Collection burn out and when you think you have enough?

For the discussion of Toho toys, models, figures and other collectibles of this nature.
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Dyrakro
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Re: Collection burn out and when you think you have enough?

Post by Dyrakro »

Legion1979 wrote: Sun Jun 05, 2022 9:35 am Edit: The thing that really got me aggravated at Bandai is that I dont really feel I've gotten my money's worth on some of these.
Practically this. I still do like Bandai as a company overall but the prices and the quality of their products (at least sofubi-wise) don't seem linked to each other.
The Ultra Hero toys got more expensive now and they are completely blank on the back now.

canofhumdingers wrote: Sun Jun 05, 2022 3:39 pm If you were able to buy it for $12 in 2002, that would equate to buying it for $19.30 today, 20 years later. This is according to the US Government Bureau of Labor Statistics own calculator. I can still rather easily find regular Bandai vinyls for around $20 delivered. Furthermore, while you *could* find vinyls for cheap, I remember routinely seeing them for more like ~$20 even back then. If you couldn’t find a deal and paid the higher dealer price of $20 in 2002, that would equate to $32.16 today.

So, the $12-$20 price range of 20 years ago equates to the $20-$30 price range of today strictly based on inflation. I agree things are getting more expensive (and we’ve not yet touched on qualities such as paint or perceived value) but Bandai vinyls still cost about the same, relatively, as they have for at least the last two decades.
Problem is, the price increased (which is fine considering inflation), but the overall quality decreasing is not imo.

On a side note, it's not only Bandai but Lego or Mattel too. When I looked up what some of the Jurassic World figs by Mattel are priced for I was in for a surprise. I think the biggest issue ain't even the prices, it's the quality. I dunno how to describe it but certain & popular toylines from big companies seem to lack in this area even more with every year passing or is that only my perception?

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canofhumdingers
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Re: Collection burn out and when you think you have enough?

Post by canofhumdingers »

Yeah, I agree on the generally decreasing quality of mass produced toys. Bandai and Hasbro have both significantly cut back on paint apps in recent years and both have started charging premiums for “extra” paint.

That’s why I said that, while the prices today are what we should expect based on inflation, my post didn’t broach the subjects of quality (such as paint) or perceived value (doesn’t matter that inflation “requires” $30 if customers only see the product as worth $15 or $20).

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Creature22
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Re: Collection burn out and when you think you have enough?

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The size has decreased too. 8 inches was the "standard" throughout the 90s until the Movie Monster Series was introduced, and the Ultra 500 line is even smaller than that. Nowadays what would have been a regular retail figure circa 1994 is being sold as a "premium" for an increased price. So yeah, the quality certainly isn't the same.

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Re: Collection burn out and when you think you have enough?

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That's sort of why I was happy to hear Super7 got a Godzilla license, as despite taking FOREVER to get things done, they generally have excellent QC from my experience. I hope they are able to keep that up in the face of everything going on in the world.

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LSD Jellyfish
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Re: Collection burn out and when you think you have enough?

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I get burnt out when the releases become so new they don't feel "special". Case and point: recent MMS stuff. Gorosaurus was cool, and as was Iris. Those feel special. But then recolors come out, or more Mecha Godzillas, or tons of random stuff that I'm not exactly interested in getting, but do anyways. I feel pressured into buying some of these things, not because I instantly want them, but I fear that later I'll want to buy them and they'll be more expensive.This applies to more of the mass-main-stream produced figures.

For Marusan and some of the high end vinyl, I don't care. If I like a figure and colors, I'll buy them. While of course there's still many others out there with these figures, I know they're a lot "rarer" than something like a MMS release. I enjoy them for being collectible art, and as a result I get the ones that really like. I don't mind spending a few hundred each month on a high end Marusan figure if it feels special and makes my place feel brighter.

Physical room and space is a consideration too. I'm going to move in a month, and I feel like recently I don't have enough room to store/display things.
Last edited by LSD Jellyfish on Mon Jun 06, 2022 8:23 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Spirit Ghidorah 2010 wrote: Sun Dec 03, 2023 4:54 pm Anno-san pleasures me more than Yamasaki-san.

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darkcancer
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Re: Collection burn out and when you think you have enough?

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I only collect the Bandai High Grade gashapon series and every now and then I get the burnt out feeling. It's not hard to collect since they are pretty small and there tends to only be a few releases a year, but I get the feeling when I see the same kaiju made over and over again. I don't mind the new sculpts but there are so many less popular ones that could be included. Also there tends to be a change in the series (HG to HGD+ to HGX) where I wonder what my end point for collecting will be.
Since I'm a completionist when it comes to collecting (which is why I limit myself to to only this line), I try to get each set as it's released. A part of me thinks "eh I don't really need it" then another part is like "well if I get it then my collection is complete and I won't have to hunt it down later." I do hope thats a selling point for if I ever do decide to sell my collection.

One thing that has helped is when I get a second wind, such as when a new Godzilla/Gamera movie or series comes out. Then I feel like collecting again. Also I plan on making a detailed guide of the entire line in Microsoft Publisher for future collectors. A project related to the collection got rid of the burnt out feeling, even If I only work on it for a few minutes once every several months.
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Re: Collection burn out and when you think you have enough?

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My hand has been forced, somewhat because of the GF's advice but also just out of necessity. Im still going to be collecting for a while, since I have a large backlog of figures from my seller that I agreed to get, but the machine is definitely winding down.

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Re: Collection burn out and when you think you have enough?

Post by UltramanGoji »

I've been burned out almost entirely on Godzilla toys these days. Toys, that is, not merchandise in general. I still love grabbing the oddities and knick-knacks now more than figures or anything. My only real goal anymore these days for toys is a complete 6" scale Godzilla suit display. I have the two upcoming GFW SHMA's on pre-order and the Super7 Ultimates (because the line seems fun to collect) but that's about it. I don't really have any interest in collecting vintage or anything else. Maybe vintage American merchandise but nothing like Bandai vinyls, Marmits, etc.

Part of the burnout is the sheer volume of things coming out, but part of it is also being priced out too. There's too many companies putting out too many products for too high of prices for me to keep up with everything. In the Wilderness Years of the fandom (2005-2011), it was a lot easier as the Godzilla brand and general kaiju genre as a whole were extremely niche with few companies putting out products. What was out was relatively affordable, at least under $100 a piece. But the dam broke with G14's release (and arguably Pacific Rim's too if we're counting kaiju as a whole). Suddenly every company had something to put out and prices were rising. The ratio now is something like 70:30 premium collector figures vs. general mass retail toys and the former are way too expensive for me to keep up consistently with them.

I've placed strict limits on what I collect now, instead of just a general vague "whatever I find cool". Only four areas are what I focus on these days: Godzilla/kaiju, horror, Transformers, and Bionicle. Two of those have even further limits (TFs and Bionicle) where I'll be able to one day effectively "finish" collecting those lines while the Godzilla/kaiju and horror stuff will be areas where I can continue to collect them without trouble (for the most part).
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Re: Collection burn out and when you think you have enough?

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UltramanGoji wrote: Sat Jul 02, 2022 7:23 pm In the Wilderness Years of the fandom (2005-2011), it was a lot easier as the Godzilla brand and general kaiju genre as a whole were extremely niche with few companies putting out products. What was out was relatively affordable, at least under $100 a piece. But the dam broke with G14's release (and arguably Pacific Rim's too if we're counting kaiju as a whole).
G14 and the growing number of new fans really impacted the aftermarket as well. Bandai has always had its expensive and in-demand figures due to them circulating those molds like it's the Disney Vault, but I've really noticed the change with other figure companies. Especially examples like Trendmasters where the figures went from being ridiculed and selling for peanuts to being rediscovered and commanding incredibly hefty prices on eBay.
Last edited by Creature22 on Sat Jul 02, 2022 11:15 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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Re: Collection burn out and when you think you have enough?

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Been collecting for almost 20 years now and coming off a recent buying spree the last few years. I only have around 40-50 figured over 20 years of collecting, but my space for them is fairly limited until I one day buy a display cabinet for them. I have had stages since the end of high school where I can end up getting 1-2 figures a year or like last year I got a dozen new figures because of the cool stuff coming out.

After getting one of my grails this year (SH Monsterarts SCV King Ghidorah) and seeing how large it is, the space issue became more apparent. Additionally, I noticed how for some figures I maybe looked at them thoroughly once or twice and then set and forget on the shelf (Legion, Iris, Jet Jaguar, Gorosaurus).

At this point, I have to once again get more selective over what makes it onto the shelf. Slated for Monsterarts Godzilla 2004 and Monster X for now, but may partake in a vinyl or two like Varan. Was at one point looking at getting Salunga but tbh felt it might be one of those set and forget pieces.
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Re: Collection burn out and when you think you have enough?

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GodzillaXGomoraFight wrote: Sun Jul 03, 2022 4:53 am Was at one point looking at getting Salunga but tbh felt it might be one of those set and forget pieces.
I ordered Salunga myself, but that's primarily because I love Gabara and he's more or less barely represented in vinyl. It kind of disappointed me at how low his voting count was for the Bandai contest; makes me doubt that we'll EVER get an updated figure of him but I'd love to eat my words.

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Re: Collection burn out and when you think you have enough?

Post by GodzillaXGomoraFight »

Creature22 wrote: Sun Jul 03, 2022 10:10 pm
GodzillaXGomoraFight wrote: Sun Jul 03, 2022 4:53 am Was at one point looking at getting Salunga but tbh felt it might be one of those set and forget pieces.
I ordered Salunga myself, but that's primarily because I love Gabara and he's more or less barely represented in vinyl. It kind of disappointed me at how low his voting count was for the Bandai contest; makes me doubt that we'll EVER get an updated figure of him but I'd love to eat my words.
Yea I am tempted by Salunga for Gabara representation in my collection. At the same time, then I am wondering if I hold out for a Bandai release of Gabara or buy the old Y-MSF. Now that Varan is becoming a thing, who knows what the future may hold in a couple of years.
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Re: Collection burn out and when you think you have enough?

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I think I will fight the apathy by avoiding any of the 'upright dinosaur' styles unless they REALLY astound me, and instead focus on things that aren't as repetitive. The MonsterArts Mizutsune really did surprise me, as I've never seen one like that before. Also, the cross-compatibility with things like its breath effect and bubbles that could also work with Hedorah will give me more bang for the buck. But I'm still going to have to cut back even more than I thought, when a week's gas use goes over a hundred bucks, and I do NOT have a lengthy commute as such things are counted, things are not going well. I just went though a lot of my preorders and want lists last night, and cut a lot of stuff. Most of the Star Wars, many Transformers, etc just didn't make it. Their funding was literally burned getting me to the job I'd need to pay for them, it's not a sustainable cycle.

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Re: Collection burn out and when you think you have enough?

Post by _JNavs_ »

Hasbro is going to cause me to burnout on their Star Wars line lol. Attempting to play high ground when it comes to Windowless packaging, claiming “eco-friendly” when their behavior has been absolutely anything but. Their quality control dwindling into the gutter, their team’s absolutely atrocious understanding of the license. Going as far as releasing characters under different names because they didn’t bother looking up the character they were crafting to begin with.

The windowless packaging is nothing more than a ploy for them to continue putting out bottom of the barrel QC for an 8% hiked inflation for an overpriced line of figures. Mix that with store Exclusivity causing an even higher price hike, and the high likelihood of not being able to exchange your store exclusive defected figure because it sold out on release within ten minutes.

Don’t even get me started on “Haslabs” overcharging for items that could be put into stores with a bit of effort.
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Re: Collection burn out and when you think you have enough?

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I'm starting to get burnt out, temporarily. All the recent Bandai stuff (Shin Ultraman, Kamen Rider, Eva, new Godzilla figures)+Other items put a sizeable dent in my wallet and space on my shelves. I'll still collect, but it's getting to be a bit much.

I also realized I recently purchased one of my holy grails, and when I look at listing sites, out of what I collect I often have what I need.
Spirit Ghidorah 2010 wrote: Sun Dec 03, 2023 4:54 pm Anno-san pleasures me more than Yamasaki-san.

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Re: Collection burn out and when you think you have enough?

Post by JVM »

My usual solution to keep myself from overdoing it was to stick to the MMS line once it revived and not bother with any of the fifty other companies jumping in. Playmates felt grandfathered in by releasing stolen Bandai molds. The volume definitely increased but just short enough to be a financial problem for me.

I'm honestly getting kind of burned out on kaiju, period. The toys are just a smaller part of it.
I used to be a lot more optimistic and outgoing, believe it or not. I used to actually be passionate about this stuff.

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Re: Collection burn out and when you think you have enough?

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JVM wrote: Tue Apr 04, 2023 11:09 pm Playmates felt grandfathered in by releasing stolen Bandai molds.
We REALLY shouldn't perpetuate the narrative that Playmates "stole" these molds. That absolutely did not happen. They most likely licensed the molds in order to get product on the shelf to compensate for the fact that GvK was delayed.

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Re: Collection burn out and when you think you have enough?

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Executive Hamster wrote: Wed Apr 05, 2023 9:33 am
JVM wrote: Tue Apr 04, 2023 11:09 pm Playmates felt grandfathered in by releasing stolen Bandai molds.
We REALLY shouldn't perpetuate the narrative that Playmates "stole" these molds. That absolutely did not happen. They most likely licensed the molds in order to get product on the shelf to compensate for the fact that GvK was delayed.
Randy from NECA did say that it was blatant theft in a tweet. I wouldn't take his word as gospel, but it sure seems like they didn't know their Shin mold was being used.
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Re: Collection burn out and when you think you have enough?

Post by Executive Hamster »

NECA probably didn't know because they probably don't own the molds. Most likely Toho owns them so they probably didn't need to run it through NECA first. Take everything I say with a grain of salt obviously.

On top of that Randy definitely has a bad reputation with honesty, of course.

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Re: Collection burn out and when you think you have enough?

Post by Fermix »

I think you're right in that the license holder ultimately has control over the molds. Super7's TMNT line is heavily inspired, if not outright copying Playmates vintage aesthetic but I believe that Viacom ultimately gets final say over what they can do. Could be the same thing here - Playmates goes to Toho saying that the movie has been pushed back and they need product on shelves, so Toho gives them whatever molds they have on hand for a quick and cheap product.
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