Go Figure! is thrilled to have the opportunity to bring our readers the latest, greatest, quirkiest and unexpected news and reviews in the collectibles realm. Though often those behind-the-scenes who do this for the love of it are just a byline. That is not so here as we are excited about them as they are about what they will share with you, the hunters 'n collectors! So, it only makes sense to give proper introductions to a few of our newest. In time we will share the whole team with you as we settle our own dust. Give us a hollah to let us know what you think of the site, or you can even give us point-by-point feedback for the next two weeks right here. With that, here are the folks that make it all happen!
Meet JARRETT KRUSE
1.) Tell us a little about you. Where you are from and what you do by day? First off, congrats on the launch of Go Figure! It is a very exciting time to be in the world of figures. I am a graduate of the amazing University of Wisconsin-Madison which is probably the greatest college on earth. They shoot a lot of movies there b/c it doubles as Washington, D.C. Rodney Dangerfield's Back to School was entirely shot there which definitely had a part in me applying there! After briefly writing movie reviews for The Badger Herald, I graduated with a degree in Communication Arts which is really just a fancy piece of paper to be honest. But upon graduating, I found this very cool new newspaper at a local university down the on the Jersey shore and basically bought them drinks until they agreed to let me be their movie reviewer. It turned into a very cool seven year partnership while maintaining my autonomy as a freelance writer.
Nowadays I freelance write for several websites reviewing TV shows, movies, writing about toys and other pop culture related stories. My favorite has to be writing for Mania.com because we have such an awesome talk back community that interacts with the journalists. I've been working with EIC Bob Trate for a number of years and he gives me complete autonomy as a writer. Sometimes its tough to hear the feedback but I think it makes you a stronger writer.
2.) How did you get into collecting and becoming an enthusiastic journalist? After college and I realized that getting that elusive 9-5 dream job was harder than I thought, I admittedly regressed and started picking up some old figures that were released while I was away at school. Because of my love of Mego clothed figures from the very late 70's and early 80's, I immediately started getting Toy Biz' Marvel Famous Covers. They were these very cool window box figures with real cloth costumes. It totally brought me back. Suddenly I was setting up these elaborate displays on glass shelves and setting up lighting to highlight the awesomeness. That was really the bug that got me back into collecting in my early 20's. Soon I found all of my old "Lost Ark" figures from my childhood after wading through my basement for weeks. It was a great stroll down memory lane and I became obsessed with trying to carve out a career out of something I was passionate about. So for me, toys, movies and TV and writing about them was the way to go. When I started Action Figure Junkies last year on Facebook. Now we are over 8000 members strong with a thriving community of great people. Old time collectors and new. I absolutely love running it and I "hired" some terrific Admins that help me control the chaos. I even got my Eisner award nominated artist brother Jason Kruse involved doing the logos and banners.
3.) Any brands that consistently shine for you out there? I've always been a Marvel guy but Batman has always been my favorite character so I am a little all over the place! I remember buying the first wave of Marvel Legends and thinking, "this is a game changer." All of a sudden we had these fancy clamshell cases and figures with points of articulation and amazing posing potential. It was a toy geek's dream come true. Consistently, Toy Biz and now Hasbro continually impress me with their Marvel Legends line. Marvel Universe was huge but their Marvel Infinite Series has not done as well but I still really dig them. Hasbro has also been on a major role killing it with their "Star Wars" Black Series. These are the "Star Wars" toys collectors have been waiting for. In a word: just awesome. OK, two words. NECA has also come on strong in the past few years and have been impressing the hell out of me.
4.) What do you do in your spare time - something that makes you, you? I enjoy a lot of things especially this time of the year during football season. It breaks up the week and being part of a free fantasy football league actually increases the fun of watching the games. I love the smack talk and its great to enhance the game experience. I even subscribed to the Red Zone channel so I don't miss anything! Plus getting to see UW football brings me back to Madison, WI which is always nice. I love going to the movies but this year has been a major bummer at the box office. Besides "Guardians of the Galaxy," the theaters have been like a ghost town lately. I swear I saw a tumbleweed go by last time I was at the theater. I would love to get a little into gaming. I am kind of a noob at the whole gaming thing. I was a stand-up comic for a number of years and would love to get back to that. The geek world is very funny but also pretty damn serious.
5.) Do you see any trends in the world of collectibles? Well, as you know, Pop! Vinyl has exploded which I have succumbed to. At first I did not really understand the whole vinyl thing but when Pop! hit the scene, I finally got it. Now I have a bunch, plus they make great gifts for people's desks at work. It's an exciting time for them and their booth at Toy Fair was insane! As an 80's kid, I am starting to see a lot more stuff that I grew up with. I think its because my generation is now in their thirties and are reaching back to their childhoods. Toys are a great way to "go back" a little and be a kid again. Lately there are more and more characters like Rambo, Robocop and Predator toys flooding the market. Its a glorious time to get started in toys as a more mature collector. Plus animation is not just for kids anymore, plenty of grown up toy enthusiasts are grabbing up PIXAR and "Despicable Me" Minions!
6.) Thoughts on ebay/Amazon vs. old fashioned comic store shopping? You know when I got back into the toy game back in '99, eBay was really just starting to take shape and I bought most of the aforementioned Famous Covers on eBay. Then I found an unmasked Wolverine variant for $10 at retail and sold it for $238 and thought, "OK I have found the business to be in." But then I realized that I was getting killed on gas, eBay fees, PayPal fees, not to mention grumpy customers that want their stuff ASAP. Then the "scalper" generation started and I pretty much got out of the game except for the occasional sale of a double that was rare. I like to support my local comic shop but I had to stop collecting books in 2011 because it became just too damn expensive to stay in both hobbies. So I went with toys. I was spending around $300 a month on books and it was just insane. As far as Amazon goes, I am a huge fan. Their whole business model and how they started, its just amazing. Jeff Bezos is most definitely one of my business heroes because he started from nothing delivering books in a van. Regarding figures, it is tough to beat their price points. However I still like to stop in my LCS a few times a month to check things out. The smell of fresh comic paper on Wednesday's gives me a nice buzz. There is nothing like it.
7.) What one thing would you take with you if stranded on a deserted island? And if a falling star arrived in the form of any toy you could own, what would it be. Oh man, the desert island question! I always try to dodge these. I would say if I was on the island, I would need my hi-def TV with my ROKU attached (that counts b/c they are attached!) I have become a streaming TV maniac. Last night I couldn't sleep and I started watching BBC Sherlock and all of a sudden I'm on season 2! Its addictive. If I caught that falling star and it had one toy for me, I would hope it would be my 1979 MEGO Spider-Man. Its a sentimental piece. Kind of like a good luck charm. Then again if I had had it, I probably wouldn't have wound up on the island...
Meet DON MORTON
1.) Tell us a little about you. Where you are from and what you do by day? I'm from Central CA, although I was not born here I was raised here and this is where my mother was from. Day to day I handle the investigation of company losses, and help to not only recover those losses but to prevent additional losses.
2.) How did you get into collecting and becoming an enthusiastic journalist?
Ha.... well I can only say that Star Wars is to blame, as Master Yoda said "If once you start down the dark path, forever will it dominate your destiny, consume you it will." My love for all things Star Wars has led me to collecting everything from cards, plates, to figures.
3.) Any brands that consistently shine for you out there? Right now I'd have to lean towards the Funko Pop! brand. It started with Star Wars which has taken me in new directions.
4.) What do you do in your spare time - something that makes you, you? Spare time? Hmmmm it doesn't seem like I have spare time but maybe that is because I'm so busy. I'm usually with my boys, my girlfriend, our dog, or at the movies. When we can we enjoy going to concerts, shows, Collectible conventions, and various events like Universal Studios Halloween Horror, Knott's Berry Farm Halloween Haunt (I'll be at both next week).
5.) Do you see any trends in the world of collectibles? Right now I think we are going to see more people in the world of figure collection and box subscriptions. Collecting figures can be so wide-ranged yet unique to a person at the same time, and receiving a mystery box is like having Xmas every month.
6.) Thoughts on ebay/Amazon vs. old fashioned comic store shopping? I LOVE eBay, my girlfriend will tell you I can find just about anything at a reasonable price. But when it comes to collecting I prefer the local shop. When I walk into Red Sky Comics or Aloha Floral they know you by name, they know what you like already and sometimes they have something set aside for you they think you might be interested in. I love that feeling!
7.) What one thing would you take with you if stranded on a deserted island? And if a falling star arrived in the form of any toy you could own, what would it be. Do my kids count as one thing?