overpriced is a major thing for sure, but it seems those multipacks are selling when it is certain ones. To me it appears the articulation is playing into it. Target actually laid out a new stock last week, and this week it's that set with Luke and Boba with 5 point articulation still there. Even the Maul set is selling out with Christmas.

It doesn't really prove anything, but it is a visual. something to set some sort of benchmark I guess.

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Yes, I really do believe articulation is over rated. As an adult collector, the insane articulation is usually a point of frustration for me because the joints are loose or pop off so easily. Sometimes it's hard just to get them to stand straight and hold a gun with 2 hands. As a father of a young boy, I know it is over rated. He has some articulated figures. What happens is all the small parts get pulled off and lost. I can't tell you how many headless Clone Troopers are floating around this house. But when he gets a figure with limited articulation it holds together great and plays with it more. He doesn't care about articulation. The figure still does all the awesome flying, jumping, shooting, flipping, and dying he wants it to do... even with 5 points of articulation.

1985 era Joes still remain the ultimate design in my eyes. A perfect balance of articulation and durability.

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You are probably right J_Man. I'm just basing it on my being pissed off and disappointed and feeling ripped off. It still bothers me a year later.

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I stand by Joes as having the right amount of articulation. I wouldn't want less because, sure, that Luke has a lightsaber swinging arm and a gun pointing arm, but now those arms are limited to those movements. And that limits imagination. What if I want Luke to dual wield lightsabers? Or hold a rifle?

Star Wars figures can't standardize into a buck like G.I.Joe can. They have been trying to capture height differences between characters. But they should be able to move the humans toward maybe 5 or 6 bucks.

A quick Google:

Carrie Fisher 5'1"
Natalie Portman 5'3"
Mark Hamill 5'9"
Alec Guinness 5'10"
(Ewan McGregor also 5'10")
Harrison Ford 6'1"
Peter Mayhew 7'2"
David Prowse 6'6"
(Hayden Christensen 6'2")
(Sebastian Shaw 6'2")
Samuel L. Jackson 6'2"

There is a bit of a difference in how characters were perceived vs the actor's actual height. But I think Anakin, Luke, Han, Ben, and Mace could all be one buck and I would not complain. But Vader, Leia, and Chewie should all be different heights.

Yeah, this limits the ability to really make varied heights. But it would also make parts swapping among sculpts easier. And in some cases, I think they have really screwed up when altering the height of figures. I did not buy the EpIV Vintage Collection Luke because he seemed way too short. And looking at the numbers, I think that figure really was too small.

I'd just be happy if all the Star Wars figures at least had the same size neck balls, instead of being all over the damn place.

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QFT. Even better, it'd be nice if there were a standard neck ball size shared by both Star Wars and Joe.

fixed that for you

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I so want one of these!

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That's a two-up though. Twice the size of ARAH figures. I keep meaning to grind some poor figure down to create a 1:18 version of that buck though.

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First off this:



With that said, yes , i do believe hyper articulation is vastly overrated. I value a sturdy figure that does not have easily removed body parts (i.e. heads that pop off. Ugh..) far more than a figure with more articulation that exudes a feeling of fragility. Of course toys that are marketed towards a certain age group (that has a certain style of "play") might not benefit from even an ARAH level of articulation.

A 1985 GI Joe had the minimum amount of articulation that , IMO, would allow a child to be fully expressive with regard to the range of motion in a human body. If a child is at the stage of being able to imagine complex story lines and adventures that level of articulation is a wonderful additional feature of the toy. Side kicks that the child recognizes as being realistic as far as how they are executed. Also kneeling positions (knee joints) when hiding behind a structure so as not to be seen by the "enemy".

If the child is still at the stage of simply bashing figures into one another then Rescue Heroes , another fun toy line from years past, would be better suited.

Agreed, but I must add swivel wrists as absolutely essential.

I was thinking of starting a similar thread a while ago when I bought some of the new movie figs, but decided I would probably get crucified for saying that I don't miss the ankle articulation and could probably even live without double-jointed knees. Sure they are nice to have, but I can still enjoy figures without them. Now if they also skimped on the swivel wrists, I would be angry enough to not buy the figure.

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I haven't yet seen a time that a swivel wrist adds anything that was necessary. And the wrist would still be a fragile point on what is a sturdy design.

My ideal figure:

1985 GI Joe articulation.
Spytroops era plastics.
Modern Era sculpting and detail.
Easily disassembled. It doesn't have to have an o-ring but a back screw is a must.
A male standard buck and a female standard buck.
Hold off on the intricate, easily lost accessories. Bullets, clips, tiny knives, and mics should be sculpted on or left out of the package.
$5.00 price point.

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To me, articulation should be driven the figure's need to be posable.

Storm Shadow? Give him a thousand points-of-articulation. Double hinged knees and spiraling/swiveling ankles. All that.

General Flagg (in dress uniform)? Not so much. I've ranted on this before, but the best made dress uniform figure ever is MASK's Miles Mayem. Swivel shoulders, swivel head, t-crotch, and knees. That's all a figure like this needs. And it would allow for a Joe size figure in a dress uniform to have shoulder patches in the right place. If you want to throw in some extra articulation that is hidden by the design, like the swivel wrist or swivel ankles, go ahead.

i know i am in a big minority here but it seems every site i ever go to all i ever hear is complaining about more articulation i drives me crazy and it seems like one of the excuses they use for constant price hikes. as a child that actually played with toys i grew up in the 70s and 80s and mostly never had a problem with 5 point articulation, as an adult collector that mostly displays my toys and does dioramas i have far more complaints about the fraility of some figures because of tons of articulation and the bad detail and visual aesthetics some figures have because of tons of articulation. i personally think the nicer done modern star wars figures look the best instead of swivels in the mod arm or leg or double knees they have ball joints in the elbows and knees and shoulders that look way better and seem like they move better to me. alot of people sound like they want or expect the toy companies to be able to make every toe and finger move.

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How about a softer plastic forearm that allows a small amount of torsion/ twist instead of a joint?