[RETRO] Wrestling's Heels and Faces by Zombie Sailor Toys

[g4]

@roy OMG 🤣 Can we be friends lol

[kojikanemoto]

It’s like they sculpt the arms to the correct lengths but then add the hands which makes them way too long. I’ll get most of them but I wish the stances were switched up more, just to have the variety like Hasbros/Retros

[skogen]

Prices on these for international buyers are absolutely ridiculous. It costs around $70USD to order a single figure from R&R Collectibles.

[kiphouse]

Yes. Thats what they cost. And i have a million of em lol. After colt tomorrow ill have over 600 canadian spent in a week on em. Its wild but i love it. Between shipping, gettin screwed on the exchange and duties a single one has often run me like 120cdn. Is what it is; I've pretty much given up on mattels except for the odd one

[walter7paisley]

Jun 27, 2024 16:03:06 GMT -5 kiphouse said:

Yes. Thats what they cost. And i have a million of em lol. After colt tomorrow ill have over 600 canadian spent in a week on em. Its wild but i love it. Between shipping, gettin screwed on the exchange and duties a single one has often run me like 120cdn. Is what it is; I've pretty much given up on mattels except for the odd one

I admire your bank balance, sir.

[AttitudeLegendCollector]

Jun 26, 2024 9:16:30 GMT -5 @Chair.Shot said:

Had to listen to the MWFP in segments this week but I did want to discuss what they said about ZST. It is without a doubt the harshest they have ever been towards him. I appreciate this helping to balance things out a bit. It’s reflective of how many of us have been feeling. You can’t undo the past but more critical coverage of this is welcome by me. When a company does well and you love a figure - praise it! Please! But when a company - any company - does something that looks bad, is shady, has a negative impact on collectors, etc…I think it’s the right thing to do to call them on it. At the very least, shine a light on it and voice your concerns/criticisms and admit when you don’t have all the information yet…but you need to hold everyone up to that same light. As someone who has listened to every episode, this is the first time I felt like they did that to Zombie the same way they have done it to others.

Below are parts that I transcribed from this week’s MWFP episode. It is much better in full context. I’m sorry if it feels like I am focusing solely on the negative elements here but these quotes should serve as proof that there is a more balanced approach being taken. I greatly appreciate that. I also strongly recommend everyone to listen to this episode in full. The quotes I pulled are all from Matt unless I specifically point out Brian. Mark didn’t say very much to add to this part of the discussion.

*****
(Discussing Heels and Faces Series 3)

“I’m legit furious. That is such a carnie bait-and-switch.”

“I’m almost disgusted with that business tactic.”

“I’ll call out Zombie when I disagree with him - I disagree with him 100% here. This was f*****g bad business-“

“I texted him about it, he ignored me, I invited him to come on Boozin and explain, he ignored that.” (Note for anyone who doesn’t follow the MWFP: Boozin with the Toys is a bonus live video feature they do that isn’t structured like the normal weekly podcast/more relaxed/fun atmosphere)

“I’m just so…I guess disappointed is the word? Like…Zombie is better than that…in my opinion.”

Brian: “I agree it’s a little slimey”
Matt: “It’s dirty!”


*Too much cross-talk for me to cover but Matt brought up how long it is taking for his 2 pack which apparently now is due out in August. He was understandably frustrated about that one and very blunt about it (deservedly so)*

(Discussing series 4)

Brian: “Mitch does a better job of Hasbro-esque poses. Zombie keeps putting these guys out there with their arms to their sides.”

Matt: “These to me are the first set where they are mini statues.”

“Listen, they all look great, like in the face, they look great - but they don’t look like Hasbros at all - and I was the guy from the beginning saying ‘well these are what Hasbros would have looked like. They’re better detailed, better paint jobs’ but there’s no…fake actions on these at all.”

“We call it like we see it…that is why we are broadcast journalists.”

*****

Again - I cannot stress this enough - please go listen to this for yourselves to get the full context and tone. The point of this post was to highlight the criticisms and unflattering coverage that they gave to Zombie. I have been vocal about their bias in the past and I want to demonstrate that they are addressing some of that in a more fair and open way than what we have seen before. But there is plenty more to it than what I wrote out. They also gave Zombie a lot of love and praise and discussed other projects he has going on so it’s not like the pendulum swung in the opposite direction and they started roasting him and then moved on. Don’t take my word for it; listen and decide for yourselves.

Other notes:
-Abdullah is coming with a fork and it will be a similar feel to Beefcake’s scissors (soft not brittle)
-Confirmed there will be an SDCC release this year

It is undeniable now but they still could have chosen to not say anything or not go in as hard on him so I’m glad they have as it is deserved at this stage.

I’ve liked his stuff and have plenty of them but having now seen well into the next couple of series it’s clear he’s continuing to move well away from Hasbros which is what he built his business on, I mean, he has Ron as a major selling point.

For me, Dino Bravo, Booger and Double J are great fits and OMG probably fits into that group too as fair continuations or gap fillers for Hasbros, they look great in amongst them - but far too many now are statue like and the poses all being very boring with no nods to Hasbro poses or as the pod said, ‘fake actions’. The arms are too long and he seems too stubborn to amend it.

It’s his business but it’s a real shame he’s not corrected course and gone back to being true to the collectors and honouring the line we love most. I definitely won’t be purchasing as many of the next couple of waves, if any.

The macho man should have been awesome but it really is just a mini statue when he could have made it a very much needed gap filler in the Hasbro line. Have to say, Mitch is so inconsistent but his Macho Man is clearly more Hasbro like and more appealing to me.

[drnickriviera995]

Jun 26, 2024 9:16:30 GMT -5 @Chair.Shot said:

Had to listen to the MWFP in segments this week but I did want to discuss what they said about ZST. It is without a doubt the harshest they have ever been towards him. I appreciate this helping to balance things out a bit. It’s reflective of how many of us have been feeling. You can’t undo the past but more critical coverage of this is welcome by me. When a company does well and you love a figure - praise it! Please! But when a company - any company - does something that looks bad, is shady, has a negative impact on collectors, etc…I think it’s the right thing to do to call them on it. At the very least, shine a light on it and voice your concerns/criticisms and admit when you don’t have all the information yet…but you need to hold everyone up to that same light. As someone who has listened to every episode, this is the first time I felt like they did that to Zombie the same way they have done it to others.

Below are parts that I transcribed from this week’s MWFP episode. It is much better in full context. I’m sorry if it feels like I am focusing solely on the negative elements here but these quotes should serve as proof that there is a more balanced approach being taken. I greatly appreciate that. I also strongly recommend everyone to listen to this episode in full. The quotes I pulled are all from Matt unless I specifically point out Brian. Mark didn’t say very much to add to this part of the discussion.

*****
(Discussing Heels and Faces Series 3)

“I’m legit furious. That is such a carnie bait-and-switch.”

“I’m almost disgusted with that business tactic.”

“I’ll call out Zombie when I disagree with him - I disagree with him 100% here. This was f*****g bad business-“

“I texted him about it, he ignored me, I invited him to come on Boozin and explain, he ignored that.” (Note for anyone who doesn’t follow the MWFP: Boozin with the Toys is a bonus live video feature they do that isn’t structured like the normal weekly podcast/more relaxed/fun atmosphere)

“I’m just so…I guess disappointed is the word? Like…Zombie is better than that…in my opinion.”

Brian: “I agree it’s a little slimey”
Matt: “It’s dirty!”


*Too much cross-talk for me to cover but Matt brought up how long it is taking for his 2 pack which apparently now is due out in August. He was understandably frustrated about that one and very blunt about it (deservedly so)*

(Discussing series 4)

Brian: “Mitch does a better job of Hasbro-esque poses. Zombie keeps putting these guys out there with their arms to their sides.”

Matt: “These to me are the first set where they are mini statues.”

“Listen, they all look great, like in the face, they look great - but they don’t look like Hasbros at all - and I was the guy from the beginning saying ‘well these are what Hasbros would have looked like. They’re better detailed, better paint jobs’ but there’s no…fake actions on these at all.”

“We call it like we see it…that is why we are broadcast journalists.”

*****

Again - I cannot stress this enough - please go listen to this for yourselves to get the full context and tone. The point of this post was to highlight the criticisms and unflattering coverage that they gave to Zombie. I have been vocal about their bias in the past and I want to demonstrate that they are addressing some of that in a more fair and open way than what we have seen before. But there is plenty more to it than what I wrote out. They also gave Zombie a lot of love and praise and discussed other projects he has going on so it’s not like the pendulum swung in the opposite direction and they started roasting him and then moved on. Don’t take my word for it; listen and decide for yourselves.

Other notes:
-Abdullah is coming with a fork and it will be a similar feel to Beefcake’s scissors (soft not brittle)
-Confirmed there will be an SDCC release this year

Is this the early release for patreons of the one coming to the regular feed tomorrow? I remember some commentary about Zombie on last week's show, but I don't remember quite this much. I do fast forward around though alot to get past all the plugging and all that crap, so sometimes I miss stuff I actually meant to hear.

[drnickriviera995]

Man, that's dissapointing seeing that cardback. I was hoping to get Public Enemy for my WCW collection, but there's no way I am if that's what they're going to look like. Might get Hakushi and/or Mr. Hughes, those are 2 names I really would want to fill out a WWF collection and I don't think they look as bad as some of the others. I do hope most of these guys aren't exclusive and maybe Mitch or Epic gets a crack at them down the line.

[kiphouse]

Yeah i hope mitch does a mid 90s skip. Candido looks ridiculously bad

[mrh]

Jun 26, 2024 13:32:33 GMT -5 @Chair.Shot said:

http://instagram.com/p/C8r6_P3sEWq

It's really shocking. If you had seen just this line-up of figures with no context, would anyone think these are in the Hasbro style? I really don't think so.

I can't understand why he's gone down this road -- as other people said, the first few waves did resemble Hasbros. Not one of these do besides Hakushi.

[kiphouse]

Theyre about as close to a pop fig as they are a hasbro.

[voicesinmyhead]

I bought two from series 1 out of FOMO and regretted it pretty quickly. Way too overpriced and horrible customer service. A real nasty man and it turned me off from buying another figure from him again.

I tried to think about the positive in that they were limited and pricey on the second hand market so I’d eventually flip them, but then he showed his true colors (or true numbers) and, through his shady business tactics, made his figures worth less and less.

Even ignoring my dislike for him personally, the figures have strayed so far from Hasbros and look like their own thing. The FOMO is completely gone and it’s super easy to pass on the entire line now.

[@Chair.Shot]

Received Jack and Slick today. Got them right before I had to leave for the day so I didn’t get a chance to look them over. Took a couple of quick photos (more will be posted in the days to come):



drnickriviera995 - Those quotes were from the latest episode that will be released to everyone today. Really recommend listening when you have time.

[kiphouse]

It all evens up for me because mitch has stepped his game up times ten; he's got all the momentum. Sprinkle in fig collections and epic and as a whole were great. Zombie sells ecw statues, whatever.
I threw the elite chain on mitchs godfather and i have no complaints about it once it's mixed in. Its definitely better than other early chellas like aldis or al snow off the top of my head,and definitely looks better than a lot of mattels retros. Yeah the foot came off but i glued it on, its a toy, whatever. My sister walked on dusty the day i broughtem home from the store back in the day and broke his arm off but hes fine too.

[kojikanemoto]

Jun 27, 2024 19:15:01 GMT -5 kiphouse said:

Theyre about as close to a pop fig as they are a hasbro.

Huh? Sure they have the same pose but they are the same scale as Hasbros

[kiphouse]

Zombies closing his series 3 preorder Sunday

[@Chair.Shot]

I just read that email from ZST as well. Small but important correction: they are pausing Series 3. They feel Bruce Lee, Busick, Candido, and Gage/Cardona will overwhelm their staff and they can’t possibly keep up and ship everything in a timely manner.

Jun 28, 2024 8:15:17 GMT -5 kiphouse said:

It all evens up for me because mitch has stepped his game up times ten; he's got all the momentum. Sprinkle in fig collections and epic and as a whole were great. Zombie sells ecw statues, whatever.
I threw the elite chain on mitchs godfather and i have no complaints about it once it's mixed in. It’s definitely better than other early chellas like aldis or al snow off the top of my head,and definitely looks better than a lot of mattels retros. Yeah the foot came off but i glued it on, it’s a toy, whatever. My sister walked on dusty the day i broughtem home from the store back in the day and broke his arm off but hes fine too.

Pretty much this! I was most excited for ZST in the first year or two. But the names, the style of the figures, and his approach to things has made his stock go down while Hasttel, Epic, and FC are rising quickly.

[kiphouse]

Well the actual preorder is closing. By the time he lists them again he'll likely have them in hand. Same as any other company does. Except hes pretending his best that its not a preorder.
Let's see how quickly he starts gettin praised again when the ryder gage yesteryear pack gets out. Too bad he takes so long, i wouldve totally dug a deathmatch king version

[LA Times]

Ron Rudat gets credit as the designer for doing half assed pencil drawings of wrestlers he doesn't know?

[kiphouse]

Yes. And they dont seem to look much like the actual figs so its just a gimmick.