This is another
one of those things that started out as an intro and mutated into
something big enough to be its own post. So here’s this big rant
about how MattyCollector.com does business. Part four or five of Lord
knows how many rants about Matty:
Before I get to Fang Man, let me
address this Spirit of Hordak business.
Excuse me – I meant “bullshit”,
not “business”.
Did you see that
Hordak?
Geez – already gone.
I got one though.
I thought it was some kind of weird
joke. It turned out that Matty had just offered a figure called
“Spirit of Hordak” and that they had sold out pretty much
instantly.
Obviously I thought this was a bunch of
nonsense. There was no way Matty would offer up some new figure –
not even a variant – without ever mentioning it or alerting their
loyal subscribers. I mean, we subscribers are the ones that keep the
lines going. We pledge year after year to buy whatever Matty offers,
sight unseen, just so we can keep getting new figures; even if those
new figures are complete garbage that we don’t want. So there’s
no way in hell that Matty is going to create an awesome
variant of one of my favorite characters and not even give a tiny bit
of notice to the people that they have publicly and often credited as
the sole reason their sorry asses are still in business.
That would be fucking absurd.
So imagine my surprise and shock and
dismay when I started poking around the ol’ internet and saw
multiple posts across the toy news web about a translucent red Hordak
figure that had just been offered without warning an hour before.
As many of you may know, translucence
is one of my favorite gimmicks for action figures, only topped by
“Glow in the Dark”. Trap-Jaw is my favorite Masters of the
Universe character, but Hordak is a close second. And a translucent
red Hordak is a thing of awesomeness that I never would have
imagined. I was furious. And yeah – it’s “just an action
figure”. But it’s also a direct slap in the face to those of us
who made that pledge to keep the MOTUC line going. And for the amount
of money I’m giving those jackasses I think it is reasonable for me
to get a little infuriated when they pull something like this.
Obviously I was not the person that was
mad. Once Matty got wind of the negative reactions – and if they
were surprised by the backlash they deserve a good cockpunch just for
being stupid – good ol’ Scott Nietlich had to do his thing and
say that this Hordak would be popping up on the site from time to
time and that a limited number would be available to subscribers
during an Early Access.
Fuck that shit for two reasons:
- I do not have time to just fuck around the internet waiting for this figure to pop up. I don’t have access at work and the only time I really get online at all is to post these things.
- Fuck your “Limited Numbers”, Nietlich. If you had the sense God gave a fucking squirrel you would give each subscriber the opportunity to order one of these figures. Just one. Not four, not ten. One. But to not give your most loyal customers the first shot – and a fair one – at a figure like that is just outrageous.
I knew damn well
that their “Limited Numbers” would preclude me getting this
figure. But at least it was a chance.
HAHAHA! Not
really. I was at work when the Early Access items went up for sale.
This is a problem, but isn’t actually Matty’s fault. And I was
able to excuse myself to the privacy of a Men’s Room stall at the
correct time so I could try to bring MattyCollector.com up on my
phone with a 1X signal and only about ten minutes to get things done.
But I managed to log in on time and make my way to the Early Access
page, which I have never used before. Sure enough, Spirit of Hordak
was there along with Slush Head and whatever the other figure was.
But they all said “Coming Soon”. I refreshed a couple of times
and nothing changed. Shit. I couldn’t be away from my desk any
longer, so I closed the browser and went back to work. I figured I
would try again at the next hour if I could leave the room.
At about twenty
after the hour I got a message from Evil saying that everything was
up and that Hordak was sold out.
Dude, I was so
fucking pissed I can’t even describe it. I do not understand how a
business could do things the way Matty does. It would be one thing if
all of their sales were day-of and first-come, first-serve. If the
subscriptions didn’t exist. Or if this were some low-budget, indy
company producing original characters. But this is one of the biggest
toy manufacturers on the planet selling licensed, well-known
characters. To chumps.
In reality I
don’t suppose this Spirit of Hordak is much different from the
Con-Exclusive figures – Temple of Darkness Sorceress and Strobo
(who I also missed out on when he was offered for Early Access, but
that was my fault because I had severely underestimated what “Limited
Quantities” meant). You can’t get those figures unless you happen
to be in the right place at the right time. And Spirit of Hordak is
the same. But this one seems like so much more of a kick in the ass.
I guess the
thing that really pisses me off about this whole situation is how
many of Matty’s shitty MOTUC figures I’ve bought and haven’t
wanted while there are two – Strobo and Hordak – that I want and
can’t get; despite the fact that I have shown Matty for the past
three years that I am in the elite cadre of loyal customers.
So I got stuck with the fucking Star
Sisters and Netossa and Bow and Swift Wind, but I’ll never have
this figure that I actually want. Fuck you in your fucking
douchey asses, Matty.
Oh, and Beau was kind enough to offer
to do a Guest Review of the Spirit of Hordak when he receives his. So
that’s cool.
-Phantom
Yeah, this whole "It's a chase figure, it's fun! We need traffic to convince somebody somewhere that mattycollector is working!" is really stupid.
ReplyDeleteI love translucent figures, and would probably want this figure if I felt like I had a chance to get it.
I have seen a lot of people online mocking those who are upset with "I didn't get the toy I wanted," but I think you have made great points. Sure, it's just a toy, but you have pointed out that you have spent hundreds on crap from them because you're willing to subscribe; and don't have a chance to get what you want.
Also, this Beau character sounds really shady, and I wouldn't trust him either.
Yeah, I feel pretty much the same now as I did when I posted this. Thoroughly irritated.
DeleteHave a sook...seriously ...this is the fun of collecting...having some that are rare or hard to get isnt that part of the excitement of bein a collector?.
ReplyDeleteIt's a dam variant anyway stop crying.
And what abou those people that are fans but can't afford a subscription...shouldn't they get a chance at some exciting new figure??.
Over hearing all you cry babies rave on about nothing get over it
I'm not familiar with "Have a sook". What does that mean, exactly?
DeleteAs I stated above, I would have no problem with another line doing this. I do think it is a great idea. But not for a line that I am committing so much money to on unknown products. Yes, it is a "dam variant", but it is one I want. And no - those that cannot afford a subscription should not get a chance at an exciting new figure. I work hard and manage my finances to afford that subscription and should absolutely receive special treatment because of it. Other people's financial situations are not my problem.
Also, it's my site. I'll bitch and moan all I want to about anything I want (and I do). Nobody forced you to read this.
Thanks for the input, though! And please do keep reading!
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Deletethe exact same thing happened to me with red hordak during early access and with strobo too. i wasnt mad, but it felt weird...to see em all on ebay for $100 when as a line saving subscriber i cant even get one.
ReplyDeleteand the thing with putting the hordak up at some random time after the freaking advertised sale time...everytime you think you know mattel's/scott's answers, they change the questions.
Ha! Nice usage of a Piperism. Extra points to you!
Delete