Suggestions for Re-Energzing the Star Wars 1/6th Scale Line

Lately, I have seen a lot of complaints about Sideshow’s Star Wars line and fears about where it is going. I imagine that Sideshow’s Star Wars figures are probably continually some of the highest selIing 1/6th scale figures on the market. However, the line doesn’t have the rabid interest that it did 4 years ago. While I think some factors contributing to the line not being as “hot” as it used to be are out of Sideshow’s control (ie, no major movie coming up) Sideshow can make a few changes to really get fans excited again. I think to be most helpful to Sideshow, it is important to discuss what they are doing right and what they can do for the brand to re-energize interest.

Here’s what I think Sideshow is doing right:
-Awesome exclusive items…sometimes. Clone Wars Anakin had the baby Jabba, Thrawn had the command chair, and the Emperor had his throne. All of these exclusives added a lot of desirability to the figures. Unfortunately some came at an additional cost that was too high.

-Wonderful headsculpts. Adding Trevor Grove to the Sideshow teams was one of the smartest decisions made by the company

-Competitive pricing. Considering that Sideshow hopes that collectors pick up characters based on minor characters, it is imperative that the average Star Wars figure stays below the $100 mark.

-Nicely done armor figures. While it took thenm awhile to get moving on this front, Sideshow has really created some wonderful armor based figures with the clones, stormtroopers, and Vader. They could improve on this area of course (especially with Vader) but not even Hot Toys gets there more intricate figures perfect the first time.

Here are my suggestions for improvement:
-Redesigoned boxes. It is time to change the boxes. They have become VERY boring. Hot Toys runs circles around Sideshow in this category.

-Better clothing tailoring. The tailoring of outfits makes a huge difference in a figure looking like a high-end collectible rather than a toy. Sideshow has vastly improved from their earlier efforts, but clothing still does not look nearly as nice as those on Hot Toys figures.

-Better paintjobs. Sideshow’s getting better but it isn’t nearly flawless like Hot Toys offerings.

-Better spacing of releases. Sideshow spaces the announcements of figures so sporadically that the line oftentimes loses momentum.

-Introduce a DX line of figures for important redos. Figures like Jedi Luke and Bespin Han need to be redone. Nuff said.

Here are my suggestions for improvement:
-Redesigoned boxes. It is time to change the boxes. They have become VERY boring. Hot Toys runs circles around Sideshow in this category.

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Please spend hundreds of dollars redesigning something that's gonna be stored away or tossed!

-Better clothing tailoring. The tailoring of outfits makes a huge difference in a figure looking like a high-end collectible rather than a toy. Sideshow has vastly improved from their earlier efforts, but clothing still does not look nearly as nice as those on Hot Toys figures.

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Up the price to $180-$200 a figure too while you're at it to match what HT would charge for figure + LFL licensing fees!

-Better paintjobs. Sideshow’s getting better but it isn’t nearly flawless like Hot Toys offerings.

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See last point.

-Better spacing of releases. Sideshow spaces the announcements of figures so sporadically that the line oftentimes loses momentum.

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'cause one or two per year, like Hot Toys, would be better!

-Introduce a DX line of figures for important redos. Figures like Jedi Luke and Bespin Han need to be redone. Nuff said.

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Add PERS, a yawn-inspiring light-up stand and a pretty box and charge twice as much!


Dude, seriously, I can't say what I'm thinking without getting another "vacation," but this type of ____ is getting really, really old. Sideshow is Sideshow. And HotToys is HotToys. Buy from each for what they offer or don't.

I agree with you on most counts Zeiss, but I don't think SS figures will stay below $100 for much longer... look at Captain Rex and the Sandtroopers, they have a couple of extra accessories that make their prices soar. This might be "the way of the future" for SS, I really hope it isn't though...

I think SS should release figures and accesory packs separately, like the bare-bones figure of Rex with 1 pair of hands, one pair of blaster pistols, and just his helmet.

Then they could sell an accessories pack that included the other 2 blasters, the other 2 (or 5 or whatever) pairs of hands, the alternate Morrison HS, and the jetpack.

That way, people who really want Rex but can't pay very much can get him for $90, then the other people who don't mind spending a little extra can buy the accessory pack too and have a "deluxe Rex" or something...

I like Captain Rex, but I really don't wanna pay $125 for him... I really don't want all the extra crap he comes with!

Of course, there are other ways around this, like buying him from SS and selling the extra stuff I don't want on eBay or just buying the parts that are absoultely essential once Rex is parted out on Toy Anxiety or eBAy... but that's sort of a gamble, since if I try to sell the extras on eBay it's possible no one will buy them if it's BIN, and it's also possible I won't get very much for them if it's an auction. The same works the other way in the case where I'm the buyer on eBay buying the essential stuff, it might end up costing more than it's worth....

It would be nice if there was a cheaper, "less crap included" version of Rex to buy...

And by crap I mean "stuff," the extras are cool and all, I just don't think they're absolutely necessary...

Dude, you wouldn't pay $15 + shipping for a Hasbro Clone because you were too cheap to buy a Sideshow one. You really gonna drop $180 on a HT Trooper? Think about it, Mr. Big Gulp.

I'm from Argentina (south america) and I get my hot toys for $160/$165 top, plus shipping.. maybe you should talk with your retailer, because $180/$200 is a crazy price =)

I agree on most of your points. And don't listen to Nam, nobody does!

I'd like Sideshow to include a Ham sandwich with their figures because UPS stops by around lunch time and I get hungry.

Nam =



haha j/k

I would like to see better clothing on the 1:6 lines. Everything else I am pretty much ok with.

Prices are too high...I think a few years ago when figures were a bit more reasonable compared to other companies, it drew in collectors. Now that they have skyrocketed...can you really get excited when you have to shell out $125 for a subpar figure? And i think when they made General Yawn...they jumped the shark

Jackpot76 said:

Prices are too high...I think a few years ago when figures were a bit more reasonable compared to other companies, it drew in collectors. Now that they have skyrocketed...can you really get excited when you have to shell out $125 for a subpar figure? And i think when they made General Yawn...they jumped the shark

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Who's general yawn? Did you mean 'Admiral' Yawn? (like admiral thrawn?)

Paint apps could be a little better on the human figures. I'm not expecting HT quality, but something a little closer to preproduction pics would be nice. But I wouldn't start a thread about it.

Yep, better paint would go a long way towards making me happy. And that is something they can (and have done) in the past... but for some reason the quality of the paint has been hit or miss.

Aside from that I think Sideshow is doing great

I wouldn't mind a slight imporvement in overall quality... Cleaner paint aps, better quality tailoring, etc. It has taken awhile but the bodies has shown steady improvment from the inital Pro and Armor body releases a year and a half ago to the Pro 1.1 and 1.2... Things are getting better.

I agree with you on the clothes and paint apps for sure, zeiss. I love the SS armor line but other than those most of the SW figures quality doesn't match the price anymore. Close but not quite especially since they're above the $100 mark.

OSCORP said:

I agree on most of your points. And don't listen to Nam, nobody does!

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Oh, I know not to take Nam too seriously. He's like one of those cantankerous uncles we all have. At any given moment, he may or may not have a point, but he will always be offensive in delivering whatever he has to say.

Of the suggestions I made, certainly paint apps and tailoring are of the highest priority. However, I do think that putting more effort in things like packaging could go a long way in helping with the presentation and public perception of the figures...especially when they are seen on retail shelves as specialty shops. I really don't think that a package design change would actually be a costly thing to implement...as long as Lucasfilm lets them.

I haven't been following the Rex figure and didn't realize he is going to be so expensive. If Sideshow insists on charging more than $100, then at least paint app and tailoring changes really need to be implemented.

I do want to say that my suggestions are more to serve as constructive feedback than outright negative criticism. Sideshow is actually doing a MUCH better job than before and I do actually like the figures. If they make just a few changes, then this line could really gain back the interest of fans that have moved on to other lines.

Point still stands though...

thenammagazine said:

Sideshow is Sideshow. And HotToys is HotToys. Buy from each for what they offer or don't.

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thenammagazine said:

Point still stands though...

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I don't think it is as simple as Sideshow is Sideshow and Hot Toys is Hot Toys so just accept it.

The thing is, the market changes and both Sideshow's and Hot Toys' products have changed to reflect this. The Sideshow of four years ago isn't the Sideshow of today. I believe the Star Wars line has DRAMATICALLY increased in quality, in part, because of the impact Hot Toys has had on the market. They must further change to keep the interest of fans. Especially with the obvious desire to continually raise the prices of the figures.

Fans can help Sideshow be letting the company know how the line needs to evolve to keep interest.

zeiss said:

I don't think it is as simple as Sideshow is Sideshow and Hot Toys is Hot Toys so just accept it.

The thing is, the market changes and both Sideshow's and Hot Toys' products have changed to reflect this. The Sideshow of four years ago isn't the Sideshow of today. I believe the Star Wars line has DRAMATICALLY increased in quality, in part, because of the impact Hot Toys has had on the market. They must further change to keep the interest of fans. Especially with the obvious desire to continually raise the prices of the figures.

Fans can help Sideshow be letting the company know how the line needs to evolve to keep interest.

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But your requests are almost oxymoronic (literal, not meant as insult).

Tailoring and paint apps cost money. Moreso to do it to a HotToys standard. You're requesting that they make all these quality changes while most are _____ing that they're charging too much. So they should lose customers to keep the ones who can afford HT? That means less product too, which in the end means less $$$.

You want them to make releases more "consistent" to maintain attention then use HT as a comparison who release like 2 figures per license a year. We've seen what happens to lines like that with LOTR and Indy; fans bail and interest wanders.

Upping the flashiness of the boxes would be superficial at best. Honestly, I think most could give two ____s or a ____ how the box looks so long as the product inside is awesome. HT has devolved in that aspect, returning to a 5-panel box with velcro closures. Now if you're talking about the DX figures, that's superficial garbage as well. A pretty box, a light-up metal stand and moving eyes all seem somewhat lame and seldom justify the price increase they fetch.

Overall, realistically, most of your suggestions would do more to hinder than help.

thenammagazine said:

Sideshow is Sideshow. And HotToys is HotToys. Buy from each for what they offer or don't.

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Sums it up really.

Our SW forum in Aus debates the same thing over and over, HT vs SSC.

Did I mention how good the SSC Rex looks?