I for one refuse to A) Run around to the 20 closest stores in the vain hope I might find one I actually like & B) Never buy from a SCALPER it only encourages them to continue doing what they are doing - I gave Hasbro my middle fingers and walked away - Hope you did the same
I said no from the beginning because I didn't understand why they were all wearing gold in wave 1. I was kinda surprised Scarlett didn't arrive riding a magical white anime dragon that flies in from behind a rainbow. :\
You're saying everything we have been telling Hasbro for months now. It's all falling on deaf ears. I'm just waiting for Bobby's Valaverse Action Force. Thanks, Tony 👍
To paraphrase Eric Cartman: "When Hasbro says 'we got a Target exclusive,' you might as well start punching yourself in the balls, dude." I sat in on that live stream and yeah, it wasn't pretty. But it really blew up when they rolled out Breaker and the Ram. Two iconic pieces from the first wave of the vintage line and in the case of Breaker, one of the figures I was looking forward to when I started collecting this line. Now...I may not be able to get him? If you go back and watch that, I don't think they ever actually admit that Breaker and the Ram is an exclusive because things were going South at that point. I'm pretty sure the only reason we know it's an exclusive pack is because of the box art. 1. The duo hosting the live stream was completely tone deaf about the Target exclusive issue. The designer even making a joke saying, "we understand some fans got their hands on Bludd early, hahaha." Really? You're going to insult us like that to our faces? 2. Tony is right. Hasbro HAS cheapened the special release Snake Eyes. It's to the point now that I look at that big box and think, "why did I even bother?" They could have painted the weapons. The new Snake Eyes isn't necessary. What they should have done was release Timber. Just release Timber as a $10 piece or something and packed in a new Commando Head for Snake Eyes along with him. Maybe a few other accessories to go along with him. But they didn't need to put out a whole "new" figure. 3. So now we're on our 4th Roadblock and 4th Snake Eyes (5th if you count the movie figure). And like Tony when they showed Roadblock with the mini-gun I was like, "well of course they did. Because they think they need to 'upgrade' the figures." Then they rolled out the Ram and I was like, "oh, so they didn't make it for Roadblock. Why does Breaker carry a mini-gun?" I was fortunate enough to get a a Heavy Artillery Roadblock because I was obsessing about getting something for the line and kept searching Amazon to find him. For some reason they call him "Milky Way" AND they didn't release him when Hasbro said they were going to release him. Amazon actually put him up for sale about 30 min early! 4. I too questioned, "okay, great, you're putting blast effect holes in the weapons...why aren't you giving us blast effects to go along with it? Marvel Legends is getting blast/magic/whatever effects with every figure that needs them. Look at the latest release of the villain The Hood. Dual-wielding Colt .45's and each one has a blast effect to go with it. 5. STALKER....I'm glad Tony said something about where is Stalker. I thought I was the only one that was missing him. The rumor mill is that Hasbro IS going to announce Stalker as part of Yo Joe June. And if they release him as a damn Cobra Island exclusive.... There were three figures I REALLY wanted when this line started. Three of the four S's: Snake Eyes, Scarlett...and Stalker. I have two. In fact, they've released multiple versions of those two. If they announce Stalker is going to be another exclusive to Target, well I think that will be the high water mark for me. At that point I think I'm going to quit this line. Two figures I wanted when it started, Breaker and Stalker, and not being able to get either one. What's the point of collecting this line then? 6. They're going to re-release Baroness and Beachhead. So what? They're re-releasing them through Target and just giving the scalpers more fodder. 7. The rumor mill has also been circulating that towards the end of the month they're going to announce a G.I. Joe Haslab project. Who cares? Why support something that's probably going to be a $200 item for a line that I can't get regular release figures for? I wanted this line. I STILL want this line! But Hasbro is screwing this up SO BADLY! Don't give money to scalpers. Don't give money to Haslab. I've already got my Valaverse Sgt Slaughter, along with a few accessory packs (including the Declassified pack) on pre-order.
4- Maybe it's different when you have to impress other company to make their characters. Marvel Legends is a big boat for Hasbro, they want to keep it floating and the people involved in it knows it. They have tons of characters and options and they used them wisely, for the most part. With GI Joe, they are basically throwing darts ramdonly to the wall. I'm no GI Joe collector but I can see this train wreck happening since day 1. They have no love for their own brand. Mattel is soon loosing rights to make MOTU and at least they are doing good action figures (distribution issues aside).
If Haslab makes a GI Joe Headquarters playset in 6" scale I'm getting it for my Transformers. I'll turn it into Autobot City or Metroplex. I really hope they do an HQ & not a vehicle.
@@n7bansheebait299 I don't know. Haslab is a waste of money. The second largest toy company in the world does not need to crowd fund items that would sell on the open market if they just actually used pre-orders, and didn't jack the price up. They crowd funded a board game, for goodness sake. A. Board. Game.
1. Why not give him a proper gun, why a fourth repaint you have so many Characters to do why the hell isn’t this Heavy Duty. I’ve written so many letters to them about the absurdity of being a premium member and being unable to get an order in after you jump through hoops of i’am not a robot you go to pay and it tells me it’s sold out it hasn’t even been three minutes and it’s sold out. And then you go to Amazon to order it and it’s under some weird fucking name I went back to watch the stream again cause I thought I missed something took me a couple hours to find it, but I got my order in and order one. I only needed one i’am not a greedy pig but why the fuckk was it under the weird name Hasbro GIJ Milky Way i’am not ordering fucking candy bar’s. What the Fuck hasbro I know they think this shit is funny and good for business ever ones trying to get there product but in actuality it’s not your alienating, your customers and if I have to spend 150 dollars on an action figure it’s not gonna be on your $22 poorly conceived and executed action figure that’s poorly marketed. If I miss a mezco I can be put on a waiting list for the reissue. I have suggested they do something similar too, why not create a waiting order list through pulse so that you can know how many to make, any thing would be better than this shit show. And I told them stop writing to me about how sorry you are for my shopping experience and how are we doing and did this help to resolve your issues, No it doesn’t and your doing fucking terrible and I won’t be renewing my pulse membership because it’s fucking pointless and I feel like contacting the Attorney General in my state and filing a class action lawsuit for fraud and deceptive business practices.
That is a distinction that is overlooked all over in in society. Questioning and critiquing is not hating. Lot of people don’t get that. Your right Tony gives a bitter pill for Hasbro to swallow. Says it thou in hopes they improve and wishes them too.
@@sunnyfrisch you hit the nail on the head. Facts and discussion has been replaced with over shouting people, shaming, canceling. It’s just crazy. I hope enough sane people will drag us back to normal soon. I’m in the trenches myself, blocked on Facebook again for 30 days. A algorithm misinterpreted my statement. Robots and Kool aid are at the helm of social media. Not a good thing my man. Tony speaks his mind. We all need too. Rather then be Corporate ass kisses.
If Hasbro did a live convention announcement of the exclusivity of these figures, I will be one of those fans who will shout "BOOOO!" at the presenter.
Classifieds has driven me back to collecting vintage 3 3/4 line, and I'm so much happier for it. I actually managed to pick up Major Bludd, Cobra Infantry and Zartan at retail, and I impulsively bought the redeco Roadblock and Scarlett, but I ended up returning Roadblock and Scarlett, because they just don't represent the original characters to me. For a time I was going to multiple Targets every day, asking employees about inventory, hounding them with DPCI numbers etc. but it just got to be too much. Buying toys become a lot less fun when the toys don't do justice to what originally made the characters "them"... and it's also a lot less fun when you have to dedicate a large portion of your week driving to stores on a daily basis, let alone the amount of gas money that leads to. Regardless of the added articulation and details of the 6", I still feel the vintage ARAH figures are superior in terms of playability, and they also work with vehicles. I can't imagine Classifieds coming out with any substantial vehicles, which is a big fail for me considering the fact that one of the main things that made GI Joe cool and fun was the fact that they could interact with a whole world of variously scaled vehicles and play sets, but I don't believe that will happen with this line.
By looking beyond Hasbro for my figures, my collection has decreased in quantity, but it has increased in quality. I've got real nice MAFEX and McFarlane shelves now.
This line doesn't particularly interest me, but when I saw the Barbecue figure, my eyes lit up, with the immediate realisation that I have next to no chance of owning one! How frustrating for those collectors that want them all!
@@smyers9052 Yep. I personally can't see what the problem is with some "fans." I have almost all of the figures released so far, and not a single one has disappointed. If you want an exact copy of the original figure, save your money and buy vintage. I haven't had any issues getting figures, and some of the UK Classified groups on Facebook are brilliant. Lovely people, who help each other out getting figures, and selling doubles at retail prices. I've never seen a fanbase like it for anything else TBH. It makes me totally mystified when I see all the complaining from people who don't even want to buy the line anyway (mainly in the US).
I really respect you and your honesty Tony, your channel is one of my favorites on UA-cam. I grew up with ARAH, but Hasbro has literally driven me out of collecting them with their decisions. I've never been a fan of the 6 inch scale, but I don't even register that as a fault anymore. If that is the dominate scale, then so be it. But every other decision they have made almost makes it seem like they actively want their products to be seen as rare collectible items that sell for high prices on the secondary market rather than as a mass produced toy or hobby line. I just don't get it. And your analogy about if Netflix worked the way Hasbro Pulse does is so spot on it's amazing. Oh well, at least I'm saving a lot of money by not caring one iota that there is a new G.I. Joe line out.
I was super lucky and just happened to be at a walmart when they were opening a box of the very first set of figures. Those are literally the only classified figures i've ever seen on shelves.
I first started collecting with the release of the classified series . I’ve already quit due to the cobra island series, scalpers and exclusives. If Hasbro doesn’t want my money that’s fine. There’s better ways to spend my midlife crisis money.
I don’t have any on hand since I’m out of town…..but I think the blast effect parts they’re talking about are from their current Transformers line. If that’s the parts they’re referencing…..that means you have to collect two toy lines to get that? Asinine.
It would have been nice if they were compatible with the Transformers ones so that there would be more incentive for them to finally sell a separate blast effects accessory pack.
I've seen five, five single, solitary figures. The Snakes Eyes (the one Joe from the RAH series I loved growing up) I got through Amazon. I've pretty much decided that I am not willing to pay scalper prices to get a complete collection. It doesn't surprise me that Hasbro is not changing their sales strategy with these figures. Thanks to the scalpers, they are still reaping their profits while the average collector (like myself) who just wants to take a trip down nostalgia lane gets the shaft.
I see them in Walmart in the Phoenix area and at Target. Some sit there for days. I don't like them. The series they put out for the 3.75 figures are nicer.
Strong points made, the frustration of exclusivity has just crippled the awesome protentional of this line. I am the easy to please cat that just loves this line overall (once I got into 3D resin printing my own weapons!)- I sincerely enjoy the heck out of these figures, but they are retail impossible. I have had to go to ebay on almost every cobra island figure - and its pushed me into just not wanting to bother anymore with it. What I am seeing now is that due to the horrible supply, if/when folks find anything they are clearing the peg and heading to ebay. It's going to take more than a few bursts of availability to bring any normalcy, Hasbro needs to offer always available - max of 1 or 2 per address pre-order availability of every figure in the line over a long period of time (as long as they are running and selling this line). That puts the money back into Hasbro's pocket, vs giving it to scalpers. This limited 30 second ordering window is just a publicity stunt, a customer fail either by design or is absolutely tone deaf as a supplier to the customer demand and interest.
The Viper was available again. Added it to cart and immediately went to checkout. Sold out before I could complete my transaction. This is BS. #hasbrosucks
Same thing happened to me. I was on the site refreshing the page every few seconds and as soon as it was up I went to get it and check out but was STILL to slow.
Mine’s showed like they where about to open up for new orders but before it could do anything it was already sold out, I don’t understand cut this exclusive crap out and open it for orders like a Haslab especially for figures, army builders and Rider figures just let use put an order in or give it to another company that wants to do it right.
Hi Tony, I live in the UK, I’m lucky enough I’ve been able to get all the Cobra Island exclusives online, our online retailers here in the UK are very good, we don’t have Target, I’m going to support Valaverse Action Force as much as possible, I’ve also sent some figures I’ve been able to get to friends in the US at cost, the Classified figures are great in my opinion, and I want as many collectors as possible to be able to get them.
Thank you for expressing exactly how I've been feeling for quite some time. I'm also a life long fan of GI Joe and find this to be extremely frustrating. And there is no way in hell I'm paying Hasbro a membership fee for the " privilege" of buying.
This new Roadblock feels like a Hasbro internal executive pissing contest, as if the first one said Fortnite figures would sell, but another said ARAH figures would sell better. To have another Roadblock released - which means all the work invested on a figure, like design, planning and manufacturing - instead of a different new character, feels like someone inside there was trying to prove a point. "Fuck everyone in the customer base who bought Roadblocks so far, this is the one I wanted to release." "Well, you get your figure, but not the gun!" Petty.
@@smyers9052 How do you get an "ICONIC" Figure right? SIMPLE - they made ORIGINALS 1982+, then Hit it out of the Park with the 25th & 30th Anniversary Lines. Kind of reminds me what Kathleen Kennedy said about Star Wars & having NO SOURCE MATERIAL. SERIOUSLY W - T - F ??? The Joe/Cobra Movie Toy line didn't sell nearly as well, in fact fell off a cliff due to changes, w/exception to the one's that were ORIGINAL Joes. Hasbro was hoping that the SUCCESS of their 25th & 30th Anniversary lines would drive sales of the movie Toy line. It did not. This should have been a CRITICAL LESSON to learn. They did not. From a Business perspective, Hasbro thought they could push SHE HIT out the door that resembled & kinda sorta "looked" like the Originals, especially in name. Figured us Dumb FKUCs would be all over it, buy it all up & then Hasbro could SWOOP in with a "Reissue/Redeco" & do it all over again, figuring that they were just trying to get an "ICONIC" character just right. How many times is a company going to SHE HIT in your Ice Cream Cone & try to sell it to you as Genuine the REAL MCCOY, before you give them your Middle Fingers & walk away? Hasbro did the repaints/redecos purely from a GREED aka PROFIT perspective. Then when that 3rd..... 4th..... iteration finally stops selling & there is negative backlash from the 1st onwards, they put out an almost perfect version with a non sci-fi but non Original weapon that they can use for something else, in this case the RAM, selling 4 or 5 of the same mold with slight variations and repaints is far FAR cheaper than sculpting another ICONIC figure = HIGHER PROFIT MARGINS. Rinse & Repeat with Scarlet, Duke, Snake-Eyes, Destro & Cobra Commander. MILK every penny & wring out every drop of PROFIT from each mold. Then there are the EXCLUSIVES - EYE ROLL. They literally could sell 10 boxes of say a Viper to each store & it would SELL OUT. But that's not their goal obviously. Why not make less & charge more, driving the Secondary Market which feeds the FOMO, which in turn drives PROFIT while artificially keeping the price inflated & driving the sales of the next wave. Ultimately, with todays computing technology, Hasbro could easily put up a Figure & have a BUY BEFORE DATE, that date comes & goes - Hasbro now has a near perfect picture of just exactly how many to produce, while making extra for the stores in "limited" quantities. They could then ship each individual customers to said store, thereby giving the Stores their Walk In Traffic that they want with the EXCLUSIVES. They could still do EXCLUSIVES for the Stores while keeping it open for their Fans/Customer Base with a limit of 1 per, thus if you want a 2nd, you head to a store and hope to pick it up there. Pretty Simple really.
It's different here in the UK as we obviously don't have those stores. Roadblock is still avaolable for PO Happy that Baroness & Viper will get re-released myself
Yeah, all the badness is coming from the US market. I don't collect Black Series, but I wonder if people totally lose their s**t when a BS figure goes out of stock? It's fine to complain about distribution, but can anyone really expect a particular toy to be available forever, and never sell out?
@@ccarlton6790 there's a difference between a toy selling out that has been on the shelves for a while & selking out the moment it is announced I am pissed that I can't get the Target exclusive BS Escape from Bespin Leia 😭
@@Stiffkittens01 If everyone can agree on anything, it's that Hasbro don't like leaving money on the table. There will be a slight repaint/new packaging re-release of anything that makes them money. Hope you get your Leia eventually!
@@ccarlton6790 yeah, they just did a SW livestream according to my notifications. I looked up to see what was released & from the BS, it's just repackaged archive & R1 figures, maybe with new HS though although I do think the Mads Mickelson figure is new & I would like that being a fan of him And of course him & another are target exclusives 🙄🤦♂️
I am following you now for ALL of my GI Joe Classified info. Your points are RIGHT ON POINT! Well said, my Friend! - William (Charlottesville, Virginia)
I agree with you. Most of this line is exclusive that you can't find. I was on hasbro pulse at 1pm ready to order figures and saw that it was for premium members only watching everything sale out before I could get a chance to buy at 2pm. It ridiculous that hasbro can't get this line right
Always those exclusives. Such a shame they keep on doing that. Good call Tony. If a figure is your cup of tea or not is one thing. But please give us a normal way to buy them instead of exclusives
What on earth are Hasbro playing at? It seems they are just lining the pockets of scalpers with these crazy exclusives!! Your analogy of paying to entre a toy shop just to look at empty pegs is spot on.... how can their subscribers not see that they are being taken for fools?! It seems that Hasbro has zero respect for their fan base and not a great deal of respect or care for their own toy lines any more. What a shower!! Thanks for the video Tony. People need to hear this.
He’s exactly right. It reminds me of when I as a kid and my cousin had every transformer up on shelves that he would never let me play with. I’m getting deja vu all over again
One reason I like your reviews is because you are always 💯% spot. As a lifelong GI JOE fan like yourself, I've been disappointed with how this line has been handled. I don't ever remember a time when I had to get up at dawn on New Years Day just to stand in line to get 1 Viper. 4 Snake Eyes, 4 Roadblocks, 3 COBRA Commanders, 2 Destros, and limited availability are tanking this line similar to what happened with Sigma 6. Where's the variety??? Scalpers and bots have set the market price by sapping up all the inventory. eBay and Mercari are making a killing whole true fans are either stuck going to Target day after day or paying inflated prices on the secondary market. I'm praying Valaverse corrects everything that HASBRO has done wrong.
New from Hasbro! Classified Series Cobra Commander based on the original 1982 figure...with a completely new color scheme and design! Plus some googles we gave him. But otherwise exactly the same as the original...except for the cape and the pimp cane...those are new. Plus, now he's a ninja. Also, the horns we added to his helmet, we feel, give him a bitchin' Viking look...so, that's pretty cool. But beyond those few, very minor changes, he's perfectly accurate to the 1982 design. Digital voice circuit allows you to hear his deep, baritone voice speak memorable Cobra Commander phrases like, "Aloha, Mr. Hand!", "Knowhutimean, Vern?", and, of course, "CC phone home!" Includes his classic slingshot! And everybody's favorite...Dave, his pet Toucan! Figure will be available on August 27th from 1:00pm - 1:17pm exclusively at Barry's Bait Barn in Bucksnort, Tennessee!
The whole bots buying all their stock is out of control too. Firefly and Trooper restock was gone in under 30 seconds. Way faster than a human could add them to the cart and check out.
You're absolutely right. I've loved G.I. Joe since the first wave in the 80s, and I was really excited to hear that they were finally going to come out with a 6-inch line...but this has been THE MOST FRUSTRATING LINE TO COLLECT EVER. Exclusive after exclusive and Hasbro REFUSES to listen to it's fans. The only Cobra Island/Target exclusive I have is Major Bludd, and that's because I went to Target every morning before work and pestered the guy there until they finally came in. I don't have Beach Head, or the Cobra Trooper, or Firefly, or the Viper, or the Baroness (which is the one I most desperately want), and I REFUSE to get these figures online at scalper prices. The fans BEG for no more exclusives, so what does Hasbro do?...they make even MORE exclusives. So now I'll probably never get Breaker and the cycle, or Barbecue, or (THE FOURTH!!) Roadblock. And I have a Pulse account, and it too is worthless. Unless you're at your computer right when they send out the restock notification (which having a job makes that difficult) they will sell out to bots and scalpers buying 20 of a limit 1 per customer figure before you can do anything. I actually had a Viper in my cart once, but by the time I checked out it was sold out and gone. Hasbro needs so sort their shit out. On a positive note. Just want to say I'm a big fan of the channel, and I really appreciate your work. Great job mate.
In my country it's all over the place in terms of release. The new pre orders still available. Though that Roadblock sold out. As far as earlier figures go. Managed to pre-order a Firefly but missed out on the Viper , Baroness and Bludd
Absolutely fantastic video man! 48 year old lifelong Joe fan since the 80's. I don't own one Classified figure. Not worth the stress and anxiety to me. I agree with everything you said!
Exclusives exclude collecting fans! Everything you said is absolutely on-point. I don't know who the haters are clicking the thumbs-down (probably hasbro's bean-counters who couldn't care less who buys what) but the line is made for fans, and we want kick-ass versions of best childhood memories. And yes, we are willing to pay more to get these figures together with the amazing accessories they deserve to come with.
One of the designers in action force Bobby Vala was part of the Hasbro G.I. Joe design team, so it’s no surprise that the two toy lines are very similar.
AMEN, Brother! I feel your pain and agree with you 118%. Cobra Island: Cobra Trooper is the same as the "retail" Cobra Infantry figure, with different accessories. So, you were dead on with that call.
Hello Tony, you are 100% correct about everything. I don't collect G.I.JOE now, but I did as a child. I loved them so much. Stalker was one of my first figures ever as a child. I now collect Marvel Legends which I've been doing so for years. Though you and I collect different figure lines there is a common thread. Both of our lines collectors have absolutely had it with exclusives and not being able to get our hands on the figures. I don't know if you have heard about the Legends 5 pack Amazon exclusive that just dropped. But collectors were absolutely livid. I think its long overdue that we band together as a community to start a petition to stop exclusives. As you mentioned its just lining scalpers pockets with money. Which is disgusting. Most importantly how much money we as collectors are wasting on the secondary market constantly. At the least purchase limits should be put on all item. Theres a solution. But its not just about the exclusives, its about all that you mentioned. Hasbro cuts the same corners in both lines. I think now would be a great time to address this terrible marketing practice as a majority of collectors are absolutely furious with Hasbro at this time.
Very fair critique. I also wondered what effect parts they were talking about. They should start including some with this line if their going to taut that feature. and you need a minimum of two ammo clips if your doing that gimmick. The 25th anniversary comic pack Beach head had a little ammo bag with his second clip. Loved it. This fan first friday was the first time I was tempted to subscribe to pulse premium. Since they were getting a resupply of firefly, and the new roadblock looks ok, locked away for premium members. But they don't actually seem to carry enough product to justify that, its a small supply of the exclusives like some kind of replacement batch. But it is definitely better to hold off and not hand hasbro $50 directly. I'm kind of used to exclusives from hasbro being maybe a new headsculpt on a repainted body .But to do entirely new tooling and push it as an exclusive. Makes me think part of it is that it was not designed to be an exclusive and just is, because target is the only retailer that will carry Gijoe classified, and we need to hope the snake eyes movie can help the classified line on that front for retailer space. That does not excuse hasbro for produceing in so few numbers, and not having workable solution for angry fans.
What also is insane is they have references from the vintage line they can use to model after for how the figures look and accessories, but fir some figures they just ignore it.
I've been waiting since this line was announced for Version 1 Snake Eyes. I have him on pre-order and he'll likely be the only figure from this line I ever buy. I never read the comics or watched much of the cartoon, but from the first time I ever saw him Version 1 Snake eyes grabbed my attention. From the ambiguity of the mask/helmet thing, to the black commando sweater, to the entirely flat black figure, a machine pistol, explosives bag, and a file card that was covered in redactions.
Thank you for making this video Tony. The stream disgusted me. I called them frauds because they are. I never should have gotten involved in this line. Their desirability with me is at a 1 out of 10. I’m just excited about my order for Valaverse Action Force, I can’t wait!
I have a 7 year old boy. I got him into the original old school g.i. joe figures and cartoons. I bought him thr beginning of this classified line. He didn't like them at all and I don't blame him, kid has good taste lol. Now what he does love is the retro line they are coming out with sloooowly and that is what is aggravating me. Please Hasbro bring out some more retro line figures. Thank You Tony for this
The biggest problem with adult collectors is they want to stick their heads in the sand, demand they get what they want and complain about literally everything else. Retailer exclusives aren't going anywhere. Get over it. Retailer exclusives are essential to doing business now. Without retailer exclusives the figures don't get stocked at major retailers. Hasbro didn't "steal" blast effects and removable mags from Valaverse, plenty of other companies have done this before, including Hasbro. They've made effects with the Marvel Legends for a while and that's where Bobby Vala got his 1.5mm size from. Removable mags? Roadblock and Viper both have those. The exclusive Snake Eyes is about more than the accessories, it's also about the deco, the rack to hold the ninja weapons and the packaging with the art. You're digging deep here for things to complain about and not turning up much. The Live Stream chats are a broken record of the same several people spamming about exclusives. No exclusives means no figures.
I don't care that molds are being reused , I don't care that they don't come with there 1980's weapons , does not bother me one bit that most of these figures are exclusives .... what bothers me is not being able to get them, can't find them anywhere , exclusive or not.. and I will not pay scalper prices , anyone that does is a fool..
Hasbro could literally quintuple their production on Classified and still sell out. The marketing people Hasbro employs to gauge fan interest should all be fired. It’s a fail on a massive scale.
My theory is- they want to force collectors AWAY from the "A Real American Hero" legacy. Once the Globalist MovieVerse (fake-Joe) figures release, they will be EVERYWHERE. Maskless, talking Fake-Eyes clogging up the aisles.
You said so perfectly what me and a lot of other CUSTOMERS think. It's not just the Joe's, SW is just as bad. For May the 4th they announced I think 7 new vintage toys, 6 were exclusives to all different places?!! I'm really looking at Valaverse, and have my first preorder in. I recently found out about them. You said what a lot of bigger collector channels are not saying. Keep it up!
I truly agree with everything that you said about Hasbro treatment of the G.I. Joe line. All they tried to do was steal some the shine from the Valaverse line with their pathetic attempt with blast effects and removable clips. I work at a Target and getting in the figures isn't hard, but when they send the 1 box of each exclusive and we sell out they never restock unless again. Normally I try to look for the positive side, but there isn't one. You would think they would at least keep the regular nonexclusive figures coming in, but they don't. Like many fans i was hoping that they would pull their heads out of their Asses and make these figures available for the fans to purchase on fan first Friday, but deep down I knew that they would pull this BS . The Star Wars, Marvel Legends, and Transformers Fandom are not made to suffer like this, this how you reward your fan base for completely buying out your toy line in stores. If you continue to collect good luck with finding what you're looking, but remember that they still haven't released a lot of characters that we're still hoping come out (Dreadnoks, Crimson Guard Commanders, and anybody else who we was fond of growing up). Sorry to rant on, I enjoy video and feel your pain. Can't wait until you do reviews on the Valaverse line
I have most of the figures, but to say it's not frustrating on many levels is an understatement. The Roadblock was gone in 4 minutes, while I was ordering - but I was still in time to get one on Amazon.
The sad thing is when I heard they were coming out with the 6" classified line I decided up front, that I as a 4" or whatever you want to call it army builder at my age, not doing that, and I was going to do a limited buy plan. What was that plan, well to do the Cobra High Command and a few troops as guards for a display and that was it. So I wanted Cobra Commander, Baroness, Destro, Zartan, Firefly, Major Bludd, a classic style Storm Shadow, maybe some classic style red ninjas, and so on, and then a few troopers or vipers, or crimson guard, whatever. If I got more stuff like Xamot/Tamox, or Dr. Mindbender, and so on to flush out the top command so be it. However, what have I scored to date, Cobra Commander, Destro and Zartan, and then the okay version Cobra Infantry. It's enough that I'm so frustrated almost a year since these first started coming out that I don't care.
Since I bought my first Star Wars Black Series in 2013 and GI JOE being my first love ( toys and comics, I had them all), I was dreaming of a 6” Joe. The second I realized I could never get my hands on a Cobra Island Trooper without paying scalper prices I was out
Yes, you speak the truth. I to am long time G.I. Joe fan. Now as a father, my son & I are collecting them. We open them up & play. But it really sucks trying to find them. Every time we hear that it's a Target exclusive. He tells me that we are not going to get that one. You should hear the disappointment in his voice. I'm just trying to share my childhood with him.
I agree with the exclusives.. Major Bludd was not even shipped to thr Targets in my region. They were on the way but stock was redirected to the East and West coast stores so those stores received 2 cases instead of 1.. its so frustrating...
As frustrated as I am at Hasbro for CLASSIFIED being a clusterfark since its inception I still want that Commando Snake Eyes. I've given up finding FIREFLY, ZARTAN, and VIPER. And have literally never seen a single figure in any store I've frequented. NOT A SINGLE ONE. And every employee I've asked has told me the same thing "People buy the entire case the second they arrive" It's so annoying to finally have the money needed to buy these things and not have to beg my parents to get them for me and now I can't find these damn things.
Your point-by-point, item-by-item breakdown in this video is fantastic & spot-on. Your common sense questions are even more baffling considering the number of folks & the amount of money going into these figures. Another damn-fine video. I am gonna haveta create a new drinking game for “Scalper Saturday.”…
I have no problem with the Commando Snake-Eyes. Is he a repaint of Beachhead? Sure, but the original was a repaint of Grunt and Zap. And for me, the Commando version was always the better version. I hated the goofy visor. It never made sense from a combat perspective.
As someone who lives in the UK, getting the Cobra Island stuff is basically trying to be quick enough to get it on Pulse or other toy retailers or not get it at all. I was lucky enough to get a Cobra Trooper and the Snake Supreme CC, but I was out of luck getting the Viper, which I really wanted as I wanted to collect one of each of the Cobra grunts as I never had most of them as a kid (only an old Action Force Cobra Officer). I dread to think what'll happen if they release a Crimson Guard figure.
I was never a joe fan. I saw the classified series one day in store and grabbed a few. I am now pretty into them. I enjoy them because I do not know much about the original and these are pretty cool to me. I am frustrated with getting them though. I have seen that supply seems to be catching up, lots of major bludds have been seen in stock now. Not in my area anyway but I am trying to think they will have more supply. The Hasbro Pulse though that is def a scam and half. I totally agree on that. I really like your points of views.
I've managed to get a couple of the classified series. I just like 6 inch figures with great articulation (black series, lightning series, classified series, legendary, etc). What is the valaverse, I had not heard of it before this video but if they make great figures at a decent price and are readily available, I'm all for supporting it. If anyone could fill me in it would be greatly appreciated.
My question is, is hasbro making more money for the exclusive vs just selling tons of figures to fans? Have them available so everyone gets them. Is the money from exclusives selling 10 figures really that much more than selling 100s? If so, is it truly worth it for target to go through that?
Great video sir! I’m also a lifelong GIJoe fan. Dreamed of this line becoming a reality, and when it finally does it becomes a nightmare. I went on the hunt yesterday, and I’ve decided that was it. Waste of time. Tired of the hassle. Just a fan that wants the figures. Because of my job I can’t be at Target when they open to roll the dice. Also, if I were a @hasbro executive, I would have serious questions as to why we are throwing profit down the toilet. Hasbro must have a serious deal with Target for them to ignore the volume of fan discontent.
This line was my entry into collecting again after not doing it throughout the early and mid 2000s but the difficulty of getting them before the scalpers has already made me quit. That and the distaste of the fake weapons that are included with the figures that I did manage to get and the lack of third party six inch scale realistic weapons at an affordable price did it for me. I was lucky enough to have two Cobra Troopers I got from pre-orders at two different online retailers but there is no way I am paying three/four times the markup for figures. So I am not taking this seriously at all.
I’m primarily a G1 TF collector but I really like the GI JOE classified line. I think they are on to something but I agree, they are dropping the ball on the business end and not listening to the fans.
As a 30 year collector, I agree with you 100% especially how hard it has become to get these figures.
G.I. JOE: Classified needs to be renamed G.I. JOE: Scalper's Paradise.
I for one refuse to A) Run around to the 20 closest stores in the vain hope I might find one I actually like & B) Never buy from a SCALPER it only encourages them to continue doing what they are doing - I gave Hasbro my middle fingers and walked away - Hope you did the same
@@bobdobalina8910 Have I ever. This line has many a fork in it, because it is _DONE!_
I said no from the beginning because I didn't understand why they were all wearing gold in wave 1. I was kinda surprised Scarlett didn't arrive riding a magical white anime dragon that flies in from behind a rainbow. :\
Same thing is happening on the Transformers front.
Been spending most our life's living in the scalper's paradise
You're saying everything we have been telling Hasbro for months now. It's all falling on deaf ears. I'm just waiting for Bobby's Valaverse Action Force. Thanks, Tony 👍
To paraphrase Eric Cartman: "When Hasbro says 'we got a Target exclusive,' you might as well start punching yourself in the balls, dude."
I sat in on that live stream and yeah, it wasn't pretty. But it really blew up when they rolled out Breaker and the Ram. Two iconic pieces from the first wave of the vintage line and in the case of Breaker, one of the figures I was looking forward to when I started collecting this line. Now...I may not be able to get him? If you go back and watch that, I don't think they ever actually admit that Breaker and the Ram is an exclusive because things were going South at that point. I'm pretty sure the only reason we know it's an exclusive pack is because of the box art.
1. The duo hosting the live stream was completely tone deaf about the Target exclusive issue. The designer even making a joke saying, "we understand some fans got their hands on Bludd early, hahaha." Really? You're going to insult us like that to our faces?
2. Tony is right. Hasbro HAS cheapened the special release Snake Eyes. It's to the point now that I look at that big box and think, "why did I even bother?" They could have painted the weapons. The new Snake Eyes isn't necessary. What they should have done was release Timber. Just release Timber as a $10 piece or something and packed in a new Commando Head for Snake Eyes along with him. Maybe a few other accessories to go along with him. But they didn't need to put out a whole "new" figure.
3. So now we're on our 4th Roadblock and 4th Snake Eyes (5th if you count the movie figure). And like Tony when they showed Roadblock with the mini-gun I was like, "well of course they did. Because they think they need to 'upgrade' the figures." Then they rolled out the Ram and I was like, "oh, so they didn't make it for Roadblock. Why does Breaker carry a mini-gun?" I was fortunate enough to get a a Heavy Artillery Roadblock because I was obsessing about getting something for the line and kept searching Amazon to find him. For some reason they call him "Milky Way" AND they didn't release him when Hasbro said they were going to release him. Amazon actually put him up for sale about 30 min early!
4. I too questioned, "okay, great, you're putting blast effect holes in the weapons...why aren't you giving us blast effects to go along with it? Marvel Legends is getting blast/magic/whatever effects with every figure that needs them. Look at the latest release of the villain The Hood. Dual-wielding Colt .45's and each one has a blast effect to go with it.
5. STALKER....I'm glad Tony said something about where is Stalker. I thought I was the only one that was missing him. The rumor mill is that Hasbro IS going to announce Stalker as part of Yo Joe June. And if they release him as a damn Cobra Island exclusive.... There were three figures I REALLY wanted when this line started. Three of the four S's: Snake Eyes, Scarlett...and Stalker. I have two. In fact, they've released multiple versions of those two. If they announce Stalker is going to be another exclusive to Target, well I think that will be the high water mark for me. At that point I think I'm going to quit this line. Two figures I wanted when it started, Breaker and Stalker, and not being able to get either one. What's the point of collecting this line then?
6. They're going to re-release Baroness and Beachhead. So what? They're re-releasing them through Target and just giving the scalpers more fodder.
7. The rumor mill has also been circulating that towards the end of the month they're going to announce a G.I. Joe Haslab project. Who cares? Why support something that's probably going to be a $200 item for a line that I can't get regular release figures for?
I wanted this line. I STILL want this line! But Hasbro is screwing this up SO BADLY! Don't give money to scalpers. Don't give money to Haslab. I've already got my Valaverse Sgt Slaughter, along with a few accessory packs (including the Declassified pack) on pre-order.
4- Maybe it's different when you have to impress other company to make their characters. Marvel Legends is a big boat for Hasbro, they want to keep it floating and the people involved in it knows it. They have tons of characters and options and they used them wisely, for the most part. With GI Joe, they are basically throwing darts ramdonly to the wall. I'm no GI Joe collector but I can see this train wreck happening since day 1. They have no love for their own brand. Mattel is soon loosing rights to make MOTU and at least they are doing good action figures (distribution issues aside).
If Haslab makes a GI Joe Headquarters playset in 6" scale I'm getting it for my Transformers. I'll turn it into Autobot City or Metroplex. I really hope they do an HQ & not a vehicle.
@@n7bansheebait299 I don't know. Haslab is a waste of money. The second largest toy company in the world does not need to crowd fund items that would sell on the open market if they just actually used pre-orders, and didn't jack the price up. They crowd funded a board game, for goodness sake. A. Board. Game.
1. Why not give him a proper gun, why a fourth repaint you have so many Characters to do why the hell isn’t this Heavy Duty. I’ve written so many letters to them about the absurdity of being a premium member and being unable to get an order in after you jump through hoops of i’am not a robot you go to pay and it tells me it’s sold out it hasn’t even been three minutes and it’s sold out. And then you go to Amazon to order it and it’s under some weird fucking name I went back to watch the stream again cause I thought I missed something took me a couple hours to find it, but I got my order in and order one. I only needed one i’am not a greedy pig but why the fuckk was it under the weird name Hasbro GIJ Milky Way i’am not ordering fucking candy bar’s. What the Fuck hasbro I know they think this shit is funny and good for business ever ones trying to get there product but in actuality it’s not your alienating, your customers and if I have to spend 150 dollars on an action figure it’s not gonna be on your $22 poorly conceived and executed action figure that’s poorly marketed. If I miss a mezco I can be put on a waiting list for the reissue. I have suggested they do something similar too, why not create a waiting order list through pulse so that you can know how many to make, any thing would be better than this shit show. And I told them stop writing to me about how sorry you are for my shopping experience and how are we doing and did this help to resolve your issues, No it doesn’t and your doing fucking terrible and I won’t be renewing my pulse membership because it’s fucking pointless and I feel like contacting the Attorney General in my state and filing a class action lawsuit for fraud and deceptive business practices.
yer not hating on Hasbro, yer calling out their BS :)
Yup
That is a distinction that is overlooked all over in in society. Questioning and critiquing is not hating. Lot of people don’t get that. Your right Tony gives a bitter pill for Hasbro to swallow. Says it thou in hopes they improve and wishes them too.
@@sunnyfrisch you hit the nail on the head. Facts and discussion has been replaced with over shouting people, shaming, canceling. It’s just crazy. I hope enough sane people will drag us back to normal soon. I’m in the trenches myself, blocked on Facebook again for 30 days. A algorithm misinterpreted my statement. Robots and Kool aid are at the helm of social media. Not a good thing my man. Tony speaks his mind. We all need too. Rather then be Corporate ass kisses.
I agree with this video. How can they call it Fan First when they’re all exclusives that a lot of fans cannot get?
@@sunnyfrisch it’s weird how many people jump to the defense of corporations that care nothing about them.
If Hasbro did a live convention announcement of the exclusivity of these figures, I will be one of those fans who will shout "BOOOO!" at the presenter.
They wouldn't even show up...like the Game of Thrones writers did after the last season
It would be another "Is-this-an-out-of-season-April-fools-joke" scenario...
Classifieds has driven me back to collecting vintage 3 3/4 line, and I'm so much happier for it. I actually managed to pick up Major Bludd, Cobra Infantry and Zartan at retail, and I impulsively bought the redeco Roadblock and Scarlett, but I ended up returning Roadblock and Scarlett, because they just don't represent the original characters to me. For a time I was going to multiple Targets every day, asking employees about inventory, hounding them with DPCI numbers etc. but it just got to be too much. Buying toys become a lot less fun when the toys don't do justice to what originally made the characters "them"... and it's also a lot less fun when you have to dedicate a large portion of your week driving to stores on a daily basis, let alone the amount of gas money that leads to. Regardless of the added articulation and details of the 6", I still feel the vintage ARAH figures are superior in terms of playability, and they also work with vehicles. I can't imagine Classifieds coming out with any substantial vehicles, which is a big fail for me considering the fact that one of the main things that made GI Joe cool and fun was the fact that they could interact with a whole world of variously scaled vehicles and play sets, but I don't believe that will happen with this line.
Exactly.
I'm saving so much money by not being able to buy the Classified line.
By looking beyond Hasbro for my figures, my collection has decreased in quantity, but it has increased in quality. I've got real nice MAFEX and McFarlane shelves now.
The only good current toylines hasbro has are marvel legends and star wars black series
Ha! I know right!
This line doesn't particularly interest me, but when I saw the Barbecue figure, my eyes lit up, with the immediate realisation that I have next to no chance of owning one! How frustrating for those collectors that want them all!
i feel bad for Joe fans.
@@smyers9052 Yep. I personally can't see what the problem is with some "fans." I have almost all of the figures released so far, and not a single one has disappointed. If you want an exact copy of the original figure, save your money and buy vintage. I haven't had any issues getting figures, and some of the UK Classified groups on Facebook are brilliant. Lovely people, who help each other out getting figures, and selling doubles at retail prices. I've never seen a fanbase like it for anything else TBH. It makes me totally mystified when I see all the complaining from people who don't even want to buy the line anyway (mainly in the US).
Same exact things are happening with Star Wars figures
I really respect you and your honesty Tony, your channel is one of my favorites on UA-cam. I grew up with ARAH, but Hasbro has literally driven me out of collecting them with their decisions. I've never been a fan of the 6 inch scale, but I don't even register that as a fault anymore. If that is the dominate scale, then so be it. But every other decision they have made almost makes it seem like they actively want their products to be seen as rare collectible items that sell for high prices on the secondary market rather than as a mass produced toy or hobby line. I just don't get it. And your analogy about if Netflix worked the way Hasbro Pulse does is so spot on it's amazing. Oh well, at least I'm saving a lot of money by not caring one iota that there is a new G.I. Joe line out.
I was super lucky and just happened to be at a walmart when they were opening a box of the very first set of figures. Those are literally the only classified figures i've ever seen on shelves.
I've seen a few of these in the shelves in Phoenix. They are there for a few hours a few days, some haven't even sold.
Snake eyes; “that’s not a knife, this is a ( butter) knife”.
I love my snake eyes butter knife shank action!
I first started collecting with the release of the classified series . I’ve already quit due to the cobra island series, scalpers and exclusives. If Hasbro doesn’t want my money that’s fine. There’s better ways to spend my midlife crisis money.
That's the roadblock we should've got in the beginning
I don’t have any on hand since I’m out of town…..but I think the blast effect parts they’re talking about are from their current Transformers line.
If that’s the parts they’re referencing…..that means you have to collect two toy lines to get that? Asinine.
Wow, I didn't realise it was THAT BAD!
Nah the blast effect parts for Transformers are 5 mm so it can't be them, they'll probably release a weapons pack which will then be scalped..
@@Grotesque_denizen I appreciate the correction! I didn’t have a way to look currently
It would have been nice if they were compatible with the Transformers ones so that there would be more incentive for them to finally sell a separate blast effects accessory pack.
Maybe scavenges from Marvel Legends? Every Iron Man has like 6 energy FX pieces.
To this day, I have never seen the Classified Series in stores .
I've seen five, five single, solitary figures. The Snakes Eyes (the one Joe from the RAH series I loved growing up) I got through Amazon. I've pretty much decided that I am not willing to pay scalper prices to get a complete collection.
It doesn't surprise me that Hasbro is not changing their sales strategy with these figures. Thanks to the scalpers, they are still reaping their profits while the average collector (like myself) who just wants to take a trip down nostalgia lane gets the shaft.
I see them in Walmart in the Phoenix area and at Target. Some sit there for days. I don't like them. The series they put out for the 3.75 figures are nicer.
Strong points made, the frustration of exclusivity has just crippled the awesome protentional of this line. I am the easy to please cat that just loves this line overall (once I got into 3D resin printing my own weapons!)- I sincerely enjoy the heck out of these figures, but they are retail impossible. I have had to go to ebay on almost every cobra island figure - and its pushed me into just not wanting to bother anymore with it. What I am seeing now is that due to the horrible supply, if/when folks find anything they are clearing the peg and heading to ebay. It's going to take more than a few bursts of availability to bring any normalcy, Hasbro needs to offer always available - max of 1 or 2 per address pre-order availability of every figure in the line over a long period of time (as long as they are running and selling this line). That puts the money back into Hasbro's pocket, vs giving it to scalpers. This limited 30 second ordering window is just a publicity stunt, a customer fail either by design or is absolutely tone deaf as a supplier to the customer demand and interest.
Perfectly said. You should be the official spokesperson for us GI JOE fan's.
The Viper was available again. Added it to cart and immediately went to checkout. Sold out before I could complete my transaction. This is BS. #hasbrosucks
Same thing happened to me. I was on the site refreshing the page every few seconds and as soon as it was up I went to get it and check out but was STILL to slow.
Mine’s showed like they where about to open up for new orders but before it could do anything it was already sold out, I don’t understand cut this exclusive crap out and open it for orders like a Haslab especially for figures, army builders and Rider figures just let use put an order in or give it to another company that wants to do it right.
Also, I love your shirt. Do they do an Action Force version? And if so, where did you get it from? Cheers.
I have a Snake Eyes shirt in that style, got it at Gamestop
Hi Tony, I live in the UK, I’m lucky enough I’ve been able to get all the Cobra Island exclusives online, our online retailers here in the UK are very good, we don’t have Target, I’m going to support Valaverse Action Force as much as possible, I’ve also sent some figures I’ve been able to get to friends in the US at cost, the Classified figures are great in my opinion, and I want as many collectors as possible to be able to get them.
I sold all my 6 inch GI joes early this year BC of crap that Hasbro is doing with all the exclusives. I was fed up and just simply walked away.
I'm new to collecting these. You are so right about Snake Eyes' uzi! My question is what is up with that Gold Destro?
Do you know if they are gonna do quick kick? Or a rerelease of Firefly? Or maybe Blowtorch, BBQ or Low Light?
Thank you for expressing exactly how I've been feeling for quite some time. I'm also a life long fan of GI Joe and find this to be extremely frustrating. And there is no way in hell I'm paying Hasbro a membership fee for the " privilege" of buying.
This new Roadblock feels like a Hasbro internal executive pissing contest, as if the first one said Fortnite figures would sell, but another said ARAH figures would sell better. To have another Roadblock released - which means all the work invested on a figure, like design, planning and manufacturing - instead of a different new character, feels like someone inside there was trying to prove a point. "Fuck everyone in the customer base who bought Roadblocks so far, this is the one I wanted to release." "Well, you get your figure, but not the gun!" Petty.
@@smyers9052 How do you get an "ICONIC" Figure right? SIMPLE - they made ORIGINALS 1982+, then Hit it out of the Park with the 25th & 30th Anniversary Lines.
Kind of reminds me what Kathleen Kennedy said about Star Wars & having NO SOURCE MATERIAL. SERIOUSLY W - T - F ???
The Joe/Cobra Movie Toy line didn't sell nearly as well, in fact fell off a cliff due to changes, w/exception to the one's that were ORIGINAL Joes. Hasbro was hoping that the SUCCESS of their 25th & 30th Anniversary lines would drive sales of the movie Toy line. It did not. This should have been a CRITICAL LESSON to learn. They did not.
From a Business perspective, Hasbro thought they could push SHE HIT out the door that resembled & kinda sorta "looked" like the Originals, especially in name. Figured us Dumb FKUCs would be all over it, buy it all up & then Hasbro could SWOOP in with a "Reissue/Redeco" & do it all over again, figuring that they were just trying to get an "ICONIC" character just right. How many times is a company going to SHE HIT in your Ice Cream Cone & try to sell it to you as Genuine the REAL MCCOY, before you give them your Middle Fingers & walk away? Hasbro did the repaints/redecos purely from a GREED aka PROFIT perspective. Then when that 3rd..... 4th..... iteration finally stops selling & there is negative backlash from the 1st onwards, they put out an almost perfect version with a non sci-fi but non Original weapon that they can use for something else, in this case the RAM, selling 4 or 5 of the same mold with slight variations and repaints is far FAR cheaper than sculpting another ICONIC figure = HIGHER PROFIT MARGINS. Rinse & Repeat with Scarlet, Duke, Snake-Eyes, Destro & Cobra Commander. MILK every penny & wring out every drop of PROFIT from each mold.
Then there are the EXCLUSIVES - EYE ROLL. They literally could sell 10 boxes of say a Viper to each store & it would SELL OUT. But that's not their goal obviously. Why not make less & charge more, driving the Secondary Market which feeds the FOMO, which in turn drives PROFIT while artificially keeping the price inflated & driving the sales of the next wave.
Ultimately, with todays computing technology, Hasbro could easily put up a Figure & have a BUY BEFORE DATE, that date comes & goes - Hasbro now has a near perfect picture of just exactly how many to produce, while making extra for the stores in "limited" quantities. They could then ship each individual customers to said store, thereby giving the Stores their Walk In Traffic that they want with the EXCLUSIVES. They could still do EXCLUSIVES for the Stores while keeping it open for their Fans/Customer Base with a limit of 1 per, thus if you want a 2nd, you head to a store and hope to pick it up there. Pretty Simple really.
@@smyers9052 No worries bud, glad we can agree to disagree. Good luck to you.
It's different here in the UK as we obviously don't have those stores.
Roadblock is still avaolable for PO
Happy that Baroness & Viper will get re-released myself
Yeah, all the badness is coming from the US market. I don't collect Black Series, but I wonder if people totally lose their s**t when a BS figure goes out of stock? It's fine to complain about distribution, but can anyone really expect a particular toy to be available forever, and never sell out?
@@ccarlton6790 there's a difference between a toy selling out that has been on the shelves for a while & selking out the moment it is announced
I am pissed that I can't get the Target exclusive BS Escape from Bespin Leia 😭
@@Stiffkittens01 If everyone can agree on anything, it's that Hasbro don't like leaving money on the table. There will be a slight repaint/new packaging re-release of anything that makes them money. Hope you get your Leia eventually!
@@ccarlton6790 yeah, they just did a SW livestream according to my notifications. I looked up to see what was released & from the BS, it's just repackaged archive & R1 figures, maybe with new HS though although I do think the Mads Mickelson figure is new & I would like that being a fan of him
And of course him & another are target exclusives 🙄🤦♂️
I hate these exclusives!!!
I am following you now for ALL of my GI Joe Classified info. Your points are RIGHT ON POINT! Well said, my Friend! - William (Charlottesville, Virginia)
IE GOON SQUAD!!! Stand 🆙 Fantastic video Tony.. thank you so much for being a sane voice in all this madness.
I agree with you. Most of this line is exclusive that you can't find. I was on hasbro pulse at 1pm ready to order figures and saw that it was for premium members only watching everything sale out before I could get a chance to buy at 2pm. It ridiculous that hasbro can't get this line right
It's the way the company create hype which drives people"s excitement to buy more and more... Blessed are those with content hearts...
Beautiful video tony, beautiful video from one of my favorite UA-camrs
Always those exclusives. Such a shame they keep on doing that. Good call Tony. If a figure is your cup of tea or not is one thing. But please give us a normal way to buy them instead of exclusives
Voting with my wallet is easy when there's literally none of these figures to be purchased anywhere locally.
What on earth are Hasbro playing at? It seems they are just lining the pockets of scalpers with these crazy exclusives!! Your analogy of paying to entre a toy shop just to look at empty pegs is spot on.... how can their subscribers not see that they are being taken for fools?! It seems that Hasbro has zero respect for their fan base and not a great deal of respect or care for their own toy lines any more. What a shower!!
Thanks for the video Tony. People need to hear this.
I think the scalpers have people on the inside at this point.
He’s exactly right. It reminds me of when I as a kid and my cousin had every transformer up on shelves that he would never let me play with. I’m getting deja vu all over again
The fact Hasbro finds exclusives to sell well is rather a dying treatment for this line. Thank God I didn't buy any of them.
100% agree. I wanna be able to walk into a store and see an aisle filled with these figures
Ive been tempted to grab Zartan but at this point I dont know if the'll ever complete the Dreadnoks with all Roadblock releases.
Do you have target in Australia, we don’t in Canada
One reason I like your reviews is because you are always 💯% spot. As a lifelong GI JOE fan like yourself, I've been disappointed with how this line has been handled. I don't ever remember a time when I had to get up at dawn on New Years Day just to stand in line to get 1 Viper. 4 Snake Eyes, 4 Roadblocks, 3 COBRA Commanders, 2 Destros, and limited availability are tanking this line similar to what happened with Sigma 6. Where's the variety???
Scalpers and bots have set the market price by sapping up all the inventory. eBay and Mercari are making a killing whole true fans are either stuck going to Target day after day or paying inflated prices on the secondary market. I'm praying Valaverse corrects everything that HASBRO has done wrong.
New from Hasbro!
Classified Series Cobra Commander based on the original 1982 figure...with a completely new color scheme and design! Plus some googles we gave him. But otherwise exactly the same as the original...except for the cape and the pimp cane...those are new. Plus, now he's a ninja. Also, the horns we added to his helmet, we feel, give him a bitchin' Viking look...so, that's pretty cool. But beyond those few, very minor changes, he's perfectly accurate to the 1982 design.
Digital voice circuit allows you to hear his deep, baritone voice speak memorable Cobra Commander phrases like, "Aloha, Mr. Hand!", "Knowhutimean, Vern?", and, of course, "CC phone home!"
Includes his classic slingshot!
And everybody's favorite...Dave, his pet Toucan!
Figure will be available on August 27th from 1:00pm - 1:17pm exclusively at Barry's Bait Barn in Bucksnort, Tennessee!
I’ve only ever seen 1 figure in a store. Ever. This line is a joke
That's one more than me (and probably most other people).
Any word if we're getting 4 inch figures for the snake eyes movie?
The whole bots buying all their stock is out of control too. Firefly and Trooper restock was gone in under 30 seconds. Way faster than a human could add them to the cart and check out.
You're absolutely right. I've loved G.I. Joe since the first wave in the 80s, and I was really excited to hear that they were finally going to come out with a 6-inch line...but this has been THE MOST FRUSTRATING LINE TO COLLECT EVER. Exclusive after exclusive and Hasbro REFUSES to listen to it's fans. The only Cobra Island/Target exclusive I have is Major Bludd, and that's because I went to Target every morning before work and pestered the guy there until they finally came in. I don't have Beach Head, or the Cobra Trooper, or Firefly, or the Viper, or the Baroness (which is the one I most desperately want), and I REFUSE to get these figures online at scalper prices. The fans BEG for no more exclusives, so what does Hasbro do?...they make even MORE exclusives. So now I'll probably never get Breaker and the cycle, or Barbecue, or (THE FOURTH!!) Roadblock.
And I have a Pulse account, and it too is worthless. Unless you're at your computer right when they send out the restock notification (which having a job makes that difficult) they will sell out to bots and scalpers buying 20 of a limit 1 per customer figure before you can do anything. I actually had a Viper in my cart once, but by the time I checked out it was sold out and gone. Hasbro needs so sort their shit out.
On a positive note. Just want to say I'm a big fan of the channel, and I really appreciate your work. Great job mate.
In my country it's all over the place in terms of release. The new pre orders still available. Though that Roadblock sold out.
As far as earlier figures go. Managed to pre-order a Firefly but missed out on the Viper , Baroness and Bludd
you made the video I was getting ready to make...and may still! Excellent video expressing are anger intelligently and safely!
Absolutely fantastic video man! 48 year old lifelong Joe fan since the 80's. I don't own one Classified figure. Not worth the stress and anxiety to me. I agree with everything you said!
Exclusives exclude collecting fans! Everything you said is absolutely on-point. I don't know who the haters are clicking the thumbs-down (probably hasbro's bean-counters who couldn't care less who buys what) but the line is made for fans, and we want kick-ass versions of best childhood memories. And yes, we are willing to pay more to get these figures together with the amazing accessories they deserve to come with.
One of the designers in action force Bobby Vala was part of the Hasbro G.I. Joe design team, so it’s no surprise that the two toy lines are very similar.
You and I both! A good line and a line that is available and accessible.
AMEN, Brother! I feel your pain and agree with you 118%.
Cobra Island: Cobra Trooper is the same as the "retail" Cobra Infantry figure, with different accessories. So, you were dead on with that call.
Hello Tony, you are 100% correct about everything. I don't collect G.I.JOE now, but I did as a child. I loved them so much. Stalker was one of my first figures ever as a child. I now collect Marvel Legends which I've been doing so for years. Though you and I collect different figure lines there is a common thread. Both of our lines collectors have absolutely had it with exclusives and not being able to get our hands on the figures. I don't know if you have heard about the Legends 5 pack Amazon exclusive that just dropped. But collectors were absolutely livid. I think its long overdue that we band together as a community to start a petition to stop exclusives. As you mentioned its just lining scalpers pockets with money. Which is disgusting. Most importantly how much money we as collectors are wasting on the secondary market constantly. At the least purchase limits should be put on all item. Theres a solution. But its not just about the exclusives, its about all that you mentioned. Hasbro cuts the same corners in both lines. I think now would be a great time to address this terrible marketing practice as a majority of collectors are absolutely furious with Hasbro at this time.
Very fair critique. I also wondered what effect parts they were talking about. They should start including some with this line if their going to taut that feature.
and you need a minimum of two ammo clips if your doing that gimmick. The 25th anniversary comic pack Beach head had a little ammo bag with his second clip. Loved it.
This fan first friday was the first time I was tempted to subscribe to pulse premium. Since they were getting a resupply of firefly, and the new roadblock looks ok, locked away for premium members. But they don't actually seem to carry enough product to justify that, its a small supply of the exclusives like some kind of replacement batch.
But it is definitely better to hold off and not hand hasbro $50 directly.
I'm kind of used to exclusives from hasbro being maybe a new headsculpt on a repainted body .But to do entirely new tooling and push it as an exclusive. Makes me think part of it is that it was not designed to be an exclusive and just is, because target is the only retailer that will carry Gijoe classified, and we need to hope the snake eyes movie can help the classified line on that front for retailer space. That does not excuse hasbro for produceing in so few numbers, and not having workable solution for angry fans.
If you look at the 3.75 modern gijoes,they had removable mags,so I dont think they are copying anyone
What also is insane is they have references from the vintage line they can use to model after for how the figures look and accessories, but fir some figures they just ignore it.
I've been waiting since this line was announced for Version 1 Snake Eyes. I have him on pre-order and he'll likely be the only figure from this line I ever buy. I never read the comics or watched much of the cartoon, but from the first time I ever saw him Version 1 Snake eyes grabbed my attention. From the ambiguity of the mask/helmet thing, to the black commando sweater, to the entirely flat black figure, a machine pistol, explosives bag, and a file card that was covered in redactions.
Thank you for making this video Tony. The stream disgusted me. I called them frauds because they are. I never should have gotten involved in this line. Their desirability with me is at a 1 out of 10. I’m just excited about my order for Valaverse Action Force, I can’t wait!
I have a 7 year old boy. I got him into the original old school g.i. joe figures and cartoons. I bought him thr beginning of this classified line. He didn't like them at all and I don't blame him, kid has good taste lol. Now what he does love is the retro line they are coming out with sloooowly and that is what is aggravating me. Please Hasbro bring out some more retro line figures. Thank You Tony for this
The biggest problem with adult collectors is they want to stick their heads in the sand, demand they get what they want and complain about literally everything else. Retailer exclusives aren't going anywhere. Get over it. Retailer exclusives are essential to doing business now. Without retailer exclusives the figures don't get stocked at major retailers.
Hasbro didn't "steal" blast effects and removable mags from Valaverse, plenty of other companies have done this before, including Hasbro. They've made effects with the Marvel Legends for a while and that's where Bobby Vala got his 1.5mm size from. Removable mags? Roadblock and Viper both have those.
The exclusive Snake Eyes is about more than the accessories, it's also about the deco, the rack to hold the ninja weapons and the packaging with the art. You're digging deep here for things to complain about and not turning up much.
The Live Stream chats are a broken record of the same several people spamming about exclusives. No exclusives means no figures.
You are completely correct! They make it so you don't want to collect them even more. I'm about done.
I don't care that molds are being reused , I don't care that they don't come with there 1980's weapons , does not bother me one bit that most of these figures are exclusives .... what bothers me is not being able to get them, can't find them anywhere , exclusive or not.. and I will not pay scalper prices , anyone that does is a fool..
Hasbro could literally quintuple their production on Classified and still sell out. The marketing people Hasbro employs to gauge fan interest should all be fired. It’s a fail on a massive scale.
My theory is- they want to force collectors AWAY from the "A Real American Hero" legacy. Once the Globalist MovieVerse (fake-Joe) figures release, they will be EVERYWHERE. Maskless, talking Fake-Eyes clogging up the aisles.
You said so perfectly what me and a lot of other CUSTOMERS think. It's not just the Joe's, SW is just as bad. For May the 4th they announced I think 7 new vintage toys, 6 were exclusives to all different places?!!
I'm really looking at Valaverse, and have my first preorder in. I recently found out about them.
You said what a lot of bigger collector channels are not saying. Keep it up!
You are the man thank you for speaking for original Joe fan’s from the 80’s. Hasbro we know what the Joe’s look like!!!!
I truly agree with everything that you said about Hasbro treatment of the G.I. Joe line. All they tried to do was steal some the shine from the Valaverse line with their pathetic attempt with blast effects and removable clips. I work at a Target and getting in the figures isn't hard, but when they send the 1 box of each exclusive and we sell out they never restock unless again. Normally I try to look for the positive side, but there isn't one. You would think they would at least keep the regular nonexclusive figures coming in, but they don't. Like many fans i was hoping that they would pull their heads out of their Asses and make these figures available for the fans to purchase on fan first Friday, but deep down I knew that they would pull this BS . The Star Wars, Marvel Legends, and Transformers Fandom are not made to suffer like this, this how you reward your fan base for completely buying out your toy line in stores. If you continue to collect good luck with finding what you're looking, but remember that they still haven't released a lot of characters that we're still hoping come out (Dreadnoks, Crimson Guard Commanders, and anybody else who we was fond of growing up). Sorry to rant on, I enjoy video and feel your pain. Can't wait until you do reviews on the Valaverse line
I have most of the figures, but to say it's not frustrating on many levels is an understatement. The Roadblock was gone in 4 minutes, while I was ordering - but I was still in time to get one on Amazon.
Totally agree with you on how they handle the exclusive. Not sure how it makes them money to anger the real fan base.
The sad thing is when I heard they were coming out with the 6" classified line I decided up front, that I as a 4" or whatever you want to call it army builder at my age, not doing that, and I was going to do a limited buy plan. What was that plan, well to do the Cobra High Command and a few troops as guards for a display and that was it. So I wanted Cobra Commander, Baroness, Destro, Zartan, Firefly, Major Bludd, a classic style Storm Shadow, maybe some classic style red ninjas, and so on, and then a few troopers or vipers, or crimson guard, whatever. If I got more stuff like Xamot/Tamox, or Dr. Mindbender, and so on to flush out the top command so be it. However, what have I scored to date, Cobra Commander, Destro and Zartan, and then the okay version Cobra Infantry. It's enough that I'm so frustrated almost a year since these first started coming out that I don't care.
4 inches?That's what she said.
An honest criticism of what’s happening! So sad! Plus, enough Roadblock. So many other great characters to use.
Send a message to Hasbro. Stop buying this line of GI Joe figures. Let this line fail. You're absolutely right! Hasbro I hope you're listening.
Since I bought my first Star Wars Black Series in 2013 and GI JOE being my first love ( toys and comics, I had them all), I was dreaming of a 6” Joe.
The second I realized I could never get my hands on a Cobra Island Trooper without paying scalper prices I was out
Props for mentioning Stalker
Yes, you speak the truth. I to am long time G.I. Joe fan. Now as a father, my son & I are collecting them. We open them up & play. But it really sucks trying to find them. Every time we hear that it's a Target exclusive. He tells me that we are not going to get that one. You should hear the disappointment in his voice. I'm just trying to share my childhood with him.
I agree with the exclusives.. Major Bludd was not even shipped to thr Targets in my region. They were on the way but stock was redirected to the East and West coast stores so those stores received 2 cases instead of 1.. its so frustrating...
As frustrated as I am at Hasbro for CLASSIFIED being a clusterfark since its inception I still want that Commando Snake Eyes. I've given up finding FIREFLY, ZARTAN, and VIPER. And have literally never seen a single figure in any store I've frequented. NOT A SINGLE ONE. And every employee I've asked has told me the same thing "People buy the entire case the second they arrive" It's so annoying to finally have the money needed to buy these things and not have to beg my parents to get them for me and now I can't find these damn things.
4 Roadblocks, 3 Snake Eyes, but no Stalker, Alpine, Doc, Bazooka, General Hawk, Dr Mindbender, the list goes on and on.
another awesome video and informative
Your point-by-point, item-by-item breakdown in this video is fantastic & spot-on. Your common sense questions are even more baffling considering the number of folks & the amount of money going into these figures. Another damn-fine video. I am gonna haveta create a new drinking game for “Scalper Saturday.”…
Thank you analog toys , for taking a stand !
I have no problem with the Commando Snake-Eyes. Is he a repaint of Beachhead? Sure, but the original was a repaint of Grunt and Zap. And for me, the Commando version was always the better version. I hated the goofy visor. It never made sense from a combat perspective.
As someone who lives in the UK, getting the Cobra Island stuff is basically trying to be quick enough to get it on Pulse or other toy retailers or not get it at all. I was lucky enough to get a Cobra Trooper and the Snake Supreme CC, but I was out of luck getting the Viper, which I really wanted as I wanted to collect one of each of the Cobra grunts as I never had most of them as a kid (only an old Action Force Cobra Officer). I dread to think what'll happen if they release a Crimson Guard figure.
" Hasbro, Where Fans Come Last! "
I was never a joe fan. I saw the classified series one day in store and grabbed a few. I am now pretty into them. I enjoy them because I do not know much about the original and these are pretty cool to me. I am frustrated with getting them though. I have seen that supply seems to be catching up, lots of major bludds have been seen in stock now. Not in my area anyway but I am trying to think they will have more supply. The Hasbro Pulse though that is def a scam and half. I totally agree on that. I really like your points of views.
Thank you for making this video. Everything I feel you discussed. Bravo.
I've managed to get a couple of the classified series. I just like 6 inch figures with great articulation (black series, lightning series, classified series, legendary, etc). What is the valaverse, I had not heard of it before this video but if they make great figures at a decent price and are readily available, I'm all for supporting it. If anyone could fill me in it would be greatly appreciated.
I love this video..this man is 💯 percent correct on everything he says about Hasbro..we all know how tough it is to collect this line..
Those Classified Snake Eyes movie figures look like they are going to be shelf-warmers. I don't like any of them even the Baroness one.
My question is, is hasbro making more money for the exclusive vs just selling tons of figures to fans? Have them available so everyone gets them. Is the money from exclusives selling 10 figures really that much more than selling 100s? If so, is it truly worth it for target to go through that?
Great video sir! I’m also a lifelong GIJoe fan. Dreamed of this line becoming a reality, and when it finally does it becomes a nightmare. I went on the hunt yesterday, and I’ve decided that was it. Waste of time. Tired of the hassle. Just a fan that wants the figures. Because of my job I can’t be at Target when they open to roll the dice. Also, if I were a @hasbro executive, I would have serious questions as to why we are throwing profit down the toilet. Hasbro must have a serious deal with Target for them to ignore the volume of fan discontent.
Great video. You completely nailed the reasons Hasbro is failing on this line. I'm going to go back to watch the live stream and see the comments.
we need more people speaking up and telling the truth.
The worst part of this is as an international fan is that we do get these exclusives but they are priced at scalper levels because of tariffs
This line was my entry into collecting again after not doing it throughout the early and mid 2000s but the difficulty of getting them before the scalpers has already made me quit. That and the distaste of the fake weapons that are included with the figures that I did manage to get and the lack of third party six inch scale realistic weapons at an affordable price did it for me. I was lucky enough to have two Cobra Troopers I got from pre-orders at two different online retailers but there is no way I am paying three/four times the markup for figures. So I am not taking this seriously at all.
This is the first time my pulse membership worked out. Got a major bludd and a roadblock but I put my order in at 1:02pm
We get all these exclusives here in the UK.. Hasbro Pulse UK has them up for preorder
I’m primarily a G1 TF collector but I really like the GI JOE classified line. I think they are on to something but I agree, they are dropping the ball on the business end and not listening to the fans.
too many Gi Joe exclusives. that just ruined them all to me