Re release of rare characters

[mikey0]

Originally Posted by MrPliggins

I can also vouch for the fact that I never saw a Scratch in the store during its release. I saw a Hot Spot one time in a Hills, and they only had one. Halfcourt, Sandstorm and Mona Lisa were everywhere. (Also in the Cleveland area).

Even at the time Scratch was known as a rare figure, so toy dealers and collectors were scooping them up as well as tmnt fans. I had to get mine at a toy show, traded Spawn figures and Starting Lineups. I don't think tmnt fandom had a lot to do with it, because the fandom was dying at the time.

TMNT fandom was slowly waning from how it was the year prior (1992) in 1993, but it wasn’t quite as gone in 1993 as it was in 1994. Scratch was out before the 1993 Bandai 8 inch Mighty Morphin Power Rangers hit stores that fall. The second to last basic assortment (1st generic cards) was everywhere in the summer of 1993 before August. Another part of the problem with the 10th wave was they were on the same generic backers as the ‘89 to ‘92 re-released figures. It was a lot more difficult to tell which characters were the pegs without seeing illustrations of the characters on the cardboard in the mid 1990s (starting in 1993). You now had to strain your eyes as you looked at the lower left hand corner of the package to see the names and accessories of the characters were and it was even harder to see which ones were all the way in the back on the pegs.

Toy scalpers most likely bought Scratch figures on the very day the cases came in early in the morning when parents of young TMNT collectors were at work. The year 1990 changed everything! Although parents could have nabbed a few Scratch figures also, but largely it had to be toy scalpers and adult collectors that got them. Many of Scratch figures up for bid were mint on card in the 2000s before modern adult collectors got their hands on them and opened the package.

I don’t believe that Scratch was short-packed like Foot Soldier was for the first ever wave. Scratch was “rare” to some of the children at the time because they arrived too late to the stores that carried the character.

[mikey0]

Child World, Lionel Playworld, and Lionel Kiddie City were all gone by the time that Scratch hit TRU and Family Dollar shelves. It would have helped matters more if those toy stores were still around in July of 1993 like they were in July of 1990.

The biggest toys of the 1991 to 1993 Christmas seasons (Super NES, Dakin Barney dolls, and Talkboys) were all sold at different kinds of retailers. Not to mention, the early 90s recession really hurt the smaller known toy stores from the 80s. So, Millennials who wanted Turtles in the mid 90s had to go to the same shops that adult toy buyers would frequent in the 2000s. Circus World was up until 1996, but Kay Bee Toys, like the department stores, sold mainly variants with one [or two, at most] cases of the basic assortment waves and Circus World was like a Kay Bee Toys under a different name.

The Turtles variant sub-waves ruined everything further from how it was after Turtlemania 1990. The last time it was easy to collect the original TMNT figures without buying from street vendors and peddlers was before November of 1989 and the Turtles were catching on in the spring of ‘89 due to the new found success of the regular series in the fall of 1988. Nevertheless, the first movie made almost every first wave figure a must own (especially April, Shredder, Leonardo, Raphael, and Donatello). A whole new fandom was built after the release of the first Jim Henson movie and it stayed around until 1994 or 1995.

[mikey0]

Originally Posted by ERICKANA666

Do you thi k that they will ever re release these kind of characters, like scratch, hot spot, half court, or any characters that was never released from the original series, or 4 frogs set ?
It could be easy money, and can kill the business of some bad sellers on ebay. Do you think they have the rights of these ?
Even with new mold these guys can sell like hot cakes. What do you think

Your best option at this point is to search for Scratch, Half Court, and Hot Spot customs on sites like Instagram and Etsy. The Instagram user Duzmachines84 had resin repro keychain heads of Scratch, Hot Spot, and Half Court back in this past June for 21 dollars and 4 dollars for shipping. Another Instagram user Viktorsvintage made a full resin reproduction of the 1993 Scratch and Jailbird figures without accessories and put it up for sale on his website for $180. It’s sold out now, but the seller seems to do a lot with his resin Scratch knock-offs. There was a resin Scratch repro in 1982 Mattel MOTU Battle Cat colors, Scratch the Thriller Cat (a knockoff Scratch designed to look like Michael Jackson in the Thriller video), and resin MEGAScratch knockoff made to look like Mega Man from Viktorsvintage.

So, if you have an Instagram account, you could follow the two users I mentioned and see if either one of them could do a resin repro of the rare figures you mentioned or parts of them (painted or unpainted head molds).

I don’t know why Playmates cannot make some kind of repro of the original Scratch figure. A Be@rbrick of the character has been made in this century. Scratch is the rare toy from original TMNT toy line that collectors of all ages know by now. Playmates could attach a new head sculpt to a repro of the torso, arms, and legs from the 1993 figure. Super 7 could even give the fans something close enough to the 1993 figure that was found at K-Mart, Family Dollar, and TRU in the mid 90s. TMNT fans seem to get the short end of the stick when it comes to character selection in retro lines, whereas G1 Transformers and MOTU fans don’t.

[DonnieLaForge]

Originally Posted by ***First of Two Latin Kings***

They're bad sellers why? Because they won't sell you rare figures cheap? Don't be a retard.

Can you explain to me why these sellers (and the fandom) think these figures are rare, when at any given moment of any given day there are multiple of them listed on eBay? There are many other rarer things that surface on eBay once in a blue moon that sell for a lot less. The fandom on this very forum has even previously discussed how the supposed rarity of Scratch was artificially hyped up by toy pricing guides of the era and that attitude just persists to this day. What it really is is that some guy was suckered into paying $100 for one, and he didn't want to let it go for any less than that, so now we are all re-buying his same one with a $10 markup each time it changes hands because nobody wants to lose any money and everyone thinks it is so rare. That's my hypothesis here. Yes, the wave Scratch was in was produced in lower quantity and harder to find than other waves, but it makes no sense that one figure in the wave is hundreds of dollars "rarer" than the others in the same wave, unless someone can prove he was a lower case pack ratio than ALL the others.

[IMJ]

Originally Posted by mikey0

Your best option at this point is to search for Scratch, Half Court, and Hot Spot customs on sites like Instagram and Etsy.

This is not a viable option at all, and some of the material posted here is too "informed" for my tastes. Interesting to read? Sure, but a little too informed without any credential beyond age to back it up. I'm not seeing market research in many of these posts - instead I'm seeing creative writing with the most simple of connections to the material.

For everyone here - after 30 years of collecting, buying & caring for pieces that value in magnitudes of thousands of dollars, studying the market, selling to collectors, and being published in both physical media as well as several digital outlets; after all of that I can tell you that if there is a quality piece that you want to buy then consider these factors:

01. Save your money, reward points, credit card rewards, etc to make big hobby purchases clean and fast.

02. Don't buy your big purchase just because you see the item. Pick your quality point, your grade, your condition or whatever and buy the item one single time, at a level of quality that you'll be content with. The item will reside in your care and collection for years.

03. There is an exception to number 2. If you have a viable outlet to trade the item up for a better quality item later, then you can initially buy a cheaper piece. But if it's too much work to buy a Scratch that's in crap shape for xx bucks and sell it later after you buy a quality Scratch for $xxxx, then just wait to buy the quality Scratch right off the bat. But if you do buy and later sell your $xxx Scratch, then compartmentalize the money and put it towards your Scratch upgrade and nothing else. This is actually healthy for the hobby - it keeps items flowing through the market, creates interactions and relationships, keeps money moving from an economic perspective, and makes collectors happy as they perform hobby actions.

04. Every area of the hobby is different when it comes to curating a collection. If I want Amazing Fantasy #15 (1st Spider-Man), I'm not going to buy a loose cover and then wait for a coverless book to come along. That mentality just doesn't fit for comics. But for TMNT, it's wildly different. That line was littered with accessories and can be pieced together over time. It might take you a long time to complete a Scratch or a Sandstorm, but it is a feasible option to buy Sandstorm and then pick up the magic carpet, sword and genie lamp as they pop up on the market.

Trolling etsy hoping to find the one guy who is making a Scratch custom, and then paying an absurd price for a custom, and then hoping it is truly articulated and fits in with your vintage TMNT collection is absurd advice. Only buy a custom figure when their is no other market option at all for your collection, or if that custom is truly a noteworthy piece. A while back some semi-professional Blade Runner figures came to market and those were the real deal - especially when there has never been a viable Blade Runner line. But buying TMNT customs? I'm a bit disgusted that this was suggested from a perspective of "market knowledge."

Originally Posted by DonnieLaForge

Can you explain to me why these sellers (and the fandom) think these figures are rare, when at any given moment of any given day there are multiple of them listed on eBay?

Rare is different than supply and demand, my friend. At a glance there are people who would scoff at that statement and use the simplest of logic in their belief that "supply" is only affected by "rarity", but that is not true. Rare[/I] is different than supply and demand. If the market is commanding a price and people are paying it, then in that moment of payment whatever a seller "thinks" doesn't matter. The only dumb or manipulative seller is one who doesn't respond to market conditions. I know a guy who has had a Unity #0 Red on his store wall for, honestly I'm not kidding, I think for 25 years or more priced around 500 bucks. It's never moved and I want to tell the guy that it's not the 90's anymore. I can't believe his store is in business in any form.

Personally, when I sell I eliminate negative buyer emotions at every chance I can. For example, if I sell on eBay I almost always start auction style listings at a penny because it truly gives every buyer a voice to put in their truly best bid and maybe buy. If I sell face to face, then I talk to my buyer in a big purchase and make sure that what they are buying is going to make them happy. I ask for my price, but people get what they paid for every time, and I've turned people away who I could tell were going to impulse buy and maybe have buyer's remorse later. Most of my people are really happy with what they've added to their collections because of this, and I'm am super cool with that.

[DonnieLaForge]

Things are worth what people will pay, but in this case people are being stupid about what they will pay.

Here, I believe perceived rarity is increasing demand. People want Scratch because it is believed to be rare, so they can use it as a status symbol. It is believed to be rare, because of the high price, not actual evidence, and because of the word of mouth that it must be so spreading like wildfire. The desire to own this piece above all others can be seen all over the social media TMNT collector community, which is full of members who have decided to compete with each other for the most complete collection and the most number of Scratches in simultaneous possession. They are not doing this at such a fever pitch with Hothead, Mona Lisa, or Sandstorm, to name a few, because nobody sees those as rare when in fact they should be just as rare.

[IMJ]

Originally Posted by DonnieLaForge

Things are worth what people will pay, but in this case people are being stupid about what they will pay.

Here, I believe perceived rarity is increasing demand. People want Scratch because it is believed to be rare, so they can use it as a status symbol. It is believed to be rare, because of the high price, not actual evidence, and because of the word of mouth that it must be so spreading like wildfire. The desire to own this piece above all others can be seen all over the social media TMNT collector community, which is full of members who have decided to compete with each other for the most complete collection and the most number of Scratches in simultaneous possession.

Yeah. This is all true, but look man, what you've described is what markets do. There's no need for vitriol about it. You've got to understand that the person who wants a Scratch because he loves cats with all his heart is not a more noble or deserving buyer than the average TMNT collector who both wants the figure and the owner prestige that comes with it.

In some ways your interpretation is coming off as rotten eggs. As if lying underneath your message is that you want a Scratch (or item "x") and instead of earning one through some trade-up work, saving, negotiating, or establishing good-relationship-connections; instead are basically flinging mud at the entire market doing the trading. I'm just saying that is how your interpretation is coming off. I'd be happy to be misinterpreting you.

This is like that guy who lectures the other guy with a nice car through passive aggression. "Why do you need a car that's that fast?" The "need" or "Buyer motivation" argument is for losers, man. People who can't have what they want for whatever reason so they hide behind the "need" argument. There's a lot of stuff that I want and don't or can't have for a variety of reasons. But I'm not faulting other people's buyer behavior for that. That's the free market.

The positive message behind what I'm saying to you is this: Now recognizing that the free market is supported through a variety of consumer behavior, the intelligent competitor in the free market will find a way to throw punches to build his wealth and get what he wants. In your case? Take some of the steps I outlined in that 1, 2, 3 post above and not only will you maybe land a Scratch, but you might wind up with one of the nicest ones on the boards! -thumb's up-

Lastly, you've said that Scratch is not a scarce piece. But until I see ratio data from Playmates indicating that Scratch was shipped in a high or standard box ratio, then I will err with the "Scratch is scarce" crowd. Second, even if Scratch was shipped 4 per case of 12 then although he was standard packed back then, he is still scarce today because you don't see examples come to market as frequently - even if owners are hoarding or keeping doesn't matter. He doesn't come to market frequently and almost never comes to market with a "lot" or a "group sale". Lastly, whole shipments of that wave were in reduced volume even outside of the per case allocation, so the whole wave is truly more scarce by comparison to the availability of other TMNT merchandise of that era. Scratch is scarce. By every measure I've outlined here.

If any of this post was tough to get through, DonnieLaForge, I don't mean you any vitriol at all. I'm just taking the talking points as you initially presented them. One final edit to this post that I think is important - I do not have a Scratch in my collection.....

[mikey0]

That whole 10th basic assortment could have been purchased in 1993 either all at once (after calling all retailers in the area to see when the case got in) or separately (reserving them at TRU or putting on layaway at a department store like K-Mart, the headquarters for all things TMNT in those days).

None of them were extremely difficult to come by. Of course, toy collectors had to compete with scalpers, casual action figure buyers, adult TMNT fans, and parents then. Like I mentioned before, there were more toy store around in the 1980s up to 1992. 1993 was the first full year that it felt like the 90s were progressing. Still, most (if not all) 10th basic wave allies and villains were a lot easier to come by in the summer of 1993 into the rest of the mid 90s than the first wave figures (except Bebop and Rocksteady) was in the month after the first movie came out in 1990. The Turtles being at pharmacy stores from late 1990 into the 90s just about made up for the lack of toy stores in 1993. The problem with TMNT figures at pharmacies was none of them knew what cases to order, so the pegs at drugstores were flooded with Turtles sub-wave variants and not basic figures. All of the turtle variants released between 1991 and early 1993 really helped to kill off any interest that older TMNT collectors had in the line before the summer of 1993 (when the 10th wave was new). Most things TMNT took a nosedive shortly after Turtlemania of 1990.

The violence associated with both TMNT comics, cartoons, and movie series was toned down from late in the summer of 1990 onward, but that did not really reach the toy line until 1993 when the generic cards hit shelves. The older ‘88 toy line collectors felt the original TMNT line was turning into too much of a “kiddie toy line” in the third quarter of 1991, but figures like the 11 inch Krang’s Android Body and Movie Star Turtles held them over for a while. Sadly, the original toy line was ruined for most people with the Wacky Wild West and Bodacious Birthday TMNT sub-waves from the last quarter of 1992.

Any TMNT toy line collector or fan who made note of the cases carried by the stores in their areas during the early 90s would have known where to get a Scratch, Hot Spot, Half Court, and Mona Lisa from in the mid 1990s. Selling TMNT toys was big business in the early 90s from April of 1990 (during Turtlemania ‘90) into the 1990s. The early 90s were closer to today because there were toy magazines that gave sellers and consumers information on upcoming action figures and the going prices for many collectibles up to the point of the date on the magazine.

The best time to get a figure like Scratch would have had to have been within months of its release. TRU ordered many basic wave cases in the summer of ‘93. Mona Lisa and Sandstorm were slightly uncommon. Family Dollar would have been the best go to place for your Scratch toy hunt if you did not want to go through so many pegs of figures in the fall of 1993. It seemed like there were more Family Dollar stores back then than there is today, but the stores are actually more widespread in this century than they were then. Still, there had to be one to five Family Dollar stores in everyone’s vicinity in 1993.

The 10th basic wave figures were at small well known toy stores like Kay Bee Toys from 1993 to 1995 or 1996. I don’t believe any of them made it to the bargain bin (like the Toy Biz Uncanny X-Men line) from 1994 to ‘95 or ‘96, but they might have been marked down (a 3 for $10 sale) on the pegs.

Scratch was the funniest, glossiest, and meanest looking character in the 10th basic wave, so that might have prompted a young causal TMNT toy collector to have their parents buy it for them in 1993. For the most part, that whole basic wave almost went unnoticed by children because there was Super NES, Treasure Trolls, the TalkBoy, X-Men, Super Soakers, Rollerblades, Sonic the Hedgehog games, and Mighty Morphin Power Rangers 8 inch action figures. The 90s found its identity as a Millennial’s decade in 1992 and we were living in the aftermath of that from 1993 to the end of the 90s. TMNT was the ultimate 1990s (as a whole) action figure line, but like most things from the 1980s that spanned into the 90s, it went downhill in the 1990s and never recovered.

Playmates should do a Scratch repro figure if the original mold for Scratch figure was destroyed. Unfortunately, Scratch needs to be seen or mentioned in a new TMNT show or movie for that to happen.

I can definitely see Super 7 producing a ReAction or Ultimate Scratch figure, but that will not help the OP any. The original TMNT toy line does not have the strong good versus evil theme or following for there to be a Super 7 Vintage TMNT line like the one they did for MOTU. So, the OP will have to constantly search the online auctions and stores for the actual 10th basic wave toys he mentioned. The OP may have to analyze everything about the 10th wave figures to search correctly for them online (such as putting in keywords “Mirage Studios”, 90s, and “cat” for a loose Scratch owned by a casual consumer). The OP’s last resort should be going on Instagram to look for loose and carded incomplete custom resin reproductions of the 10th wave characters (like IMJ was saying). Better yet, keep taps on all of them (the loose, MOC, and custom figures) at the same time. The OP could purchase a composition notebook or Excel spreadsheet to keep record of the prices and websites that he found those three 10th wave characters at. It’s an ongoing and restless fight to get those three 10th wave characters at reasonable prices, I imagine.

The lackluster 7th basic wave (the one with weak figures like Make My Day Leo, Skateboardin’ Mike, Hose ‘Em Down Don, and Space Usagi) along with all of the simultaneously released turtle variant sub-waves (Sewer Sports All Stars, Rock N Rollin’, and Mutant Military) in 1991 is really what sunk the chances of the basic assortment figures being widely available at most carriers of the ‘88 Turtles toy line after 1991. Sellers got carried away with having any TMNT Playmates product in stores in the early 90s. As a result of that, both small and large toy chains were left with large store displays of turtle variant sub-waves that casual toy buyers didn’t want.

A ReAction 4 pack of Punk Frogs all made from the mold of Genghis Frog is a possibility in the future, but I don’t see Playmates re-releasing Scratch, Hot Spot, or Half Court any time sooner. I’m still in disbelief over Super Mikey and Super Donny being on Classic Collection cards in 2016. Playmates ought to do something for the fans like a Scratch re-release, but I think the problem is that most diehard TMNT fans own all of the 10th wave characters. Hopefully the buzz over the 10th wave figures in this thread will help the toy companies (especially Playmates) to understand how much Scratch, Hot Spot, and Half Court figure reissues and reproductions are needed by new and some old fans of the property.

[DonnieLaForge]

IMJ, I do want a Scratch. And a Hot Spot. Because I simply want the whole collection. And I do not have one. And I will tell you why, and why I am fine with that, and why I am still allowed to be annoyed, momentarily.

By the way, you can see without much effort they were part of this assortment:
http://tmnttoys.com/93figures/basics/index.html

And unless they were shortpacked with 1 Scratch per 2 Sandstorms or something, I don't see any scenario in which they should be harder to come by than he is. I think we can agree, anyone collecting either of them is probably the type of fan who is collecting for completion, not someone who "loves cats" (wut?).

I get why Chef Boyardee Shredder is valuable, it makes sense.
I get why the undercover turtle wave is valuable, it makes sense.
I do not get why different figures from the same exact assortment have such a massive difference in their range of market value.

The undercover turtles would have been packed together, and apparently in much lower quantity (being closer to the tail end and all), and any openers could easily lose their trench coats over the years -- their relative rarity and value makes perfect sense and I cannot be annoyed in any way about that as I certainly do understand that is how the market works. I simply look upon those that have them and ooh and aah and say "maybe some day".

No, what I am ... let's not say upset, because I don't punch walls about it ... but instead let's say stupefied ... by, is what I just explained. He was right there alongside and in same quantity as all these other figures that typically go for $50-100 in mint carded shape at the moment. But somehow he (and now also Hot Spot) became celebrities.

No, mikey0, I don't think you can just state your subjective view that Scratch was the coolest figure in the line as being objective fact. Sorry. I have no reason not to think children of the time would have gotten just as many chuckles out of the antics and design of Halfcourt, and basketball was certainly all the rage in the 90s. Thanks to Aladdin, so were Arabian themed items such as Sandstorm.

(Side note: if I had my own theory based on nonsense about why Scratch/Hot Spot are more rare it would probably be that it was harder for people to peg that they belonged the the TMNT line so they were more likely to get separated from their fellow figures over the years...but again, that's just me pulling stuff out my butt.)

So anyway, I read what you wrote, IMJ, and while you said you weren't getting angry at me you kinda sounded angry. I'm not angry, I'm simply stupefied watching all these bozos at work. I would love to have a complete TMNT collection, it is literally what I would lie around thinking about as a child, checking off all those boxes. Today, I have got plenty of funds, that's not the issue -- if I wanted Scratch, the undercovers, and all the remaining holes in my collection *that* badly I would just plop down the change and get them all, in an afternoon, yes I could afford that. And then I would feel really stupid. I would rather wait this nonsense out, maybe 10-20 years from now some of the fever will have died down and the market will have come to their senses, or maybe I will come upon him using the long-game methods you described. I'm not in any rush.

And yet I am still allowed to watch from the sidelines, scratch my head (pun not intended but credit still accepted), and say "that seems stupid".

[miru]

Yeah, I think an Ultimate Scratch might be a possibility, though not really a straight-up re-issue. And even then, he still may have better chances than characters like Chote, Quarry, Cody Jones, the 2k7 toyline originals, and perhaps even the latecomers of the 2012 line. His rarity is often recognized, even as early as 2009, by assorted merchandise.

[IMJ]

Originally Posted by DonnieLaForge

By the way, you can see without much effort they were part of this assortment:
http://tmnttoys.com/93figures/basics/index.html

Good convo, brother. My only question is why did you include this link and this statement? -confused-

[DonnieLaForge]

Originally Posted by IMJ

Good convo, brother. My only question is why did you include this link and this statement? -confused-

It sounded from your response before mine like you maybe didn't believe me (or misheard me) that he was from the same wave as the characters I was mentioning, that's all. If you knew that, disregard, but it is material to the discussion.

[mikey see]

Originally Posted by DonnieLaForge

I would rather wait this nonsense out, maybe 10-20 years from now some of the fever will have died down and the market will have come to their senses, or maybe I will come upon him using the long-game methods you described. I'm not in any rush.

Back in 2011 my collecting eye turned back to TMNT for the first time in... well, probably 20 years. I still had all my figures from when I was a kid but I hadn't bought any since then. I thought it might be fun to grab some that had eluded me when I was little such as the Movie Star Turtles. In looking for those I ended up finding out about all of the other mutants that had come out near the end, such as Sandstorm, Half-court, and of course Hot Spot and Scratch. At the time Hot Spot was about $30 and Scratch could be had for $100. I ended up getting Hot Spot but passing on Scratch... I couldn't justify spending that kind of money on an action figure.

Fast-forward 7 years to 2018 and I once again thought it might be fun to track down a few missing figures. Boy was I surprised to see that a loose Scratch was now commanding the kind of money that "Last 17" Star Wars figures cost, complete. I'm thankful I got Hot Spot (and Sandstorm, Half-Court, Mona Lisa, etc), but man... that price really took off.

My point is, if you REALLY want one it might be best to just bite the bullet and buy one now. Wait until there's a 10% ebay bucks promo or something and let that soften the blow. 80s and 90s toys are getting pretty nutty now as all of us that grew up during that period have money to throw around. 80s GI Joe figures have gone insane in just the last few years as well. I could see Scratch approaching $1000 in the next 10 years.

(disclaimer: I only check in on this stuff every once in awhile so I'm no pro!)

[mikey0]

It’s possible that toy scalpers saw the value in Scratch and Hot Spot before children in the 90s did. I’m talking about 30 to 50 something year olds buying cases or going through cases when they first got in. The scalpers were old enough to see the humor behind the characters from every angle, whereas children of the 90s were mainly buying TMNT basic wave characters to play with or display.

From 1990 to 1995 or so, toy scalpers were picking up the basic wave characters that they believed would be profitable in the future. The basic wave character variants like Space Usagi and Make My Day Leo were passed over by toy peddlers for the ones that seemed to be selling like Rahzar. Toy scalpers who have been in the business long enough remembered having to search through endless 1977 Kenner Star Wars line figures in the early to mid 80s for the little known aliens and humans that casual customers and Star Wars collectors wanted. So, the same methods were used to obtain the 1988 TMNT line basic wave characters that scalpers surmised would be in demand.

The consistent releases of turtle variant sub-waves and lack of popularity of basic wave characters from the last quarter of 1991 to 1992 are really what killed off the chances of some TMNT toy collectors owning basic wave characters from 1993 to 1994. Still, I remember TRU having a full shelf store display of 10th basic wave characters late in the summer of ‘93 (July or August). Not as many children at the time were visiting the TMNT aisle that summer like they were even at the start of 1993. Interest in the toy line was further waning from children, pre-teens, and teens of the 90s in mid 1993.

[DonnieLaForge]

Originally Posted by mikey see

My point is, if you REALLY want one it might be best to just bite the bullet and buy one now.

Yes, it's a gamble -- will it go up, or down?

I too have some TMNT purchases from eBay dating back to about 10-15 years ago. I remember clearly getting a carded set of all 4 Star Trek turtles for about $20 shipped at the time. I guess you and I possibly had reached both "disposable income" and "nostalgia druggie" territory slightly earlier than our peers? But there was also less social media back then fueling the "rat race" of all us big fans to try and outmatch each other.

I could see it going up, or down. I agree up is probably more likely, but I think down remains a possibility once the fever subsides and people need to start paying for their kids' college educations or whatever sort of trouble typically befalls those who really *shouldn't* be buying him for $1k right now but do so anyway. I know that the people buying him for $1k or thereabouts are far less likely to be willing to let him go for anything less than that unless they have a strong motivator to get some fast cash. Which is a large part of what is unfortunate about all of this.

[MrPliggins]

Funny, I remember SELLING my full set of Star Trek Turtles MOC for about $20 shipped around that time. Maybe you bought them?

As I said earlier, Scratch was rare even at the time. Whether that was because of toy scalpers or what, I never saw him in the store, not once. And I always looked.
Also, outside of TMNT fans, nobody gave a crap about TMNT or even thought of them as investments in the mid-90s. Probably the driest time in TMNT history. I bought original art pages for $20-30 a pop at the time. When I asked about TMNT at conventions, I'd get a weird look, like "seriously?"
Scratch was in demand but very much a niche demand.

Scratch is actually one of the most sought after TMNT items in my opinion. There are much more rare TMNT collectibles (early Mirage items for instance) that just don't have the demand of Scratch, because the toys have such a large collecting pool, which is growing all the time.
I personally am not a big fan of the figure and I sold mine years ago (before the price hike unfortunately), but I suspect the demand will just keep climbing as more tmnt collectors enter the field. Today's prices will seem like a deal in 10 years. TMNT is still a pretty new property, and collectors are just starting to have a larger income. The only way to go is up.

[mikey0]

The 10th wave was the last ever basic wave to feature preview figures. In this case, Robotic Bebop and Robotic Rocksteady were the Storage Shell Donatello, Super Shredder, Tokka, and Rahzar of the original Playmates toy line.

Some of the basic wave figures from this line were difficult to find before toy dealers took notice of the toy line in the very late 1980s. April (shortpacked), Shredder (in some states), Metalhead, Leatherhead, Foot Soldier (shortpacked) , Krang (at times), and the original turtles figures were all wanted by young action figure collectors.

The 10th wave being on shelves when the re-releases, older re-releases, new turtle variant sub-waves, older sub-waves, Giant Sized figures, and older pegwarmers were too much for shopkeepers, young collectors, and dealers. There was an overload of TMNT products on shelves still for all of 1993. It seemed impossible for new audiences to complete TMNT sets like they could last before the 1990 movie was in theaters. Unfortunately for a few modern 1988 TMNT toy line collectors, the scalpers and some parents picked up the remaining 10th basic wave figures from small and large toy stores on sale and at regular price from early 1994 to 1996 or so.

By now, Scratch, at least, should be recognizable to many TMNT fans through other media (like Miru mentioned) that a future TMNT show or movie writer could add Scratch to a script. I feel it’s safe to say that Playmates will be releasing originals TMNT reissues for the rest of this century, so a Scratch reissue or repro (based off the old figure or carbon copy) should be in the works.

[mikey0]

Originally Posted by MrPliggins

Funny, I remember SELLING my full set of Star Trek Turtles MOC for about $20 shipped around that time. Maybe you bought them?

As I said earlier, Scratch was rare even at the time. Whether that was because of toy scalpers or what, I never saw him in the store, not once. And I always looked.
Also, outside of TMNT fans, nobody gave a crap about TMNT or even thought of them as investments in the mid-90s. Probably the driest time in TMNT history. I bought original art pages for $20-30 a pop at the time. When I asked about TMNT at conventions, I'd get a weird look, like "seriously?"
Scratch was in demand but very much a niche demand.

Scratch is actually one of the most sought after TMNT items in my opinion. There are much more rare TMNT collectibles (early Mirage items for instance) that just don't have the demand of Scratch, because the toys have such a large collecting pool, which is growing all the time.
I personally am not a big fan of the figure and I sold mine years ago (before the price hike unfortunately), but I suspect the demand will just keep climbing as more tmnt collectors enter the field. Today's prices will seem like a deal in 10 years. TMNT is still a pretty new property, and collectors are just starting to have a larger income. The only way to go is up.

There were more Robotic Bebops, Robotic Rocksteadys, Half Courts, Sandstorms, and Mona Lisas left after the seven or ten cases of figures that were put up at TRU in the second or third quarter of 1993. I think Scratch was an uncommon figure that became rare in some locations because it was highly stylized, glossy, funny looking [the figure has a personality to it all on its own], and menacing.

I wonder where the Scratch figures were found in the basic assortment cases? Has anyone on here ever opened a basic assortment case from 1993 or knew anyone that did? What were the case ratios for each figure?

[ERICKANA666]

The ptoblem is that im a collector that dont collect tonearn money, i collect to get all the diffirent characters. I was a fan in the beginning , bought every new characters, since im from canada, after 3 years it was just the 4 turtles on the shelves so i stpped collecting tmnt.
Now im trying to collect all the new characters taht i dont have, from flea market, garage sales, or ebays, or buiyng all new stuff that they are releasing these days. It took me 6 months to get a figure of alberto and ltn foot...
Its ok to buy a figure of the 90 s on ebay for 50, but when i want hot spot and scrtach is ridiculous. The 2000 lines released again some characters, why not these ?
Also with some companies that are releasing collector items , we have another chance, but they seemed to waste their time with turtles instead.

[mikey0]

In the US, the 10th wave with Scratch, Hot Spot, and Half Court was the second to last basic assortment of the original Playmates toy line. Most children lost interest in the first Playmates toy line from within the 1991 to 1993 era of the 1988 TMNT toy line. The 10th and 11th waves were the least successful basic assortments in the whole toy line. Scratch and Hot Spot were grabbed by mainly toy scalpers, older TMNT toy collectors, and any parent that could find them after that. The other characters like Robotic Bebop, Robotic Rocksteady, Sandstorm, Mona Lisa, and [at times] Half Court were pegwarmers from when the figures were released into 1994. A few of the 10th wave figures stayed at stores like Kay Bee Toys until the summer of 1995.

The figures that were re-released from 1998 or 1999 to 2009 were characters that were fan favorites from the earliest waves of the original toy line. The only exceptions I believe was the 11th wave smaller version of Krang’s Android Body and Robotic Foot Soldier that was sold again in 1998 or 1999 at Big Lots. I think Playmates feared that not enough older fans of the original Playmates toy line would be familiar with the obscure characters released from 1992 to 1993, so the 1998 and 2009 reissue lines contained characters that appeared in the TV show or movie exclusively.

Robotic Bebop and Robotic Rocksteady were the only 10th wave characters that were in a reissue toy line (the 1st one) in 1999. Again, that would be because those two versions of the characters appeared in an episode of the FW cartoon. The Archie Comics readers and TMNT toy collectors seem to be disregarded for every TMNT re-release toy line. The syndicated TMNT cartoon and first two films of TMNT movie series were the most popular forms of entertainment of the franchise.

Almost every TMNT re-release line consists of the turtles variant sub-wave figures, also. The 1991 turtles variant sub-waves are what brought stocks down for Playmates in that same year. With most of the TMNT re-release lines, the turtles variant sub-wave figures [with the exception of any Movie Star figures] sell the least and end the chances of casual consumers getting better characters after the waves with the turtles variants in them. The 2013 TMNT Classic Collection line ended in 2016 after turtles variant sub-wave figures from 1991 to 1993 were sold. The turtles variant sub-wave figures tend to ruin everything in every time

Scratch, Hot Spot, and Half Court might not ever be re-released by Playmates in any century. For these figures to be re-released, TMNT fans would have to make noise about those three characters so they could appear in recent TMNT comic books, TV shows, and movies. That way Playmates could re-release the original Scratch, Hot Spot, and Half Court to coincide with the characters appearing in the cartoon or movie like they did with the 2013 Classic Collection line. Otherwise, Playmates will continue to re-release the original first wave turtles, Shredder, Foot Soldier, Bebop, Rocksteady, and Splinter along with some of the earlier basic wave characters while ignoring the ‘93 and ‘94 releases [for the most part].