you're right. there's nothing in this line that is particularly specially and a LOT of the figures have been warming the pegs for months. you might get a couple extra dollars for a few of them.. but that's about it. now.. if snarl's wave never hits retail.. i imagine the price for the AD versions will go up very high.
I find holier than thou people like you to be much worse. Arrogant people engage in trying to tell other people what they should enjoy when it comes to collecting. Grow up, kid. On topic, If anybody is trying to offload a Voyager DotM Megatron, hit me up. I think Evasion Prime will hold value.
The only figure I see being of any value is that Black Nemesis Prime repaint that was exclusive to the Transformers Expo in Japan. Otherwise hit or miss. Considering how DOTM did I'd guess more misses.
I don't see how it could go for that much higher really. It's already at the top. Especially if it eventually gets KO'd.
Notice I said "only for investment." If you get such a rush thinking about your collectables ONLY being a dollar sign then maybe you should look into actual investment? I'm sure there's a broker down the street just waiting to help you get your rocks off looking into the future and dreaming of dollar signs.
Hound maybe. anything that is shortpacked/hard to find and sought after (HA Barricade and Mudflap for example) come to mind. -
It's often like we never learned anything from comic books. There was a time when speculators were buying up comic books like the death of Superman because there had been news stories about people finding something like the first appearance of Superman in an old chest and it selling for crazy amounts at auction. The owner at the comic book shop was more than happy to part someone from their money but he also liked to say how people were going to be disappointed when the law of supply and demand kicked in. Eventually the boom when bust when people figured out that if 10 millions copies of a comic book were out there then it would never be as rare and valuable than a comic book that only had 10 issues in existence. I think CHUG retains some value because there are characters that aren't repeated so if a someone come into collecting Classics style figures they have no choice but the aftermarket for some popular characters. If you've only had one release of Astrotrain released since CHUG started then it's going to have more value than a movie figure that has several releases.
Anything can hold a certain amount of "value" so as long as people want that particular item. The problem with toys holding this "value" is that you have to have "enough" people that want them. Given the history of movie toys and how easy it was and still is to get rid of them (I'm being sarcastic here), it's a crap shoot as to which one will actually be worth holding on to. I've only seen a few that would net a hefty price....and that number, I can count them on one hand. Comparatively to other TF lines, I guess that's not too bad. But in comparison to some 3P or Masterpiece figures...eh.....no comparison. Then you got to take a look at the fandom in and of itself. How many have enough of a disposable income to pay such "hefty" prices? How many people have others ran into where you'll see a complaint post about low-ballin', self entitled, cheapskatin', annoying people who want you and everyone else to take a loss for their gain (but turn that around and they want to charge you an arm, leg, and your left testicle for what they got for sale)? Or better yet, hearing of this even in conversation? This makes buying any toy for any kind of investment a volatile venture. But hey...if you want to take on that risk, it's your money, your collection. You can do whatever you want. But do take into consideration these factors because as time goes on, the general attitude of the fandom won't change. At least, I don't see it changing.
Speculation is speculation. It can be Beanie Babies, comic books, or toys but you always see people thinking something is going to worth a $1,000 in ten years without factoring in supply and demand. There really isn't a collectable market that can't have the bottom drop out just as easily as it got red hot.
Look at how worthless almost all the other TF movie toys are. The only way that the AOE toys will gain value is if children get them, lots of the figures get broken/lost parts (to decrease the supply), and in 15-20 years the kids that had the AOE toys get nostalgic about them and then pay collector prices for the ones that are complete. Failing all of those things, the AOE toys are future junk. Although it just occurred to me that Hasbro is skimping on the plastic, so maybe in the long run, these will destroy themselves and the value of the intact ones will go up.
Hmm, sidestepping the whole 'toys as investments thing' the way I see it is this. The movie figures that retain or increase in value are the figures which end up being considered the 'definitive' version of an on screen character. This means the likeness of both modes is paramount, and, couple that with rarity and figures like HA Barricade just shoot up in price. Now, considering a lot of AoE is basically repaints of other figures, means they're not accurate in either mode (witness Leader Bumblebee and all the Legions.) Considering the general quality of figures is not great (One Steps, Flip n' Change etc) leaves only Generations to potentially hold it's value, but honestly, the whole Hasbro thing of releasing a myriad of repaints of the same figure (witness Evasion mode Optimus and to a lesser degree the Dinobots) means it's going to be hard to pinpoint that 'definitive' figure and the more popular characters (Hound) may very well get a better version down the line. Going by my own rules though I think One Step Stinger might actually do quite well. It's cheap and nasty, but it's the only actual licensed Pagani Huayra toy (a bit like Generations Deluxe Lockdown) and considering he was a bit part villain who got killed in the film the likihood of another version is extremely low... so watch his value (relative to his low starting point) rocket.
I'd add the Twins to that as well, not only because of Mudflap's rarity, but from what I know, those two HA's are relatively maybe an inch at most taller than the deluxes but pack a lot more into the same general mass. Can Hasbro make better versions after the 5-pack Autobots United decos? Does that mean my Activators Animated Thundercracker is worth more than a few bucks as he's the only one of the "original trio" seekers who didn't get a Voyager?
i don't think it's holier than thou, just practical advice about money management/investment, toys in general are terrible investment anyway, one's bound to be upset if the only reason to buy them is trying to flip them for $5 profit if one's lucky, so just enjoy the toy itself without worrying about trying to profit later. there's a reason businesses that actually 'invest' in toys are offloading old stocks at a discount rather than trying to sell them at 2x msrp (unless it's bbts wonky auto pricing system). if you want to collect, collect. if you want to run a business, run a business, trying to half ass both will just net you a room full of slow/unmovable misb toys you don't even like. that said, i do pick up some extras as trade/ebay fodders if i find them at least 50% off at ross/marshals, all proceeds goes toward buying newer toys though.
Yeah a lot of the value is coming from the definitive onscreen character things. Which is why the leaders go up in price. Which I guess would make me pretty weird because though I love the live action movie toy line. I find the more interesting stuff came from the efforts by Hasbros team to get more traditional robot characters and concepts into the line. Still I don't sell stuff as I've found its a terrible investment over time considering the effort finding it and air conditioned space for it. and yet I foolishly pile it up, a prisoner of my own Avarice. I wonder in ten years who is going to care all that much anyway to pay for them. Age of Extinction and all the live action movies will still have this global awareness perhaps nostalgicly and paramount will continue to distribute the movies probably digitally. Its a dangerous game right now. Since there are so few generations movie molds in AOE. and most of them are getting redecos either in bigbadtoystores exclusive packs, or later on in the sequel as molds hasbro can pull from again. I mean 2007 movie voyager ratchet got lots of repaints until they eventually made two different deluxes for him. That also had redecos.
I can't tell if you're being facaecious? If you're not , yeah it's worth more than a few bucks. I was offered (and was considering) a rarer Actuvators (Skywarp or Rhundercracier) for £20, just over $32 US. I didn't because I have a kid imminently due and can't be spending frivolously. Edit Actuvators? Rhundercracier? Gotta love touchscreens.
