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The Lament
Every time a new wave is released ( such as Potp) there is always that 'urgency' to get the latest figure. The fear of missing out - paying overs or the impatient tax.
For those lamenting about not finding anything at the moment, here are some words of consolation.
I stepped away from buying any transformers after picking up Bruticus (combiner wars) end of 2016... I decided to get back into it at the end of last year and still managed to get every figure i wanted - all from retail, all on sale.
I was just reviewing the March acquisition section on this site, and see people fawning on picking up Brawn, Gnaw, Fangry etc.... Most of these are still sitting on shelves now.
I picked up 4 Gnaws the other day (for $7 each). In December, Trypticon for 149, Galvatron and Astro train for $30.
Maybe I'm just the Tortoise late to the party, but these toys are mass produced, mostly if you can wait, you will pick up for a bargain.
For the ones you must have, well go get 'em, and if you miss out at first, they will turn up later on sale.
I must admit, I still get swept up in the hype and had to rush out to get a Devastator (still havent opened) or Grimlock currently. PoTp will soon turn up in Kmart and you can have the last laugh when you get them up at a better price. Some lucky bugger found a 20% off sale at Toyworld and picked up all these POtp cheap.
Anyway, that is my rant, just trying to easy any stress. The fear of missing out is the best commercial tool pushed onto the public.
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I totally agree, I do wonder how many of the people who have gone out hunting and paying impatience tax for these Power of the Prime figures are going to be complaining about them all shelf warming in a couple months time?
I feel like the apparent desperation for this line is more intense than previous lines, I wonder if it's because there are dinobots.
I did a similar thing with animated, sure I had to dig around for some of the figures but I was very late to the party in deciding to get a full cast and I picked up many of them on a sale or even clearance over a 6 month period. Of course there were a few that were hard to get or that I had to buy online from somewhere which was a lot less spoilt for choice back then.
Perhaps my anxiety is helped by the fact that I have literally dozens if not over 100 unopened toys that I'm still working my way through so I have plenty to open at any time if I have the time to go to the cupboard and get one out.
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Oh yeah. Agreed for sure.
I missed out on a lot of CW and I'm having a hell of a time finding them for reasonable prices (thankfully all I'm really interested in are the Combaticons and Constructicons, and maybe Armada Megs), but I've gotten so many TR figures for reasonable prices now that PotP is rolling out and everything is going for cheap online.
And now I'm holding off on PotP for a while, too- I figure Mr. Toys Toyworld is charging too much, and I feel that Big W or Target might be more reasonable, once they finally get some stock.
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I paid full prices for my POTP toys, but I'm not going to complain when they come out later at cheaper prices. I understand that I am paying more now, but it does save me time and effort hunting them down later. I am paying for the convenience of having them sooner rather than later. If I want my time wasted then I'll go shop with Voldemort Collectables. :p ;)
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Saw an Air Raid for $35 once, thought I'd be able to find him for less at retail later on. Never saw one again. I do have one now though, 2 years later.
I don't like taking risks, especially with the shoddy distribution and stuff disappearing sometimes. Brawl and Vortex disappeared from my sight the moment I looked back at them, and I hate the stress of having to go back and get stuff I missed, because it takes funds from current stuff and a lot more searching. I've been eyeing the specialist Autobots set for about 3, maybe 4 years now, but I've never pulled the trigger because there's so much new stuff coming at every corner.
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I live in the bush. No toy stores so no chance to go hunting for ‘bargians’. It’s either order online or don’t get the toy :(
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Sometimes it really bites, seeing something being cleared out for much cheaper than what I paid for it (or imported it for, because it was cheaper than regular retail pricing here), but as a long time collector, there have been enough figures in the past that I've missed out on here because I was waiting for a sale, for me to not take that risk if prices are acceptable... or it looks like it isn't getting a big release here (like TF5 Voyager Nitro & Scorn - they only ended up at Target, and disappeared nationwide within days of being first sighted).
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I agree with the original post, I'm fine with waiting for most toys (so long as I actually get them if I ordered them...) if it means I save money as I'm personally not in a position to pay Mr. Toys/Toyworld/TRU prices.
Granted it can mean I miss some things but it's a risk that I have to take.
In saying that there are times that I want certain toys as soon as they come out, either because of the character or because everyone else is raving about them and I want to join in the fun, but if it means paying more then what I think is a reasonable price/what the toy is worth I just wont do it.
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At the end of the day, it is about managing risks. If I really want a toy, then I prefer to buy it sooner rather than later. If it's a toy that is lower on my wants list then I'll put it off and accept the risk that I may miss out on it. But we're talking about, really, independents charging marginally above RRP. The max RRP for a Deluxe is $30, so paying say $37 for a Deluxe means $7 above RRP. Unless you're a full time student, this probably isn't going to break your finances. I can afford this, but it means that I get the toy sooner. I expend more money but save time. Others may like to expend some more time if it means saving a bit more money - fine. But you're either spending money or time. Either way there's a trade-off.
There are people who pay WAY above RRP for older toys. This means that you got the toy much later at a much higher price - expending both time and money. There's no trade off here, and IMO this would be a greater source of lament. And I have met a number of collectors who are financially compromising themselves by collecting like this. I recently spoke to someone who admitted to buying an old toy at way above RRP and spent the next month eating Mi Goreng for breakfast, lunch and dinner. There are people who admit that they can't afford things like furniture, cars, going out, travelling, rent etc. because of how much they're spending on toys - and these are SINKs! :eek: I've even met people who have families who spend beyond their means on toys. :(
How much people want to spend on toys is up to them, but IMO it ought to be financially sustainable. Yes, I paid independent prices for my POTP, but it hasn't financially affected me. It's something that I can easily afford and saves me time.