Posted in: Movies, san diego comic con | Tagged: EFX Collectibles, entertainment, film, Gentle Giant, Kotobukia, sideshow, star wars

Sideshow, Gentle Giant, EFX Collectibles, and Kotobukia Star Wars Lines Make Me Wish I Was Rich

Published Thu, 31 Jul 2014 10:30:37 -0500

by Dan Wickline

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Jeremy Konrad writes for Bleeding Cool:

High end collectibles are starting to make me wish I could work 44 hour days just to be able to afford all of the gorgeous collectibles they have been putting out as of late, and none are as desirable as the respective companies Star Wars lines. The level of detail and craftsmanship they can put into these figures and statues are astounding. The product shown at the panel was no exception.

EFX collectibles was up first, and they showed off a Ralph Mcquarrie concept Stormtrooper helmet, from concept to finish. Their main attraction though is the Legendary Scale Yoda puppet, molded from the actual Yoda used in Empire Strikes Back, acquired from Stuart Freeborn. They had some concept pictures on the screen, and they looked pretty fantastic.

Next up was Sideshow Collectibles, where they showed off their popular Sixth Scale figures, including Clone Trooper Echo and Fives, Commander Cody, R2-D2, and a Scout Trooper with an in scale Speeder Bike. I have a couple of these myself, and they are just as breathtaking in person as they are in pictures. The sculpting is incredible, and the amount of poses you can get them in are unmatched. They then also showed off the Mcquarrie 1:5 scale statue line, with a slide teasing Darth Vader, a Stormtrooper, and Boba Fett. They finished up by showing off their life-size statues, featuring Boba Fett, Darth Vader, and Han Solo in Carbonite.

Next is my personal favorite Kotobukiya. These I have quite a few of at home already, and they make an exceptional product at an affordable price point. Right now they are really focusing on their matching ArtFX+ statue 2 packs featuring classic pairings. One is Han Solo and Chewbacca, which will be out later this year, and the other being Luke Skywalker and Princess Leia. When combined they form a sweet looking diorama. They really interesting part of their presentation was the announcement of a Barnes and Noble exclusive statue, R2-M5. They are really excited to do a bunch of store exclusives for them , saying they have been a strong supporter of their brands. Yet another store with an exclusive? We shall see how that goes.

After that bombshell, they showed off a new Darth Vader ArtFX statue, and were coy about if it will have electronics inside. ArtFX+ statues of Alec Guinness Obi-Wan Kenobi, Dagobah Yoda and R2-D2 2 pack, a Snowtrooper 2 pack, and a K-3PO rounded it out. Then, they finished out by finally announcing what the next Star Wars Bishoujo statue was going to be. After great success (and a little controversy) with the first two releases (Jania Solo and Mara Jade) they are going with a female version of a Stormtrooper, bypassing the awkward questions they would have received by choosing Jabba's Slave version of Leia. It was a very strong showing for them.

Lastly, Gentle Giant came up and played a video showing existing figures and statues, including a new Queen Amidalia bust, an Endor Luke bust, an Endor Trooper bust, Wedge Antilles bust, and teased a Zam Wessel statue and Yavin Ceremony Luke and Leia busts. On to the widely popular Jumbo vintage line, they showed off Bespin Luke and Han, Leia in Boushh disguise, the Biker Scout, Admiral Ackbar, Wicket, Logray, 2-1B, Ugnaught, Hoth Leia, Imperial TIE Fighter, and sure to be a hot commodity, a jumbo Jabba The Hutt with vintage packaging. Whew, fans of that line better start saving now. For Rebels, they showed off some maquettes for Ezra with Chopper, The Inquisitor, and Zeb. Lasty they showed off their life-size vintage figures, including Stormtrooper, Boba Fett, and Darth Vader. these hit a sweet spot for me, I love vintage Star Wars, and their product is a sight to behold.

After that, there was a brief Q&A:

Of course Koto was asked about a Slave Leia Bishoujo statue. Answer: she is on our short list, but right now they are going with a Stormtrooper. (There is no easy answer to this one. The way the line is, it should have been the first one they did to just get it out of the way, but until they announce it, they will constantly get hammered with questions about it, both in panels and at their booth.

Koto was asked about character selection: they really listen to the fans to see what they want.Fan input is very important to them.

When will the Barnes and Noble exclusive R2-M5 be available? This fall.

Finally a question for someone else. Will the Gentle Giant Luke lightsaber light up? We have looked into it, they have had previous busts light up before.

They cannot talk about Episode 7! Everyone at these panels needs to stop asking this.

For Sideshow: any chance of more bounty hunters in any scale? They would like to yes, they are very interested. (Make more Bossk!)

EFX Yoda puppet, will it be an actual working puppet? When it is finished, absolutely.

Back to Koto: would they consider making a bigger size in trays, like a big Death Star? Short answer: no.

It took about 4 years for EFX to track down all the parts for the Yoda puppet.

A fan clarifies that the Gentle Giant Jumbo Jabba The Hutt will be in scale with the rest of the jumbo figures. (Seriously that thing is going to be massive.)

Sideshow: Can we see less Clone Troopers and more Stormtroopers? One word answer: yes.

That wrapped it up. All in all, there was some amazing stuff shown. Some pics are below.

Jeremy Konrad is the Senior Star Wars Correspondent for Bleeding Cool. Let him know which of the high end collectible companies gets your money or argue Star Wars with him on Twitter @jeremyohio