The recent announcement of the massive Power Rangers DVD set has gotten me wondering if I might actually be interested in purchasing it, if only to have the Tyranno Ranger helmet. Of course, before I set off on a new collection, I remember that I am still half a dozen keys short of my complete set of Super Sentai Ranger keys, a collection which started with me thinking I would only buy a few of the coolest looking or most impressive rangers. It’s a common theme for me, as the same obsessiveness that serves me in comic collecting tends to get expensive when turned to action figures or, perish forbid, statues. Given that I haven’t actually unpacked most of my toys since I moved into this house half a decade ago, it’s often best that I stay clear of collecting things that don’t come in completed sets, which tends to beg a query…
The MS-QOTD (pronounced, as always, “misquoted”) wants you to know that the REAL money is made in moichendising, and points out that for the purposes of today’s query, assume that budgeting is not an issue, asking: When it comes to the pop culture you love, are you interested in buying the tie-in toys, statues, posters or flame-throwers?
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Yes, as Rob is about to find out on Friday when he enters the Nerd Room of Doom for the first (and possibly last) time.
Yeah, but collectors Items don’t really hold as much interest for me, as “Here, we made a cool thing out of that stuff you like!” I’ll buy the toy Sonic Screwdriver or a Baker Scarf. Star trek stuff. But I won’t feel compelled to collect the whole set. Really though, Who doesn’t like a super hero shirt now and again?
It depends. I’ve got an extensive Ranger Key collection from Gokaiger (thanks to friends in Japan), a couple of Mothra plushies, a complete set of the promo Lantern rings (thanks to one of the awesome people from this site), several character or logo tees, a few patches, a couple of Sonic Screwdrivers, various Star Wars and Transformers figures and collectibles and so on.
But I don’t feel a need to have complete collections for every interest. Having one, maybe two copies of a single character is enough for me (with some minor exceptions). Even some of my “teams” are made up of figures from various toylines (like my Justice League includes a mix of DCAU figures, Batman movie figures and various other DC toylines that I acquired over the years).
In some cases, though, I may love a movie/series but not feel the need to own anything more than a DVD (if that).
It all depends how interested I am in the franchise, the item and if I can afford it. For instance, I’d love to get the Green/White Ranger Legacy Morpher offered at SDCC, but I can’t justify the cost. On the other hand, there are Power Rangers Samurai Mega Blocks toys in the clearance aisle at Walmart, but I’m simply not interested.
Yeah, I have a few things that catch my eye, like a Kingdom Come Green Lantern statue and a Hellboy: The Animated Series statue. Mostly I just like things that look cool or are of my absolute favorite characters.
I really like the look of a lot of the statues, but not the price tags.
I like to buy stuff that I can set on my desk at work, to show of some of my inner nerd. Right now, the only thing in a good price range and size that works for me is High Grade Gundam models. When I have time to build them, they are a lot of fun, plus when I’m done I have a highly articulate toy to stage warfare across my desk.
I really want some decent models or statues of DC characters that can sit on my desk and not look cheap, but don’t cost me a days salary.
Also, I buy T-shirts. I like ones that just have the hero’s logo. Which means I have nothing to show for my love of Swamp Thing but back issues. :<