A couple of months ago I ended the hunt for the Kenner Robin Hood Prince of Thieves Sherwood Forest playset (aka Ewok Village repackage). That was a playset I wanted as a kid but never got. So nostalgia, right? I don't think so.

At the Baltimore Comic Con the same dealer had the latest Beta Ray Bill and She-Hulk waves of Marvel Universe figures, lost cardback Star Wars figures (minus Leia), and a Star Wars fan club Carbonite freezing chamber playset all at reasonable prices (10-15 for the figures and 15 for the playset). I couldn't get all of it. Heck, I couldn't afford most of it after everything else from the day. So I narrowed it down to a couple of the Marvel figures and the playset. I went with the playset because I was more likely to use that for display setups and action shots than I would be to sue the figures.

The decision surprised me a little bit. I turned down something new and cool, for something old and let's be honest, Power of the Force 2. But it is a really cool playset. Realizing that made me not even care I was leaving behind figures I want.

Last night I took it out of the bag and set it up on my photo area. I was going to take some pics for a review, but I ended up playing with it. The carbonite feature is bad, cheesy, and fun all at once. They didn't quite pull it off and yet I couldn't stop putting different figures in the stretched out bicycle shorts fabric to see what they looked like.

I got a Kraang from the new TMNT line, but you know what I really want? The new sewer playset. The way Hasbro, Mattel, and Jakks are producing figures in 1/18 scale I feel that ground is sort of covered. I lot of old stuff hasn't been touched but all it takes is a movie line that they can tie it in with and we'll get a toyline for it. But playsets are the dying breed. Because of that I find myself more attracted to the really good playsets of the past, the likes of which we may never see again, over the really cool, but also probably re-done in five minutes figures that are out there right now. I'm looking at you vintage Star Wars line.

Edit: I didn't mean to turn this into some kind of editorial. This was more about realizing I was making a course correction and wanting to tell people who can relate about it.

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I kind of agree with you, and was thinking something similar this weekend. I was boxing up stuff in preparation for moving everything, and I was seeing old playsets and stuff and started thinking, "You know, the GI Joe release that excited me most over the past couple of years was the re-release of the Cobra Surveillance Port." I had so much fun with that thing as a kid and regretted that I'd sold my original. So then I started thinking about other playsets and add-ons, and was wishing we still got things like the vac-formed or blow-molded sets like what Remco produced, and various other things. Figures, regardless of what line, I'm pretty set for for now. I'd really like to see some full-fledged playsets hit the market again, or be able to find more of the old playsets I enjoyed so much as a kid.

I love playsets. While they might take more space, I think they really complete the action figure medium. It's great to have environments for our figures. The recent PTE house and towers are awesome. That's why I love Playmobil too.

They're a dying breed because people wait for the them to hit the bargain bins before buying them which tells the toy companies that the interest isn't really there anymore.
I really hope that the new Sewer Playset will be a success which my prompt Hasbro to bring back some cool environments for GI Joe and their other lines.

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My favorite playsets have been the original Joe HQ, the Cobra Bunker, Ewok Village, and the TTBP. I don't think there have been better playsets since. I wish there were, but understand why they are a gamble at retail.

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That's what gets me into trouble. It's not nostalgia exactly for me. I just like toys. I like the new ones, old ones, whatever. As long as they are cool toys I like what I end up buying. If I had an endless amount of space I'd be in trouble! I just dumped $100 today on some stuff... and yeah I really want that Turtle playset. I'm going to be good and at least wait until after Christmas to see if it clearances like I figure it will.

I've even looked at the doll sets with the playsets they make. The new Bratzilla collection has this neat crystal ball that lights up and projects a talking head inside the ball. That's just neat. I like all that cheesy stuff.

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But the Sewer Playset is MATTEL isn't it?? So Hasbro wouldn't notice too much about it.

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As big as the BAF Falcon and ATAT is, they are more than just a vehicle too. The playset aspect was a big selling point for me to go ahead and pay full price.

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TMNT are made by Playmates, but I'm sure Hasbro is keeping an eye on what's happening in the industry.
If a competitor is making playsets and they turn out to be very popular, be sure that they'll want some part of that action.

The BMF was a playset more than a vehicle. I can't imagine a kid running around with that in his hands.

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More like riding it like a $.25 pony in front of Children's Palace.

Here's the thing about playsets. You know why we are all diving into the vintage stuff? Because there aren't any modern playsets for us to spend money on (outside the few we get from Star Wars and the like). If Hasbro was putting out modern versions of things like the TTBP or Headquarters for G.I. Joe, classic style with modern detailing similar to the figures and vehicles (very few if any play features for play features sake), we'd be buying them up like crazy. Yeah the cheapskates would wait until they hit clearance or Ross but I honestly think they'd be purchased for retail and disappear from store shelves rather quickly. But since there aren't many decent playsets out there we're stuck with buying the vintage stuff, which is fine by me because that stuff is awesome.

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Even The Pit from Rise of Cobra line sold. It may have eventually hit clearance, but it did hold it's own for a while. I remember seeing a whole end cap at Wal-Mart. By the time people talked me into redoing the cardboard parts and I went to buy one, that same Wal-Mart was down to just 2 on the shelves. For a while they did seem to sell decently well until I guess everybody that was getting one had got one.

So even with that one, they do sell. I don't even think there was stock left that hit ROSS or other discount stores. What was left over after Christmas was clearanced by the stores like anything else. I think it's just such a large amount of money that goes into making them, and there isn't really a major turn around on money made. Soft of like how video game companies say how they do not make money of the gaming system but they make money on the games. I guess maybe it's the same with toy companies. The big stuff is for the attraction but they don't make a lot of them. The little stuff is where they make their money. So rather than even worry about the big sets, they just focus on the small stuff.

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This is kind of what I was trying to say. The old stuff is great, and I'm wanting it, but it's as much because there's nothing new like it available, so I can't get a new analog for it. If I could, I'd be all over that, just as much as I am about tracking down the old stuff. I mean, PTE had some nice stuff coming out there for a while, with the campsite, buildings, etc., but I've got all those I need, since they just keep getting re-released.
I'd even be happy if a company came out with stuff like this:
(with or without the figure) with different designs and maybe some modular features. I know there's a board member who makes some stuff sort of like this, and that's cool, but I'd like to see some product that's mass produced for easier purchase.

Some people have said that the last time Hasbro tried reissuing vintage playsets, they bombed.
The HQ and MCC reissues from the early 00s.

I don't know if it's factual... but if it is, that might explain why Hasbro is shy on reissuing the classic stuff.

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What I like about playsets is that even though they have a huge collection footprint, they are designed with plenty of room for the rest of my collection. So sure, the Terrordrome takes up a shelf on its own, but it's basically two shelves by design.

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I wonder if that had more to do with the quality of what was released? How many people were hankering for the later HQ and the MCC?

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I was VERY excited for the MCC. Then I realized I didn't like it as much once I had it in hand. It was too bulky. Not as useless as the Terrordrome or Flagg, but still not what I look for.

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