The General Merchandise Thread

[WebWarlock]

MODS: How is this?

Ok the purpose of this thread is a safe place to discuss any of the possible merchandise that might have a Kitten related angle.

In particular are things like the Willow and Tara figures. But also any new Buffy RPG products or anything else for that matter.

Not so much as a discussions thread, but an annoucement one.

I have a few things, but I want them in sepreate posts.

Right now there is no new news on the figures. Buffy is dead really, Willow and Tara sold well, but not enough to revive anything.

I don't know how Spike is selling.

There are Wesley figures coming out that honestly don't look that bad.

More later.

Tim

[WebWarlock]

There is a Buffy RPG 2.0 coming out. But I cannot in all good faith tell Kittens to buy it.

Eden did right by us and gave Tara her due (overdue) treated her great and had nothing but glowing things to say about her. But in the end they are alos bound to canon and that means Season Seven.

To also be fair JFK get's barely a mention and no mention at all the she "loves" Willow. In fact they do call her a predator.

But yet, she is still there.

In other news.

Serenity is coming to the RPG world. Not done by Eden, so I have no trouble telling you all to avoid this hunk of shit.

http://www.rpgnews.com/article.php?sid=3882

Tim

[still waters run deep]

how about Ghosts of Albion ?

[WebWarlock]

On the way.

Eden has to get some things off their plate before this can be produced.

I will be posting rules on playing Willow and Tara using the Ghosts rules.
It's not all that different than the stuff you see in The Dragon and the Phoenix adventures.

BUT, the money goes to Eden, Amber and Chris (not Fox), and I think the rules are better than Buffy's. Course I wrote both so I am biased.

I'll keep you all up to date on that as well.

Plus there is the idea that Tamara might just be Tara in a previous life... I leave that for you to decide in your own games.

Warlock

[WebWarlock]

Funny.

I got a "Chosen Spike" in the mail today.

Basically it's a translucent yellow figure of spike screaming in pain.
Do an ebay search to see what it looks like.

Gotta figure out what to do with it.

Warlock

[jixer]

Hello Kittens-

Whilst wondering in the local Borders I saw that there were 2 Birds of Prey comics (graphic novels were before my time-harummph) and no BtVS of any sort. I also can't recall the last time I saw the Buffy mag anywhere in town.


Jixer

[WebWarlock]

I need to make a request.

There is a project I am working on and I need an artist.

I have been going through MiT all morning, but what I really need is a recomendation.

Here is the picture I need.

Willow and Tara are standing side by side looking into a mirror. Reflected in the mirror are not Willow and Tara, but William and Tamara from Ghosts of Albion.

Tamara and Tara look the same, both are also holding a large magical tome. It is old and has metal bindings.

Willow and William do not have to look the same, but something should conect them. Say a piece of jewelry they are both wearing (a pin William is using for his tie is being warn by Willow as part of a necklace).

MKF can be there, but she has to be reflected in the mirror. Maybe as a different cat.

It has to be drawn, not a photo edit. And it could be for pay, I have to get that cleared first. And it would be for publication.

I'll take recomendations, anything.

Thanks,

Tim

[WebWarlock]

Some info to pass along.

Figures - Still some left, but since W/T left Diamond's top 10 NO Buffy figure has stayed as long. In fact even Buffy figs that hit #1 are usually out of the figure top 10 by next month. Witches have staying power.

Buffy RPG 2.0 - Eden released a 2.0 version of the Buffy RPG that includes material from Season 6 & 7 to no fanfare and very little sales. While some very nice things are said about Tara in the book, I can not recomend it to any Kitten.

Cinequest - Now look. Mark is a nice guy and I get along with him, but unlike Alex at Eden he has never said he understands what we want. Case in point, Cinewuest opens up a "Iyari Limon Store", http://www.cinequest.com/products.cfm?c=162

Buffy merchandising is dying a slow, tortured death.
In other news replicas of the ST: TOS phasers are going on sale soon and are expected to sell out.

Warlock

[aceivan]

Figures - Still some left, but since W/T left Diamond's top 10 NO Buffy figure has stayed as long. In fact even Buffy figs that hit #1 are usually out of the figure top 10 by next month. Witches have staying power.

A guy who makes custom Buffy figures sold a Willow figure in the bloody top on Ebay for only £15 a couple of weeks ago. The same guy was selling individual Willow and Tara figures for £60 or £70 each only six or seven months ago. Whether this means happy Willow figures sell better or the general lack of interest in Buffy I don't know but either reason is good for me.

Len

[WebWarlock]

Palisades Toys/Factory X makers of Buffy prop replicas (especialy ones from S7) just folded and went under.

Add another name to the Buffy roadkill list.

Warlock

[WebWarlock]

Well, I did not hear about this with my normal chanels and I find that odd.
Nor am I sure why unless it means that this is a last ditch effort by Diamond to squeeze a few more bucks outa Buffy.


Diamond is producing a Tara OMWF bust.

No details yet. But here is the pretty picture.


I understand there will be a Willow as well.

When I see a place to buy it that is Kitten friendly I will let you know.

Warlock

[sam7777]

Apparently people are still buying Buffy shit:
http://www.icv2.com/articles/news/8798.html

Diamond Select Expands Licenses
For Buffy, G.I. Joe, Transformers

Diamond Select Toys has announced Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel prop replica licenses from Twentieth Century Fox Licensing. DST has been producing BTVS action figures and has now expanded its existing license to include prop replicas. Several previously announced (by other companies) prop replicas will "return from the grave" thanks to Diamond Select Toys starting (very aptly) with the Urn of Osiris, which is due out this fall.

Although the Buffy the Vampire Slayer TV series ended after 8 seasons, the property remains strong thanks to syndication and key Buffy licensees such as Inkworks have continued to sell out of new Buffy releases (another Inkworks series of Buffy trading cards, Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Memories is due out in September).

Diamond Select has also announced an agreement with the Hasbro Properties Group to create resin statues and busts featuring the iconic characters from Hasbro's Transformers and G.I. Joe brands.

Sculptors from Art Asylum and Plan B are currently working on new designs that DST will release in 2007, in plenty of time for the debut of the big budget Transformers live action film.

I guess they don't know that Buffy ended after 7 seasons (actually 6.5) and Inkworks is a really niche market as sre the comics. Personally, I think that Transformers is a much better bet. I know that I won't be buying this shit but then I never bought buffy merchandise like I did stuff for Trek so ME has never benefitted from me.

[WebWarlock]

Actually....

It's not that strong. Fox renewed people's license fees cheap to keep going.

Plus the original company making these props went Chapter 13 so Diamond picked up the license and molds on the cheap.

Buffy stuff is not selling very well at all.

Everyone thought Buffy was going to be the next Trek. It was the next Space:1999.

Warlock

[sam7777]

Thanks Tim! I wondered if Fox hadn't dropped licensing fees given that noname companies like IDW have taken on Angel. Dark Horse is apparently doing a Buffy limited series by josswad but I have my doubts that it will get off the ground given josswad's poor track record in keeping up with deadlines and the difficulty of getting btvs actor approval for use of their images.

Buffy does live on in fan film parodies:
http://www.wired.com/news/technology/0,71084-0.html?tw=wn_technology_9

Fan Films Reclaim the Whedonverse
Fans of Angel revel in Cherub's many satirical references to the original show, but the series also appeals to people who hate Angel, or who just get a kick out of zany parodies.

It's funny that the bulk of these are parodies that appeal to people who hate the show as much as to those who like it. And no money goes to Fox and the shits at ME.

[sam7777]

I find this bit about he Serenity RPG amusing:
http://www.icv2.com/articles/news/8833.html

Margaret Weis Productions has sent the Serenity RPG core book back to press for a fourth time, and is expecting to ship additional copies within the next four weeks. The new printing will include current errata and an index that were not in previous editions.

We asked spokesperson Jamie Chambers whether there were any other products on the drawing boards. "Right now Universal has no approved additional product plans," he said, "but we are hoping that they will decide to let us move forward with them soon."

Methinks Universal isn't finding the nickles and dimes that they are getting from Weiss much of an inspiration to allow more products. Josswad's shit is stuck in the smallest niche prodcuts: Comics and RPGs

This is a long way down from TV even the netlets which it bankrupted: UPN and the WB. I doubt Universal is making much from Sereneshit.

[WebWarlock]

Margret Weiss EARNED my undying respect in the game industry back in the early 80's and has done nothing since then to change my mind.
And lets be perfectly honest here. She is a woman that not only has made it in a male dominated industry, she has thrived.

I will not speak ill of her or her company.

Now here is the truth.
- The Serenity RPG started out with small print runs to begin with. Garner has the numbers I believe.
- Despite the subject matter the game is an interesting evolution of the D6 system (so I understand) so much so that it is up for the Origins Gamers' Choice award. http://www.originsgames.com/aagad/nominees32/rpg
Personally, I'd rather see Army of Darkness win it.
- Word I hear, and my sources are very good, is Universal is not allowing any more Serenity RPG products to be made; but it has nothing to do with money. I guess Whedon himself does not want anything made that takes place AFTER the movie. Why? Don't know and don't care.
The Serenity RPG was VERY expensive, so much so Eden had to pass on it. Plus I told them too. I don't know if MW has made their cash back yet or not, but my guess is that they have.

Another bit about Mararet Weiss. Her writing partner of some 20+ years Tracy Hickman was one of the professional writers that blasted Whedon on his blog about Tara's death. Tracy is also a good guy.

Warlock

[Sheridan]

I think Whedon is absolutely determined that no one else is going to pick up one of his universes and take it in new directions ala what happened to Rodenberry and the Star Trek universe. His vision shall be the only vision, even if that means the Buffyverse and Serenity wither and die, no one is going to play Piller to his Rodenberry.

[sam7777]

I will not speak ill of her or her company.

Nor did I. I was commenting on Universal and Josswad. Looks like Josswad has f^cked over another bunch of nice folks. Gosh, he really is a prince among shits.

In any case, Josswad's shit is stuck in the smallest niche products: Comics and RPGs which is a long long way down from TV however you feel about the niches (I'm a fan of both comics and RPGs). If Josswad wants to maintain control so much like Sheridan said he will let "the Buffyverse and Serenity wither and die" and dissappoint the few fans that he has left.

[WebWarlock]

Oh I know Sam.

I honestly feel bad for some of these people that have spent their money on a Buffy/Angel/Serenity license only get fucked in the end.

The Serenity game was not cheap for MWP. I know that Mark over at Cinequest was hoping for much more with Buffy, but he got screwed.

Yeah, they backed the wrong horse. So did WE at one point. And they are not bad people. Many of them look and sound exactly like me (late 30's fanboy with wife, kids and a mortgage) it's just that they are in the wrong fandom.

Even the die hards are begining to see the Buffyfandom falling apart.

It's just too bad some good people had to loose thousands of dollars in the process; all of which went to pad Fox's and Whedon's pockets (to be honest he actually does see that much of Buffy or Angel related sales).

Warlock

[sam7777]

Yeah, they backed the wrong horse. So did WE at one point.

The thing that gets me about this is that no fans seemed to have learned from what has happened to the Kittens nor have vendors learned from the others that have been burned. Dealing with ME is bad business. PERIOD. I really can't be sorry for these new victims. You can learn from the experience of others. For my part I don't buy from folks who deal in ME's stuff but then I don't buy RPGs or trading cards and gave up on american comics ages ago so I don't encounter ME's remaining tiny niche market.

ETA: I often talk about how the Buffyverse has gone to seed but now there are signs that Trek is not far behind. IDW (already losing money on Angel comics) has picked up the license fro Trek comics based on the original series. And they are doing it as a "manga":
http://www.cinescape.com/multimedia/Master_Site/Comics/Master_SiteComics297557.jpg

Gosh, I know that I will be giving this a miss. I was never a big fan of the original trek series and I hate american "manga". Get the terms straight. Manga is Japanese. Manwa is korean. It's a comic people.

[sam7777]

Proof positive that idiots do not learn, IDW is still putting out ME's shite:
http://www.icv2.com/articles/news/9009.html

Spike Mini-Series From IDW
First of 3 New 'Whedon-Verse' Properties
July 20, 2006

IDW has announced a new five-part Spike mini-series based on the popular character from Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Screenwriter Brian Lynch (Big Helium Dog, Monkey Man), who approaches the project as if he were doing a full-on, big-budget Spike summer movie, is writing the Spike: Asylum series, with stylish Italian artist Franco Urru illustrating.

Spike: Asylum, in which Spike must check himself into a rehab facility for vampires, demons, and other spectral creatures in order to find a missing girl, is the first of three new projects based on characters created by Joss Whedon that IDW will announce this month.

Yaawwwnnn. I guess that's the only way that a "big-budget Spike summer movie" will ever happen. I've been tracking the sales figure in the spin vs reality thread and this shit ain't selling. In particular, Spike shit ain't selling. I guess since too much Spike helped ruin both BTVS and AtS (and UPN and the WB), it's time to let it ruin the comics as well. But really why should IDW be any smarter than the dumb f^cks at Dark Horse who are throwing away money on a btvs season 8 comic.

When will they ever learn. When will they ev-er learn. Never.

[sam7777]

And the great ME rip off continues. Remember the Buffy DVD set that had only a new segment by josswad to try to tempt the faithful to buy the whole TV series over again. Now there is high def Fireshit:
http://www.icv2.com/articles/news/9093.html

'Firefly' Goes Hi Def

TV Week is reporting that Joss Whedon's 11-episode Firefly series has been remastered from film, on which it was originally recorded, to 1080i high definition for a September 24th debut on UHD, a high def channel offered by many major cable groups. The conversion, unusual for a show not originally recorded in high definition, is possible because Whedon insisted on recording the film in widescreen on film, and even went so far as to put major characters in the far sides of the frame to make it more difficult to air the show any other way (according to the Firefly DVD commentary, as reported by TV Week).

No news yet on when the HD version might make it to DVD. And it's not going to be easy for Whedon fans. Twentieth Century Fox, which owns Firefly, has adopted the Blu-Ray HD DVD format, while Universal, which owns Serenity, uses the HD-DVD format. This means that the serious Browncoats are going to need both kinds of DVD players to watch both the series and the feature.

Well serious brownshirts are stupid enough to buy both for their god.

[WebWarlock]

Well.

The Buffy RPG is dead.

Fox and Eden could not come to terms for a renewal. I don't know all the details mind you, but it looks like Buffy is dying out everywhere.

Warlock

[jixer]

Hello Kittens-

I think it will make a small comeback when the 'nostalgic nineties' phase hits. Now there's a future I want to avoid!


Jixer

[DaveV]

I got an e-mail yesterday (Feb. 3) from CineQuest. It states, in part::

OZ, DRU, WOOD CANCELLED:
Diamond announced today that due to low sales, the Oz/Drusilla figure wave, along with the Previews Exclusive Principal Robin Wood figure, have been cancelled due to low sales. Those who preordered only those figures will receive cancellation notifications via email; those who ordered other items along with those figures, will be emailed separately about arranged to fulfill the rest of the order.

And so it goes.

[helpfulinformationperhaps]

apparently another source of dolls - Sideshow? are no longer going to produce Buffy & Angel lines - Giles will be the last for the foreseeable future

[WebWarlock]

Good News / Bad News Dept time.

Good News: The Titan Magazines published Buffy/Angel rag is dead.

Bad News: The Buffy comic is selling very well, a little over 110,000 copies in March.

Tim