Sometimes I wonder if I actually have a Cosmos on my shelf or if I have deluded myself into thinking a green fidget spinner is him.

 

I wonder if the confounding factor is Walmart now using local stores to process online orders? Brickseek will get a ping that stock is on hand; but stock is being withheld until online orders are processed with remaining stock being pushed to the floor? Assuming that is how Walmart runs this operation, and it's not just a damned free for all.

This shouldn't be difficult. Paying customers paid in full for items. These customers receive priority in processing. Although I have zero knowledge of how Walmart is handling this on their end, and it could legitimately be just absolute trash supply of figures compared to demand?

 

Also keep in mind these are likely not making it to shelves as individuals are asking employees to pull them from the back and buying the entire lot before they make it out

 

It's either that or if you don't take such action, you'll never have it. There was a time where you'd buy something online only to find it at retail days later, those were bittersweet times, but now...there's a real chance you won't find something if you don't buy it online.

I agree that spending eBay money is better than jacking up the mileage on the car and burning gas in a fire. Not to mention, the loss of time.

The right arm on mine came off. That's why I bought a second from my friend who found one for me.

My Tarantulas had one of his legs knocked off. Fortunately, it was in the box. Others have not been so lucky. One guy got his Tarantulas and one of the legs was missing, never to be found. Tore the shipping carton apart, nothing. What's sad is his value will skyrocket, not due to FOMO or popularity, not really. It'll be "Rare! Legacy Tarantulas complete with ALL legs! Not 3D printed, original Hasbro legs!"

...sad innit?

 

I have a loose, complete Cosmos with the loose arm issue if anyone is interested. Box included and the flag weapon thing still in the wrapper attached to the cardboard. Transformed a couple of times.

 

They can't be pulled from the back if they aren't in inventory yet. But yes, a lot of people are getting Cosmos pulled before new cases are put out.

I honestly think the Brickseek method is becoming unreliable anyway. Walmart and Target's own sites frequently screw up stock totals as it is.

 

This. All day long and twice on Tuesdays.

Did I like paying the eBay price? Nope. Am I happy that I'm not running around like a chicken without his head from store to store looking for a single toy? Yep!!

I still have a preorder in for him. if it comes, it comes. If it doesn't....I'll still have one. I'm not a rich man, I'm not a smart man. I am a lazy man. This was the best way to get this figure.

 

People truly underestimate the damage to their wallets, bodies, cars, and irreplaceable time. You can be doing so much more with all of that if you're not constantly riding around chasing the plastic crack dragon. (I know, getting out of the house is healthy and whatnot, but we go way too far sometimes. I know, I've done it.)

That's what people won't admit. That thrill of a guarantee(!) that you're getting your piece of plastic crack. Guarantee! (Granted, some sellers are thieves and things happen with carriers but generally, you get what you paid for.)

I disagree.

You *are* a smart man. You have it coming to you, not the other way around.
You don't have to be rich to play this game, just go for the gusto on special occasions such as this one.
You're not lazy, you're working smarter rather than harder, and you were hedging your bets, so even smarter still.

Look, I'm not advocating for scalpers (I think they're subhuman garbage) or eBay pricing, I'm not. I'm advocating for people to get what they paid for (whatever the price was) and go and live their lives. If you're paying $125.00 for this little green doofus, then yeah, I'm going to say you, I, myself, or anyone reading that doing this kind of spending is insane. That's definitely a sign that the plastic crack dragon has its teeth deep in your soul. (Not good, btw.)

But... if we're talkin' $50-60ish, eh. I drove from Steubenville, OH (it was a wake for my dad's stepmother) to Grove City, PA (90.3 miles) because it was somewhat on my way home (Youngstown metro) to get a Cosmos only to be turned away and to have to give them my name for when they would finally dig out the case. *sigh* So, all of that mileage, all of that time, all of that wear and tear and exhaustion, for nothing. My car does between 15-25mpg. So, let's stick right in the middle at 20, for the sake of this argument. 90.3/20= 4.515 gallons, so round up to 5. At $3.30 (right now, here) that's $9.90 out of pocket for nothing. Cosmos is $24.97, plus tax, so here that's a total of: $36.37 with gas in mind. So, $40, 50, 60, shipped is reasonable to a point. (At 15mpg, it works out to be $19.87 in gas. Ouch.)

And let's not forget the lack of cleanliness of the pandemic in these stores as well as the people. Someone's taking the L for you for a buck or two, I'd rather pay it.

 

How much sir? And how loose is the arm?

 

Walmart delivered my Burnout preorder yesterday and sure enough, it was Burnout. Hopefully a good sign people's Cosmos preorder will pan out well as well.

 

Not terribly loose, but loose. Two others have expressed interest, but I was looking for $30 plus shipping.

 

Pardon my Perceptor moment here...

The issue is, as always, the people.

I've been working throughout the pandemic and following virologists and medical professionals the whole way, along with modifying my behavior (limiting public engagement / interaction) to protect my health with the latest news. Risk of infection via fomites was overstated, understandably for public safety, early on. However data and studies put the risk of Covid-19 infection via fomites at 1 in 10,000 cases.

Just dropping in to help spread some useful information, even though I still quarantine items I bring into my house and my pucker factor is still around a 9 of 10. I am struggling to reacclimatize to society, despite existing as a human resource within it from day one of the pandemic. Sadly, pertinent information about the spread of the virus has not been adequately disseminated by mainstream media outlets.

Additional citation:

Risk assessment of banknotes as a fomite of SARS-CoV-2 in cash payment transactions

Transmission of infectious SARS-CoV-2 via fomites is possible but unlikely to occur in real-life scenarios, study concludes

If time is limited, This Week In Virology Clinical Updates w/ Dr. Daniel Griffin episodes are essential listening for interested parties. Recent episode 928 is a good jumping on point.

 

good on you, my friend

 

And I'm out

 

Well, I'm game for that! Shall I PM you? Or should we wait to see if either of those other two want it?

 

my local store (Auburn ME) has had at least 3 cases. Now that all the stores in my area have done their resets I'm hoping it'll be more likely I find Cosmos, but alas I no longer have the time or inclination to run around.

 

Walmart delivered Scourge the other day! The box was packed in a bubble wrapped bag, but it still arrived in one piece!

 

Override arrived. I must say, I'm a bit disappointed at how different the figure looks in hand. But, on the plus side, my display case now smells fabulous!



Nah, I kid. It was Override. In a bubble mailer, but in good shape as far as I can tell (haven't unboxed her yet).

 

Cosmos is one my son wants. I did the same, but it is secured and I don't have to search. That's more valuable to me than the extra $53.

 

333

Yeah, value is very relative. Even though gas prices are coming down, with the amount of time and energy people are spending hunting down this figure, for many it might just be worth the extortion price. I know Emgo mentioned paying $70 for it in his review. When one of the top YT reviewers can't get hooked up you know there's an issue.