NECA Gives More Updates On TMNT Products

[JayC]

NECA gave a number of updates today on their Twitter account on upcoming Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles products.

Of note they stated the upcoming Walmart exclusive 90's TMNT Movie Turtle 2-packs will not be available on the Walmart website. You will have to go into the physical stores to try and find them.

Some have noted that actor Elias Koteas who played Casey Jones in the 90's movies has publicly stated on Twitter that he is now open to having his likeness featured on an action figure. Randy Falk has previously stated that they actually sculpted an unmasked headsculpt for the Casey Jones movie figure featured in the current two pack, but could not use it due to likeness rights.

NECA today acknowledged that they were aware of Koteas change of heart about the use of his likeness, but a deal between the two parties had yet to be struck. They are hopeful it will happen and that we could see a unmasked figure released at some point.

Doesn't look like there will be any NYCC exclusives offered this year, especially if the convention is canceled.

For the wave 3 Target Exclusive 2-packs. It looks like they won't be releasing all three two packs at the same time. Previously NECA had given three different release dates for wave 3 (7/16, 8/6, 8/20), and it looks like they will be staggering the release of the three 2-packs in the wave during those dates for both online and in store.

The video game based versions of the Rock Soldiers are in question. NECA stated their fate is to be determined and they will be releasing the comic versions first.

The 2020 TMNT SDCC Exclusive set announced earlier today will only be made available here in the US on the Target website and physical stores. NECA's other SDCC exclusives for this year will be sold at Walmart stores and on the NECA website.

They plan to release links to the Target website for the TMNT SDCC exclusive set the day they go on sale.

The Raph/Casey 2-packs are still shipping to Walmart stores and they haven't even released half of their inventory yet.

Some of the other TMNT Walmart 2-packs MAY have their online orders handled by NECA directly. They are working on hammering out those details and things have yet to be determined. NECA also gave a cryptic answer about how the Tokka & Rahza 2-Pack might be released.

An announcement for the release of their Toon based diorama seen at Toy Fair is expected to be made during their online SDCC reveals.

NECA stated we could possibly see more Mirage based TMNT figures in the future.

[mako]

They wanna stagger them, ACES. That just means I won't have to drop almost 200 bucks in one sitting. As long as they are available on-line, I'm happy.

I just wish they could've told us WHO would be available WHEN.

[GoldBlade6]

Why couldn't NECA just do a Kickstarter or take pre-orders themselves?  Why are they giving Walmart a cut of their profit?  Moms and kids are NOT the ones buying this $#*! - collectors are the ones checking multiple times per day or week, collectively, that little random shelf of figures hidden away in the video game section at the back of the store to buy versions of characters from a movie that came out like 30 years ago.  Collectors are the ones ferreting out the unsearchable Walmart.com item page in advance of the indeterminate release date/time and scrambling to place an order all at the same time, usually in the middle of a work day (how convenient), until the page inevitably freezes or crashes with a sellout in seconds.  That's assuming any stock in store or online hasn't been immediately scooped up by bots or scalpers first.  Casual buyers are never seeing this product or getting any reasonable chance to actually acquire it when collectors have to fight tooth and nail for it, or pay 2-3x MSRP on eBay.  So, why even bother bringing this stuff to retail at all?  Retail: an old invention that is sick and dying.  If NECA has to placate the Walmart beast that demands fealty and exclusives, NECA couldn't offer less essential things?  Stupid repaints.  Go for it.  But all these first releases of key characters?  Not even just first to retail, like Hasbro will sometimes do.  How much less would NECA earn by selling its own exclusives on its website or through another online retailer?  Look at Super7 and McFarlane.  Grow a pair.  Figure it out.  Get a better attorney to renegotiate your licensing contracts with Playmates - whatever it takes - and start doing better.  This increasing amount of Walmart/Target exclusive stuff from every company is absurd.  There has to be a better way than this.  And not even to release an assortment of the 2-packs at once (to the extent possible)?  At least then there might be enough to last a few moments; it might prevent people, including scalpers, from being able to bankroll every set on the shelf on the same day and finally give more people a chance to at least get something.  No one should be expected to be visiting retail locations multiple times per week and traipsing all the way through every aisle to the back of the store in a #*@&ing pandemic to get this stuff.  Kudos to those with no qualms about doing so and risking the health and safety of themselves and those around them to buy toys - you're brave souls, or whatever you'd call that.  And the Rock Soldiers?  They're not going to peg warm in the minimal numbers this stuff is released in.  It's TMNT!  Put it on the shelf (or online) - whatever it is - and it will be gone.  What's the conundrum?  %^@&.  Cue the COVID deniers and NECA apologists...

[Batman1701]

So, I actually got ahold of a Casey/Raph two pack this weekend, and because I'm a toy customizer myself, and wasn't too terribly concerned about the risks, I did a little futzing around and pried the hockey mask off of Casey.  Some interesting notes:
<P>
1) I would not recommend doing this for anyone that does not have SERIOUS sculpting and repair skills.  The mask is VERY thin and brittle plastic, it cracked in multiple places.  I do have such repair skills, so I was able to reassemble it, but just fair warning, it is NOT easy to remove.
<P>
2) NECA isn't BSing: just like their Keaton Batman figures, they sculpted a full head under the mask, and they did put a pretty damn decent young Elias Koteas head on there!  Now, he does have grooves in his face (the mask has pegs to connect to his head), but they're on his cheeks and forehead, nowhere intrusive like on his nose or mouth or something, so again, if you're a good customizer, they are easily filled in, and with a full paint job, you end up with an excellent unmasked face!
<P>
3) The straps for the mask, however, are sculpted into the hair piece, so if you want that unmasked head, you're going to have to remove the full hair piece as well, and then find a new hair piece to put on the Elias Koteas head.  I used the hair from an old ToyBiz Strider Aragorn figure.  It doesn't have the same volume as the figure's original hair, but it does look kinda wet and stringy, like Casey did during his fight with Tatsu near the end of the movie, so with a little sculpting and some paint, it works just as well.
<P>
4) Then it was just a simple matter of reassembling the mask on the original hair piece, with a new face underneath (I used a random WWE figure head, grooves cut in as needed), and voila!  I got two heads for my new Casey, one masked and one unmasked!
<P>
I'll post pics of my results in the near future, but yeah . . . they do have a good movie Casey head sculpt, and if you got the skills and don't want to wait for a possible variant release, you can definitely build him yourself!

[mako]

7 hours ago, Mr_Scary92 said:

@GoldBlade6

Blame it on playmates for imposing restrictions to Neca on the sale of all the TMNT stuff.

You mean blame Playmates for protecting the master toy license they've held for nearly 30 years? Those B-----DS!

Seriously, you can't put this on Playmates. Neca was given their own niche to work in and within that land they are king. They can do what they want, when they want, how they want. If they screwed the pooch, that's on their own heads.

That being said, to Neca's credit, they're owning their mistakes and working to correct them. Unlike, say, Mattel who tended to very publicly lay blame on everyone BUT themselves while blatantly continuing their mistakes.

[TheGrimeyGhost]

Can't buy my movie TMNT online, eh?  Hmmm.  Makes my collecting laziness erupt in a flare up.

[InspectorZartan]

So in the middle of a pandemic where for the health and safety of everyone we are being encouraged (and in some regions instructed) to stay at home and avoid unnecessary trips out the decision is made that these products will not be available online and the only way to find them is for the customer to make a physical trip to the stores to look for them.  Add to that the fact that these things are so poorly stocked and so poorly distributed that it is likely to take multiple (ie daily) trips to multiple stores to actively hunt specifically for these things and even then the odds are extremely stacked against you finding them.  Really??? 
 

Pandemic or not the closest Walmart store to me in Los Angeles is over an hour away one direction In traffic so no way would I be spending 2 to 3 hours round trip each time hunting for these things particularly when there is such an extremely low low low probability of me actually finding them and an extremely likely probability that each attempt would be a wasted 2 hour effort.  So the second you say “physical Walmart stores only” I know that I am out on this TMNT movie line.  
 

And in addition to that I’m probably out on the Animated line too because despite the fact that pre-pandemic I was often checking multiple Target stores daily I not once came across Bebop and Rocksteady.  But now in the middle of the pandemic that’s not happening any more and now I’ve literally only been in a physical Target store twice since this whole thing began in March.  Thus finding these “in stores only” has gone from very unlikely to nearly impossible.  
 

So despite the fact that this was the line I was most excited about coming out of NYTF it appears as a result of this decision I am out.  I’m not sure where this decision to make it not have any online availability came from (is this a NECA call or a Walmart call?) but either way it would be a terrible call under ANY circumstances even at the best of times. It is a call that is worsened by the fact that these things are so poorly distributed across Walmart’s.  But worst of all add to that the fact that this call is coming in the middle of a health crisis where the mission statement is to avoid unnecessary trips into public venues and there has been a huge amount of social and economic suffering and sacrifice committed and enforced in an effort to prevent people from over exposing themselves in public places—and still in the middle of all of that the call is made of “physical Walmart stores only”???   Under these circumstances it is not only terrible call it is arguably extremely irresponsible, and really illustrates a strong disconnect and a strong lack of consideration and concern between a company and its customers.  

[Belmont13]

I was getting really excited about this line when they announced the Super Shredder and Tokka/Rahza 2 pack but I'm starting to get frustrated. This line is not even huge want of mine I just wanted some figures from a franchise I loved as a kid but I'm starting to wonder if it's worth the aggravation. 

[Lord_Scareglow]

please NECA just let me get my hands on a Casey Jones, Tokka & Rahzar, Super Shredder and make an April, and I'll walk away a happy man, asking for nothing else

but don't make me sell my soul and go to mordor to get them, after the great star alignment of the year 2060

[abnuggler]

Im hopefull the guys at neca will be able to talk things trough with Elias and be able to get the likeness rights so we can get an unmasked casey headsculpt (either as a pack in for a future figure set, or a reissue of Casey down the line, after all they have reissued the turtles 4 times now with minor changes)

[Lord_Scareglow]

9 minutes ago, abnuggler said:

Im hopefull the guys at neca will be able to talk things trough with Elias and be able to get the likeness rights so we can get an unmasked casey headsculpt (either as a pack in for a future figure set, or a reissue of Casey down the line, after all they have reissued the turtles 4 times now with minor changes)

I recently saw on I believe Randy's twitter, that Elias had a change of heart after seeing all of the fan chatter about his figure, and he appears to be now on board with providing his likeness to the figure, this makes me hope maybe a single boxed Casey Jones with alt unmasked head! I hope so

[abnuggler]

19 hours ago, Lord_Scareglow said:

I recently saw on I believe Randy's twitter, that Elias had a change of heart after seeing all of the fan chatter about his figure, and he appears to be now on board with providing his likeness to the figure, this makes me hope maybe a single boxed Casey Jones with alt unmasked head! I hope so

Yeah I saw that too, I think thats what JayC was refering to on the news, but as far as I know the guys from neca still want to do this but havent yet reache an agreement, hopefully they do and we get another casey down the line with both headsculpts

[Batman1701]

On 7/8/2020 at 7:25 AM, Batman1701 said:

I'll post pics of my results in the near future, but yeah . . . they do have a good movie Casey head sculpt, and if you got the skills and don't want to wait for a possible variant release, you can definitely build him yourself!

So, as promised, I finally got around to photographing my Casey Jones "Elias Koteas" head mod.  Again, this is the actual headsculpt provided by NECA, underneath his glued-on mask.  All I did was fill in the peg holes, give him a new hair piece, and paint.  And, I might add, I think I did an AMAZING job, he turned out WAY better than I expected! (My crappy photography notwithstanding. *LOL*) In person, he ALMOST looks like a Hasbro photo-real face paintjob!