In March of 2013, Hasbro rebranded their 3 and ¾ inch Marvel action figure line to Marvel Infinite. They released a new black, smaller packaging. The figures remained the same, with eight of the twenty-two figures of the first four waves being repackages from the previous Marvel Universe. The biggest change was in the Marvel Infinite distribution. Whether in the comment sections on Action Figure Fury, Reddit, or anywhere action figures are talked about on the internet, collectors have been complaining about not being able to find this new line of figures in brick and mortar stores, and the complaints have been warranted. Toys ‘R’ Us has only recently begun to carry the first line online and in-stores and Target (one of my favorite places to shop for toys since the closest Toys ‘R’ Us is an hour away) doesn’t carry it all.
Hasbro rebranded their Marvel lines (they’ve also rebranded Marvel Legends, focusing their waves on the recently released films with a Mandroid Series for Captain America: The Winter Soldier, an Ultimate Green Goblin Series for The Amazing Spiderman 2, and a Groot Series for Guardians of the Galaxy). These changes should come as no surprise, considering that in their year-end report from 2013 (here’s a link to the page with the financial reports. The reports themselves can’t be linked.) Hasbro says there gains from other brands “were more than offset by declines in BEYBLADE and MARVEL products which had difficult comparisons versus 2012.” Before this year, Marvel was losing them money, which is a possible explanation for why we’ve seen such slow progress in getting Marvel Infinite on more shelves.
Hasbro does not reference specific lines in these financial reports, so it’s hard to say how much of that profit was from Marvel Infinite. My guess would be not much, as they’re still not easy to find. Toys ‘R’ Us told me to refer to Hasbro for inquiries about the other waves (Two, three, and four were released in May, June, and July, respectively). When I reached out to Hasbro, they played it close to the vest, telling me they had no information they’d be able to share. The Target representative I spoke with sent me this: “unfortunately I wasn’t able to find any information on Hasbro’s Marvel Infinite Series Figures.” (The lack of capitalization is his).
I also spoke to my local comic book store, JP Comics and Game (which is a great store that you should check out if you’re in the Boston area), and while they don’t carry Marvel Infinite, they said the ordering was as easy as anything else, so chances are it’s an issue of retailers not ordering, not Hasbro being unavailable. You may have luck finding them in comic book stores. I know that New England Comics carries them, and that’s where I’ve bought all of mine.
If your comic book store doesn’t carry them, don’t despair. The rebranding is definitely working, as “second quarter 2014 net revenues in the Boys category increased 32% to $335.8 million behind growth in TRANSFORMERS and MARVEL products.” (Again, I can only link you to the page with the reports, not the reports themselves.) That increase is likely why we’re finally seeing Marvel Infinite at Toys ‘R’ Us and will hopefully mean that the we’ll see the other waves soon and that we’ll be seeing all of them at other retailers. If they’re making money on a brand, it would make sense to get more of that brand into stores, especially in different lines. More options should equal more sales.
If you’re a fan of the line, you’ve got some power here. Ask your local stores to start carrying them and buy them when they do. If enough people ask, they’ll listen. After all, they want our money, and we want their figures.
A Call to Action (Figures) is a weekly column published every Wednesday, chronicling my rants and raves about all things action figure. Join me next week, when I’ll be talking about the rise of interactive toys.
Hey, just saw these for the first time in Toledo, Ohio at a local Target. They were priced $10.99. I really want a Wasp to go with my Legends, but she was the only one missing 🙁
Hopefully they start showing up in more places for other collectors. The only other place I’d seen them before was at toy shows and conventions. I don’t collect in this scale, but I’ve almost bought Grim Reaper, Death’s Head, Whirlwind, Valkyrie, Deathlok and Ares. I have a few of the Ant-Man figures on per order for use with Marvel Legends.
These and Mattel’s Total Heroes line took forever to show up around here outside of TRU.
That’s great news! Target couldn’t find them in their system when I talked to them, so I wasn’t hopeful. If they’re in Toledo, that may mean they’re going to be everywhere soon.
I was able to pick up Wasp today at TRU for 9.99. I also picked up a Yoshi figure and some of the MiWorld Dioramas for display. They also have Star Wars figures buy one get one half off.
That’s sick! Pictures?
The target audience for these figures is presumably boys aged 3-8 and that is likely where they sell the most product. Unfortunately, a 3-8 year old boy does not have a wallet to vote with and is not going to know the old marvel classics and say, “Daddy, I want an Omega Red” because he has fucking clue who Omega Red is in world of super heros. Unless there are new reboots in the theaters (because let’s face it- kids don’t read shit anymore) these figures are not going flying off the shelves to satisfy nostalgia of old nerd farts.
I’m not exactly where your anger is coming from. I hope my basic report wasn’t too upsetting for you.
Your argument that boys 3-8 want these figures is likely true, which really furthers my point that they should be in stores. How many 3-8 year olds do online shopping instead of brick and mortar store shopping for toys?
And yeah, they might not ask for an Omega Red when they go to the store, but I bet at least a few kids will see him and ask because he looks like a badass dude.
I can also confirm that they have been at my local Target (Santa Cruz CA.) for months. They’ve gotten a few shipments of the Wasp wave.
It’s really weird that their rep didn’t tell me more. I’m beginning to suspect he was extremely lazy, and told me they couldn’t fund them to make me go away. Thanks for letting me know!
I live in West Virginia (right along the Ohio River) and saw several of these figures last night at…Kroger. Go figure. I was looking for Cheerios and ended up buying Wasp (and Cheerios). As expected, there were plenty of Hulks and Iron…Men? But even a couple I wouldn’t anticipate from a grocery store, including Grim Reaper. I looked in vain for Valkyrie, but Wasp was a nice consolation prize. All were $10.99.
I also saw some at my local TRU last weekend, though again, they were most IM and Grim Reaper. Still no Valkyrie in sight, alas.
Wasp is a great figure! It sounds like they’ve only got the first wave there, and Valkyrie is in the third wave. Good luck getting her soon!