Diamond Select is displaying a new figure at their SDCC booth.

[Scatter]

So I guess we can see what the Chaney lawsuit has done. I have no interest in "original" interpretations of classic characters. It's not really a bad thing...it will save me a lot of stress and money not having to chase down the next line. I guess I'm done with DST (they never were Sideshow to begin with).

BINGO!

[aura of foreboding]

I thought I read that Universal was putting a hold on actor likenesses due to the Chaney lawsuit. Of course, they do hold the Karloff license.

The easy solution is to do a masked Red Death figure then.  No need for some unrecognizable character in the authentic Universal Monsters line.  Then, when everything has worked itself out (or not), we could determine the fate of the line.  There's no excuse for a total "re-imagining" of a character.  Even if, for some bizarre reason, they couldn't get the Van Sloan likeness, they should still honor the actual Van Helsing character design in the Universal series... like they did with the Mini-Mates. 

[Mord]

Oh, believe me, I'm on your side. They have many monsters that don't need actor likenesses, I just don't think they would sell to the mass public (but neither will this Van Helsing, though). Before resorting to redesigning old characters, why not a Creature line from the sequels? Wouldn't the bug-eyed Creature from "Revenge of..." or the humanized Creature from "...Walks Among Us"(or even "Monster on Campus") do better than this Van Helsing crap? At least they look cool and wont offend your established customer base.

[Dr. Blasko]

Oh, believe me, I'm on your side. They have many monsters that don't need actor likenesses, I just don't think they would sell to the mass public (but neither will this Van Helsing, though). Before resorting to redesigning old characters, why not a Creature line from the sequels? Wouldn't the bug-eyed Creature from "Revenge of..." or the humanized Creature from "...Walks Among Us"(or even "Monster on Campus") do better than this Van Helsing crap? At least they look cool and wont offend your established customer base.

If its the TRU exclusive, probably not. They would rather get the casual "this looks cool, buy this for me", which makes sense. If Creature or SoF is the exclusive, than I have no idea what they're thinking. I feel like this is an experimental wave with two repeats of past monsters and an original design. If the Van Helsing is a TRU on,y figure, I say no harm, no foul. If not, and it pushes one of the other figures into that slot, then that's an issue in my mind. Personally, as much trouble as I have finding these figures (I still haven't found Waves 1 or 3), I welcome a figure I wouldn't have to search for and pay a premium price for lol Maybe that's just the optimist in me.

[raycastile]

Do any of these things sell to the mass public? It's just weirdos like us (well, like y'all) buying them. I'm sure adult monster collectors comprise 80-90 percent of their sales. Kids and superhero/GI Joe/Star Wars collectors are not buying these.

[Dr. Blasko]

Do any of these things sell to the mass public? It's just weirdos like us (well, like y'all) buying them. I'm sure adult monster collectors comprise 80-90 percent of their sales. Kids and superhero/GI Joe/Star Wars collectors are not buying these.

I would agree, minus the TRU figures. A good portion of those buyers are probably more casual. Or scalpers

[aura of foreboding]

If its the TRU exclusive, probably not. They would rather get the casual "this looks cool, buy this for me", which makes sense. If Creature or SoF is the exclusive, than I have no idea what they're thinking. I feel like this is an experimental wave with two repeats of past monsters and an original design. If the Van Helsing is a TRU on,y figure, I say no harm, no foul. If not, and it pushes one of the other figures into that slot, then that's an issue in my mind. Personally, as much trouble as I have finding these figures (I still haven't found Waves 1 or 3), I welcome a figure I wouldn't have to search for and pay a premium price for lol Maybe that's just the optimist in me.

My TRU only gets in two of each character.  They're bought by collectors within days -- one of those collectors is me.  So, I don't honestly think that the public makes or breaks these.  TRU buys "just enough" and no more.  The Retro figures stay on the shelves for awhile, as they get four of each...  But this line doesn't need to worry about that, at least based upon what I have seen in TRU stores. 

[Dr. Blasko]

My TRU only gets in two of each character.  They're bought by collectors within days -- one of those collectors is me.  So, I don't honestly think that the public makes or breaks these.  TRU buys "just enough" and no more.  The Retro figures stay on the shelves for awhile, as they get four of each...  But this line doesn't need to worry about that, at least based upon what I have seen in TRU stores.

They seem to sell quite well here I know they get them in, I see the tags for them, but they sell quickly before I can get them.

[aura of foreboding]

They seem to sell quite well here I know they get them in, I see the tags for them, but they sell quickly before I can get them.

Thus this whole ordeal makes no sense.  It's absolutely baffling.  They think a Van Sloan won't sell...  Well, this thing is not going to sell under the Universal Monster banner, because we're not buying it.  And we're the folks -- along with the scalpers -- who make these things move. 

[Mord]

Does anybody think that a kid is actually going to look at that goofy Van Helsing figure and say "this looks cool, buy this for me". First, it's very dorky looking. Second, I don't know a single kid who knows what a "Van Helsing" is. It has no name or sight recognition.

[Anton Phibes]

Luckily, I haven't spent a dime on the Diamond Select line. They should not mix "original" characters with licensed Universal Monsters. If the Universal line has run its course, then end it gracefully and start a new line of unlicensed, original renditions of classic monsters.

Agree wholeheartedly.

[horrorhunter]

The only Diamond Select figure I bought is the Creature with Julia Adams, because of the Julia Adams figure. The others I passed on because I have the Sideshow figures which I believe are superior. If I didn't already have the Sideshow figures I would have probably bought most, if not all, of Diamond's just to have decent examples of the characters. I don't see anyone surpassing Sideshow on what they made. Now, I'm interested in good representations of less common characters from monster movies, like Distinctive Dummies is doing.

[Dr. Blasko]

Does anybody think that a kid is actually going to look at that goofy Van Helsing figure and say "this looks cool, buy this for me". First, it's very dorky looking. Second, I don't know a single kid who knows what a "Van Helsing" is. It has no name or sight recognition.

I guarantee you they would buy it sooner than a Van Sloan figure lol

[aura of foreboding]

Again, the kids are not buying these.  They aren't on the shelves long enough for them to even see the lot.  TRU buys so few, I'm surprised this line has gone on as long as it has. 

The cool factor about this figure is the base, which could easily be done in the likeness of Frances Dade.  Given the right pose, the Van Sloan Van Helsing could be quite imposing, especially given the fact that he was the only vampire hunter that I can recall that used such long, jagged stakes to kill the undead.

Look at this depiction of the original destruction scene:

http://i.ebayimg.com/t/1994-TOPPS-UNIVERSAL-MONSTERS-Dracula-COLLECTOR-CARD-12-nm-MINT-Whilce-Portacio-/00/s/NTA5WDcxMw==/z/EzMAAMXQ9MVRgMcI/$T2eC16VHJI!E9qSO8%29P7BRgMcHljmg~~60_12.JPG

Pretty intense, huh?  And that art (from the early 1990s trading cards) is based on Van Sloan, not some imaginary actor in some ridiculously unrealistic get-up. 

[cannibalchris]

If I get a chance I'll be sure to get some more information about the inclusion of the figure in the line.  I'm pretty sure it will just be a TRU exclusive, as I mentioned earlier I think it might be the company testing the waters for an original monster themed toy line, that might be wishful thinking though.