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The One Ring Forums: Tolkien Topics: Gaming & Collecting:
Bridge Smauglette, er Smaug action figure on sale 40% at Hobbit Shop right now

Avandel
Half-elven


Feb 21 2015, 5:46pm

Post #1 of 6 (2301 views)
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Bridge Smauglette, er Smaug action figure on sale 40% at Hobbit Shop right now Can't Post

http://www.hobbitshop.com/...FANFAVORITESSALEhome

I had wanted this. When it was first announced, I had visions of this big Smaug figure perched on the top of a bookcase, wings spread, neck arched. But I talked myself out of it, thinking I would pick it it up sometime....'coz it wasn't CHEAP.

Fast forward and I trip over this Hobbit Shop sale - wow, 40% off! But I do a review search. Uh-oh...

http://thefwoosh.com/...bit-smaug-the-dragon

And there are a few You Tube reviews.

Don't know whether to laugh or cry. Because, basically, it seems folks have been paying close to $100 - or at least they WERE - for a "mini-Smaug". The images re these reviews speak for themselves. Not to mention the product itself seems to have some tail problems.

I'm not a figure collector, I just pick up random stuff, here and there, especially on sale. So for me, tho I would personally, from the looks of things, price this figure at $25 or so, if that, seeing as it is a SMAUGLETTE, I winced, and ordered it anyway on saleCool.

Tho I still think I am paying too much, but it will (I hope) be amusing on a bookshelf with its 22" wingspan! Cool Maybe with the Erebor bookends - I'll have to watch DOS again and get some size comparisons. (Perhaps one day it will be even cheaper, but supposedly not that many were ever made.)

Or I could stick this Smaug against my 6" Bridge Thorin figure (the only one like this I own) and LOL Thorin will look like he has a baby Smaug for a pet.CrazyLaugh

Re the angry comments around the 'net - I don't blame people. And I think the touted "large action figure Smaug" would have sold well, if it had been what it was marketed as - there are dragon collectors, GOT collectors, everyone loves dragons. This is a shame. I just hope the one I receive isn't a return and/or has a tail that stays on.UnimpressedUnimpressed


Otaku-sempai
Immortal


Feb 21 2015, 6:58pm

Post #2 of 6 (2277 views)
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Yeah... [In reply to] Can't Post

The Bridge Direct line of Hobbit figures (and in particular the retail response to it) has been a disappointment from the get-go. It does look like this figure might be worth the 40% discounted price, if it can still be had.

"At the end of the journey, all men think that their youth was Arcadia..." - Phantom F. Harlock


Avandel
Half-elven


Feb 21 2015, 7:41pm

Post #3 of 6 (2311 views)
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To me it had the "serpent quality" the movie Smaug has, so I ordered! [In reply to] Can't Post

I loved these film's depiction of Smaug - the cat-like horns that rise and fall, his expressiveness, the powerful gracefulness - in time I understood what Richard Armitage meant by Smaug being beautiful.

Your comment made me feel better about spending that much on a SMALL figure. There are some furious reviews out there. Still, from the looks of things (which is why I ordered on sale) the detail is there, and for being on a bookshelf for me that's fine (or I might amuse myself by hanging the figure from the ceiling in a flight pose). I loved BOFA's opening sequence and this figure reminds me of that.

No way I can do WETA's full size Smaug. Maybe a Smauglette, one day.

This is a positive review, but there are some blistering comments from the disappointed out there:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0TPPzdG7z7k

I would have made more effort with the Bridge figures, but evidently they didn't even finish all the dwarves!FrownFrownFrown


demnation
Rohan

Feb 24 2015, 10:20pm

Post #4 of 6 (2239 views)
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Now I wish I would have waited [In reply to] Can't Post

This tiny Smaug, and the whole Hobbit line in general, have been a massive disappointment. Especially for someone like me, who only buys action figures because I can't afford all those nice statues that Weta makes. So yeah, as basically my only chance to have a Smaug it was pretty disappointing. The funny thing is is that the other Hobbit figures that were released were actually quite good and had promise. Oh well.

"It is not our part to master all the tides of the world, but to do what is in us for the succour of those years wherein we are set, uprooting the evil in the fields that we know, so that those who live after may have clean earth to till. What weather they shall have is not ours to rule." Gandalf, "The Last Debate."


Avandel
Half-elven


Feb 25 2015, 5:14pm

Post #5 of 6 (2224 views)
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But we just don't know! re waiting on collectibles [In reply to] Can't Post

I didn't even know about the size issues re Smaug - at the time, I just couldn't swing the money and ironically thought it would be too big to deal with easily, maybe. I just tripped over the Hobbit Shop/WB sale. It's still being sold full price and higher other places.

And they never made that many of these. Agree tho, Bridge should have at least finished the line so people could have a complete figure set. Another maddening thing to me is that out of all the popular films, Marvel, Disney, etc., there seem to be a lot of companies making things. But not Hobbit stuff.

I also can't afford pricey collectibles, usually. Every now and then. Like I would love WETA's Erebor sculpt but I just can't. Best I could do is get some polymer clay and try to do my own - LOL it would take years.


Avandel
Half-elven


Feb 26 2015, 5:15pm

Post #6 of 6 (2197 views)
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PS. to my own post - the Bridge Direct Smaug figure review [In reply to] Can't Post

My new "Smauglette" arrived intact. I am not unhappy, thanks to other reviews I more or less knew what I would received.

IMO it's not THAT bad, tho I can see how angry folks could be if they expected something larger. But as a plastic? resin? vinyl? TOY as others have described:

1)At this scale and price point, the sculpt IMO is pretty good. As others have mentioned, the head is a bit small, but lots of good detail - this IS definitely Smaug, and someone paid attention to the film re the sculpt. The paint - I wouldn't call outstanding, but IMO it isn't bad either, at this price point. An overall dark brick red color with washes of dark and paler weathering. I might brighten the eyes with some gold paint one day, but IMO the paint is fine.

2)So far, my tail seems reasonably firm. I warmed the tail in hot water for a bit and then jammed it firmly on the ball joint of the body and let cool. So far, so good. With a jointed neck and a jaw that can open, for a toy it has a bit of expressiveness. You can't arch the neck straight vertical as there is a neck scale in the way, but I can curve the neck nicely and turn the head.

3) Where this figure falls off IMO is probably common to less expensive toys - the plastic ridged ball joints of the body aren't strong enough to hold the wings in position well. While the materials are sturdy, I would say the inadequate strength of the plastic joints make this something to handle with some care. Also, the "wired" tail doesn't have a wire all the way to the tip, so I couldn't bend the tail into a nice graceful shape.

Overall, for a shelf and mild handling, at this SALE price point, it's fine. Even the tiny Bard - which isn't screen accurate - is fine, IMO. This definitely isn't a $70 thing, it's a $25-35 thing. I don't regret the purchase for what I want it for, from a foot away the shape is SO "Smaug". A shame as w. a few tweaks this figure had real potential, it definitely is a dragon named Smaug. Finally, IMO, it's not THAT tiny. A good size to perch on a shelf w. those wings - buy on sale as a bit of memorabilia!Cool

 
 

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