From http://www.signonsandiego.com/uniontrib/20050822/news_1n22region.html

August 22, 2005

Fake action figures seized by L.A. cops

LOS ANGELES – Police seized 120,000 counterfeit Superman, Batman and Spider-Man action figures from a downtown warehouse yesterday, officials said.

The stash of fake action figures was valued at about $500,000, said the Los Angeles Police Department.

Police arrested a woman after they discovered the miniature comic book heroes in a warehouse early yesterday morning.

Associated Press

Mike
(WTF?? Dan, Jason, do you guys know anything about this? Where did these alleged counterfeiters get the molds?)

I'd definatly be interested in hearing the story behind this....

Man, I want some of that bootleg stuff!

I DON'T want any of the bootleg stuff! That kind of crap just causes the manufacturers to raise prices to cover losses and those hikes get passed along to us...

I would like to hear more about this. We often hear about the bootleg fashions, dvds and games, but not toys. I suspect there is more of this than we are aware of. A half a million dollars is some serious money. And it seems that both ToyBiz and Mattel were being ripped off.

Any reaction from China yet?

I wonder what kind they were... .. . Interesting

No Wolverine???

That's usually true only for apparel and electronics.

Most action figure toy bootlegs are a far cry from the originals nowadays. Crap casting, lousy stickers, baaaaaad paint jobs... even the best plush and gashapon bootlegs are easily identified.

I do buy bootlegs, but I buy them for novelty's sake. Or if the real one isn't available for purchase (still want a Wobbafett plush, dammit!)