Opinion - Build-a-Figures

Way back in 2005 Toy Biz first introduced the concept of the Build-a-Figure with wave 9 of their monumental Marvel Legends line of action figures. The concept was simple enough, each figure in the wave came with a piece of a character, collect all the toys in the wave an you've got yourself a bonus figure. Usually a character that would tower over the regular 6 inch figures. Toy Biz's first BAF character was none other than the devourer of worlds, Galactus.

Sentinel, 2005

The concept was a hit, and they quickly followed it up with a truly impressive mutant hunting Sentinel from X-men, Apocalypse, Onslaught, Giant-man, Mojo, and MODOK. However, everything changed in 2007. Toy Biz lost the Marvel license to Hasbro who then proceeded to do everything in their power to run Marvel Legends into the ground.

Iron Monger, 2013

It was apparent from Hasbro's first wave of Marvel Legends that something was terribly wrong. The packaging was bigger and bulkier, the figures were smaller and cheaper, and the BAFs were nothing spectacular in terms of size and character selection. The only BAF of note at this time was a cool looking Fin Fang Foom, but poor distribution and low production numbers made it difficult to find.

Giant-Man, 2016

The Marvel Legends line remained dormant for a couple of years, while Hasbro focused on their 3.75" Marvel Universe and movie tie-in figures. A handful of 2-Packs and some Walmart exclusives kept the flame alive until the beginning of 2012 when Hasbro hit us with back-to-back waves. Terrax and Arnim Zola marked a return to form, and a new hope for the future of Marvel Legends. The 6" line was back in spectacular fashion, led by The Mighty Thor.

Thanos, 2015

Hasbro then started experimenting with smaller BAFs like Hit-Monkey, Rocket Raccoon (well before 2014's Guardians of the Galaxy made him a household name), and Puck. In retrospect it was probably a cost saving measure to make sure the line got off the ground again, because the MCU showed no signs of slowing down.

Mandroid vs. Iron Monger

The year 2013 saw the return of Movie specific waves and character with the Iron Man 3 Iron Monger wave. A year later, the Captain America: The Winter Soldier series reused parts of Iron Monger for their Mandroid BAF, followed by the Ultimate Green Goblin being partial reuse of the Avengers Walmart Exclusive Hulk. Ever since then though, it's been pretty smooth sailing... until now.

Hulk (single packed) vs. Ultimate Green Goblin (BAF)

For Spider-man Homecoming, Hasbro decided to make Vulture's wings, or flight gear, the BAF for the wave. The Build-a-Figure concept is a versatile one and many companies have done some interesting things with it. Mattel introduced the Collect & Connect Accessory with their The Dark Knight Rises Movie Masters Bat-signal, and the Batman v Superman Bat-grapple (if you were lucky enough to collect all the figures, I still need a John Blake). Diamond just finished off their Ghostbusters Build-a-Diorama Rooftop display and it looks absolutely fantastic. Both of these concepts had something in common, they were extra or bonus products to the figures you had purchased. Vulture's wings are the complete opposite, they're something you should have gotten all together. His wings are not a bonus, he is not the Vulture without them. I should not have to buy 6 additional figures to complete one.

Vulture Flight Gear, 2017

Am I saying that Vulture should have been single packed with his giant wings? No. He probably should have been released in a 2-Pack with Spider-man. Even if it was the same price as a 3-Pack I probably wouldn't have complained. I just feel the flight gear was a betrayal of the BAF concept on a fundamental level. Build-a-Figures are obviously a ploy to sell more figures, and get you to buy the whole wave (even the peg warmers), but it has always been almost a reward for doing so. Now it feels like Hasbro is holding the full figure hostage until you buy all their product.

Scale - 2016 vs 2005

Now things have definitely changed since 2005, the price of everything has gone up, especially toys and collectibles. So here are just a few ideas to really take advantage of the BAF concept:

1. Fewer Pieces - I think that 4 to 5 figures per wave is the sweet spot. Seven figures feels like way too much and starts becoming cost prohibitive. Mattel knocked it out of the park this year with their Wonder Woman DC Multiverse wave. It was only 4 figures to build an impressive looking Ares, which also allowed them to ship 2 sets per case. Sometimes retailers are lucky to get 2 cases of Marvel Legends or DC Multiverse figures, especially in rural areas (or Canada as a whole). So limiting BAFs to 4 figures or half a case would be a great way to increase positive consumer experiences. Less pieces means more figures which makes it much easier to collect a wave at retail instead of having to resort to scalpers or waiting months in hopes of getting lucky at the pegs. I think this is even more important with characters like Mantis.

Collect & Connect Ares, 2017

2. Solid Waves - I wouldn't have been so upset with Hasbro and the Flight Gear BAF kerfuffle if all the figures in the wave were movie specific characters. As it stands only 3 of 7 figures in the set were film specific, with the remainder being comic book designs. Give me a Tony Stark, a Peter Parker, or even another Iron Man and it would have made that pill easier to swallow. There should be waves of all movie designs, and waves of all comic book designs, enough with the split waves. I'm sure the tooling costs would all equal out in the end.

Groot, 2017 Exclusive vs 2014 BAF

3. Give and Take - Should Groot have been a Build-a-Figure? Probably not because they repackaged him with a new head as a Toys "R" Us exclusive. In this instance, Groot was a slightly taller character and Rocket was a smaller character. Both being single packed should have evened out costs. Waves should be designed in a way that things even out, the go to shouldn't always be a BAF. I think there needs to be better delineation between slightly bulkier characters like Groot, and over sized characters like Giant-Man. For me, Rhino and Juggernaut both ride that line. Build-a-Figures should be something special, something impressive, not just a bulky character.

4. Character Selection - Finally, not every wave needs to have a Build-a-Figure. Two waves after Toy Biz introduced the idea they did something different with the Legendary Riders assortment. Do something different every once in a while. Diorama bases, giant accessories, or little sidekicks. I'm just waiting for them to announce the Professor Xavier Build-a-Wheelchair. Be smart with the character selection. Should Hulk be the Thor: Ragnarok BAF? Probably not, he's popular enough to sell and he's been single packed in the past. Why not do Valkyrie's winged horse Aragorn? That's new and different and would be a real cool piece when complete.

Well I think I touched on everything I wanted to, this got out of hand and became way longer than I intended it to be. I also do feel like I've been a little hard on Hasbro, at the end of the day they're just trying to bring you the best toys they can. The market is tough these days, and margins are getting thinner all the time. But at the same time, I think Hasbro needs to start talking with their collectors more. They need to open up more, so they can make better product people want to buy. Hopefully you guys enjoyed this little piece. I want to do more than just reviews on this blog, so look out for more new features in the future. I've got a Retrospective in the works covering one of the last great movie tie-in lines, look for it in the coming weeks!

Galactus, 2005