Based on the likes, I assume most M.U.S.C.L.E. collectors saw Eric’s Instagram post. Or saw some version of it somewhere.
Speaking to Eric and another collector I was left with a very specific feeling. There are some M.U.S.C.L.E. collectors, not necessarily just new ones, that care more about being noticed than being M.U.S.C.L.E. collectors. The M.U.S.C.L.E. community, because it is so small, never really had this behavior before because nobody matters. You became “known” because you stayed in the tiny, tiny pond. That’s it.
I was ready to declare this a completely new phenomenon, but the LRG member ironoak may have been the first example. He really seemed to want people to care about him.
That’s kind of what it feels like we’re seeing now. I genuinely hope and believe that people simply get excited about M.U.S.C.L.E. stuff. They want to make some special contribution to the hobby. Cool.
Instead, we get people that want to be “high profile / visibility collectors” or racing to become Master Set Fools or have a hot-take, like Brad Putt, and suggest the Non-Poster figures are not authentic M.U.S.C.L.E. figures.
Wasting my time talking about the Non-Poster figures isn’t worth doing again. All the available information could be shared in one place and people will still say stupid stuff. There’s no convincing those types of people. (I actually started sketching out all the stupid things you’d have to believe and I just threw it away. It made QAnon look cautious, understated, and conservative.)
I don’t even really care to tell collectors to chill out. If you’re looking to M.U.S.C.L.E. to bring you attention, validation, and/or admiration, then you’re looking in the wrong place. It’s not here. Speaking from experience, I would have never lasted in the hobby (or this website) if I was looking for any of those things. Every bit of satisfaction has been intrinsic, except for the occasional and unexpected surprises that have come from 10 years of existing as the only daily (hopefully) M.U.S.C.L.E. blog
– 20 figures that started at $0.99.
– 20 Flesh figures starting at $0.99. Both of these lots came from macreedy26. Thank you!
– 17 Flesh figures starting at $0.99 from gtgd123.
– This listing will be over when the Epilogue posts, but thank you to the-dragons-egg for starting it at $0.99.
– Is viver_28 running out of steam? He only has one $0.99 lot this week.
– This lot will also be done, but thanks to yenterprises814 too.
The only non-99-cent listing worth mentioning is this one. Somebody seems overexcited for this SC. If somebody really wanted to get noticed, then maybe join the small group of collectors that realize SC is just a Flesh figure. That would be radical.
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I said it last week, and I’m going to say it again this week. This is the most amazing group of unsold shit.
I’ve done this type of thing a couple times, but this group is simply on another level. These guys aren’t even changing prices. At this point, I wouldn’t be surprised if they increased their prices. And to be clear, I’m not saying that sarcastically.
Besides this website, I don’t think I’ve done anything as stupid as these sellers for as long. My life is full of stupid decisions, but I can’t think of anything I’ve done again and again and again without any signs of stopping. Wow.
Actually, this just gave me a professional idea. You’d be surprised how often that happens because of thinking about M.U.S.C.L.E. stuff.
After two rings in two weeks, I wondered if we would have an unprecedented third ring win. It didn’t. The $95 terrible lot just barely beat his fellow competitors.
We can’t live in the past alone. We need to look forward. We need another AOTW Winner to battle the previous three winners (as seen above).
The AOTW #1 made me stop because of the main auction picture. Why would somebody use such a bad picture? It wasn’t a bad picture. In fact, it was an awesome picture that full captured the shocking amount of sun damage inflicted upon that poor 28-pack. I can’t remember ever seeing a 28-pack in such bad condition (that wasn’t simply crushing or tearing). And how do you price one of the worst 28-packs I’ve ever seen? Obviously you open the bidding at $85. But if some buyer is blown away at the opportunity to own this sun-bleached piece of garbage, then they can use the $125 BIN. Wow.
The AOTW #2 doesn’t evoke many words. The $350 BIN is a level of ridiculousness rarely seen in life. Amazing.
The AOTW #3 looked at three M.U.S.C.L.E. figures and thought, “I haven’t cared about these since I was a kid. I don’t want them anymore. These have to be worth, at least, $12 each.” I’m basing that internal conversation on the fact he’s selling a Costco 16 quart pot for $107.77 and you can get a brand-new one for $47.99 (plus free shipping). About $50 is also what it will cost to ship the AOTW #3’s pot.
Finally we have our AOTW #4. I was struggling to find a worthy fourth competitor. And this guy wasn’t an obvious choice; allow me to explain. At first his $29.99 lot of 10 figures was just routine dumb – certainly not worth being an AOTW combatant. Then I noticed he had 15 M.U.S.C.L.E. listings. Most are 10 figure lots. However, those lots range from $19.99 to $29.99. That means this dude saw each lot and thought, “Oh wow, this is a really good group of 10 figures. It’s easily worth 50% more than the last group of 10.” That kind of stupidity will always earn you an AOTW spot. Well played sir.
Cast your vote (below) and crown the next AOTW Winner. Here are the four combatants:
Remember to cast your vote and crown this week’s AOTW Winner:
There used to be a long write-up about the first and second ULTIMATE AOTW Battle of the Champions Winners. The 3rd winner has a tiny backstory, which made me think we don’t need the full saga anymore.
#1 by Brad on April 24, 2021 - 12:19 am
How dare you call me out and post a link to my facebook you piece of shit. I was generating discussion with other like minded collectors, which is what the facebook group is for. I’m glad they banned you from the group because you’re a blight on the entire community and it’s easy to see nobody likes you.
#2 by Chad Perry on April 24, 2021 - 11:13 am
Wow.
At first I thought Brad posted that, it is not. Anybody want to guess?
#3 by Chad Perry on April 26, 2021 - 9:46 am
It’s not even difficult to catch Brian DeMars in his lies.
I guess lying is just in his DNA. He can’t help himself. Or maybe he’s trying to prove he’s a stand-up guy by continually pretending to be somebody else? That seems like a plan to prove you’re a liar, but maybe I am misunderstanding his goal.