Jump to content

The Hunt


spang2005

Recommended Posts

With the Return of Marvel Legends in the past few weeks, I've been experiencing a feeling I haven't felt in a very long time. It's that sort of anxious, nervous feeling you get when you walk into Wal-Mart, Toys R Us, Target, or any other department store and make a bee line for the action figure aisle.

 

You don't know what to expect (even though you were just there two days ago), so the potential for surprise is always there. You walk into the toy aisle, past the Bakugan, Star Wars, and a smattering of video game characters.

 

As you approach the Marvel section, the anticipation builds and you start to walk a little faster, and as the excitement boils up through your stomach, you might start to breathe a little heavier until you look and see....

 

NOTHING! Everything is exactly the same as the day before. There's the Iron Man movie figures marked down to clearance, a handful of MU figures that you despise for replacing Marvel Legends, and some various role playing toys and some vehicles. Everything that had built up during the drive to the store and walking to the aisle is suddenly released as you let out a long sigh in disappointment. Maybe you check some shelves, peruse the pegs, and hope against all odds that maybe there will be something hiding, maybe stashed or overlooked by a scalper or fellow collector, even though you know there won't be anything to find.

 

Days go by, weeks even. Then, that one fateful day, just as you're about to give up. you go through the whole routine again except this time, something is different. Maybe you don't see it at first, but notice that the Captain America figures have been moved or consolidated to one peg. There might be a clearance tag on some roleplaying toys. You look down, and there it is...an entire shelf or peg FULL of BRAND NEW MARVEL LEGENDS! Your heart skips a beat as you feel a lump in your throat. You feel like you want to shout or jump up in the air in victory. You reach out and grab the first figure, and then go through the rest of the peg, grabbing them all.

 

The joyful relief you feel as you realise your persistance has been rewarded is second to none. You've finally found them, and you walk triumphantly up to the register thinking only about putting that BAF together or posing each figure on your shelf. The drive home seems to last forever, but it's so exciting the time flies by. Before you know it, you're home and the packages are being ripped open; that plastic smell invades your nostrils as you pop the figures out of the plastic bubble. You pose the figures, set them up, maybe take some pictures, and jump on the MarvelousNews forums to share your haul. Finally, you can relax..until you see that someone has already spotted the next wave.

 

This is what I miss when buying cases online and why I love the hunt.

 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Nice post man...

 

I pretty much ONLY hunt.. and never order online.

 

But since Toybiz's Marvel Legends went down, I haven't had to hunt for anything. I really do miss that feeling of finding new Marvel Legends (I mean Toybiz)

 

Everything I have collected since has either been extremely easy to find or aren't good enough to hunt for. With most stuff I collect now, I just wait until I find them while I am at the store anyways. I rarely ever make a trip to a store just to look for toys now.

 

I collect GiJoes and Marvel Universe.. and I have found everything I wanted by just being patient.

 

I think hunting might be necessary for the new Marvel Legends.. I can't be sure yet how hard they will be to find.. but I just don't like them enough to hunt for them yet. I'll get them when I get them, IF I get them.. and when I buy them I won't be excited to pay 15+ for them. So no need to hunt.

 

Like for wave 1, the only figures I will be getting are Constrictor, Klaw, and probably Ghost Rider and Hope. (Thor, Ironman, and Steve Rogers are all way too out of scale for me to add to my collection). But I don't really care enough about those 4 figures to make any special trips.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I feel you man, but I'm all in for these figures. I was lucky to find wave 1 and variants on a random stop at TRU, but now with wave 2 hitting I am hunting hard because I really want that Arnim Zola BAF. Also, since the variants seem to be hitting early, I want to stay on top of it so I don't miss the FF Spider-Man.

 

I'm fortunate enough to work a mile from a TRU and a Wal-Mart. You better believe I'm hitting them up on my lunch break every day.

 

Love it.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I honestly love that feeling. And what was even better, was that while I was out hunting hearing that wave 2 was out, I stopped by a walmart that typically has NOTHING, and I mean nothing. They even stopped carrying MU. Well, looking forward to grabbing wave 2 I practically ran to the isle. And... nothing. Again. Haha. BUT...

 

 

wait for it...

 

 

wait some more.....

 

 

here we go.....

 

 

Just as I was about to leave the isle....

 

 

sitting there staring at me....

 

 

waiting to be snatched...

 

 

was an old Marvel Legends Hasbro Ultimate Warmachine from the Ares wave...

 

 

and next to it?... The vision.

 

 

And....

 

 

FREAKING CROSSBONES.

 

 

This kind of luck drives me out for the hunt. I just about passed out looking at the figure. I left that building just about as giddy as a 7 year old at christmas. :D

 

 

I love the hunt.

 

 

 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

days go by, weeks even and that one fateful day never came :-(

 

no legends, no dcuc, no 6insh marvel or dc, no marvel universe just spiderman rereleases and some iron man movie figs. no avengers, no nothing. hasbro delivers, i can tell. first i went every week making my usual rounds of toystores then every month, now every 8 months or so in hope to find something but nothing great since toybiz was done. i was exited to see some star trek figures from bandai when i saw them. thats how sad it is around me, lol. thank heaven for online stores.

 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I love the hunt and have actually posted about the hunt before in this forum. I used to live in Pittsburgh during the prime of ToyBiz Legends. I have since moved to a crap town where we have one Walmart and that's it. The local Walmart crap selection, no G.I.Joe, DC Universe, or even Marvel Universe. They don't and will not be carrying Marvel Legends as I was told by the supervisor of the toy department, who actually is a collector and pretty cool guy. The closet decent hunting group is about an hour and half away with three Walmart, Target, and Toys'R'Us. I really miss the hunt in the return. Seeing these posts and the excitement building but I cannot engage in my own hunt with the time and gas required to reach the hunting ground. IT has been a bitter sweet return for me. I guess if I want to get my hands on the new Legends I will need to purchase online... To my fellow hunters enjoy and good luck.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I enjoy the hunt but gas costs too much for me to run all over town looking. I have been calling ahead & asking them to pull them from the back or from their warehouses so that I know that Marvel Legends will be there before I arrive. And I still have that same anxious/nervous/excited feeling when I drive to the store b/c I KNOW that I'll be leaving with what I'm looking for. This seems to only work at Target though...Wal-Mart has absolutely no clue.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Wal-Mart has absolutely no clue.

 

That is because Walmart currently does not care about customer service. They do not let or encourage associates to learn the product of their department and punish associates who help customers for too long a period of time. Walmart is crap and I can't wait to see them loose money as they continue to alienate customers.

 

Wish I had a Target in my town.

 

Sorry about the rant everybody. Walmart just makes my blood boil.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Tell me about it! I went to a new Wal-Mart yesterday a 1/2 mile from where I work. I looked around for 5 minutes then I asked an associate if she could help me. I gave her a post it with the name & product number. I followed her for about 5 minutes & she passed me off to someone else. Then that person took me to electronics & passed me off to 2 other people. They looked up the number then told me they don't carry Marvel Legends. Shoulda known; what a waste of a 1/2 hour.

 

THEN

 

I go to Target. I called them before I got there & they said just go to electronics & ask when I get there. I went to electronics, asked about them & in 3 minutes they brought out a whole case of series 1. Genius.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I love the hunt and have actually posted about the hunt before in this forum. I used to live in Pittsburgh during the prime of ToyBiz Legends. I have since moved to a crap town where we have one Walmart and that's it. The local Walmart crap selection, no G.I.Joe, DC Universe, or even Marvel Universe. They don't and will not be carrying Marvel Legends as I was told by the supervisor of the toy department, who actually is a collector and pretty cool guy. The closet decent hunting group is about an hour and half away with three Walmart, Target, and Toys'R'Us. I really miss the hunt in the return. Seeing these posts and the excitement building but I cannot engage in my own hunt with the time and gas required to reach the hunting ground. IT has been a bitter sweet return for me. I guess if I want to get my hands on the new Legends I will need to purchase online... To my fellow hunters enjoy and good luck.

 

 

Wow, It sounds like we are in the exact same town, I still Like the hunt but it is always at the expense of a lot of time and gas money. But what the heck I am an optumistic!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Whats even more strange is they(Wal-mart) have these new Marvel Legends listed as Ghost Rider 6" Figures.... I am Guessing Hasbro Had to trick wal-mart into buying these as a movie line. Just look how much wasted money walmart invested in the green lantern Movie line. This could be the reason some of you guys are not finding these in the system when you ask by the marvel Legends Name?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I have been calling ahead & asking them before I go & they say they will pull them from the back. It would probably be best for you to call first just so you know that there is no problem with them bringing them out for you.

 

Did they (Target) get rid of their collectibles policy? That's good to know I could just ask in electronics about ML's.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Whats even more strange is they(Wal-mart) have these new Marvel Legends listed as Ghost Rider 6" Figures.... I am Guessing Hasbro Had to trick wal-mart into buying these as a movie line. Just look how much wasted money walmart invested in the green lantern Movie line. This could be the reason some of you guys are not finding these in the system when you ask by the marvel Legends Name?

 

My thought is that it's in the system as th first upc they scan from the figures in the case. My wal-mart had two pegs, and on one it said Iron Man, and the other said Steve Rogers.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Whats even more strange is they(Wal-mart) have these new Marvel Legends listed as Ghost Rider 6" Figures.... I am Guessing Hasbro Had to trick wal-mart into buying these as a movie line. Just look how much wasted money walmart invested in the green lantern Movie line. This could be the reason some of you guys are not finding these in the system when you ask by the marvel Legends Name?

 

My thought is that it's in the system as th first upc they scan from the figures in the case. My wal-mart had two pegs, and on one it said Iron Man, and the other said Steve Rogers.

 

Yeah But I have called about 6 wal-marts, gave them the product # and they all asked if I was looking for ghost rider 6" Figures? I call and then give them the # I never tell them what I am looking for at first.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

LMAO! You captured the expierince perfectly! I always have enjoyed the hunt too. But over the past year, the legends figures have not been coming to my city and stores. I'm in a major city, albeit one far north. So rather then spend countless days and gallons of ever increasingly pricey gas, I decided to order off BBTS this time. I'll miss that experience you so vividly described, but at least I'll get tham at my front door soon.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

DAMN, I used to love the chase too but man the world has changed so much just during the 2 years ML was MIA. IMO the last somewhat decent ML wave Hasbro put out, before they tried thier damdest to put a bullet in ML's head, was the Red Hulk wave. That one actually made me think there was some hope left for ML before Hasbro made that fateful announcement that ML would be no more after the Ares wave. Luckily the fans voices were (eventually) heard and Hasbro, I think grudgingly, had to get back on the ML horse if only to supplement or draw in more support for their favorite child, which is and always will be MU. My rant's over but the landscape for the ML loyalists has changed......alot. Gas is damn near $4 a gallon, ML cost double what we used to pay in the TB hayday, stores are carrying less toy content, the store employees are becoming more rude and abrassive and less helpfull and knowledgeable. The employees at the stores in my town won't take the time to check on anything. They just let you sit on hold for 10 minutes and then tell you they don't carry whatever product your asking about. Hunting down the most recent ML waves I spent $50+ on gas, searched numerous dwindling toy departments, was talked down to by lowly store peons and though I did eventually claim my prize, the price and the end product gave me a feeling that was much different than the one I used to get, especially with long anticipated figures like Extremis IM turning out the way it did. It is a good looking fig but I've collected comics and toys for well over 30 years and not once till now had Tony Stark been portrayed as a pigmy. I will continue to collect ML and actually like the way they are doing the whole variant lineup, but I think for wave 3 I will be looking to one of the online stores. I'm not just throwing in the towel but at this point it just doesn't feel like the ends justify the means anymore. Hasbro will never realize exactly how much momentum they lost if they had just concentrated more on the fans and less on cutting costs a long time ago. I'm gaining some love back for you Hasbro with the simple return of ML, but please do it right this time.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...







Sign Up For The TNI Newsletter And Have The News Delivered To You!


Entertainment News International (ENI) is the #1 popular culture network for adult fans all around the world.
Get the scoop on all the popular comics, games, movies, toys, and more every day!

Contact and Support

Advertising | Submit News | Contact ENI | Privacy Policy

©Entertainment News International - All images, trademarks, logos, video, brands and images used on this website are registered trademarks of their respective companies and owners. All Rights Reserved. Data has been shared for news reporting purposes only. All content sourced by fans, online websites, and or other fan community sources. Entertainment News International is not responsible for reporting errors, inaccuracies, omissions, and or other liablities related to news shared here. We do our best to keep tabs on infringements. If some of your content was shared by accident. Contact us about any infringements right away - CLICK HERE