It would be too easy to assign lordskylark the label of Asshole of the Week. He might be a perfectly fine fellow. I just have such a problem with these types of auctions. Charging $4.99 for an incredibly common figure is just crazy. This isn’t about “paying for convenience” or “good old days” or anything like that. These types of auctions have a negative impact M.U.S.C.L.E. collecting. Uninformed sellers look to eBay for market information and this is what they see. It creates an overabundance of overpriced auctions, which only fuels the cycle further.
On to the auctions and stuff. And just as a head’s up. I’m a bit chatty this week.
– I assure you. I don’t need help smelling like booze.
– “Like M.U.S.C.L.E.?” Those are fighting words.
– WHAT?!?!
– Cool art, but fuck those prices.
– Way too much time and effort spend on this auction.
– I guess some Class A and Class B are in there. You find them.
– Just sell all those Gold figures together. They’re not nice enough to sell individually.
– If your kids like X-Men and you’re thinking ahead for the holidays, then this is a great purchase at $48.
– Eric Nilla and Namu-Niku’s SR trashcan.
– Muscle Things’ custom figure #1.
– Muscle Things’ custom figure #2.
– 67 Flesh Figures, free shipping, and a $25 opening bid.
– Kind of a nice lot.
– I doubt this seller works in sales, read his auction description (even better after looking at the picture): REAL GOOD CONDITION , THEY LOOK UNPLAYED WITH. THE SHEIK GUY IS MISSING A HAND THOUGH. THE REST ARE FINE. THERE IS SOME RARE LIKE THE 2 BRICK GUYS ( 1 BRICK IS DIRTY ) .
– I’ve been posting this poster auction since the Epilogue from the week of August 5th. He started with a $174.99 opening bid and $199.99 BIN. Now he’s chopped $100 off each price tag. As long as he keeps lowering the price he might finally start to get some bids – either next week or the week after.
– Around 40 figures. $20 starting bid, with a reserve price, and a $30.09 BIN price. Probably the most hilarious auction ever. I want to imagine the seller knows how funny it is.
– “One owner since purchased in the 80’s.” Why would that matter? What if that one owner kept shoving them up his dog’s ass?
– I am curious to see if this sells. 176 figures with a $99.99 opening bid.
– Sounds like something I would want. But they didn’t nail it.
– This guy has over 150 keshi and M.U.S.C.L.E. figures. I think the prices of the keshi are better than the M.U.S.C.L.E. figures. But, at least for me, there isn’t much there except for this one. I think it’s a weird little figure to add as a footnote to your M.U.S.C.L.E. collection. It is one of the six Kinnikuman figures that 1986 Mattel catalog.
This week’s Picture of the Week and Video of the Week were easy picks for me.
First up, the Picture of the Week. As evidenced by the total lack of posts last week I was insanely busy. But one image simply burned into my brain. It was the group shot from Man-E-Toys.com of their upcoming collaboration with Eric Nilla and Namu-Niku. It goes without saying how much I love these figures. And if you need proof, simply read the review of many of these figures. And I said that the Manzilla might be the best custom M.U.S.C.L.E. figure ever.
And the synergy of having Man-E-Faces inspired Blue and Purple as the exclusive colorways is brilliant. It doesn’t hurt either that the figures look great in those colors. If I have one complaint, it’s that the Purple is a chase variant. The colors look so good together that I believe many collectors would like to have Man-E-Toys sets of these figures. I know I’d love a set of Man-E-Toys Manzillas for my shelf.
I don’t know if random chance gets you a Purple version or if you’ve got to be the first one to the Man-E-Toys webstore. I do know that the figures will go on sale today (Friday, August 31st) at 4PM EST.
I hope there are no hard feelings if I’m the first one there at 4PM. I’ve already blocked it on my calendar. Of course, it’s my work calendar so it doesn’t say, “Buy a bunch of awesome toys!” It says, “Webinar.”
And finally, the Video of the Week. I’ve actually known about this video for quite some time. It’s been fun to see this go from script to final cut. I have to tip my hat to Mess Bucket Comics. Not only have they created a good book, but they’re doing everything they can to get people to take notice – working conventions, the simplistically brilliant Hot Chicks Holding The Arcane Comic, and this promotion video.
The thing that really stood out to me is the original score. They didn’t just plop in a popular song or riff. They also didn’t just use an unpopular song to avoid any copyright entanglements. I think this subtle choice really shows the work that has gone into this book and its launch. On top of that, it’s pretty cool music. And a cool video.
And don’t forget to pick-up a signed copy of The Arcane Awakening at The School Store for only $13 (and FREE shipping!).
