jun 20, 2005 11:28 pm

<RANT>

I've always thought the prices for the reissues were exhorbitant. They were figures with minimal detail, no articulation, and were dissapointingly small. I don't understand why anyone would buy them when there were bigger and better Armada and Energon figures to be had at half the price. The G1 reissues are pieces of **** compared to modern toys and charging $20 for them is ludicrous.

</RANT>

Then again, I buy toys I would like to play with, not ones that I think I need to collect.

-J

Brendocon · Post by **Brendocon** » Tue Jun 21, 2005 12:47 pm

Shanti418 wrote:One, if they WERE marketed to adult collectors, then WHY must they still have crappy "clubbed" missles?

Because the primary market doesn't change the fact that they are still technically classified as toys, and as such have to adhere to the prevailing toy safety standards.

Professor Smooth · Post by **Professor Smooth** » Tue Jun 21, 2005 2:21 pm

Brendocon wrote:
Shanti418 wrote:One, if they WERE marketed to adult collectors, then WHY must they still have crappy "clubbed" missles?
Because the primary market doesn't change the fact that they are still technically classified as toys, and as such have to adhere to the prevailing toy safety standards.

And THAT's no rumor!