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Enter the Grid: Bringing a Tron HasLab to Life with Hasbro's Steve Evans and Chris Reiff
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ATTENTION USERS! The Hasbro HasLab Tron project needs YOUR help! We're joined by Hasbro Programs Steve Evans and Chris Reiff to talk all about the 1982-inspired ENCOM project — Tron: Heroes of the Grid — and everything that went into the Hasbro 375 centerpiece for Tron collectors.
You have until 11:59p ET on November 24th to back the Tron: Heroes of the Grid—what are YOU waiting for? https://www.hasbropulse.com/product/G35465L00
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Intro and other voices by Joe Azzari
https://www.instagram.com/voicesbyjoe/
Theme Music is "Game Boy Horror" by the Zombie Dandies
Proudly part of the Non-Productive Network
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Transcript
Introduction to the Podcast Theme
00:00:03
Speaker
Are you ready, kids? Get your parents permission, check your mailbox and grab your shopping cart. It's time for the Adventures in Collecting podcast. I'm Eric.
00:00:15
Speaker
And I'm Dave. Welcome to Adventures in Collecting, where we talk toy news, culture and hauls, along with our journeys as collectors.
Excitement and Energy from Previous Discussions
00:00:28
Speaker
Hello, everybody, and welcome back to adventures in collecting users programs. Welcome to the grid. Hi.
00:00:40
Speaker
Sorry, I'm already like amped up. No, nobody listening or watching this will understand the green room situation that just happened prior to this. And I just just want you to know that and we're coming in hot.
Significance of the Episode for Hosts and Community
00:00:51
Speaker
Energy is coming in hot. let's Let's just say somebody didn't realize what time it was. And it's me. Um, we listen, we have a this is a jam packed episode.
00:01:02
Speaker
This is like it is important. I was like geared up for it all day. Yeah, that's why I'm super disappointed I was late. This is important not only to us, but to a a large part of the community.
00:01:13
Speaker
um This is going to go out on a limb and say this is like our first like like I know, like not Sam has like the red button, the like emergency button. This is like a three alarm emergency at this point. Yeah, this is like.
00:01:27
Speaker
This is a huge emergency. like I'm still making text big so I can read it. like Yeah. So, i you know, if you're if you read the description of this episode, if you you're new here, hey, how's it going?
00:01:41
Speaker
Hi. If you saw our Comic-Con coverage, yeah comiccon coverage my immense disappointment in all of you...
00:01:53
Speaker
In roughly nine, in at least um our disappointment as of recording in... Is palpable. I'm more disappointed in you than I am myself for being late.
00:02:03
Speaker
In roughly, what what would that be? 8,000... eight thousand
00:02:11
Speaker
100 8,900 roughly of you yeah where we're we're usually the positive one and i'm disappointed but a lot of you so that aside the dis the the feelings of discipline i'm not mad i'm disappointed you're in you're in disappointed uncle mode that's yeah where you're at um so the let's the the negatives where but but i'm also very excited because i really want this to happen we are We are bundling up the negative energy.
00:02:39
Speaker
We're placing We're getting it out. We're placing it on the the the solar ah sailor. and where It is joining. We're sending it off. Young Dillinger in the retro grid.
00:02:51
Speaker
Yes.
Focus on Hasbro HasLab Tron Project and Community Support
00:02:52
Speaker
um We are going to be talking specifically about the Hasbro, HasLab, Tron project, as well as maybe a little bit about the legacy figures, too, since since those are now fully revealed. but But our main focus here is the Tron HasLab project.
00:03:11
Speaker
and how ah how we need your help to make the grid a reality. And the best way we could do that is by, um what's the opposite? I guess the opposite of derezzing is rezzing, right?
00:03:23
Speaker
um We're going to rezz in our friends from Hasbro. Not in the weird Dillinger 3D printing way. No, no, we're going to. That was pretty dope. I got to be honest. We're going we're going to fire up the 1982 particle cannon and we're going to resin Steve and we're going to resin Chris and we.
00:03:45
Speaker
ah There we go. I think this tattoo is new for Steve, but I'm pretty sure Chris. what you go a likecon Oh yeah, he's got his ah Tron legacy tattoo. i Look at you.
00:03:55
Speaker
We got in. We got in. Hello. We got in, man. Got in. biological jazz. Very good. Nice to be here to join us, Dave. Thanks very much for turning up. yeah Wonderful see you again, just about.
00:04:11
Speaker
Listen, sometimes, if truth be told, Dave was knocking on the sky to see who was listening. That's really yes really what was happening. ah That was what was happening. yeah I was actively getting that tattoo as we spoke.
00:04:26
Speaker
Well, listen, but before we hop into all things Tron, um ah important important thing that we need to note, ah happy Life Day, gents. this is This is airing on Life Day. Happy Life Day.
00:04:39
Speaker
Perfect. I got nothing to give. I have an aterarian. What have I got? I got some room ritual spray because it stinks down because my cats smell. I've got Han on a bench. I have a camp holder.
00:04:52
Speaker
There we go. but um But yeah, so we are we are here to talk Tron. um And you guys have ah a HasLab going. I have a Kyber crystal. That's my life day gift.
00:05:04
Speaker
Perfect. Perfect. um Yeah. So, ah you know, at a at New York Comic Con, we're just going to jump right in here because there's a lot to talk about. um At New York Comic Con, you guys revealed that Hasbro's tapping into the grid, getting into the world of Tron.
Origin and Passion Behind the Tron Project
00:05:24
Speaker
um Tell us a little bit about first and just first and foremost, how this this ah this opportunity came up.
00:05:32
Speaker
How it came up, God, that's a good one. So I think, you we were, you know, Chris, myself, Emily and the Star Wars team, we've obviously been doing, know, vintage collection for a while, 375, and we kind of were talking about like how, what a unique sort of scale it is and like why is it different from six engine? How is it different? And the world building scale and and we we sort of,
00:05:56
Speaker
hypothesizing about what makes it special. And it was this sort of like, well, it's like figures and creatures and vehicles and play sets, or you kind of create these scenes and these moments in a really nice sort of two foot by one foot area that you can kind of display reasonably easily.
00:06:12
Speaker
And we were just spitballing. I don't even remember the, what, what, whether it was a meeting or whether was just sitting at lunch or you we were just chatting and we were like, where else could that work? Like what else would be cool at that scale to get things that we haven't done before?
00:06:27
Speaker
And so we spat out a load of different thoughts and ideas and we knew that Aries was coming and we were like, well, well we kind of like Tron. Like I like Tron. Chris loves Tron. Like Emily likes Tron as well. And we were just like, don't we do Tron? Like, you know, it's it's a Disney thing. We can talk to our friends there. And,
00:06:46
Speaker
Maybe would that's, and then then then that just led on to this sort of like, what else? So I think that's my memory of it, Chris. i don't know what your memory is. yeah My mind's very philosophical. Yours is probably more practical.
00:06:57
Speaker
No, it's very much the same because I i think it came out of a passion for the scale and for the content. I mean, it's really kind of both of those things led us to Tron initially.
00:07:12
Speaker
Like Steve said, I mean, Ares coming and being on our radar. like the collective ethos of Tron being back in everybody's heads certainly helped.
00:07:25
Speaker
and i think there was I think there was also a... so I think there's... So i've got I haven't got a massive Tron collection by any stretch. And Chris, I don't know how much Tron stuff you got, but i got a little I got a little cube there. And I love the the original Tomy 82 stuff. And there was this desire. There's been a desire for a long time, really, of like...
Challenges in Designing Tron Figures and Vehicles
00:07:46
Speaker
I want screen accurate 3.75. I like seeing the stuff that Chris and Emily were doing and producing and designing and the engineers and getting in. I was just like, i've got me I want, I want ones like that.
00:08:00
Speaker
That has never been done before. Like never been done before. And that that infuriates me because it's like, why has that never been done before? and I know like Medicom did the articulated ones back in 2002, but they were very microman, very stylized, which super cool. I got i got sucked back there.
00:08:19
Speaker
But like we'd never this had never been done before. And I was like, that excites me. And the fact that it was... Not Star Wars excited me because it's just experimenting. like we we We're designers, we're creatives. like We naturally are curious and naturally want to try new things.
00:08:35
Speaker
And Chris says, like this scale is really important, important in history and important in terms of functionality. And I think actually, a although it sort of started way back in like 73, 72, 73, it's actually...
00:08:52
Speaker
it's actually on trend for modern needs, because like space saving and kind of space efficiency, it's a trend it's a macro trend. And we're seeing a lot of it coming out of Japan with acrylics and things like where people are collecting their characters in space saving ways.
00:09:06
Speaker
Like it's already here. So there's all that as well. But yeah I guess fundamentally, it was like, I want that on my shelf. That was part of it for me too. I mean, you were we were talking about like what we had in our collections. I don't have a lot of of the vintage Tron toys in my collection. I have some, but I was never happy with them.
00:09:30
Speaker
they they never They never filled that that desire for me. And think that was part of the excitement about doing these is that we could do what I wanted in the toys.
00:09:44
Speaker
yeah i mean And we talked a little bit about it in New York, just to... the The light cycles have been done before. I've always loved the light cycles, but you could never put a, well, you could put a figure in them, but it was like laying a figure in a coffin.
00:09:57
Speaker
You might as well put them in a shoe box. And being able to have a figure pose out on the on the light cycles, and then just the nerd in me loving the the res up moment of the light cycle where you see motorcycle pipes and stuff underneath it and being able to bring that into into a product.
00:10:15
Speaker
Like that that was the fun and energy for me in it. is You did nerd out. It couldn't have done. Chris was a nightmare because it was like, show me, Chris, Chris, show me the pose with all encased. So it's like, what's the, what's the, what's the proportions and stuff?
00:10:31
Speaker
And he was just like, no, I just like looking at it without the sides on because it's like the res up moment. I want to shoot this in clear with the, with the grid lines and all this kind of stuff. And it was, he was, he liked it naked. Thank you. So it's like, no, put the slides on.
00:10:46
Speaker
Let's let's talk about that, though. I mean, the light cycles are being probably the most iconic thing. Maybe I know it's it's definitely the most. It's definitely the most iconic thing in Tron.
00:10:57
Speaker
Right. I mean, there's a theme park attraction where you get to ride one. um And Chris, you you did kind of allude to this, but for for for folks that haven't watched our our. um New York Comic Con coverage potentially.
00:11:09
Speaker
i get Dive into that because I actually found that fascinating that you know what you had to do to kind of like re-engineer a light Yeah, the engineering behind it. Yeah, well, i i mean, part of it is that the light cycles in the movie, and this is a common theme in movie stuff that we work on, is the the characters can't physically fit in the volume of the light cycles as you see them in the movie.
00:11:34
Speaker
Like the the light cycles were designed to be cool in light cycles and the characters, there's a lot of magic in and kind of hand waving that goes on there.
Engineering Process for Light Cycles and Figures
00:11:45
Speaker
i mean, in a digital world, maybe their shoulders de-res and it's just their heads in there.
00:11:50
Speaker
But in in our world, we have to make those those figures fit. So... And part of the like the first part of that is the figures need to get into the pose. And Emily and Bailey, who was the the initial sculptor on these things, did such a great job of taking all those learnings we had from the three and three quarter world of Star Wars and the latest articulation there and then bringing in some of Bailey's experience on six inch stuff.
00:12:18
Speaker
than what we've done on on brands like Marvel Legends and and others to to have double jointed knees to really get those great poses. And you see that there in that image. It's like being able to to fold those legs all the way back around. Like that's a key part of being able to get in a pose.
00:12:35
Speaker
Then there's a bunch of other stuff. Well, like I wanted to do the insides of the bike, that res up moment, have those pipes and stuff so they had a place to sit. But then realizing, well, the shoulders don't quite fit.
00:12:49
Speaker
Do we have to scale up the bike a tiny bit? Do we make it a little bit wider? If we make it wider, what does that do to all the intersecting surfaces that come in? And it was a lot of a lot of back and forth and different three d models, printing stuff out, just trying to, working with our partners over in and Hong Kong on on the models and the different shops that we're working on this stuff to to really fine tune it.
00:13:16
Speaker
so And i have to I have to congratulate Chris on this because there's, Well, all of them, everyone. Like, they made these figures realistic as if they've popped out the screen, but they made the articulation so that they could fit in. And I've – Chris knows I've got this, by the way. I stole the model. i stole the one and only prototype in the entire world because I'm going to play around with it a little bit and kind of show people what it looks like.
00:13:38
Speaker
But, like – Like, that is pretty sleek, you know? As I say, it might not be exactly like it is on screen because it's impossible on screen. But, like, Chris and Emily did a brilliant job in just maximizing and optimizing this to fit in this to make sure that this is nice and sleek and proportionate. I mean, as you even seeing it on the screen doesn't look as good as it is in your hand. Like, this is pretty aerodynamic. And I've got the other ones. I'm like, yeah. Yeah.
Tron's Cult Classic Status and Fanbase
00:14:10
Speaker
i don't know I don't know how you get it in here, like if I'm honest. And I think that's one of the big things that you lose in photos, if that makes sense, is like you lose how outstanding and how cool it looks and being able to see through the windshield and see that you know the character with that you know movie pose and all that. lose
00:14:34
Speaker
You lose that in when it's not in person, like seeing it at Comic-Con was definitely. i I'll go so far as to say, mind blowing like it is yeah kind of miraculous engineering to be to be completely honest.
00:14:49
Speaker
as as a As a Tron fan, I mean, and we we obviously we all are here. um It was one of those things where two things completely took me off guard. And I mean, I was sitting you know in that chair during the the presentation, you know seeing it on screen.
00:15:04
Speaker
One of the the actual scale of it, like what's actually there, the size, the way everything kind of feels in hand, like even i Three and three quarter inches, my scale, you know, like that's my my the largest piece of my collection is three and three quarter Star Wars figures. So like I'm very familiar with what vehicles and figures feel in that in that scale.
00:15:28
Speaker
But these just ah especially with the light cycle, because again, it's it's weird, right? Like. the trajectory of Tron fandom is super strange, right? Like the original film, when it came out in 1982, failed.
00:15:43
Speaker
Then they tried to put it in theaters again, and it failed worse, so much so to the point where like Disney did not make another live-action movie for like a pretty long time after Tron.
00:15:54
Speaker
um That's one of my favorite things in a weird way about Tron is that it's always – It's always been the case where it's been mediocre to the critics.
00:16:08
Speaker
Yeah. It's always been fan-driven. So and that's exactly any of the movies, I think even the latest one, I think got mediocre critical reviews, but then the the fans, everybody that goes to see it loves it.
00:16:21
Speaker
And I think like that's that really speaks to like the energy behind the fandom being able to continue that property over time.
Exploring the Tron Community for HasLab Support
00:16:30
Speaker
It's a small and devoted fan base. And that's exactly it.
00:16:35
Speaker
That's exactly it and that And that's the the point that I was getting at is that the the level of devotion from the fandom here, like I wish there was a way that more... just general Tron fans for, for, um for a movie and a franchise that exists so heavily in a digital world, you would think that there would be he so much more of a digital presence where like Tron fans gather outside of like it's a single subreddit.
00:17:01
Speaker
you know There's probably a BBS somewhere that you have to dial into with a modem. Seriously. Yeah, it's on that Apple IIe that's in Antarctica in Aries. It's interesting because like I, you know, as Chris and I have sort of got Tron bits and pieces, but I'm not going to claim to have been like part of the Tron community. But then, you know, researching this project,
00:17:24
Speaker
You know, we went in and we we go we found, we looked on Facebook and we found, you know, a number of Tron sites with like 3,000, 2,000, 4,000. three thousand two thousand four thousand You know, Instagram's got a few here, there, and everywhere. like Reddit's got like 42,000 on their subreddit.
00:17:39
Speaker
And it's like, so they're there. And like part of the journey of this, and to be fair, like I don't design any of it. Like Chris and Emily, they do all that. But like my part of the deal was,
00:17:51
Speaker
was like going in and finding these, where the where the community is, because it's always important to go to them, i always find. like Because like they don't necessarily, they know who Hasbro is, but they don't associate Hasbro with Tron, and they certainly don't associate HasLab. They might even know what it is. So I spent a long time kind of going in and you know observing and chatting, and like I made really good friends with Dave Arnspiger, who's like a big kind of collector. I call him...
00:18:18
Speaker
The Steve Sansui of like, of like tro like, he's got everything, knows everything and knows a lot of the um the directors and the actors and actresses and has all these amazing stories. So it sort struck up a friendship with him. And he was very helpful, and very gracious to us.
00:18:33
Speaker
you know, as being in there and saying, well, it's this and that and be aware of this. And he sort of like helped guide us. He was like the the bit that just kind of took us around and then, yes, no.
00:18:45
Speaker
And like, what do you think of this? What do you think of this? Yes, no. And it was just, he was brilliant. And so that going to another community and seeing the differences and the similarities, yeah,
00:19:00
Speaker
a kind of like was was it was brilliant it was really fun it was really fun you know that I got a lot I personally got got a lot out of it I know the team did in terms of um you know uh his advice and stuff like that so but they're they're there but they're know they're small and passionate group uh and deeply knowledgeable as as you would be I mean think I think Tron is about knowledge and They're very specific. i know that Star Wars is very specific. mar Actually, they're all specific. that's That's the nature of the Collector's and and community. that you know i'm like They know everything.
00:19:34
Speaker
I'm glad you said Star Wars, right? Because that is, you know, I think that's the key differentiator here, right?
Tron Toys Availability and Collector Interest
00:19:40
Speaker
It's like Star Wars fans. Star Wars and toys have been connected since like the birth of the franchise.
00:19:48
Speaker
So much so that like ah scale pretty much exists because of this movie, right? Because Star Wars. Well, and it never went away either. yeah like I think that's the biggest thing.
00:19:59
Speaker
And with Tron, much like it has this kind of like cult following and these little, you know this like very dedicated pocket, it's The the toy and collectible aspect of Tron has been literally feast or famine.
00:20:13
Speaker
You know you get one company that will do something like very small and everyone grabs onto it and then it just disappears. And then 15 years later, we get a new one.
00:20:24
Speaker
Yep. And now it's like, OK, how do we get, you know, and and I mean, we as in like fans, people who people who know that this exists, want it, you know, like we were we backed it before we even left the dang auditorium.
00:20:39
Speaker
Yeah. I'm walking down to see you guys put it out on display, but like yeah quicker, quicker than the Ecto. To be honest for me. Like, like how do you show people that don't collect to maybe don't collect toys?
00:20:53
Speaker
Hey, there is this awesome thing out there. Like, you know, price aside, there is this awesome thing out there that speaks directly to you and your fandom.
00:21:05
Speaker
And whether you collect toys or not, like look at this light up acrylic display that you can put next to your your Blu-rays next to your DVDs, next to your VHSs and next to your steelbooks like. And we're we're actually in a point to where like Tron is going, even if it's not going to be in a movie or on a movie screen or a TV screen or anything, it's going to be in a theme park for as long as like basically time exists. hmm.
00:21:31
Speaker
I mean, yeah, it's I mean, it's it's put its place in cinematic history and storytelling history is there. It's not going anywhere. i think I think you're right. I think, like, you know, I've been wanting, and I've just explained, why i like like, I've always wanted this. And so I think even just to have the chance to do this, even to just...
00:21:56
Speaker
push ourselves and do something different and try something new through what we did with the HasLab on here is I'm not gonna say reward enough, but it is in a way. It's like, if we didn't try and do this,
00:22:11
Speaker
then there'd be no chance of getting this. I know if another, maybe another company would come and do this scale. I don't know, but like we're here, we're here, we're here, we're here now and we're offering this. And I think it's something really special. I think it's something that's never been done before. I know it's something that's never been done before.
00:22:27
Speaker
I think the, yeah know, when I'm going to these communities and seeing, they they like the stuff. They're like, oh, it's beautiful. And yes, there is There is a purchase issue. yeah there is There is like, wow, it's expensive.
00:22:39
Speaker
And it's like I'm trying to, in my brain, kind of understand, well, maybe they're not used to buying things like this. That's new, like especially this size. Because like yeah a lot of people say, well, it's 3.75. Yeah. what What? It's only 3.75. I'm like, yeah, but the engineering that goes into this is just as complex as a six-inch figure or a larger figure. It's like, don't you haven't seen this before.
00:23:01
Speaker
You've seen five-point articulation, which is fine. I love them. Like, hell, do I love five-point articulation? Yes, I do. But it's like it's something new. So I think i think the fact that we've we've gone out we've offered this is something completely different and and unique for this movie in a scale that I believe is...
Ideal Scale for Tron HasLab Project
00:23:19
Speaker
the right scale to do for this movie, bearing in mind 1982, 3.75 was everywhere. was Star Wars, it's Indiana Jones, it's a load of other things. it was It's the right so right brand and the right movie to do at this scale because of that and because it's never been done before in this scale.
00:23:35
Speaker
So I'm just proud and happy that we've we've even got to offer it, like if I'm honest. I'm delighted, I've learned so much from it. I'm sure Chris has learned a ton from it and Emily and all the people involved.
00:23:48
Speaker
It's, it's, it's, it's been a joy almost if it does fund or doesn't fund in some ways, like that ah if it doesn't fund, going to come away sad, but I'm not going to come away regretful, not for a second. Like, like, cause that's,
00:24:02
Speaker
like Chris and I have brilliant jobs already. like We get paid to do this, like but like what makes it even more exciting is we can try new things out. We're creatives, we're naturally curious, we want to do try out new different things.
00:24:14
Speaker
yeah I wouldn't change this for the world. I wouldn't do it differently. To that point, I think doing things like this, and like we talked about the articulation and pushing things that way and doing something new here, it's...
00:24:30
Speaker
It's through doing new things and experimenting that way that we learn new stuff. And when we do the same thing every day, i think there's a there's a
00:24:44
Speaker
there's something that happens to humans where you just kind of get complacent. And I don't I don't mean that in a bad way, because sometimes like doing the same thing is good and everybody wants consistency. But consistency.
00:24:57
Speaker
like has a downside. It's a double-edged sword. And pushing ourselves and seeing what we can do in this in this scale with deco and articulation and and branching out into a property like this, ah it teaches us and lets us experiment in a way.
00:25:15
Speaker
well I think that's that's critical, but keeping the kind of scale alive and and learning more from it too. Even just, Chris, even just you know the challenge you had with getting these into the bikes without making the bikes too thick and clunky, you know the sort of the...
00:25:29
Speaker
the excuse me the range and the shoulders and all that kind of stuff that you, yeah Emily and Bailey did, like, yeah that that stays with us now. like that help It helps that they're all wearing skin-tight suits.
00:25:43
Speaker
but yes Yeah, it does help that. Well, yeah, it does. But even he fits in, and he's kind of like... yeah like but like we wouldn't We wouldn't have made, we wouldn't have had to try and get a figure into a tight bike enclosed vehicle, I don't think in Star Wars, not to this extent. So it all comes from the same well and helps everything. Well, and there's challenges with them in the bike. And in the photo you have up there is a great example of Tron looking up.
00:26:15
Speaker
a If you know the the Star Wars three and three quarter figures, most of them can't get their head that far back to look up. And that's one of the things that that Bailey helped a lot with is is figuring out ah essentially a track mechanism so that the the ball joint in the head has tracks in addition to the ball joint so that it can get a little further back.
00:26:37
Speaker
So, yeah.
Innovative Articulation Techniques
00:26:39
Speaker
and And that's a, that's, that's a learning that we can take into Black Series and into tv c into and to the other brands we do.
00:26:49
Speaker
Like that's, and like I was saying, like growing and experimenting and doing new things like this, where it challenges you in a different way than you're used to is like is great for evolving product.
00:27:04
Speaker
Well, talking also about something new, who else is on the screen here? You guys are the first to tackle Yori. I mean, the main character of the film that has never had an action figure. She has.
00:27:16
Speaker
Super 7 to Yuri. Okay. Five point, but not like this. Not like this. Not like this. Not like this. Not like this. Not part you recognize as Yori. Yeah. Yeah. With removal helmet. Where is she? yeah that That you don't have to go to the theme park to get also.
00:27:33
Speaker
Oh, she was exclusive there? Yep. Those were all park exclusive. So where where is she on card here? I have a picture of her on card for for those watching along there with her removable helmet while Steve gets gets her out of the bag. Don't try to take her helmet off, Steve.
00:27:49
Speaker
I know, I know, I know that already. I remember Matt when he was photographing. Yeah, we teased Matt. And I was like, yeah if it doesn't feel like it wants to, don't. because it's yeah Yeah, we teased Matt in the photo studio. He does such a great job on photos. And and I joke with him that he's got him hams for fists sometimes. I don't even know. It's joking. We didn't warn him that they were as fragile as they are.
00:28:15
Speaker
the his photo shoot shouts to actually my galaxy on on on instagram matt uh yeah these this photo shoot was ridiculous so good yeah yeah that's fun he had fun doing that yeah put that but it's just does that snap into focus is my camera that good it's not bad yes that's not bad what you mean it's even better you're out of focus and she like it's like picking up socks stop picking up sock pick up her No, it did it before. They obviously like Suck.
00:28:44
Speaker
Yeah, the brand protection police like the front view of her better. Yeah, i haven actually I haven't actually held these because obviously you had them for New Comic Con and I was off-hill, but like... ah Yeah, they're really fun. I'm just going to put them in my collection now, Chris.
00:29:03
Speaker
And off he goes, and there they go. We better have the model shop make another set or two. i'm gonna I'll take some photos of these. I'll take some photos of these in in sort of in situ.
00:29:14
Speaker
Yeah, put them in there with the other Tron stuff you have. Let's show the contrast. Actually, that's... Yeah, that would be great. That would be great. And don't get me wrong.
00:29:24
Speaker
I love all the ones I've got. Like, don't get me wrong. i don't want is This is not a... But like, this... You think you have Tron action figures, you don't. they They're here.
00:29:35
Speaker
And I mean that with all love and respect to everyone else, but like, I'm just, for the first time actually holding them,
00:29:43
Speaker
Oh, they're getting them in and the poses they can get into. That was one of the fun things at the at the shows we took these two is that Dwight with the the other figures and me with these, we would repose them every day and put them in a different pose, get them out.
Joy of Designing Toys and Collector Engagement
00:29:59
Speaker
Like you can put Tron and Yori in kind of the poster pose.
00:30:04
Speaker
You can have them battling with discs. ah It's just, I mean, it's one of the joys of working on toys and figures like this is being able to play with them.
00:30:15
Speaker
i had I had a good time that first day at New York Comic Con watching you and Dwight put them into poses put them into the case, Chris. Like that was, I was living vicariously through both of you at that time.
00:30:28
Speaker
That's three times that word's been used tonight. like carrieys yeah Like even Sark's head, just the way he's got his like little kind of collar thing, just in terms of posing and just getting that slight... The depth in it, yeah. Like the multi-layers. And this is this big.
00:30:44
Speaker
This is like... Well, that's that's the thing. Engineering is incredible. It's literally miraculous engineering, these these figures. It is. A lot of people look at these and they go...
00:30:55
Speaker
Oh, it's half the size of this big one. It's got to be half the value. And it's like, value is not what you pay, it's what you get. You get just as good engineering. In some ways, I'm going to even say better, but just because it's smaller.
00:31:07
Speaker
like that's the The stuff that's going on in the in these figures... Well, listen, you guys know how much I love boltit rus how much I love vehicles. This is the only scale where my well, only action figure scale. Put it that way. Not the only scale, period. Yeah. Action figure scale where you could get potentially get a recognizer down the line.
00:31:30
Speaker
any other scale yeah would be yeah it would be the flag yeah like like oh we we know we yeah we may have measured that out yeah i think we had a foam core of the recognizer floating around steve's office for a little while imagine like you would need two rooms in a house one for the recognizer and one for the uss flag Yeah, i've got there's a place in my heart for 112 scale figures, and I am so excited for the Tron Legacy figures. that yeah like They look fantastic.
00:31:59
Speaker
But there is never in any in in any realm of possibility that a a a recognizer at 112 scale would be feasible. no shot. Like, literally... No, they're they're building size in our in the real world. Like, no exact. An example A would be the 112 scale TIE fighter that came out years ago when you actually realize that it's not just like, oh, ah ah it's three and three quarter inch figure is this big and a six inch figure is this big. So it's just going to be twice the size of ah of a TIE fighter, right?
00:32:29
Speaker
No, that's not how it works. I think I think I think that I think that's it. I know there's a lot of there's certain tribals out there that They're like, well, that's that's the other scale and this is this scale and blah, blah, blah, all that kind of stuff. And like, I get it. That's fine. It's just like sports.
00:32:46
Speaker
It's just sports. You have your team, you have it, but they just deliver. to me, very different things. And they have their pros and cons, like anything, but like, like the, I, I look at six inch scale and that's all that's character building. That's like, here are the characters and I want people and you can get certain vignettes. Like we do in black series. We, you know, it's doing the new vignettes. We've done the Mustafa and we've done the, done the best spin. Yeah. But like,
00:33:17
Speaker
this scale is this, is figures, vehicles, creatures, playsets, world, scenes. It's like you can capture a scene that is realistic, that actually looks like the scene. It's not stylized. It's not stylized.
00:33:34
Speaker
um But to me, they are big enough for all the detail and they are small enough to create dynamic dioramas. dioramas And some of the dioramas that people build in Black Series is fantastic. Some of the things that build in 375 is just beyond because you can have at-ats and hothscapes and cantinas and, you know, throne rooms and some of the pictures. And I've just asked on my Instagram, like, hey, show me your 375 displays. And they are just mind-blowing. Some of them are just mind-blowing. It's that aspect of 375 or the 118th, whatever you want to call it, that I to
00:34:13
Speaker
desperate to advocate and to share and to show, and I need help to do that. i say the other is We need help to do that. Like we need to just advocate this scale because it is just, it's unique. It really is unique.
00:34:28
Speaker
and absolutely if you guys if you get before we leave that topic if you guys are not following empire toy work out there just the guy's rubbish he's awful it is unbelievable the stuff that he does with the three and three quarter inch scale world building it is just if if there's one place i want to go it's in his whether it's his attic or his basement i don't know where it is but his world like it is It's, I don't know, it's Blade Runner.
00:34:55
Speaker
Yeah, wherever wherever he lives, i would I would also like to live. like yeah Like, just, oh my God. It's insane. I mean, I come down here and feel proud when I got my blue lights on, but there's nothing like that. Yeah.
Benefits of 1:18 Scale for Dioramas
00:35:07
Speaker
Like for those for those watching, this is ah this is a one 18 scale Razor Crest. Like this is the hassle just for scale. Like usually it's on the Internet. What's like banana for scale? This is like Razor Crest for scale. This is crazy. But it's like.
00:35:24
Speaker
look But then any other scale, that wouldn't be possible. Or you'd need a lot more space or it would be too small and you wouldn't get all the detail, the posability and all this kind of stuff. So it's just this this sweet spot. it' It's not a coincidence that it's that.
00:35:38
Speaker
You know, when our friends in Takara in 1973 went, oh, we can't make 12-inch Genshin Cyborg anymore. We have to shrink it down. i don't know who did it. I don't know who went, yeah, about that.
00:35:51
Speaker
It was just genius. I'm sure they made it and hang on a minute. Hey, this is a really great size. We can build all these ships and playsets and stuff, and it just still fits on the table.
00:36:02
Speaker
we saw the You see the adverts from it from like the early 70s. It's just all there. i hope it yeah The other thing, too, for diorama-wise, too, is youre youre you basically get the start of your Tron diorama, like with the piece of the grid and the like, you know, numeric kind of pseudo numeric pseudo alphanumeric, like kind of background piece that you can build off like you can build off of this.
00:36:29
Speaker
Yeah, well, and that was part of what we wanted here is as we talked a lot about about the entirety of the offering and what what was the shrine to Tron is kind of how I kept thinking about it.
00:36:45
Speaker
yeah Like if if I get one thing, what all do I want in that one thing to to make it that? the Centerpiece. Yeah.
00:36:56
Speaker
Yeah, you guys have made Tron Tron centerpiece. and That's why, you know, like ah everybody that I know that isn't like I have a friend who is and I'm not going to name him on here, but I have a Dave knows what talking about. He loves Tron so much. His dog's name is Tron.
00:37:10
Speaker
Yeah. And I was like, and he's not a toy guy like he's he has a couple of like like hot toys, a couple of like master replicas, lightsabers like he likes kind of more like the prop end of things.
00:37:21
Speaker
and I showed him this and I was like, dude, right in your like right in your DVD display shelf, your physical media display shelf, like just clear a couple out, slide it in, DVDs go right next to it, and you have a light-up, plug-in-able acrylic Tron display forever.
00:37:43
Speaker
Yeah, yeah. Actually, centerpiece is a good word. Chris chris and I often use shrine. Shrine always sounds like it's like trying always sound slightly kind of weird, but like centerpieces, actually. yeah i think But it yeah, it is. It's just like we just wanted to capture it.
00:37:57
Speaker
you wanted to catch Because you know the 375 initiative is it's just that. It's an initiative. It's an exploration. We're exploring. We're trying different things out. This is not a massive line that we're going to kind of bring out like one every few weeks. It's just...
00:38:10
Speaker
We were just curious. We were just, hey, what happens if we do this? So like that's why we decided to kind of release it as a one piece, as a one centerpiece, shrine, whatever you want to call it, that has never been done before versus individuals and all this kind of stuff because it was just a way of doing it.
00:38:27
Speaker
It was a way of of allowing us to do it, allow these kind of crazy designers to kind of like have a go and just kind of see where it takes us and kind of learn new things and kind of try and pay homage to a film that we really care about, that is important. It is important to pop culture. Oh, for sure. I know we mentioned like about how they did originally in the – in the in the theaters and their original releases, but it's just sort of like, I kind of look at them as like underdogs. They're the underdog movies. I love movies that are, that become cult classics. yeah and I don't know why i like that. i Maybe it's the Britishness in me. We love the underdog, but I just love the, I love that building. And and I'm sure I'll see it in Ares as well. I'm sure it'll it'll just, it's already kind of growing. It's just sort of like, and if you, if you look through it, there's this,
00:39:15
Speaker
really interesting thread of like success. And it's, it's that not only the people that are in it, like Jeff Bridges, right? Like, Guy went on to have an incredible career. You had Journey on the soundtrack in the first one. The second one, you had Daft Punk arguably put out, if not their best, one of their best records is the score for
Cultural Impact of Tron Legacy Soundtrack
00:39:37
Speaker
Tron Legacy. legacy yeah You know, you have a band like Nine Inch Nails that, ah you know, absolutely crushed the new um the the new soundtrack.
00:39:45
Speaker
You know, prisoner doesn't do Nine Inch Nails scores. Yeah, like it's it's not. And that's the thing. It's not like Trent Reznor scoring it. It's a nine, and and an actual Nine Inch Nails album.
00:39:56
Speaker
Like it's just this movie. I've heard people describe it as going to a ah two hour Nine Inch Nails concert. Pretty much. And we we so so we saw them on this most recent tour where they they they played the the song from that the the single from the album. Yeah, as alive as you need me to be.
00:40:12
Speaker
They themed their whole layout of their concert to like it looked like the grid the whole. Yeah, they're even the tour colors is are red and black. Like it's it was lasers and impressive. And yeah, it was it was.
00:40:29
Speaker
otherworldly but like i'm not concerned that tron area like if you're if you are surprised at that tron aries didn't do well and i'm air quoting heavily didn't do well at the box office like you haven't you have you have not been following tron's trajectory since 1982 right like it will it found its audience it will continue to find its audience it will continue to grow once it's out of it'll it'll do the way that it is Big numbers on streaming because they always do like, but a DVD back in the day.
00:41:01
Speaker
And now a word from our sponsors.
00:41:09
Speaker
This segment is brought to you by our friends at Chubsy Wubsy Toys. A traditional mom and pop toy store in Little Falls, New Jersey, Chubsy Wubsy Toys brings you the best new toys from the brands you love without the hassle of pounding the pavement searching for them at larger retail stores.
00:41:26
Speaker
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00:41:38
Speaker
That's
00:41:44
Speaker
And tell them Adventures in Collecting sent you.
00:41:50
Speaker
And now, back to the show. With this project, what what do you guys think is that success thread? What's the thing that like maybe the detail, the the the the attention to something that maybe Tron fans and and collectors haven't noticed yet about this project? Like the thing that really kind of makes this special to you guys outside of just kind of the scale and the the experience and getting to work on something like this?
00:42:23
Speaker
What reckon, Chris? I don't know. um
00:42:29
Speaker
ah just, I think the thing, I'll answer it kind of around the corner. Because I think the thing that I've been experiencing as we show this stuff to fans, the Tron fans, is that I've had multiple interactions where they come up and they've seen it online.
00:42:50
Speaker
um and then they see it in person for the first time and and they're stunned by it in person where they weren't online. And I think that's just, I don't know if that's because like we talked earlier, Tron fans aren't out in the toy world. They're not used to looking for things.
00:43:13
Speaker
So I don't know if they're looking if they're tuned into the detail level and stuff that these have that previous things haven't. i don't know what I don't know what that is. i But for me, I think it is it's all of that. it's It's the really the detail of these things.
00:43:35
Speaker
And you can look at these and and online, you don't know whether, like I could tell you that's a six inch figure and all that detail is completely believable for a six inch figure.
00:43:46
Speaker
It's completely believable for a 12 inch figure. But when you see it in person as a three and three quarter figure, I think that that's the most special part to me is that it is it's all here. It's all big.
00:44:02
Speaker
i I agree with you. and I don't know whether I can articulate any better, but it's like i like, I've been involved in this project since its beginning. This is the first time i've actually really held the things.
00:44:14
Speaker
Yeah. And this scale helps. It just helps because you get to see all of it all at once. And it's just, I don't know. It's just the the the detail that's in the deco and the articulation and the characterization through it is just...
00:44:30
Speaker
Yeah, you can't do it justice. I wish I could pass this through the camera to everybody so they could actually just all take turns and hold their hands. And everyone that's sort of gone, yeah, it was just a 3.75 figure. Like, what?
00:44:42
Speaker
They would know what I mean. It's like, and i keep so I'm just going to keep saying it until I'm blue in the face, which is pretty easy because ive got blue lights. Like, you haven't had the opportunity to have a Tron figure like this.
00:44:54
Speaker
Never. yeah Ever. Ever, ever, ever, ever. You've had six seven inch seven inch ones, but not at this scale, not at this detail, not this articulation, not this deco. And like, you don't know what you're missing. You really don't. It's just, it is just like, wow. And and again, i don't know i don't know what the value of that is.
00:45:14
Speaker
and And like, what is the value to me? Like, I don't know. it's pretty I think it's pretty kind of special. but yeah I'm biased. yeah it's it's It's our project. But like I think that's the the magic thread through it is just the the detail achievable at a scale that is displayable yeah to make your shrine that could fit on your DVDs case that people can go, what's that?
00:45:38
Speaker
that And it lights up and you go, oh it's strong. Cool. They're small. I remember the... Oh, that well they're not the ones I remember. the hell? Oh, my God. Look at the detail. Look at the thing. Oh, they yeah think um like do on the back and they've got the effects we're throwing it and they've got every single... I'm going to...
00:45:56
Speaker
Hold Emily to the Fire, every single piece of deco. Like we had Dave Arnspiger check these over. And like we had copious amounts of all the references and some of them are difficult. The the program, the kind of sort of ah generic program was really difficult because they were kind of like, yeah, like sort of it was like there were so many different gauntlets and so many different You know, kind of ah hockey helmets and they're all different. And it's like, which one did you do we do?
00:46:21
Speaker
And that that kind of like squirrelly nerdism is something we absolutely love. It's like, oh, Emily was like, oh, my God, we could do this. We could do it this way. Should we do this? Do this? And it's just you get all into it. And we just also congrats for picking the one with the most complex pattern out of like all of them.
00:46:37
Speaker
ah think was oh yeah Let's blow the whole deco budget on on the program. program And that's the other thing. There's a lot of deco in this. All right. There's a lot of deco. I mean, you look at it, go, it's simple, but it's it's it's not. And I think the other thing, because they're in these kind of like tight suits,
00:46:56
Speaker
the the human nature of it is very pleasing when you hold it. Like if you take an action figure that's got like a big trench coat on or something like that, it's not as pleasurable to kind of just hold. It doesn't feel like you've got a a miniature person in your hand, but like these somehow, I can't even describe it I'm not even gonna try, but it's just, there's something really cool about holding these sort of very figural figures in your hand with all this deco with very simple color schemes.
00:47:21
Speaker
Like the the color break, there there's three colors. but so yeah But it's cool. Anyway, I'm... But but even, like, the the additional hands, like, that's not something that I'm not a big 375 collector, but none of mine come with extra hands. It's pretty rare. I mean, like I can literally think of off the top of my head out of a bunch that I've bought recently, like TVC figures.
00:47:48
Speaker
Vader's got a fist and a pointing hand. And um and the oh, man, going to lose my nerd card from. um From Jedi Survivor, the Nightsister. Yeah, she's got the the the magic hand.
00:48:05
Speaker
You know, the flat hand. But yeah, I mean, it's... But even, like, the light trail effect, like, there's... There's some like pretty unheard of stuff here.
Innovative Light Trail Deco Design
00:48:16
Speaker
Oh, Chris. That's a recording collector. Sorry. Chris, tell them about your light trail design because I didn't know Chris was doing this, which is great. That deco print you've done. Oh, on the light cycle light trail? Oh, yeah.
00:48:30
Speaker
I don't know if it shows up there. Well, Steve's got it. like thithering? Yeah. Yeah. So it it yeah I was trying to figure out how how to do that. Because in the movie, the writing that way was taking it.
00:48:45
Speaker
and i wanted And wanted it to be efficient for deco purposes. um But I wanted it to feel in-universe and look like when you squint your eyes, you want it to feel like it's out of the movie.
00:48:56
Speaker
So where I ended up was doing a square dithering pattern. So it's it's the the light trails are molded in a translucent kind of a milk jug sort of plastic.
00:49:09
Speaker
And then the yellow is printed on there with the half-tone screen. moving along. So all the dots are still yellow, but because they're a square halftone, they look a little like they're rezzing in.
00:49:23
Speaker
ah cool and it was just a ah fun way to do that. but is it was It's so simple, but it's just genius. It's just like, I remember seeing that and I was just like, salivate. I go, oh, that is a really nice touch. Like, oh my God, it's so stupid. It's just like little squares, but it's just, and I don't know, it's just so satisfying.
00:49:44
Speaker
I think that's that's what I like. It's just the the size of it, the scale, it just fits and it lights up and you've got these little things and all the details. just like, I know, it's just gorgeous.
00:49:55
Speaker
and you guys were talking about the the extra hands and the and the light trails for the discs and the discs. I mean, I and think if if we talk about these things in Star Wars figure terms, those are each a deluxe figure.
00:50:10
Speaker
When you look at the amount of deco that's on them, the articulations, the accessories, like there're they're deluxe figures. And I don't know that we talked that much about that, but really like the...
00:50:24
Speaker
They put, like we've talked about how much deco there is on a Boba Fett figure. I think the lightest one of these puts that to shame. Yeah. in mouth So yeah, easily. Yeah. It's like putting ah ah Spider-Man amount of deco on a three and three quarter inch figure and articulation to be honest. It's it's worse. It's worse than that. Yeah. Yeah.
00:50:44
Speaker
yeah with Like all those things wrapping around, it's not like it's on the front of an arm or a leg. It's all the way around. Yeah. Everywhere. And it's.
00:50:56
Speaker
And I think that was our duty. That was our duty to bring value. I'm going to keep saying this word value. It's like, if this is the time we're going to do it, and this is maybe the only time we're going to offer this, or it is the only time we're going to offer this as it stands at the moment. It's like,
00:51:12
Speaker
you have, you had we had to do it right, you had to. And it's like a lot of people look at the scale and go, it's only couple of colors, that like but the the detail's important. It's like, you have to, you you can't not.
00:51:25
Speaker
So it was like, do whatever it takes to make this right. And as I said, we we had people to look it over and check against all the all the reference and go, well, actually that angle's wrong. That doesn't go like that. It's like this.
00:51:40
Speaker
That's, know, there's only so many characters in this movie. So all the fan base and all the all the people that love it know it very well. Very well. No, that's a 45. That looks like a 30 degree. I remember having the conversation with someone.
00:51:55
Speaker
No, it comes out a bit more. And I'm like, right. That line was quarter inch cord pack tape on his helmet. And that line was half inch. Like, Yeah, and and Steve said it earlier, if this campaign doesn't fund, we're going to be sad.
00:52:10
Speaker
Like, no question. But I am never going to regret the amount of work we put in on this. and well But as we were just talking, what went through my head is I might regret that we didn't talk more about the amount of work we put in on this.
00:52:26
Speaker
Because I think that's that's something that people don't necessarily understand, especially in the Tron community. the I think Star Wars fans get that because we we spent so much time interacting with the trying or with the Star Wars fans, but the Tron community, I don't think, understands how what all that means, the deco, the the articulation.
00:52:49
Speaker
i i Again, it's that toy it's that toy knowledge, that basic entry level you know to the the concept.
Community Engagement and Listener Involvement
00:52:57
Speaker
But speaking of of other folks, um as we usually do when we have you guys on and you know and our and any of our guests, we did go out and collect some questions um from the community for you guys to answer.
00:53:09
Speaker
you know, just to make this quick, ah keep an eye out on our, on our socials for when we announce new, ah new guests at AIC underscore podcast on Instagram.
00:53:21
Speaker
um We'll, we'll, we'll put a post up and you could submit questions as these folks did for our Q and a here. So Dave, yeah help us out. Let us ah take care of our first question here.
Why Tron is a HasLab Initiative
00:53:33
Speaker
So at RileyBob86, um with with the made-to-order option on Hasbro Pulse, why the decision to make this a HasLab as opposed to a made-to-order project?
00:53:47
Speaker
I'll grab that one. I'll grab that one. Yeah. So there are lots of different ways that we can make things, and there are different levels of... um nicheness is that a word like so okay so tron is an is a niche fandom i think that's fair to say there's there they have a strong small group and it's yeah absolutely fair and and it's niche for us you know we've never done this before we've never done this brand before um so i think the beauty of has lab is that or as I keep saying, we're exploring, we're testing.
00:54:20
Speaker
HasLab is a great platform for testing. Now, a lot of people tell me, hey, it's gotta be big, it's gotta be huge, it's gotta be super expensive, four or $500. And it's like, no, that's I was there at the very beginning of HasLab and it was always,
00:54:36
Speaker
Things that wouldn't normally sit well at retail or sit naturally at retail, this is our chance. Dream but items and and unusual items don't have how all always have to be big.
00:54:47
Speaker
They don't always have to be a certain price tag, but they do have to be unusual. And and this is an unusual one. This is something that was new, and it we weren't sure about it in terms of I don't know how many Tron people are out there. And we're doing 375. And we made that decision, as I explained before, because of the heritage of Tron 1982 and where action figures were in those days. And they we wanted to bring give them something they've never had before.
00:55:10
Speaker
So it's like... There's Tron fandom. There's Star Wars fandom. How many 375 fans are out there that are going to maybe come over and support this for the love of the scale? You know, we have Star Wars fans that we know very, very well, and a lot of them like the original trilogy and like my age and like Tron was around that time. maybe But we we didn't know.
00:55:30
Speaker
We don't know. we We can't guarantee any of it. And, like, it's important to be able to – the last thing you want is to better put a product out and it not sell and go to closeout. Closeout is nobody's friend, I promise you. It's nobody's friend to a toy line. It's the killer of toy lines.
00:55:44
Speaker
So HasLab was the way. It was like this way we do it. And if we we put it out, we put all our hearts and soul and and what we strive to put in the value that we feel that this project deserves.
00:55:55
Speaker
And if there are people there, enough people kind go, you know what? I love that. It's the right thing for me. It's the right price for me. I'm going to support it. And enough of that, it gets made. Wonderful. And if it doesn't, then then we haven't kind of put it out there and...
00:56:09
Speaker
to to sort of stagnate. It's a, it's a kind of an honest way of doing it, I feel. yeah So, um, that's why it was a hazard versus a made to order. So made to order is you've, you've, you've committed to making it, you're making the tools and you, you do, you you make it only as many as or ah have the orders, but you still, you still got to make those, make, make the product. So has that was a good way of doing that.
00:56:32
Speaker
And I don't think we've used has lab in this way before, which I think some people have kind of gone, Ooh, yeah why I say that. yeah We have used it like that way before, but not for a while. So it was a it was a good... It's a test and learn. I don't mean that like...
00:56:48
Speaker
Tron fans are guinea pigs by any stretch the imagination, but like it it was, it was, we're exploring. And so I'm going to I'm going to use every means possible to explore and try new things out. And if that means, you know, without HasLab, we may never ever be able to offer this particular offering at this particular scale for this particular movie. So you can choose whether your glass is half empty or half full in that way.
00:57:11
Speaker
So, but that's why, that's why it was a HasLab. And I think it boils boils down to especially you guys are super familiar with this is, you know, doing what you do. But the three and three quarter inch community like, you know, they see the legacy figures get announced as six inch figures and it's like, oh, they'll just be available on Hasbro Pulse.
00:57:29
Speaker
So I think the knee jerk and that reaction of that community is like, oh, us again, we get punished again for some reason, you know, and it's.
00:57:40
Speaker
I get it. Listen, I get it. I get it. Look, at the end of the day, at this point in time in toy history, in toy evolution or toy whatever it is, toy time, six inch the standard, is the industry standard. There are hundreds of brands out there and they usually hit six inch because it's a particular size and it has its particular uses. And it's just the way it is at the moment. There is a bigger audience for six inch action figures.
00:58:06
Speaker
Now, that doesn't mean they're any better or any worse than 3 3⁄4 inch. So I think we arrived at 3 3⁄4 inch for 82 because it was the right scale to do something new and never been done before. for that movie.
00:58:18
Speaker
For Legacy, it's a different generation. you know It's 18 years. 18? Yes, 18 years later, that's a different generation. There's a different... And and at that time... 18 years since Legacy? Yeah. ah yeah Oh, 18 years since, yeah, since... From the original. It's the first movie. It's 15 now. Yeah. So it's 18 years different, so it's a new generation. different generation. That generation grew up with larger... action figures we were at different point in time so it kind of made sense and and to be fair dwight loves legacy he wanted to do six inch figures and we're like that's okay we could have made them all six inch but we wouldn't have been able to deliver anything new for tron in the way we want to do it we could have done it all three and three quarter inch but i felt that the the legacy ones were more suitable for six inch listen at the end of the day whatever decision we make is going to be the wrong one
00:59:04
Speaker
one could i love that it's like that One could say it's digital jazz, man. It's also the technological jump from, you know, 82 to 2009.
00:59:17
Speaker
2010, 2010, 18 years. Yeah. So there's a little bit of homage to that. And again, some people want it all in six inch. Some people want it all in three and three quarter inch. Some people don't mind them split. Some people hate the split for that.
00:59:30
Speaker
that's Again, it's. sweet Do you mean you can't make everybody happy all the time? No, I've tried. That's, listen, as I said before, Chris and I have wonderful jobs, like wonderful jobs. And that job is made even more wonderful as soon as we realize that we can't win.
00:59:45
Speaker
so And that's okay. Like I get up every morning, I'm going, all right, can't win. But it's okay because we're making toys. We're making toys for communities that are just wondrous.
00:59:58
Speaker
Just wondrous. Like just I started out in a toy community. Chris probably before me, probably about the same time, Chris, like in the early 90s. What's this toy community thing? And it's just grown and grown and social media has helped and it's just – And you have you have the beautiful people and you have the not so beautiful people in it. And it's like, it's all right.
01:00:17
Speaker
Good, bad and ugly. It's all it's all good. It's like I could be selling insurance, but I'm not. It's like, no offense to me. Sorry. Anyway. i think I think part of it too is like Steve talked a little bit about there. mean, we're worst like, this is an experiment. Like we're learning.
01:00:40
Speaker
ah ah the community should not think we know everything about what we're doing. We're still, we are, and I think I've talked about that on a podcast previously. It's like, that's, that's one thing that experience teaches you is that you know less the more experience you have, or you realize how much less you, or how much more you don't know.
01:01:03
Speaker
yeah Yeah. And worse, like we've been doing this, like Steve said, since the early nineties, And like I know now that there's a vast amount of things I don't know and question marks and all of these things are, they're part of that.
01:01:21
Speaker
Like we're, i I'll be bullish and say that we're very good at what we do. But i I also know that there is there's a lot of things that we don't do perfect.
01:01:35
Speaker
And we're constantly chasing that. Constantly. and if we're not And if we're not trying new things and not innovating and and not getting it right, if everything we do worked and everything we did was absolutely perfect, I tell my kids this all the time, they hate it.
01:01:49
Speaker
It's like you're not doing it right. You're not trying. You're not you're not experimenting. You're not innovating. Dyson didn't took times to get to his his vacuum is bagnu vacuum clean it's like No one on the planet of innovation or creative or trying to do new things had it all work the same, had it all work perfectly. Walt Disney, he went bankrupt for goodness sake. Like he went bankrupt, it was like four times.
01:02:15
Speaker
So it's- Yeah, you don't learn from doing things right. You learn from doing things wrong. No. and And that's the one thing as a Tron fan we've learned is like, we even if we think this is it, we never know. That's true. All right. Our next question comes from at Captain Horrible.
01:02:32
Speaker
ah Steve, you already covered this, but ah but we'll we'll get out of the way real
Future of Tron Figures Post-HasLab
01:02:37
Speaker
quick. If this HasLab doesn't fund, will these figures ever be offered again?
01:02:44
Speaker
I don't think so. I don't think, not from us. I don't think so. Like who knows in the future, I can never say never, never say never again. But ah no, I don't think so.
01:02:55
Speaker
Yeah. I mean, the the HasLab model is great for telling us how much interest there is in something. Yeah. and how How big of a market there is for it. Yeah. so This is it, folks.
01:03:07
Speaker
but So if if you're if you're the type of person who's ever been, you know what'd be great? Some Tron figures. Yeah. Boy, do I have some Tron figures for you. I've got a project for you to take a look at. They're right here.
01:03:19
Speaker
They'll probably be in Steve's basement in a case. Yeah. who gets to keep all the Who gets to keep the prototypes? if they i think we have to I think we have to grind them up. We have to grind them up, don't we? Oh, God.
01:03:32
Speaker
No, or do they get to go in that vault, that Hasbro vault? and hasbro vault I don't know. i don't know what the IP law is on that. ah I don't I think the law is we have to make two more sets of them.
01:03:45
Speaker
And then we have to make an off-site storage for safekeeping. Well, at least this weekend I can put them in my case and kind of have a look at them. It would be very on-brand to send a set up to Antarctica.
01:03:57
Speaker
Just throwing that out there. We need a seed vault for unproduced toys. I love that. ah Dave, next question. Yeah, um kind of along the same line. like at From SaltyHyperBeast, are there any plans to make legacy figures in 375? I'll add to it, Ares in 375.
01:04:20
Speaker
I think we all know the answer to that. Well, no, I don't think you do, actually. yeah I don't think you do. I think it all depends on what happens here. As as we said, this is an experiment. as a test. Like, if this went gangbusters, listen, HasLab is a very stressful journey, all right? HasLabs go, woo!
01:04:37
Speaker
plateau at the end. This is ah this is this slower. I'm not going to lie. What was it? eight down We need another 8,000. We've had 8,000 go crazy at the end. Whether it happens with this, I don't know. so That's not up to me. It's out of my control. all i'll do is just All I'll do is annoy the community by plugging it and plugging it and plugging it and trying to tell you all the amount of love that we put into it.
01:04:58
Speaker
um So I think you know if these were successful, And 375 is something, yeah, might do. No plans to at the moment, but like never say never in in that sense, I think.
01:05:12
Speaker
You know, yeah, that's my answer. Yeah. No's never an answer. We've we've seen has labs open doors for other stuff to happen in other lines.
01:05:26
Speaker
true. So um I mean, that's kind of a if you want it to be possible, like you've got to show up, right? Like if you want a sequel to a movie to be made, you got to show up and get 10 of your friends to come and they get 10 of their friends to go.
01:05:41
Speaker
Like it's it's you vote with your wallet. So if you want this. That's the answer. you you You can make your own destiny here. Yeah, you really can. Tron fans own the destiny of this project, ultimately. And I don't want to appear as if we're like hostage, taking hostage. Like, whatever, you don't get this, you don't get that. But that's just the way that's just the way the world works. It's like, of course, if something is successful, you want to look into it and and develop it a little bit more.
01:06:08
Speaker
And if it's not successful, then you move on to the next experiment, and the next test. And so that's that's where we are. so we're gonna And the same goes with the six-inch ones. But I think the one thing that we we know for sure is that like the technology put into this is, and yeah know correct me if I'm wrong, is going to exist moving forward or can exist.
01:06:30
Speaker
Well, the the learning the learnings from doing these figures are certainly part of our... our repertoire now, whether what we have done on these figures makes sense to implement on other figures.
01:06:41
Speaker
That's an open question, but now we know we can.
01:06:47
Speaker
So we're going to end the Q and a here with a hopeful question. Um, From 21B asks, when this HasLab is funded, how will it come packaged?
01:07:02
Speaker
Like in terms of, I guess, like the, you know, for those that have have ordered previous HasLabs, there is beautiful big box inside other box. How would that come? How would this come packaged?
01:07:16
Speaker
wait We've talked a good bit about that, Steve. You're closer to that than the rest of us. I got ones right here. so yeah the So we, over the last, I think we started it kind of two or three Haslabs ago, we what we call collector grade. It has a collector grade kind of thing, which I hope the people that have bought the last two or three Haslabs have noticed the vast improvement in sturdiness of the packaging. Like the go like Chris, your ghost, what was that, 48 pounds? I think 28 of that pound. How the hell were 28 pounds of that? That like 26 kilos or something crazy to ship. Yeah. Like it is tough. So as you say, the figures are carded.
01:08:00
Speaker
um I think the bikes and the bikes and the yeah the base will come in ah in a box, and then that will come within a box, within a box, within a shipper, within a shipper. So it'll be – and it's ah and it's you know it's not – I'm looking at the cantina over there, which is huge. I mean, it's probably the size of that. So like it's actually a decent-sized box. It's manageable. So it'll come well-protected.
01:08:22
Speaker
I don't think you're going to get – easy it's It's easy to ship, if that's fair, easy. But the yeah, we haven't designed the the outer box yet. I mean, ah Sean Kenny, who did the car backs, we've done that, which is kind of which are kind of cool. And they're still working development.
01:08:38
Speaker
And it's interesting because A lot of people, the the beautiful the other beautiful thing about Haslabs is that we're still making it and we're still developing. it Like we get a lot of we get a lot of constructive criticism and I'm always open for constructive criticism. Give me constructive criticism.
01:08:53
Speaker
Don't like give me just criticism just to be mean. Like that doesn't doesn't actually do anything for me. I like ignore it and it doesn't teach me anything. But like someone was talking about, hey, what if that is like a receivable pack? And like, what if it's, I can blister it and then take it out? And I was like, oh, that's kind of interesting. Cause like,
01:09:10
Speaker
I don't know where the where the Tron fans are openers or they're minting cards or whether they buy two and they open one and keep one shut like Star Wars fans, lot of Star Wars fans do. So like, that's kind of interesting. So I think HasLab, we're still making stuff. Like I would use this analogy or not an analogy, like Chris on the gunship, you and you and ah Adam from Lucasfilm were tweaking Deco as we were showing it to people and like going off and having it painted. So that's a beauty of it. I've digressed. I can vouch for that in person.
01:09:39
Speaker
Yeah. so ah well packaged is the answer to one day. I think of like, you know, I think one of the coolest has lot packages of all time is the proton pack, like the amount of just fun, like opening it was an adventure itself. Like it was like fun, like discovery and everything like that.
01:10:00
Speaker
So I think there's things like that that were there's things like that that were Like we, hit there's no, I guess there's no legacy packaging style for Tron that we're referencing.
01:10:13
Speaker
So the it's a complete question mark as to the final design of how all that would come together. We, Sean, Kenny had a, ri they were, well, we all did. We all, we had a lot meetings like this where we sit down and we go, what's the, what's the thematic?
01:10:29
Speaker
Is it old, like 1980s computer boxes? And like you unbox it, like you would do an old kind of like Amstrad or something or, and he eventually went on. There's a lot of arcade inspiration there. We got the original arcade art and had a look at all the line art and noticed that of greens and cerises and things, and black. So it we we decided on landing on this where it's kind of like retro but modern. We wanted it fresh. I didn't want it to look kind of old-fashioned.
01:10:55
Speaker
So we kind of went for this sort of retro, this arcade look. And I don't know yet what that means. If, you know, if it funds and we get into the box and the unboxing, i don't know what that looks like. Yeah. it'll be fun It'd be fun though. Like it'd be really fun.
01:11:09
Speaker
like because yeah I was bringing up photos of old computer boxes that I remember from childhood. Like when we got our first PC and old Apple boxes, and what what all that stuff looked like just as like, Hey, can we do this with the shipper?
01:11:23
Speaker
So the shipper looks like you just got a package from 1982. Like all all sorts of fun stuff like that. So that's where my like initial a lot of slip cases and stuff like that. Yeah. like Like what if and what if NCOM was shipping you hardware in 19? We actually said that. Yeah. It's like, what's your your NCOM computer box? It just showed up late from 1982. Or how they ship a cab like an arcade cab. Like, yeah, that's brilliant.
01:11:49
Speaker
That's awesome. Because there's been a lot of really interesting packaging treatment for Tron over the years with you know using the arcade cabinet as kind of like the go-to style guide, whether it's the very wonderful Adidas running shoes ah that I just bought or you know the the arc the the Diamond Select R.I.P.
01:12:06
Speaker
um The arcade cabinet from San Diego Comic-Con. Or the... Or the really cool like you can make yourself a figure figure that the. that Yeah, from the world.
01:12:17
Speaker
Yeah. from That's like a collapsible arcade cab. It's awesome. Well, listen, guys, ah this takes us to the end of Q&A, and I know we've been ah we've been we've been here for a while, but sent let's send one more message out to the to the universe.
01:12:34
Speaker
Let's keep the when, not if train running. because Correct. And if I sound like I'm somebody who really wants this to fund, because I really want this to fund. So we we have a track record here. we are we We say it all the time. We are an if, not when, or we are a when, when not if podcast.
01:12:50
Speaker
So when this funds, when the Tron fans come out of the woodwork in this final push here, this final week. As the enormous Tron fan that I am. Steve, Chris, ah remind our listeners, our viewers, where can they back ah the Tron HasLab and when do they have until to do it?
01:13:10
Speaker
They have until November 24th, 11.59 p.m. Eastern Standard Time. Hasbro Pulse.
Economic Challenges and Voluntary Backing
01:13:19
Speaker
www.hasbropulse.com because this in internet thing is brand new. The World Wide Web. Yeah, World Wide Web. Anything to add to that, Chris? Have got those facts right? you know It all sounds right to me. Yeah. yeah Yeah. And listen, it's... There you go.
01:13:37
Speaker
where We are not here we are not here to persuade i probably you probably think we are here to persuade i'm not here to convince i'm not here to beg or anything like that that's the nature hazlap it allows us to do things we wouldn't normally do regardless of whether people think we should or should not do it it this is a this is a platform for us to try new things out if you're into it And you see the value there and you see the love and the heart put into it and you can afford it. i don't I don't want people trying to do things when they can't afford it. Like we're in a place now where everything is expensive and life is more expensive. you know
01:14:16
Speaker
Labor, freight, everything's gone up.
Importance of Community Engagement in Crowdfunding
01:14:19
Speaker
Unfortunately, the toy industry and the collectible industry isn't immune to that, isn't exempt from that. um But if you see it and you love it and you think you want it,
01:14:27
Speaker
Back it. There's nothing stopping you. You can cancel at the end. If it doesn't back, we you you don't you don't get charged. If you back in it and it funds, you get charged the day after. But don't worry. I've heard lot of people say, well, if I back it and it doesn't fund, do you keep my money? And it's like, no, no, no, you don't get charged. Never take your money. But momentum is important. It's key.
01:14:49
Speaker
And we see that, especially at the end when people start coming. And people will. It will. It'll go up. Will it go up past 10,000? I don't know. That's out of my hands. I mean, I've backed a number of them. So there you go. it's if If you want it, you've never had it before.
01:15:04
Speaker
You've never had anything like this before. If you want it, Come and get it. That's yeah. And if you and if you know somebody who is not in this toy world that, you know, this may not be for you, but maybe it's for a couple of people, you know, or somebody, you know, who's super into the movies, like point them in this direction, because if they don't know about it, like they don't know about it. So let's let's get people.
01:15:29
Speaker
Yeah, I think that's a huge part of it is just seeing the getting the word out to the Tron community. We've talked a little bit about how that community is not actively in the toy world or because because it's what, maybe a collective five years worth of Tron product since 1982?
Encouragement for Franchise Enthusiasts
01:15:47
Speaker
yeah versus something like Star Wars where we've had products since 1978. It's been on shelf the entire time. So ah that community is not looking for that.
01:15:58
Speaker
And Steve said he won't beg, but I will because I don't want to fight Steve for the only samples. ah I got to he yeah you a't grinding it I think the other thing on this is, like, because this is the shrine, the centerpiece, if someone just likes Tron, yeah you can get this. Like, I've admitted this a billion times. Like, I've worked on Star Wars, you know, on and off for 10 years. I've worked on Marvel for the past five years.
01:16:23
Speaker
I don't collect Black Series or Vintage or Marvel Legends. I'm intimidated by it because there's so many. Like, Marvel Legends has, like, 1,500 things. And i I like my retro stuff because they're little individual...
01:16:37
Speaker
little memory Little memory boxes that I have. This is what this is. If someone likes Tron and they, you can get this and not have to worry about the intimidation of having to get more and more and more and more and more.
01:16:49
Speaker
Now, some people might look at that and go well, I want more and more and more and more. It's like, well, you know what? You might get more and more and more when we get this done. But like, does and don't want people to be afraid of getting this just because they love Tron.
Product Features and Team Gratitude
01:17:00
Speaker
Like you mentioned, Dave, your friend who's got his DVD collection. Perfect. Perfect. Grab that, put it on there, you're done. you are up Lights up, it's a it's it's a little it's a little homage, which I think is what we're trying to do with the 375 thing. Just create these homages. You never have to buy another toy in your life.
01:17:19
Speaker
it's a And it's a USB cable to the wall. Like, you can you can plug. You don't have to worry about batteries or charging. You just plug a plug a USB straight into your 10-watt or whatever, 5-watt, 10-watt charger, whatever. The thing you use for your phone.
01:17:34
Speaker
You plug this into the wall. It's got a neat little switch on it. It's the it's the button, right? The Tron logo. It's the logo on the front. You don't have to worry about, like, dealing with buttons hiding in the back. You just hit the little Tron button. Same way NES Classic works.
01:17:46
Speaker
It's... It really it's true. um Yeah. And it could go right next to your NES classic. Mm hmm. So we got so super cool and you got the Intellivision one like the Intellivision classic. Well, there's no knobs on this one.
01:18:02
Speaker
Yeah. Yeah. um But yeah, guys, thank you so much for taking the time. ah you know First of all, thank you for bringing this project to life. you Yes, like i said thank you so much. We are so excited and and really, really hope that um the Tron fans...
01:18:19
Speaker
you know unplug from the grid long enough to to come and fund this. Braun fans, Star Wars fans, 375, pop culture fans, DVD collector fans, sci-fi fans, Disney fans. Disney fans, where are you?
01:18:33
Speaker
Come on. yeah um well and yeah And you think to us, but it's, I mean, Steve and I get to come on here and talk to you guys, but oh man. ah yeah know We've talked about Emily and Bailey being huge parts of this. Yeah.
01:18:46
Speaker
But there's it's a massive team. And we talk about it all the time.
Commitment of the HasLab Team
01:18:50
Speaker
Like from the model shop to our our partners in the in the factory making things to the the model shops that are overseas, to engineers, to project managers, all of it. Like everybody plays a critical role in this. Yeah.
01:19:04
Speaker
Yeah. And it doesn't it doesn't happen. It doesn't come close to happening without that. but Yeah, 100%. And it's's it's ah it's an unusual feeling when it's working on a HasLab because there's no guarantee that it's going to actually go forward. So these people...
01:19:21
Speaker
do not pull punches working for a project that is going to be a HasLab. There's no sort of like, ah, might not work. Like I've used this line and the whole team, we don't quit. We're not programs that quit. This program, this HasLab program, this project program does not quit.
01:19:39
Speaker
We keep going. I'm seeing meetings talking about how we're going to make it and tool it and all this kind of stuff. And we're like, oh, you know, if we're making it yet. So like my my thanks and respect goes, as Chris rightly says, to everybody that puts their heart and soul into this, because it it it's a lot of work to put into this. But that's OK, because we love doing it.
01:20:00
Speaker
We're glad these two programs have the right prime directive on this. um And we're we're really, really, ah you know, we're we're ready. We're ready to have the perfect system ah in real life. But ah we're excited for what Master Control has.
01:20:16
Speaker
As for
Listener Engagement and Social Media Follow-up
01:20:17
Speaker
us. With that said, um we will put links in the description below. Whether you're watching this on YouTube, whether you're listening to this on your favorite podcast platform, um we will put a direct link to this project, ah not only in our description on YouTube, in the podcast, on our Instagram page. So again, if you're not following us at AIC underscore podcast, there will be a permanent link in our highlights, in our bio.
01:20:40
Speaker
um Make sure that you guys, ah you know at the very least, take a minute just to take a look at this. ah and And, you know, we're we're we're all hoping for the best here. But I think with that, Dave, it's it's time for an end of line.
01:20:55
Speaker
End of line? Go back this.
01:21:00
Speaker
Thank you for hanging out with us today. Subscribe, rate, and review this podcast wherever you listen, and then tell your friends to do it. Thanks also to Joe Azari, the golden voice behind our intro. Learn more about him in the show notes.
01:21:14
Speaker
Our music is Game Boy Horror by The Zombie Names. Follow us on Instagram and TikTok at Adventures in Collecting and on Twitter at AIC underscore podcast.
01:21:27
Speaker
Stop by and say hi. Show us your hauls and photos. Tell us your toy stories.
Podcast Credits and Creative Commons License
01:21:32
Speaker
Maybe we'll talk about it on a future episode.
01:21:47
Speaker
This has been a non-productive media presentation. Executive producer, Frank Hablaui. This program and many others like it on the Non-Productive Network is distributed under a Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial No Derivatives License. Please share it, but ask before trying to change it or sell it. For more information, visit non-productive.com.