JoeDeclassified.com

Well, first off, thanks for listening. Glad this sparked some discussion.

I have already cemented myself in the Joe demographic that will get it regardless, so *sigh*, I don't have much of a leg to stand on in a debate. I agree that we will see each pair feature something new and something "re imagined" or "re imaged" (which can be interpreted as another way of saying, repaint, without saying repaint - semantics really.). We don't have to look too far back in our collecting history to see this applied in the retail channels. How many here have a ka-billion Mirage figures because we were trying to army build the viper with it?

Regardless, I am ready for the details to come out and a roster (I don't really want surprises) of what we will see in the subscription. We will certainly talk about it on the show, that is for sure.

Easiest way to lose alot of customers, require a $300 payment upfront and all at once.

Even Sideshow allows for flexpay on their expensive stuff.

The Club needs to do something similar. Or take sign-ups and say "credit cards will be charged in 4 months" so people have time to save up. $300 is alot all at once.

I think the $300 all at once falls under a category that I just think of as growing pains. It is a risky and lofty goal to start this subscription service.

We have to keep in mind that financially, this isn't Hasbro and it isn't even hasbrotoyshop putting these together. The Masters of the Universe stuff is a bad comparison when looking at billing because their stuff isn't being put out by a MotU fan club. They are being done by Mattel (or Matty Collector, which just appears to be a subsidiary).

So what happens if a collector signs up for all 13 months (but chooses to be billed monthly) and gets his credit card declined after month 2? Month 6? Month 11? It sounds like customer support chaos to me, and not a situation that I would expect would help get the subscription service up and running. Additionally, that could incur a lot of chargebacks and trouble with the credit card companies, soaking funds that a smaller company like Fun Publications just doesn't have. I like to think my membership fee goes toward doing things for the club. If it was just absorbed by trouble with CC companies incurred by chaotic billing in the subscription figures, I'd be annoyed. Credit card companies have taken enough from me.

And the spirit of the idea of a subscription implies, to me, payment in advance. I can remember subscribing to a year of comics when I was little for about $8 per year. lol Yeah, this figure subscription is going to be more. But the idea is the same.

My hope is that once we get out of this "growing pains" stage of the first year, the club can work out the kinks enough to allow multiple payments for those who would really benefit from it. In the meantime, they have given us plenty of an advance notice. Maybe it would be a good idea to make pretend multiple payments to ourselves so that when they come available, we can afford to drop the cash all at once. I guess I should have thought of that when they made the announcement at Joecon.

i'm down for joining the club once again provided the figures are good repaints like the vintage Night Force and Tiger Force figures. but if that piece of shit TF Hard Top surfaces as a new figure or we get those bullshit style paints of Night Force that we did in that 6-pack, i'm out. i will not ruin my two favorite teams with pieces of crap like those AGAIN. yes i own them. but they are disgraceful and ugly.

This month's club magazine says that you will be billed wither three or six times. They haven't decided yet.