I know that was just a hypothetical scenario you gave, but it just reminds me that me seeking a 3-pack or seekers on clearance months ago ‘exposed’ more than one harsh reality...

 

I want to know why they took Acid Storm's head

 

Hey something's fishy about that 3 pack, wait! They mixed up Ion Storm and Nova Storm in the packaging! Right?

The rest is obviously just from the height of the siege line battle damage gimmick, poor Acid Storm looks to have gotten the worst of it!
 

 

I used to see stuff like this back in ‘09. Frustrated parents would return figures to the store after their kids couldn’t transform them. So you’d see all these mangled and deformed messes shoved back in their packaging.

 

nope

was there any other way to get the figure? I would have liked to get one...

 

nope now just e-bay

 

fortunately they'e pretty cheap, one hole in my collection filled now!

 

I've only noticed figures or accessories that have been removed from the packaging and they didn't even bother replacing it with anything.

When I got Masterpiece Bumblebee I noticed the package was already opened and there's no viewing window on the packaging so I looked inside to make sure everything was actually there before buying the figure.

 

i've never understood the swap mentality...

if you're going to steal the toy then steal it outright, don't play games and justify that you're giving something back

 

Crowbar is objectively better than soundwave. Wtf

 

A nearby Target has kept a SS DOTM Megatron in the same condition on the floor for months. No one is going to ever buy it.

That's because stealing outright is much more difficult.

 

that Berserkers mold though...would be happy if we never saw it used again...

 

No it isn't. I would think replacing the figure would be more difficult because you actually have to remove the figure from the packaging first, put a new figure into the packaging. That takes a lot more time and effort than simply taking the thing.

You're a lot more likely to be caught the longer you spend in the store messing with the merchandise. Where as if you get in and get out it's just a matter of grabbing the figure and walking outside. The only real problem then is the alarms at the front door but those frequently malfunction, at least at my Wal Wart and they'll let you walk out without even checking your receipt.

Even if they do ask for your receipt they never actually look to make sure everything is actually on there so just buy some cheaper items and you're good.

 

LMAO, they don't do the swaps in store!  

They take the figure, buy it, go home, repack some old junk then return it. Much less risk than shoplifting directly just as scummy

 

That seems even MORE likely that they'd be caught because then they have to actually talk to someone who works there in order to make the return. And any idiot should know that figure shouldn't be in the box even if you know nothing about the toy line because there's a product photo of the actual figure literally on the back of the box. You'd have to be completely incompetent to look at that go "Yeah this looks fine, here's your money back."

I mean if they're going to make it that easy, there's no need to sneak around, that's basically stealing right in front of you and turning a blind eye.

 

You'd think that... But all these photos should be showing you that you're wrong.

 

Most retail workers aren’t fans and aren’t paid enough to care

 

I figured they were repacking the figures in the store and doing it while employees weren't watching.

Also I should mention it's store policy to always reseal a returned item that's been opened before putting it back on the shelf. This means a package will never be found open unless it was opened in the store. The photos don't clearly show if the packaging has being resealed or not so they don't actually show I'm wrong.

At least for most major retailers, if they accepted opened packaging at all, that's their policy on returned items, the smaller stores might not reseal returned items but that doesn't seem to apply here.

As I said the toy is pictured on the packaging so you don't have to be a fan to notice the wrong figure is inside. And they should care cause they can potentially be fired for doing that.

Lots of jobs don't pay enough to care but when you gotta make a living some how you care anyway.

 

You seem to have only been exposed to sane, logical, good people, I envy you. The reality of the situation is it's not worth anyone's bother to fight this. Toys are such small potatoes to them that they don't care. Maybe they would have cared in their youth but now? It's just not worth the headache arguing with the person doing the return.

It's very sad, but when you're struggling to make ends meet you don't care much about someone ripping the company off on a $20 chunk of plastic. It's just not worth arguing. And if you don't think your manager will have your back, why bother?

Many times we shake our heads on how such and such a return made it past people. Always the sad truth is that they just don't care. It's not worth their time to care.

 

I said they SHOULD care. Very big difference between what SHOULD be and what IS.   You don't become a system by being exposed to "good people".  

I'd do it if I worked in that type of job... though I don't work in those types of jobs specifically so I don't have to interact with people. I did once... when I was running sound for "Anna in the Tropic" cause the sound booth is right next to the audience I actually had to interact with them... Not fun... plus since I was separated from the rest of the cast and crew I didn't get to interact with them as much as I normally would as an actor or back stage crew. I'd much rather talk to my co-workers than the random patrons who come into the theater. That's a big acting challenge right there, pretending like I care what some random person in the audience has to say when they haven't got a clue what they're even talking about. Especially when they don't even have the decency to wait till intermission and try to talk to me WHILE I'm on head set listening for cues. I wouldn't mind talking to patrons so much if they approached me at an appropriate time before the show starts, during intermission, after the show ends, any of those times would be fine, but not DURRING the show. Then I really want to say shut up and watch the show I'm working but I can't so I have to politely ask them not to distract me during the performance and ignore them if they continue after that.

At the other theater there's a cage around the sound booth and I've heard the audience doesn't do that there... something about having a barrier between the crew and the audience seems to detour them from waiting to talk to you. Never got to work in that sound booth but I still don't like being separated from the rest of the crew... and I really don't like the idea of working from inside a literal cage.   The only good thing about it is not having to deal with rude patrons.