A huge thanks has to go out to too many people to mention here…I put out a request for some Excel help last week in order to try and decipher the hundreds of write in’s that were supplied in Round One of the Concept Case survey.
I got almost two dozen offers of assistance, which absolutely blew me away. Matt from the Awesome Toy Blog did some great formatting and data gathering… ImpHolocron on Twitter came through as well… in the end, though, my man Trazz from HissTank.com took all of the intel together and compiled a pair of insane spreadsheets.
Who ever thought anyone would use the term “insane spreadsheets” to describe anything?
Trazz not only compiled a spreadsheet for figures and for vehicles, but actually charted the responses to measure a ratio of the most requested figures and vehicles via write in votes. Crazy.
I’ve attached the two spreadsheets here. The spreadsheets have multiple tabs, including a tab which has every single write in vote, but then also some compiled answers as well. The figures chart absolutely blew me away, showing that aside from Cobra “Viper” troopers of various ilk, Gung Ho seems to be far away the most requested character. That comes as no surprise.
Feel free to download the spreadsheets from this post and peruse them at your leisure. Excellent insight. Keep in mind that this isn’t anything that was fully analyzed by teams of professionals…it was essentially two guys (Trazz and myself, but mostly Trazz) who gathered this together and formatted it. I’m sure it’s not perfect, but it is very cool, nonetheless.
I cannot thank the numerous volunteers enough for pitching in with offers to help. Thank you ALL.
Over on JoeDeclassified, Gyre-Viper has posted a terrific interview with Greg Berndston, who was a long time designer for Hasbro and worked intimately with the G.I. Joe brand during it’s formative years.
They explore a lot of great topics, and it is definitely worth a read. Stuff like this is really the cool “secret world” of G.I. Joe that not many modern collectors appreciate, but really demonstrates some of the great building blocks of the brand as we know it.
Getting down to the nitty gritty, which is where you’ll find this particular figure on most people’s want lists. To be honest, if I had been asked a month ago what my most wanted figure would be, this guy would be pretty much have hit the top of the list without any competition.
Well, when Hasbro unveiled the Concept Case at this year’s G.I. Joe Convention suddenly there was a LOT of competition. Vehicles, figures, ideas… it almost relegated this guy to the “been there, done that” pile. But not quite.
One close up look at this figure will tell you that even for folks who don’t really care for the character are still getting a very good G.I. Joe toy.
3 – G.I. Joe: 30th Anniversary Kwinn
Of course one might ask, among a team of heavily armored, heavily equipped, future tech sporting super-soldiers, where does an Eskimo with shorts, a khaki shirt, and a weasel skull necklace fit in? That question has obviously been asked a lot, especially by Hasbro themselves as this poor guy (who is a fully tooled and ready for release figure) still has not gotten an opportunity to be released yet.
I think Hasbro pushed fans near the breaking point when they actually displayed him in a case full of unused (and perhaps never-to-be-used) concepts, but based on conversations with Hasbro at JoeCon, I think chances of Kwinn being released are probably around 85 – 90%. This is not a guy you need to worry about never getting your hands on. Regardless, he still stands proud pretty close to the top of my Top Ten list. Admittedly, though, based on responses I’m seeing from the Concept Case survey, I am in the minority for putting him this far back, which should be good news for all of you Kwinn fans out there.
Just wanted to drop a line to remind folks that the Concept Case Survey is still rolling along, and Round 1 will end Friday, July 20th. Responses from Round 1 will be tabulated and I will post the actual SurveyMonkey charting to ensure 100% transparency.
Based on those results, I will set up Round 2 of the Survey to kick off, most likely next Monday, where the winners of Round 1 can face off against each other to get an idea of what the fans want!
Meanwhile, propaganda has started appearing online…the political machine is already at work. Ladies and gentlemen…Joe fans…I encourage you to vote with your hearts. But if you’re easily swayed…
Please be aware, as a neutral party, I believe in equal opportunity…if you have a candidate you want to endorse, find a creative way to express that, and let me know!
Along with the previews this morning, IDW also made available their solicitations for October, 2012, including a full compliment of G.I. Joe titles. We see the fourth (and final) issue of the Danger Girl/G.I. Joe crossover as well as new issues of Cobra, G.I. Joe, Snake Eyes and Storm Shadow, and of course G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero. The whole Target: Snake Eyes initiative kicks off this month as well, which actually excites me, especially if it can approach the levels of coolness we got with Cobra Command.
Of course, these releases are hitting in “Oktober” as well… a theme you will quickly recognize in the titles below.
Good stuff all around. Click the Read the Rest of the Story link below for the full list.
