The next round of Ask Mattel is due soon, and I’m happy to take a few of your questions to submit.
As always, I’m more likely to choose politely-expressed questions that haven’t been asked a thousand times before than, say, “y cant u rerelease DCUC5 u **********ers?!?”
Fengschwing
Can Mattel advise what, if anything, is happening about quality control over their figures? I've been lucky enough to get 8 DCUC figures for my up coming birthday this year and I'm sad ay the thought that they may all potentially require some attention before they can be posed or played with. If we in the UK are paying £15.99 each, surely we should have the piece of mind that nothing will break as we take the toys out of the packs?
Newton Gimmick
Nearly every Q&A session Mattel responds with a answer along the lines of "Contact your local toy aisle manager and ask for Mattel by name…" much to many fans dismay. Upon doing a little research, Target, Toys R Us and Wal*Mart don't appear to have a toy aisle manager. In some cases like Target the managers at the stores have little if no control what is shipped to them. So what exactly is Mattel instructing us to do requesting us to do that? Can you offer some alternatives to getting our voice heard? Because the toy aisle manager seems to be only slightly more elusive than Santa Claus.
george
Last year it was in the dcuc line, the new gods were a theme throughout each wave release, what's this years theme?
Drunken Fist
Who does the art on the DCUC packages?
Andrew
I have a question. In both DCUC 7 and 8, Mattel has made the best known and wave-centric figures ancillary, not required to assemble the C&C figure. For example, wave 7 was clearly a Flash-centric wave, yet the Flash was relegated to bonus stand status and Aquaman was put in his place. Why has Mattel chosen to do this, doesn't it limit their future character selections?
Nicholai
There has been talk that wave 9 will be available on mattycollector.com, and I am curious about the cost per figure. Will it be comparable to brick and mortar stores or will there be a MOTUC like increase in cost for DCUC on mattycollector?
Ed
I understand a lot of the DCUC focus has been on the classic and or current look of the characters. Out of curiosity is there any plans to include the Grant Morrison era of the Justice league. Hook hand aquaman, Crab mask Kyle Rayner etc.
Fengschwing
Will we see a return to the 'standard' figure sized C2C figures or will they remain bigger? And if they are going to stay bigger, how big can they get?
Frogster
Besides bonus figures and the upcoming subscription, any exciting plans or promotions for MOTUC to get fans excited about?
Jim
“y cant u rerelease DCUC5 u **********ers?!?”
HHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHHAAH!
Mario
As Poe stated in his odds & ends, I'd like to know if Mattel has the rights to do Hanna-Barbera characters, Charlton characters & stuff like the Shadow or Doc Savage, for which DC has, at least previously, had the rights to?
I mean, how killer would DCUC figs of these properties be? Imagine Mightor? Blue Falcon? Judo Master? Man, this is killing me!!!
Lastly, I'd just like to thank Mattel & the Four Horsemen for giving us Vigilante. An action figure dream come true!
Mario
Actually, I'd also like to know… In light of DC Direct making The Creeper, Plastic Man, Classic Black Lightning & Ocean Master in their History of The DCU line, does this mean that these are possibly waaaay down the line for DCUC, if of course Mattel has plans to make them?
Thanks for your time guys & keep up the superb work.
Thomas
Here, here, Newton Gimmick!! This is one of my biggest frustrations with Mattel's monthly response to all questions related to distribution and availability.
I'm sincerely NOT trying to be sarcastic here or be a jerk, this is an honest and sincere question…I would take your question even one step farther and ask WHY we need to make our voices heard at all? WHY isn't Mattel making THEIR voices heard to retailers, so that we can walk into stores, find their product, and plunk our money down on the counter?
We're happy, the stores are happy, and Mattel is happy.
Mark
Is there any chance you will release DCUC version of Isis and the rest of the Freedom Force/ Space Sentinels and Marvel Family?
He-Dan
Hi Poe – could you please ask if Mattel have any plans to make Wal-Mart exclusive DCUC figures available in international markets?
robinjr
With the return of Superboy and Kidflash from the dead, can we expect them to be made in any line soon?
dayraven
Do they have plans already in place for handling the influx of new customers on mattycollector.com once the ghostbusters figures start rolling out? if these are NOT going to be released on the 15th of the month, like the MOTUC figs are, will there be an option added to hold product for the month so that a consumer could have all their mattycollector goods shipped on one date to save them some shipping charges?
Tom-Tom
When Man-Bat s re-released, will his back be covered in fuzz, or just sculpted plastic?
Esbat
Kudos on the announced Power Girl figure in DCUC! I been begging for her for years. Our esteemed Poe Ghostal, our host with the Most-al as it were, ran a lengthy poll with Purple suited 90's Catwoman as the top choice. My question is how far off would it be to get a fan requested figure out like this, if one were to be made? She seems to be easy enough with the new Power Girl torso and Wonder Woman body.
misterbigbo
Will the MOTUC packages be adjusted to reflect the less-posed figures? We MOC collectors would like to be able to see the entire figure!
Reverend Ender
Are there any plans for any new types of male bodies, and or updates of the male body legs to the new hinge design?
Reverend Ender
Whoops, forgot to mark mine as DCUC-related.
Thomas B
how about a quarterly subscription?
it may be hard for people to do a yearly sub plan before even one figure from the first 4 month sub program is shipped.
it also may be easier for people to swallow 4 month chunks.
Mark
Will you stop packing the MOTUC figures in poses as it loosens the joints?
Paddy Fitz
Since at least wave 3 of DCUC, issues with incorrectly assembled figures (with reversed or duplicate bicep, forearm, and calf pieces, in particular) have been a widespread, consistent problem. Some of the most frequently-cited problem figures include Jason Rusch Firestorm, Robin, Ares, Superman (wave 6), the Lightray and Orion two-pack, Green Lantern two-pack, etc., with the most recent example being the wave 8 green Parademon. I've personally never seen a correctly-assembled Kid Flash (all seem to have two left bicep pieces), and as a result have chosen to omit this figure from my collection. This is a significant problem, especially when figures have two of the same bicep, for example, and consumers can't simply swap the pieces to fix the problem. Replacements are often difficult to find, and Mattel's Customer Service hotline is inconsistent in its approach to this issue.
What, specifically, is Mattel doing to address the lack of attention to detail and quality control among its vendors, and when can we expect to begin to see this longstanding problem corrected?
Fengschwing
Here, here Paddy Fitz!
Mark
What are the chances of Extendar being in the MOTUC, and if so will he be extendable?