This past weekend I had the chance to visit San Francisco, CA for Walker Stalker Con, the fairly new convention focusing on AMC’s hit tv show, The Walking Dead. Though it has focus on The Walking Dead, there are still plenty of vendors selling other goodies, figures, statues, collectibles, and art. I was able to find two vendors selling the McFarlane Toys Alien Vs. Predator Series 2: Birth of the Hybrid Diorama for a fantastic price from the vendor with a better deal (after checking online of course).
However, upon arriving home and opening up this set, I come to find the right hand of Scar is missing . . . not somewhere in the package, not hidden, not taken out previously as the package was completely sealed, yet it seems it was a factory error. This set was released in 2005, and though it still shows archived on the Spawn.com, I am curious if it is worth contacting them to get a single hand sent? Is it worth both for the set’s sake, the chance McFarlane will send just a single hand, or better yet, simply keeping Scar with his right side to the back of the dio so no one will see the missing hand.
After encountering this situation, it had me thinking of other situations with older pieces I have collected and still on the hunt for. Just before Christmas, I engaged in an online trade for a Gentle Giant 2008 PGM Holiday Edition Commander Cody Mini Bust. You can view the video review, however, due to the fragile nature of the antennas on Cody’s left shoulder, one of them snapped off. It is not an entirely terrible damage, considering it is for my personal collection with no intention of selling it, but it had me thinking of contacting Gentle Giant, Ltd. (now owned by 3D Systems) and inquiring about a repair.
The last instance I will share with the gripe of collecting older pieces, sometimes you just have to settle for loose figures. I had a great chance of obtaining a Predator Jungle Hunter from NECA, again in a trade, and granted my end of the deal was also loose, it is always a difficult time to jump on a loose deal. The difficulty comes usually with missing accessories, broken ends (i.e. the wrist blades or plasma canon) or even just enjoying the collection of card backs!
Yet, as a collector hunting the world for older figures and pieces, it is sometimes better to snag what you can when you can instead of missing an opportunity.
Alex is a college student in his third year as a Political Science major pursuing a career in law. Collecting and anything geeky has been a huge hobby and area of interest for years, and has landed him a spot with GoFigure News! Subscribe to his YouTube channel.