I need to be distracted

I have been thinking further about my collecting 'system'. Figure announced, preordered, paid for, received, opened, photographed and put away. An additional step in the system is to sell an old figure when a new one is released. Intuitively I feel that I get most enjoyment from having figures on a shelf, but when those shelves are inevitably crowded, dusty and too high to be able to see without standing on a chair, perhaps it is not true. I have never been disciplined enough to maintain a rotating display.

What part of the process do I enjoy the most? It’s the anticipation and the appreciation, but the appreciation doesn’t last all that long. If I haven’t looked at something for a little while I can appreciate it all over again though.

I have gone through my Marvel 3.75” collection and identified those which I really don’t care about and popped them in a pile to sell. I’ve been fairly cautious - I kept Black Knight on the basis that he’s in the new Eternals film. I’ve also resolved to open the figures that I want but are still carded. Starting with Korg and Valkyrie. I intend to get the Bossfight studios Pegasus figure to go with Valkyrie so it really should be open. Both appeared in Thor Ragnorok so (now) pass the 'have been in something I’ve seen' test. Both are nice figures, Korg is a remold of Thing which I was quite fond of anyway. Valkyrie looks quite stern I think, through I like the braids. I feel very happy with my 3.75" collection now, having looked at all of the figures has renewed my enthusiasm for it.

Popped in a preorder for Super 7’s TMNT Leonardo, he looks really good! I'm really excited about their Thundercats and Turtles lines, despite the cost. I’ve also put in my preorders for the blue ranger, Scorponok, Sky Lynx and Snapdragon. Sunstreaker and Trailbreaker look great. I’m a bit tempted by Wheeljack as well now, it would be quite nice to have the Ark crew in the WFC line aesthetic, maybe all of the characters that started out as Diaclone toys (I think if they did Ultra Magnus battle damage free, in a lighter blue I'd be tempted).

I have decided to also downsize my Transformers collection. I'm going to get rid of most of G1 figures including my reissues, I'm just going to keep figures where I don't have a Classics version. I've also worked out which Masterpiece figures I will keep - Grimlock, Soundwave, Optimus and Bumblebee. Speaking of which, I really must open Bumblebee.... Then I'll get Megatron and perhaps Starscream if (when) they do a new one - favourite and most important characters only! I'll also get rid of some of my WST figures, though they don't take up much space, it feels like they constitute a lot of figures. I'll keep the leaders as I'm quite proud of my (complete) Autobot leader lineup and the seekers so as to have a matching set (I intend to upgrade Classics Starscream, Skywarp and Thundercracker to voyager, but not the coneheads).

I've never really decided what I was doing with my G1, WST and MP collections, I've changed course several times, I've bought bits, sold other bits off. This feels a bit more definite. I have one figure of each character that appeared in the cartoon or Lost Light comic. If I get a new one, I sell the old one off. That's the system. I'll keep my Grimlock/Ravage collection as it is - that's where the nostalgia really is. Then a very small number of important characters for Masterpiece, leaders and seekers for WST. I'm not going to be completely strict, there's still some wiggle room, especially for completing subgroups (hello Hubcap). This new way of thinking about how I organise my collection has made me think about Siege/Earthrise, I was starting to think about whether sticking with the Lambo/Datsun molds from Universe was such a good idea, perhaps it is time to upgrade. Maybe Grapple as well while I'm at it.

There is a lot of uncertainty in the world at the moment, it's times like this I'm glad I collect toys - I need to be distracted!

Animal Altmodes

Toy Fair! Or at least a load of pre Toy Fair proper leaks. I have several figures I really want, so at the end I will see how many of them have been announced and how many others I get tempted by. Good to see the Lightning collection blue MMPR rumour be true, green and black rangers already exist in some form so hopefully they'll be in the next couple of waves. Nothing too exciting on the Marvel Legends side, maybe Leader.

Lots of Transformers rumours confirmed. Sky Lynx looks great, as does Snapdragon (he's on the really want list). And Alicon (shall I get two or three?). Doubledealer looks solid so he's a maybe, strangely the metallic repaint of Siege Megatron with a properly coloured Lionizer is also quite tempting. The Quintesson I'm not sure about, if it was deluxe it would have been easier. I’m increasingly intrigued by Runabout/Runamuck (I don’t know which is which) which is annoying as I was perfectly happy with the club versions.

I'm trying for the most part to not re-buy characters I already have, but if there's a size class change then it's easier to justify - only Hoist (and presumably Trailbreaker) and Runabout/Runamuck are the same again (deluxe). Though with Cliffjumper and Doubledealer, my current figures are already the right size class. Optimus is a trickier one since he's a leader because of the additional trailer. Starscream and Sky Lynx needed upsizing so very happy with them.

In contrast for Siege, Hound, Mirage, Ironhide, Ratchet, Megatron, Springer, Reflector, Shockwave were all re-buys, and only Reflector and Shockwave were upsizes.

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It feels like I'm passing on almost everything, but I'm down for Sky Lynx and Scorponok so going to be an expensive year. As I go through my figures, I'm conscious that a Titan figure is equivalent in space terms to a lot of smaller figures, so I've got to be certain I need them. There's no question about whether I need Scorponok (I most certainly do), but it gets trickier with the likely Takara Black Zarak (the G1 figure is something of a 'grail' for me). I'm also not sure whether I need G1 Fortress Maximus still.

Well, Doubledealer and the Quintesson are definitely needed! Down for a couple of Alicons as well. Snapdragon looks good. Nothing else really grabbing me Transformers wise. From other lines, Tarzan looks good from Bossfight Studios. The new (premium) Hasbro Ghostbusters are movie as expected, but that they're doing Real Ghostbusters stuff is encouraging. The Marvel Legends reveals all look good, I'm amazed to see movie X-Men figures, but they're not for me. 90's War Machine is another maybe.

I think the absolute highlight is the Cheetara reveal from Super 7, that really is exciting. Leonardo looks good as well. Hopefully I'll get Raphael soon and be able to see what their figures are like. I think that concludes Toy Fair! Thundercats, Turtles and Power Rangers are all two characters away from completion. Ghostbusters is looking promising. Marvel Legends is going along nicely with the odd figure here and there. Transformers has given me the figure I've most wanted since Fansproject making headmasters made collecting the 1987 lineup a distinct reality. Scorponok, Sky Lynx, Doubledealer, Snapdragon and Alicon are all excellent updates/addition to some of my favourite subgroup of Transformers - animal altmodes.

I've realised that saying I will be happy with my collection when I have certain figures is setting myself up for failure (or least, not happiness). I think I need to focus on the 'system'. My system (now) is to see toys be announced (usually Toy Fair or SDCC), preorder them, pay for them, open, take a photo with other related figures, and finally put it in storage. When I get tempted by other things I find it disturbing (mostly because of the money). I need to focus on making the system work for me to maximise my enjoyment.

I haven't been tempted by too many things that I wasn't expecting, but I need to be wary of me changing my mind. It will be expensive when Scorponok and Sky Lynx hit, but I'm hoping that will be a one off. I'm not counting down to SDCC, I'm looking forward to Scorponok and Cheetara!