NECA 1987 2-Pack Collection at Target

[IMJ]

I have no idea how you guys are ordering these online from Target? Screen caps? LMAO!

The other day I posted that these were not available within 50 miles of Chicago. So now I'll illustrate it even further - this time I picked Batavia IL, which is about 40 miles west of Chicago and there's nothing within 50 miles of Batavia, which means there is nothing within a 100 mile westerly direction from Chicago.

So unless NECA has been dumping these things in Lake Michigan then this is another epic failure on their part. Also, still have never even seen a Casey or April set - actually haven't seen any of them but the other sets I ordered from NECA.

I'll take it into account the story someone somewhere in this thread told about NECA reps stocking shelves, but the fact is w are speculating about finding these online through target.com in this thread, sooooo.... Again, screen caps?

[Coro]

Originally Posted by IMJ

I have no idea how you guys are ordering these online from Target? Screen caps? LMAO!

The other day I posted that these were not available within 50 miles of Chicago. So now I'll illustrate it even further - this time I picked Batavia IL, which is about 40 miles west of Chicago and there's nothing within 50 miles of Batavia, which means there is nothing within a 100 mile westerly direction from Chicago.

So unless NECA has been dumping these things in Lake Michigan then this is another epic failure on their part. Also, still have never even seen a Casey or April set - actually haven't seen any of them but the other sets I ordered from NECA.

I'll take it into account the story someone somewhere in this thread told about NECA reps stocking shelves, but the fact is w are speculating about finding these online through target.com in this thread, sooooo.... Again, screen caps?

I got a Tragg on Target.com today. Subscribe to NECA On twitter and setup alerts. I ordered 30 seconds after they tweeted.

[IMJ]

Originally Posted by Coro

I got a Tragg on Target.com today. Subscribe to NECA On twitter and setup alerts. I ordered 30 seconds after they tweeted.

Okay I'll give it a shot.

Originally Posted by Adcatalano

Bro, there’s no secret and if you bothered to pay attention over the past 2 years you’d know the deal. Neca product isn’t processed through target’s system, product is shipped directly store to store and either a vendor or target employee puts it out. 90% of the time the product isn’t entered into target’s inventory, thus rendering in store inventory checking useless and you’re wasting your time if you’ve trying to rely on that. And like the previous guy said, set alerts on Twitter to know when they drop online.

Yes, I know this. In the static way of the information you aren't wrong. But see, that's the point as well. The entire situation of it is utterly ridiculous. I mean, bro NECA is pushing online ordering through Target via a system that doesn't support it. That right there is indicative of the ridiculousness of the problem.

So I take your post in the spirit of intent to inform. But.... if there's any intent there to defend the NECA/Target deal, or it's distribution, or it's execution in your post, then no way man. The whole thing is a ****in' disaster of nonsense!

[Leo656]

It's our fault, IMJ.

Everything wrong with the entire TMNT brand is our fault for expecting anything to be handled better. Toys, distribution, cartoons, all of it. We're wrong for asking them to play fair or treat us like adults.

We need to be grateful we even get anything at all, you see. We need to stop demanding things be handled better or make sense. We're pathetic for caring, you see. It's Not For Us Anymore.

Just be glad that anyone gets anything. That's how it goes now.

[IMJ]

Originally Posted by Leo656

It's our fault, IMJ.

Everything wrong with the entire TMNT brand is our fault for expecting anything to be handled better. Toys, distribution, cartoons, all of it. We're wrong for asking them to play fair or treat us like adults.

We need to be grateful we even get anything at all, you see. We need to stop demanding things be handled better or make sense. We're pathetic for caring, you see. It's Not For Us Anymore.

Just be glad that anyone gets anything. That's how it goes now.

I know man. The mentality is insane. And when I see the occassional NECA apologist here I can't help but think this is the same asswipe in an office job who agrees with every terrible idea simply to fit in out of terror over possibly diminishing his piss-ant social standing in life.

I mean, it's one thing to say "I like the NECA product". That's one thing completely. Most of the time I like the NECA product. But so many mouth breathers mistake liking the NECA product for virtue signaling anything as justification for how f'd up this whole release has been.

You basically hit the nail on the head with your commentary, brother. I'm tracking with you on every word.

Adcatalano, some of this post came in proximate timing to our convo just above, but like I said, I take your post in the spirit of information. I'm wasn't talking about you here in high context by any means.

[Leo656]

I mean, I do understand the "Be grateful" mentality. To a point.

NECA by and large makes a good product. I'd love to have some of 'em. Just not at eBay prices. Target and Walmart over here don't get any NECA stuff. GameStop was doing better with theirs, but only slightly.

BUT. NECA's production and distribution issues are inexcusable and if they're not going to make a sincere and consistent effort at correcting those issues then they absolutely deserve to be called out for it.

"I got mine, you guys aren't trying hard enough" helps no one, though, so whenever anyone does that it's just really, really annoying.

It's not just a NECA thing, either. Some of it's the stores. I've seen on FB how some Walmarts in other states have gigantic displays packed full of MOTU Origins figures, dozens and dozens. Everyone gets a Beast Man! Around here? I have to get mine at the flea market for $5 or more above retail. Our Walmart gets in like 4 or 5 figures a week and they're gone in a day. Why don't WE get those giant displays packed full of MOTU figures over here? I can only speculate. But I know that it sucks and it's unfair.

Your oft-spoken general comments about how toy collecting in 2020 is a f*cking mess are spot-on. NOTHING should be this hard.

[Coro]

On NECA sucks with all this garbage for sure...but I will make every effort to have 1 loose and 1 mint boxed of everything they make of all these lines.

I just love them too damn much. But yeah Im not a fan of NECA and Id love to kick Randy straight in the balls after us getting into it on twitters. I think he got removed from the twitter account because he was being such a douche. He has his own account now...still want to kick him in the jimmy tho

[mikey see]

This drop really DID go much better. The in-stock alert worked and the product stayed up for quite awhile (by hot toy standards). It's too bad some people still missed out but Target really did give us a fair chance for once in my opinion. I'm not super high on this set so I don't think I'd have paid the $15 markup to order it from NECA. It was always going to be a Target-or-nothing set for me so I'm really glad I was able to snag one.

[funatic]

Oh good I missed it and saved another 52 bucks.

[oldmanwinters]

If nothing else, these photograph preview sets of the Baxter/Splinter pack are the best NECA has done yet!
https://www.facebook.com/necaofficia...32051623523864

They make excellent use of Baxter's accessories to tell a mini-story!

[Turnstone]

Originally Posted by funatic

Oh good I missed it and saved another 52 bucks.

I spent $52 bucks and now have them all up to date. These decimate the Super 7 ones.

[mikey see]

Originally Posted by Turnstone

I spent $52 bucks and now have them all up to date. These decimate the Super 7 ones.

What's the point of this post other than to just be a confrontational jerk?


Those Baxter/Splinter photos do look fantastic. Baxter looks a lot more fun than Splinter actually. They tried to get some interesting poses out of Splinter but he just looks awkward in most of the photos. That's ok, he'll just be standing when I have him out.

[DonnieLaForge]

I don't think they must be making very many of these.

I am going to Target like crazy. I live even further west of Chicago, in Iowa. We always seem to get everything last. With more mass market stuff sometimes a month or more after it shows up on the coasts. With NECA stuff still a couple weeks after. You can't use the site or brickseek for this, or rely on help from Target employees. You just can't. They actually tend to be kind of nice here and trust that I know what I'm talking about and will go look for me, but they've never turned anything up for me as far as NECA figures. All you can do is put in legwork. Over and over. With countless failures before you win. As big of a radius as you can cover.

I came across a Casey/Foot pack on 3 occasions. The first two were only a week or two after I started seeing in-hand pics online.

First time, it happened to be sitting on the electronics desk. That particular target puts some of their collectibles there at the counter for some reason, either to drive more sales or to make it look more hip, IDK. I was surprised to see it there, and not where I was heading (the NECA section). I asked the cashier, "is this here for a reason...because if it's not sitting here for someone else I'm going to buy it". He didn't know, so I bought it.

Second and third times it was in the NECA section. One of them had a crap paint job on Casey's face but I grabbed it anyway. Then a month or so later I found the third one. It was better, so I bought it and returned the other. Haven't seen it since.

I've not found any Metalheads in the wild, personally. Got one from a friend in New Mexico.

I never found the Mutagen Tour figures, either. Found several of the accessory packs but no figures. I suspect none came here because the price point of that is enough that most Iowans would not have likely been able to buy it immediately upon first sight so I'd have found at least one somewhere. I don't believe scalpers were beating me to it, because this particular set wasn't really worth your time and effort to sell on eBay, it wasn't going for a big markup at the time.

About a week or so after the Slash/Leatherhead in-hand pics began showing up, I found TWO of them at the same Target, I must have happened to check at exactly the right time after stocking.

Still have not found April/Foot...I've been looking, a lot, because that one we have never been offered any other alternative way of purchasing.

I found ONE Bebop/Rocksteady back during the original release, and I found a second PAIR of them a couple weeks ago as part of the "restock".

The two I've left behind (a Bebop/Rock) or thrown back (the sloppy Casey/Foot) were not there when I returned to those locations again later.

So I think only 2 or so of each is showing up per Iowa location (and I will note, I suspect only a standard subset of Targets are actually receiving them, as I tend to find them in the same ones) and I think they are gone almost immediately after they show up on the shelf.

I'm betting it's not always a fan buying them, but probably a person who knows they command the highest price (biggest profit) on the 2ndary market.

These are my thoughts, as a person who has been hunting toys every weekend and sometimes weeknight that I get a chance since 2016, learning the ebb and flow of every toy line, franchise, local demographic, retailer, etc...

Regarding the movie figures and Walmart, I've never found any of them ever with the exception of a single Casey/Raph two pack at my backyard location. When I found it, there were two people googling the value of Pop! figures with a toddler in a cart. The toddler kept pointing at the Casey/Raph pack saying "I want that, I want that" hoping they would hand it to him. The mom finally started to hear him and figure out what he was looking at and probably about to hand it to him, but I reached down over the top of the cart in front of the baby's face to grab that mother-effer and the mom said "I guess you can't have it!"

=====

I will add that nothing, NOTHING, I have collected (and I have collected A LOT) in the past 5 years has been as hard to find as these new NECA TMNT figure lines. The only things that have come close were the final waves of the Rise of TMNT figures, the 2012 Muckman figure (which I still managed to find 3 of). Otherwise I can't think of anything I had to look anywhere near this hard for. Legends, Black Series, Multiverse, Hot Wheels, Mega Construx, you name it, all of those things have been easy compared to this. Though the Hot Wheels TMNT van was also a tough one, I did find 2 of those in the wild recently -- hot wheels warm pegs around here for months so it's hard to stumble upon a fresh wave most of the year. Yeah, things like the Black Series Mandalorian *became* hard, but, I hunt enough that I still had a period where I was finding him everywhere and getting my pick of paint jobs before they dried up entirely. Not so with these NECA *TMNT* items. Other NECA items, easy. All the con exclusives this year, all the horror figures, Toony Terrors, godzillas, etc, all easy. NECA TMNT, hard.

[oldmanwinters]

Originally Posted by mikey see

They tried to get some interesting poses out of Splinter but he just looks awkward in most of the photos. That's ok, he'll just be standing when I have him out.

Heh... that's pretty much what he did for most of the show anyway!

[mikey see]

Originally Posted by DonnieLaForge

I will add that nothing, NOTHING, I have collected (and I have collected A LOT) in the past 5 years has been as hard to find as these new NECA TMNT figure lines.

Not to derail this thread, but did you hunt for the Target exclusive GI Joes that came out this year? Those have been (and will continue to be) a freaking mess. When people complain about yesterday's 30-minute window I just think about all of the GI Joe preorder debacles. Oi.

[italianice388]

anyone else notice the knucklehead schematic on the wall in the baxter shoot?

holy ****, could they be planning on making one? it's right next to a schematic of krang's android body - which they ARE making!

[Zachatello00]

Originally Posted by DonnieLaForge

I will add that nothing, NOTHING, I have collected (and I have collected A LOT) in the past 5 years has been as hard to find as these new NECA TMNT figure lines.

I will agree with that. I've had several lines going, and in fact, I stopped collecting some lines and sold what I had because I wanted to go all in on this NECA collection.

What I'll say though is that it has been difficult to find some of these figures, it's also been among the more rewarding collecting experiences I've ever had when I am able to find them.

[inaheap]

Originally Posted by mikey see

This drop really DID go much better. The in-stock alert worked and the product stayed up for quite awhile (by hot toy standards). It's too bad some people still missed out but Target really did give us a fair chance for once in my opinion. I'm not super high on this set so I don't think I'd have paid the $15 markup to order it from NECA. It was always going to be a Target-or-nothing set for me so I'm really glad I was able to snag one.

Did you get an alert from Target? I'm just wondering because that used to work but I wasn't able to do it on this item.

[DonnieLaForge]

Originally Posted by mikey see

Not to derail this thread, but did you hunt for the Target exclusive GI Joes that came out this year? Those have been (and will continue to be) a freaking mess. When people complain about yesterday's 30-minute window I just think about all of the GI Joe preorder debacles. Oi.

I don't do Joe, but, I will say that while doing all my legwork I have found all the stuff I've seen GI Joe collectors clamoring over multiple times in my travels. It's true that I don't usually ever see them again on the next trip, though, so they are selling fast it seems. But I mean, I can apparently be at the right store at the right time for Joe drops more often than I can for NECA TMNT drops.

[DonnieLaForge]

Originally Posted by Zachatello00

What I'll say though is that it has been difficult to find some of these figures, it's also been among the more rewarding collecting experiences I've ever had when I am able to find them.

I know what you mean, but they've gone past the threshold for me when I start to feel like I will literally never find some. Which is where I'm at.