AFP Ask Matty Round-Up for 6/1/10

Toy Guru and Mattel are back with another edition of Ask Matty. Thanks, guys!

1) I’m psyched that with the Green Lantern movie slated for next year, and great events in comics like Blackest Night and Brightest Day that more GL figures are on the way. Were the pictures of the Wal-Mart exclusive GL 5-pack in ToyFare of finished product with no more tweaks possible? Any words of encouragement for Sinestro fans who might still be looking for a great representation of him?

We are still tweaking the figures a bit to make sure they can hold their Lanterns. Sinestro is pretty final. We hope to still do a full new Sinestro down the road to make him even more accurate.

Note: Images are not of final figures. They are images from auctions that Toy News International has collected from eBay seller alvintoy.

For more Green Lantern, check out Sandman’s review of the  DC Universe Classics All-Star Hal Jordan.

2) When you’ve talked about re-issues in the Masters of the Universe Classics lines, you’ve always talked figures. Are items like the Weapons Pak and Grayskull Stands off the table for reissue? If so, why? They seemed to sell out just as quickly as the figures themselves.

We will likely do a re-release of these items we just need to time it in logistically.  In truth, we were not expecting them to sell out as fast!

3) You’ve said many times that DC Universe Classics has been strongly influenced by Super Powers line by Kenner. Now that you’ve got the Real Ghostbusters coming to the Retro-Action line, how much inspiration will you take from the Real Ghostbusters line by Kenner? Characters? Ghosts? Vehicles?

We may get to some of the ghosts and vehicles from the Real Ghostbusters line, but nothing is locked in stone yet. We are all obviously big fans of the toy lines from the 1980s around here!

4) Looking at the MattyCollector exclusive lines, it seems like the sweet spot is where the 80′s meets cartoons and toys. As you consider other lines to bring to market are there more properties in that sweet spot that you can tap into? If not, what are the things you look at when considering new collector-oriented lines?

When looking at new toy lines we will look at existing fan bases and existing product. Then we will consider how and to what extent we can improve on previous offerings and how large the fans base is for current product. It is not an exact science, but it is a lot of fun!

5) As we understand it, the life of a toy begins about a year before it actually hits shelves, when you are selling to the big retailers. Six months before the shelf date, you’re purchasing raw materials starting production. And about three months before shelf date, you’re starting to share information with collectors. Do we have it about right, and are there nuances for toys that will only be sold on MattyCollector.com? What are the concerns about sharing info with collectors earlier in the process, for example at the 6 month point when you know what you are making?

Product still has a very good chance to change very dramatically until about three months before release. That is why we wait until product is very close to final before showing it to the public. Yes, your timeline is pretty close. We start working on toy concepts about 12-16 months before it hits a shelf!

Here’s the other Ask Mattel Q&As from around the web (to be updated as they surface):

• ActionFigureInsider.com
• Bzzurkk
• ComicFigs.Net
• Cool Toy Review
• CriticalMess.net
• DC Collector
• DC Hall of Justice
• Experience the Wonder
• Figures.com
• The Fwoosh
• He-Man.org
• ItsAllTrue.net
• JoeAcevedo.com
• Kastor’s Korner
• Pendragon’s Post
• Poe Ghostal’s Points of Articulation
• Pop Culture Network
• SuperHeroTimes.com
• Toy News International

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