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Hasbro Marvel Legends New Non-Plastic Figure Packaging Revealed


JayC

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Back in 2019 Hasbro announced it would be removing the clear plastic used in their product packaging for environment reasons.

Well today during Hasbro's Marvel Legends live-stream we got our first look at that non-window plastic packaging for the Marvel Legends line which you can see below.

Now it should be noted most of these figures shown below are being released as Fan-Channel exclusives which means they will primarily be sold online at places like our sponsors BigBadToyStore.com and Entertainment Earth.

They are also all part of a Marvel Legends sub-line celebrating Spider-Man's 60th Anniversary. So it's not known if ALL Marvel Legends figures will be making the switch to this new style. It's possible the regular release figures will end up featuring some kind of small window with no plastic like we have seen Hasbro doing with the Transformers Legacy line. That way you can at least get a glimpse of the figure inside.

Now being able to see the figure inside the packaging isn't a big deal for figures only sold or primarily sold online, but it can be a problem for ones purchased in physical stores. Mainly because some people will try and swap out new figures for older ones and if there are no windows then it would be very hard to see if your actually getting the figure you think you are.

There have been reports that Hasbro has been looking at better ways to secure their figures in the packaging as we reported back in November.

Right now as we saw with the recent Thor: Love And Thunder wave and the upcoming Disney+ wave which will be released everywhere, those figures remain n the same window packaging that Hasbro has been using for the last several years. So for now it looks like only the sub-line figures like these Spider-Man 60th Anniversary are going windowless.

The figures below all go up for pre-order tomorrow (4/20) at 1pm ET. The Spider-Man Noir figure is a Target exclusive.

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The time has come, the dark days of collecting are upon us, the death of in box collectors, and the great deluge of figure swapping, wacked out decos, missing parts, straight up thievery, Yay Environment, Boo collectors.

in order for this to work and not become a horror story for many of us they are really going to have to find a way to keep theft and swapping out of all of this, also gonna have to be real QC hounds at Hasbro.

I can see all of this backfiring really quickly, the complaint department is going to need to hire quick, both at Hasbro and on Store level once these boxes hit the shelves.

I'm sure there are devious minds frothing at the mouth right now, rubbing their sinister hands together, plotting.

spacer.png - this guy looking in the target window.

 

 

also I shall wave goodbye to In-Box collecting.... because now you might as well just collect empty boxes.

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Since I don't care at all about packaging, I'm all for this. They can ship figures in white boxes with the names printed on the side for all I care. On one hand, I feel bad for the collectors who keep the figures in box. On the other hand, if it's a choice between helping the environment even a fraction or sacrificing this hobby, peace out, toys!

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I am very pro-environment, and recycle as much as possible, but this is just a bad move all-around. I hope this isn't going to happen with 100% of Hasbro action figures, but based on the new Basic/kid-targeted Thor:LAT figures coming in solid boxes like this, I think it will be the new norm eventually. Personally, I open 99.99% of the toys I buy for my collection, but this is going to make figure swapping insanely easy, unless Hasbro uses some intensely strong tamper-evident glue on the packages. My big issue is that this gives Hasbro even less incentive to have good quality control- there's no way for anyone to tell if their Knull has two left hands, or if Ned's eyes are painted on his forehead. I can deal with a dinged corner or creased card, but I will return a Spidey with a terrible paint job after I open it, especially with figure prices going up. I feel bad for retailers who will have to deal with this. 

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I'm typically an opener and never used to care about packaging (except for figs with exceptionally cool packaging) BUT the thing that scares me about this is paint apps. Literally no ability to see what you're buying, and Hasbro can be THE WORST when it comes to QC. Some figs great. Hard to find a bad one. Others so consistently flawed, it's hard to find a single good one. Like somebody else said, I hope they elevate their QC in a major way, but I already got disappointed by this with the Shield trooper 2-pack (big smear of white paint from the glove onto the blue sleeve). Upside: No temptation to buy multiples to "get a good one" or to have one in package and one out.  

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I agree with everyone’s points above. I’m of mixed feelings. I don’t relish not knowing 100% what im buying but I’m all for the environment.

Thieves just hit the jackpot, I’ll say that much.

and for what I do buy, I usually buy one to open, one for prosperity. I can’t say that I’ll continue that practice as who’s to say in 20 years I look to get a return on my investment and instead find out I’ve saved a broken He-Man figure?

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Absolutely ridiculous. Nothing but a self aggrandizing gimmick for brownie points while they still produce their products in the greatest pollution creating country in the world. There's probably more harmful plastic and paint in one standard action figure than a thousand standard ML boxes. There is such a thing as recycled plastics too if they really cared that much. I predict this to be a short lived cluster fook with disastrous effects. And before anyone says it, yes I am qualified to speak on this. During my construction career I earned an still carry official certification in large scale green practices. With that education also came the realization that measures taken to reduce waste and pollution in one area often lead to extra and excessive waste and pollution in another area. Example, to achieve finish metals of 30 percent recycled material or more it requires a paint or powder finish that is so toxic that it has to be applied using full hazmat suits and heated to a temperature where the off-gasses are vented directly into the environment. Still, you earn that Silver star rating for the use of that recycled material while conveniently ignoring the toxic fumes you sent into the atmosphere. It's all just window dressing. The idealism remains valid. The system is broken.

Whatever, I order 90 percent of my ML online and have for some time, taking full advantage of early figure reviewers as pointed out by @JayC on another thread. As a collector I wouldn't have it any other way. Sure I get some quality issues every so often but rarely do I come across product on the shelf that hasn't been picked over anyway. I'm also fairly skilled enough with a Dremel and paint brush that I can "fix" most issues if they bother me that bad. But this, this  will hurt them in the toy aisles for sure. Buying something from an etailer where that companies reputation is on the line is one thing, but buying something, anything, sight unseen, not knowing if its the actual product or even if the box contains any product at all, from a brick and mortar is psychotic at best. I would advise other companies like Jazwares and Spinmasters to take advantage Hasbro's lapse of judgement while it lasts, cuz it won't last long.

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For years Hasbro has been pretty good at saying “we make toys, not collectibles,” this fits right in with that sentiment. For the price point, being able to see what I’m buying is a significant plus, I fear QC is going to let more slip by with a blind box than they could otherwise. It certainly eliminates any desire I have to continue any form of a MIB collection. Hey, at least I’ll save some money…

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Really didn't like those "environment-friendly" boxes made of paper (dead trees) to pack PLASTIC figures. As a lot of you said, it is an invitation to thieves, bad quality control and a huge headache for collectors, specially for those who import (like me) from other countries (like US or China)... if any piece is missing, I really doubt any etailer will change the figure for you or give you a full refund. Next big smart move on the industry will be going back to wooden figures or bamboo maybe...

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Having already seen this with Transformers Selects, I have no problem with this. The easiest way of stopping the thieves is to go the Selects route had one area to open with a massive seal on the side, that way you can easily tell that the box has been tampered with.

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I don't think the figure swapping is going to be an issue. As stated in the article the stuff shown today are Fan Channel exclusive which means something sold online.

If you look at the Tranformers legacy line once again its only the online sold stuff that has no windows. The mainstream stuff still has windows, smaller and open with no plastic but you can still see whats inside.

While Hasbro has yet to show their new mainline ML packaging I would expect them to take a similar route as they have with Transformers and continue to have some kind of window.

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On 4/20/2022 at 8:54 AM, JayC said:

I don't think the figure swapping is going to be an issue. As stated in the article the stuff shown today are Fan Channel exclusive which means something sold online.

If you look at the Tranformers legacy line once again its only the online sold stuff that has no windows. The mainstream stuff still has windows, smaller and open with no plastic but you can still see whats inside.

While Hasbro has yet to show their new mainline ML packaging I would expect them to take a similar route as they have with Transformers and continue to have some kind of window.

I doubt they will go the Legacy route with Marvel legends aftre a lot of reports of this happening

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They should just go the Transformers: Selects route if they want to ditch the plastic

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On 4/19/2022 at 7:17 PM, The Mad Bubbler said:

I hope this isn't going to happen with 100% of Hasbro action figures, but based on the new Basic/kid-targeted Thor:LAT figures coming in solid boxes like this, I think it will be the new norm eventually.

They literally announced a few years back that zero-plastic packaging was their goal. I think they had set a goal of 2021 or 2022 initially, but I'm sure pandemic fall-out pushed it back. It may not be this exact implementation, but plastic is going to be gone from all their toy packaging within the next year or so.

On 4/19/2022 at 9:45 PM, monron999 said:

There's probably more harmful plastic and paint in one standard action figure than a thousand standard ML boxes.

Yes, but people aren't throwing away the vast majority of their action figures. Hasbro's hands are sort of tied when it comes to toys made of plastic, but they can still reduce reliance on plastic by cutting it out of the packaging, and the packaging is actually much worse for the environment, since the vast majority of it is ending up in landfills or largely ineffective recycling programs like those you mentioned.

On 4/20/2022 at 1:03 AM, Cyke82 said:

Really didn't like those "environment-friendly" boxes made of paper (dead trees) to pack PLASTIC figures. As a lot of you said, it is an invitation to thieves, bad quality control and a huge headache for collectors, specially for those who import (like me) from other countries (like US or China)... if any piece is missing, I really doubt any etailer will change the figure for you or give you a full refund. Next big smart move on the industry will be going back to wooden figures or bamboo maybe...

See above. Reliance on plastic at all isn't great for the planet, but at least most of these toys aren't ending up in landfills. This is still likely to have a meaningful impact.

On the other hand, I don't see this having much impact at all on the issues people seem worried about. Using some sort of safety seal instead of regular tape will solve the theft problems, and quality control issues that are significant enough that somebody would want to exchange the figure are honestly pretty rare, and getting rarer still in the era of face-printing. This will take some adjusting for most people who are used to buying in-store, and will probably mean in-box collectors move on to other lines, but otherwise it will have very little impact on collectors in the long-term.

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For people you don't now what I mean by Transformers Selects (or Generation Selects to give it its proper name) packaging here is an example. No window or hole and the only way into the box is with a large sticker/seal which goes from one end to the other of the packaging. Very easy to see if the seal were damaged. And if you are worried about quality control, well to preven them from getting those complaints, Hasbro will have to up their game and that can't be a bad thing.

 

20220420_162215_by_leokearon_df3yov1-pre 20220420_162221_by_leokearon_df3youv-pre 20220420_162227_by_leokearon_df3youq-pre

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On 4/20/2022 at 11:48 AM, leokearon said:

For people you don't now what I mean by Transformers Selects (or Generation Selects to give it its proper name) packaging here is an example. No window or hole and the only way into the box is with a large sticker/seal which goes from one end to the other of the packaging. Very easy to see if the seal were damaged. And if you are worried about quality control, well to preven them from getting those complaints, Hasbro will have to up their game and that can't be a bad thing.

 

20220420_162215_by_leokearon_df3yov1-pre 20220420_162221_by_leokearon_df3youv-pre 20220420_162227_by_leokearon_df3youq-pre

It's a good idea and I'm sure it's been somewhat effective so far but if history shows us anything it's that scoundrels find a way. Years ago when game disks were an actual thing the packaging was made to prevent theft and places like TRU would not accept returns or refunds of opened game disks, yet more than a few times I made it home with an empty, yet otherwise sealed, game sleeve. After getting burned a few times I would buy a game and literally open it right in front of the cashier or customer service desk. Guess we can go back to that process. Then again, places like Walmart and Target pretty much have a "no questions asked" policy now days so getting a refund shouldn't be too bad. Unfortunately, that same policy is gonna make it so much easier for swappers to screw the system that they already abuse.

Basically, I don't think anyone at any large retailer gives a busted damn about, or even has the wherewithal to know yo check for a broken seal no matter what Hasbro's security intentions are.

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On 4/20/2022 at 11:30 AM, Benn said:

Yes, but people aren't throwing away the vast majority of their action figures. Hasbro's hands are sort of tied when it comes to toys made of plastic, but they can still reduce reliance on plastic by cutting it out of the packaging, and the packaging is actually much worse for the environment, since the vast majority of it is ending up in landfills or largely ineffective recycling programs like those you mentioned.

This is true, but that statement was made mostly to give perspective of how little savings this change will actually make and to demonstrate the hypocrisy of it all. And yeah I know, any savings is good savings, but everything else in my comments is both factual and more relevant.

As far as plastic vs. cardboard I guess it just matters what side of the fence you land on. With plastic they're creating a synthetic out of other materials that are already harmful to the environment. The mistake people make is the misconception that extra waste is somehow being created. It's not possible to create more mass or weight than the combined mass/weight of the starting ingredients. With cardboard they're actually destroying living, breathing, oxygen creating (that's positive gain) resources that, though they are technically renewable, take many, many years to be replenished or repaired, if they're even replenished at all. To top it off, weight to weight of how much cardboard can be made out of a pound of wood is less than 50 percent, meaning 20 pounds of tree makes less than 10 pounds of cardboard. Sure the wasted tree is not actually destroyed, but cast off pulp cannot be mashed back into trees. So which is worse? Me, I side with the trees

And before someone says it, statistically these mega companies use about the same amount of recycled cardboard as they do recycled plastic. Fractions of their output, Virtually zero. Again, the fact that they use any at all, regardless of how little it is, is so they can put it on the company profile for virtue points. As is this little gimmick they're doing now.

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Hasbro had a Q&A panel for Transformers yesterday and the problem with the open window boxes was brought up. According to Hasbro Open boxed sells better to kids, so open box has been chosen for TFs vs. other Hasbro lines aimed at older fans. So Marvel Legends's plastic free packaging will depend on what Hasbro believe the target audience is.

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On 4/21/2022 at 2:10 AM, leokearon said:

Hasbro had a Q&A panel for Transformers yesterday and the problem with the open window boxes was brought up. According to Hasbro Open boxed sells better to kids, so open box has been chosen for TFs vs. other Hasbro lines aimed at older fans. So Marvel Legends's plastic free packaging will depend on what Hasbro believe the target audience is.

The fact that the more boring figures like the Captain Marvel and especially the Eternals figures and many of the female figures seem to linger on the shelves should indicate that young male children are still the major driver of the line. That's who they should be targeting. And as young children they mostly depend on a parent to purchase their toys and I think a lot less parents are gonna be willing to purchase these products sight unseen. And how many times are they gonna have to get home and find out a figure has been swapped out in the packaging before they stop purchasing that product altogether?

Furthermore, between the two lines I would say a large majority of the Transformers line (especially the retro type products) are geared more towards the adult collector. Transformers is a legacy franchise (not being specific to the actual Legacy line) with a large portion of older fans who collect for the nostalgia, even with the newer products. In comparison the Marvel Legends line is a much younger franchise (about 20 years) with a typically much younger following. That excuse sounds like something they pulled straight outta their ayass on the fly just to make the question go away for the time. Can you imagine Mattel putting the MOTU Origins line, which is 100 percent made for the nostalgia crowd, in windowless boxes because they're geared towards an older crowd? Absolute nonsense. Anyone with a half skilled tongue can talk a talk and try to put frosting on a turd. That don't make it cake.

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If I trusted that Hasbro would use a strong, tamper-evident seal for this packaging, I would be much more at ease, but the fact of the matter is, the current Marvel Legends packaging style has been around since, what "The Amazing Spider-Man 2" Ultimate Goblin wave? Swapping has been a huge issue for all of these years, and Hasbro has continued to just use a small amount of clear tape to seal the packages. If they actually sealed every part of the packaging in the way that the Transformers Selects boxes are sealed, that would make a huge difference. 

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On 4/21/2022 at 4:22 PM, The Mad Bubbler said:

If I trusted that Hasbro would use a strong, tamper-evident seal for this packaging, I would be much more at ease, but the fact of the matter is, the current Marvel Legends packaging style has been around since, what "The Amazing Spider-Man 2" Ultimate Goblin wave? Swapping has been a huge issue for all of these years, and Hasbro has continued to just use a small amount of clear tape to seal the packages. If they actually sealed every part of the packaging in the way that the Transformers Selects boxes are sealed, that would make a huge difference. 

It was the Mandroid WAF that started the current way of packaging, but still the products need to be sealed better, a couple pieces of Cellotape isn't going to stop anyone

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