My hope is that the year long wait means that we will get the next two announcements relatively close together. I expect one at Toy Fair and one at SDCC. Two in the first six months of 2007 is a LOT better than only one in all of 2006 (and one that was not universally praised like Lurtz was). They have had some time to work and get things right and I'm sure they know that the timing, quality, and character choice of the next release is going to be critical for the success and support of the line.
But if they are sitting there knowing what the next 4-5 pieces in the line are looking like, they know how awesome this collection is shaping up to be. They would rather take their time, get it right, let the fickle collectors bail, and then quietly chuckle to themselves when the line picks up next year and everybody who bailed out comes scrambling back on. It's torture for us to wait so long with no information, but they know what is ahead and it's much easier for them to remain excited about the future of the line. Any major collectible line is like a subway train--people are getting on and off all the time, some stay off, some get back on, but the momentum is stretched over a long period of time. I know that if I quit this line now that I will be getting back on board when Theoden or Boromir are announced. So I will just sit tight and wait as long as I am forced to wait. But I think that the next one will be a strategically awesome release.
