It’s still a little hard to believe that we are anticipating another brand new Star Wars film, just one year after the release of The Force Awakens. Like the products released for The Force Awakens, Rogue One licensees have held the majority of their new Rogue One product for release on a specific date (9/30/16). I’m very excited for this film and want quite a bit of Rogue One stuff so I have been reflecting on last year’s Force Friday and plotting my strategy for this year.
FORCE FRIDAY 2015
Last year, Toys R Us and Target held midnight opening events to sell TFA merch. I skipped these because I thought that I didn’t have the time to line up early enough to grab the 6-inch Black Series figures I wanted. Instead I stayed home and hit the computer at around 9 PM for Amazon orders and snagged the whole wave minus Rey.
The collecting fever had hit me pretty hard, so I decided to hit some stores that night anyway. I checked TRU after the onslaught and saw nothing of the Black Series figures were left, just as I had assumed. But I also went to a couple of 24-hour Walmarts and was able to find the whole wave there. Although the figures went fast when they first hit, I was still able to pick up all of the wave 1 figures easily at the store if I wanted more. I try to remind myself of this fact so that I learn the lesson of collector patience, but it’s hard to compete with gotta-have-it-now syndrome.
ROGUE FRIDAY
I don’t think I’ve seen it officially labeled “Rogue Friday” anywhere, but I like the sound of it, so I’m going with that. In general, the branding and promotion of this year’s event doesn’t seem to have the same push behind it as last year’s Force Friday. It makes sense since this is a slightly different type of movie and not the heralded return of a beloved franchise to prominence. There are fewer stores participating in midnight events this year (just TRU) and I feel like I’m reading a lot more reports of stores like Walmart breaking street dates. On top of that, this year I feel like I want more stuff than I did last year. I, of course, want the Black Series 6-inch figures, which are my main collecting obsession right now.
The main wrinkle for me this year is probably going to be getting the exclusive Black Series figures on Rogue Friday. The Hover Tank Pilot, exclusive to TRU, may be especially tough to get because I would imagine that there is only a case per store with a max of 12 per case. This means I have to be pretty close to the front of the line for the midnight opening. I love Star Wars and these figures, but I don’t think I have the will to make that line. I just hope they get a few cases of these guys over the next few months.
Jyn Erso (Eadu) is a K-Mart exclusive and those stores are few and far between here. There do seem to be plenty of K-Mart exclusives from TFA still available at the two K-Marts still in San Diego County, so I like my chances of getting this one eventually, if not on Rogue Friday. I think she’ll be online at some point for order, so I’ll do that worst case scenario.
I don’t normally collect the 3.75 figures, but there are quite a few Rebels figures that may be out on Rogue Friday that interest me since I have been collecting the Rebels characters in that scale. The Sabine and Kanan from wave one are must haves, as is Rebels Princess Leia from wave 2.
Now, I’ve heard wave 2 may or may not be out on Rogue Friday, so I’ll be keeping my eyes open. There’s also a Chirrut Imwe figure I’d like from wave 2 if that hits. I’m seriously considering a Chirrut collection, he’s made such a great impression on me in the trailers for Rogue One.
I really want the A-Wing and the Imperial Speeder bike from Rebels as well. If I grab all of this stuff, I was thinking of trying to find them at a Target at opening time so I can use one of those coupons for $10 off a purchase of $50 or more.
There aren’t any Rebels characters in wave 1 of the two-packs, but the furry guy Moroff and the big Mouth guy Pau are sorely tempting designs. Wave two has an awesome pack with the Seventh Sister and Maul, but those may or may not be out on Friday. I haven’t seen any store break the date with the wave 2 stuff yet.
The other big release for the night is pre-orders for S.H. Figuarts figures go live. Those usually go at 4 PM Japan time, which means midnight in CA. That’s a bit of a conflict for me because I was thinking of popping out to some stores at that time.
I think I’m going to stick with Hasbro for all of these for now except Han Solo. That likeness looks so great, I have to pre-order that. Maybe I can do that from my phone. TheTank Trooper does have a slightly different paint job, so I may grab that as well, but I’m pretty impressed with what I’ve seen from the Hasbro Tank, Death, and Shore Troopers that I’m not as motivated to pre-order the Figuarts troops.
The Disney Store has some interesting items I was considering, mostly to add to my possible Chirrut Imwe collection. I like how the little PVC figure has Chirrut wielding a bow-caster of some kind.
I don’t normally collect the 7-inch scale die-cast figures from the Disney Store, but the Chirrut figure intrigues me. I’m on the fence with these.
I’m not usually into Funko PoP figures, but I do really like the looks of the Walmart-exclusive Saw Gerrera and the FYE-exclusive Bistan, so I’m also considering seeking these out.
Finally, the last items I’m seriously considering are the Stormtrooper Helmets from Hasbro’s Black Series. I don’t cosplay, I don’t really have a spot to display this, but, darn it, they just look neat. The video from Hasbro really sells it to me:
https://youtu.be/_QTnxNWvB_Y
That’s a ton of stuff. I think I might print out this handy checklist from the good folks at Yakface to help me remember it all. So I think my plan for this year will be to drop by Walmart at midnight for the wave 1 Black Series while checking my phone for S.H. Figuarts Han Solo pre-orders. Friday morning, I’ll drop by Target to try and use the coupons to buy the Rebels figures, ships, and maybe the Black Series helmet and possibly a Chirrut PoP. After that, I’ll also try to get the Jyn Exclusive at K-Mart and then see what’s happening at the Disney Store. Wish me luck, guys!
What are your plans?