The rec.toys.action-figures.discuss FAQ Part 2
PART 2: RETIRED QUESTIONS
SECTION 8: DC COMICS
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Q1:
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Who is Harley Quinn?
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A1:
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Harley Quinn is a "Batman villain" exclusive to the animated
adventures of Batman and the comic books based on those shows.
She was recently made into a figure as part of The Adventures of
Batman and Robin line. For details about the character, check
out the Official Batman and Superman Adventures page at
http://www.batman-superman.com/.
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Q2:
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Which Superman: Man of Steel figures were released?
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A2:
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For all available information on what was released and what wasn't, check
out RTM's The Ultimate Guide to
Superman: The Man of Steel.
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Q3:
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How do I get the European exclusive Superman: The Animated Series figures?
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A3:
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For three figures, Strong Arm Superman, Anti-Kryptonite Superman,
and Fortress of Solitude Superman, and the Superman/Darkseid two-pack,
you are going to have to find a source in Europe or someone who has
a source in Europe.
All of the other figures coming out, including Supergirl, Bizarro,
Metallo and a number of Superman variations, will be distributed in the
United States exclusively by Diamond Comics. To order from Diamond, you
will need to talk with your local comic shop or a mail order dealer who
has an account with Diamond.
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SECTION 9: MARVEL TOY BIZ
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Q1:
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What's an "interim" Fantastic Four figure?
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A1:
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When Toy Biz realized that it was a mistake to release only
half of the FF in the first assortment of the FF line, they hastily
produced Human Torch and Invisible Woman "interim" figures. The
"interim" Human Torch is different from the second assortment Torch in
that it is actually a repainted FF Silver Surfer figure with
"Glow-in-the-dark-flames" and a TB Catapult Launcher whereas the second
Torch is a newly-molded figure with Sparking-Action. Similarly,
the "interim" Invisible Woman is a repainted Iron Man Spider-Woman
figure with clear-plastic platform and shield while the Series II
Invisible Woman is a newly-molded clear figure also known as "clear
Invisible Woman" (see Q9.2). The "interim" figures
had a short production run, but were not very difficult to find nor
were they of very high quality. "Interim" is not the official name for
these figures, but a term dubbed by collectors to distinguish the
repaints from their Series 2 counterparts.
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Q2:
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How many different Invisible Woman figures have there been?
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A2:
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From Randy Matthews ([email protected]):
"As for the Invisible Woman versions, there have been four figures
released within the last 3 years:
Marvel Superheroes Card
Invisible Woman 1 (1993) - this is the one that changes color.
Apparently Toy Biz had some problems making it work correctly
and this figure was discontinued.
Invisible Woman 2 (1994) - this one does not change colors. It
is packaged with an 'invisible' catapult launcher (the first
version did not have this launcher).
Fantastic Four Card
Invisible Woman 1 (1995) - this is a repainted Spider-Woman
figure from the Iron Man line. It was produced between the
first and second series of the FF line to satisfy demand for a
complete set of the FF. It is also known as the 'Interim
Invisible Woman.' (see Q9.1)
Invisible Woman 2 (1995) - this is the clear plastic version
produced for the second series. Although the back of the FF
cards show a 'solid' Invisible Woman, the clear figure is the
one that was ultimately released."
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Q3:
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Was the Adam Warlock figure pictured on the back of the third
series Iron Man and Fantastic Four assortments ever released?
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A3:
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He was not released at that time. He has been since released
as part of the Power Surge line, a four figure line promoting
Marvel's Overpower Collectible Card Game that includes Adam
Warlock, The Scarlet Spider, Night Armor Iron Man, and Bone Claw
Wolverine. This series is a Kay-Bee exclusive.
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Q4:
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Why is everyone so excited about U.S. Agent figures? At one time you could buy them just about anywhere.
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A4:
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There are, in fact, two U.S. Agent figures:
U.S. Agent I - Part of the last assortment of the late Marvel
Super-Heroes line. He was a repaint of Captain America, available
in wide release and can still be had in many stores for $5 or less.
U.S. Agent II - If you look on the back an Iron Man series III
card, you will see a U.S. Agent figure, but don't bother looking
on the racks, he won't be there. He was canceled, but not before
93 samples were made in the United States. Tomarts Action Figure
Digest received one of these samples and had a U.S. Agent Giveaway
Contest. An rtm reader was the lucky winner of this fully-
functional fully-painted shield-launching figure in a baggy (see
Tomarts #25). A small number of them were later released in Asia, but
this was done without Toy Biz's permission and they quickly nixed the
sale of these figures. Greg Keefer, Toy Biz toy sculptor, received one
as well. I assume some lucky people with good connections got the
rest of them. If you ever wondered just what a "rare" figure really is,
this is it.
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SECTION 10: STAR TREK
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Q1:
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I used to see a lot of Thomas Riker figures at the toy store, what's the big deal about this figure?
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A1:
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You most likely saw the Deep Space Nine Thomas Riker figure (Asst.
No. 6230, Stock No. 6246) with Space Cap. The figure that was
released in limited quantity, having a production run of only
10,000, was The Next Generation Thomas Riker (Asst. No. 6070, Stock
No. 6946) without card or Space Cap.
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Q2:
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Did they make the Red Data/Data in "Redemption" figure, I've
never seen one?
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A2:
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The Data in "Redemption" had a production run of 5,000 and was
available only through the JCPenny's Christmas Catalog as part of a
"Bridge Crew" set with three other figures (each packaged as a
regular figure with card and bubble). The same figure was released
in Canada with a blue sticker on the bubble that read "Lt. Cmd.
Data". A "Data in Red Uniform," or Red Data, was never released.
(NOTE: Yes, Playmates made a mistake, Data did not wear a red
uniform in the TNG episode "Redemption," but instead in the episode
"Chains of Command, Part II")
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Q3:
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Is the Movie Edition U.S.S. Excelsior the same as the Generations
U.S.S. Enterprise-B?
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A3:
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Yes, except for the decals, both ships are the same. Many people
have pointed out that, in reality, the U.S.S. Excelsior does not
look exactly like the Enterprise-B, unfortunately, Playmates was
unaware or indifferent to this fact.
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Q4:
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What are the various Star Trek variations I see being sold or
mentioned on rta-f.d?
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A4:
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1)
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TNG Lt. Cmd. Geordi LaForge (1992) - Originally came with
a removable V.I.S.O.R. before they were permanently attached with
epoxy for safety reasons, card backs also reflect this change.
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2)
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TNG Gowron (1992) - Briefly came with the five pips on his
belt not painted gold.
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3)
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TNG Borg (1992) - Some "reverse negative" Borgs were mistakenly
released with the picture on the card back reversed.
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4)
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TNG Ferengi (1992) - Like the Borg variation mentioned above,
there were also "reverse-negative" Ferengi.
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5)
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TNG Ferengi (1992) - Some Ferengi were released without black
on the boots nor a black stripe above the boots.
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6)
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Classic Star Trek Commander Kruge (1995) - Some were mistakenly
released on a card with Kruge card front, but a Spock card back
and a different stock number.
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7)
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Star Trek: Voyager Captain Janeway (1995) - It is very common to
see Janeway with a B'elanna Torres trading card instead of the
Janeway trading card.
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Q5:
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What's a Tapestry Picard and why are there so many posts about
it?
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A5:
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Captain Picard as seen in the episode "Tapestry," a part of the
Playmates Star Trek line is, in itself, nothing special. It's
simply a mix-n-match figure of a Captain Picard head on a
Generations Admiral Kirk body, with minor modifications, based on
the Star Trek: TNG episode "Tapestry." What's special, or better
put, infamous about this figure is that only 1701 (as in U.S.S.
Enterprise NCC-1701) were released in "celebration" of Star Trek's
30th Anniversary, the first of a series of limited edition figures.
This figure caused quite a stir in the collector/scalper arena.
Collector's were rightfully angry at Playmates blatant disregard
for its customers in favor of the hype generated by the secondary
market (and ignorant comments from Playmates employees like Jim
Garber just made matters worse). The figures were going for so much
on the secondary market that the average collector would never be able
to afford one in hopes of completing his/her collection. All in all,
it was not a pretty picture, but the good news is that this figure
and the other two limited editions released the same year, Yar from
"Yesterday's Enterprise" and Barclay from "Projections," have been
released in a three-pack that should be accessible to all collectors.
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Q6:
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Why does Vina As Orion Animal Woman from "The Cage" assortment
have a Collector's Edition No. sticker on her package instead
of the on-the-foot numbering that is common for all other Trek
figures?
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A6:
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Vina is *not* short-packed, is *not* a limited edition, and is
*not* in any way more valuable than any other Trek figure.
Quite simply, the Collector's Edition No. appears on the package
instead of her foot because, unlike all other Trek figures, Vina's
feet are not flat, they are curved, and it appears that the
machine that prints the numbers on the figures can only print on
a flat surface. Most recently, other Trek figures such as Edith
Keeler, Leeta and Ilia Probe utilized the same numbering system.
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SECTION 11: OTHER
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Q1:
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Wow, I found a Babylon 5 figure that's "1 of 12,000!" But then I
noticed that they are all number 1 of 12,000. Was the whole first
series of B5 figures numbered wrong?
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A1:
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Read the label, it doesn't say that the figure is the first of 12,000,
it says that the figure is just 1 of the 12,000 made. If there were
two figures in the box, the label would probably say 2 of 12,000.
Basically, the label says nothing about where a particular figure
fits in the production run, it's only there to inform of the
total production run of the figure.
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FAQ Index | FAQ Part 1 | FAQ Part 2
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