I can't wait for this set, but looking at the back of the package, I am the only person unhappy to see the Justice Lords three pack AGAIN?

Yeah gods, how many times can they shovel these repaints on us? I'd rather see the "cyber" Batman, Superman and a repaint of Wonder Woman than these figures. The Batman/Superman/Martian Manhunter pack is pretty bad too but at least is different than the "Trinity" set we've been swimming in the past few months. What happened to the Fire and Ice set? Why don't they just re-issue that instead? Or the Stargirl/Parasite set that everyone's been moaning that they can't find? Or even better, a Stargirl, Volcana, some other girl character (Cheetah) set?

If Mattel REALLY cares about us who keep continually buying their product even when there's nothing new on the shelves, they'd make a three pack of their most customizing friendly characters: Waverider, Elongated Man and Amazo!

They can't re-issue Fire and Ice when they haven't been issued a first time.

I don't know why we're getting only one new figure among four 3-packs. Why do we need 2 Batman-Superman packs? The next wave will be more of the same; Fire and Ice in one 3-pack, and then more rehash 3-packs (including at least the upcoming Flash, Fate & Starman 3-pack). But this spacing out is to be expected since Fire, Ice, Grodd and Mr. Miracle are the only new figures they have ready at this point.

Mommies buy Supes and Bats for little timmy

I'm not so bothered by the re-releasing of those 3 packs.

I can get the new figures and all the moms can get the "Trinity" packs. Plus I know of several collectors who are just "getting started" so for them packs like Flash/Starman/Dr. Fate and Bat/Supes/MM, etc. are just what they are looking for to help flush out their collections.

Do I want more, more, more NEW fiugres? Absolutely! But I have no problems with what is being offered for the end of this year.


oh, yeah, by the way...
I Can't believe I am getting GRODD soon!
Yee-Hah!

Yeah, but how many Supes and Bats figures does little Timmy need?

It only bothers me if they are overpacked in the cases. If each case has one old pack for every two packs with a new figure (as an example) I don't see the harm. Even if you're the type who buys by the case online, you can always resell them on eBay or return them to a store for credit.

JLU is a kids line that collectors flocked to. The same items just keep coming out and keep coming out in new packages.

Very old school thinking, the way toy lines were in the seventies and eighties.

Fanboys hate it though because the "rare" items they have keep showing up and every other character is Batman or Superman.

VC9k

my only complaint is the number of Zatanna/Shining Knight packs I see everywhere. While its nice they repacked some thinks on purple cards, this was not one of the ones we needed.

Someone correct me if I am wrong--but these figs and lineups were planned out last year. Before Toy Guru/ Boy Wonder, started telling us about the changes they had in mind: making the line more collector friendly, and correcting the distribution issues that we have complained about. If this is the case, then these packs/wave still reflect their old thinking about this line (that its "just" a discount line, that the target audience was moms who are buying for kids, with a sprinkling of new fig for collectors).

So there are a couple of months left for us to be unsatisfied--but no real reason to complain until we see the lineups for 2008 (right?)

I second what Arsenio has said and also bnjmnrlyr is onto something as there are many who are just getting into the line. Some of the re-releases help everyone else get caught up.

I'm not complaining that it isn't great that new fans can get involved in the line (heck I even bought the TRU 7 pack to support that thinking) but what I don't get is why sub-characters like the Justice Lord gets three releases within one year but characters that many collectors are having trouble finding haven't been rereleased yet?

exactly, theres not enough moms to buy all the trinity packs mattel makes

I agree with this, but the Justice Lords are a way to re-release the Trinity without it looking like the other peg clogging figures. In all honesty only 2 sets are truly less abundant then the rest, Stargirl/PArisite and Volcana. I feel all 3 of those figures will make a re-appearance at some point.

OK, maybe EVERYONE is missing my point.

I'm not against re-packs in general.

I'm not against collectors "late to the game" being able to catch up.

I'm all for the "trinity" being available for the entire life of the line - it's what Kenner did for the original 12 Star Wars characters and I think it's a fine idea.

What I AM opposed to it the releasing of the same character repacks within a short time span. Cases in point:

Zatanna, Batman, Shining Knight. Available on the Orange card at the beginning of this year. When the change came to Purple cards, this was one of the first sets released on the new packaging. In addition, all three characters are available as singles as well. In my neighborhood (all of the LA/Ventura country line) you can walk into almost any Target, Kmart or TRU and find any one of these characters. From one point of view, that's great, but I don't see anyone banging down the doors for these characters and yet they've been readily available for almost the entire year.

Justice Lords. Although released late last year, stock on the Orange cards is STILL hanging on the pegs in my neck of the woods. Figures were rereleased with the Target Red Doomsday (OK, I acknowledge that it's an exclusive) but now it looks like these three will be offered again on the Purple card (according to the back of the Grodd set) - these are definately characters that no one is "going back to the well" to get so why they're being offered again so soon is a mystery.

Vigilante 3 pack. When this 3 pack first started to show up, the single card was released at the same time. Usually the single card has an accessory worth getting - hence the wait or a "double dip" (which I hate doing BTW) but since the 3 pack was on the shelf at exactly the same time, I completely avoided the 3 pack driving me towards the lowered priced product. I found it very strange that two packaged versions of this pretty obscure character was available at the same time. I can understand if it were Batman or Superman, but then again, the market has gotten us buyers used to this oversaturation.

So, anyone care to disagree or point me towards understanding of this logic?

The only point I would contend with is availability. It is impossible to find the Justice Lords at this point in Chicago (except for in the new Red D-Day pack). I think it depends on location. Since distribution has previously been spotty I think certain locales get a lot of a certain wave and less of others. I could not find the 2nd GL 3 pack for MONTHS, while others reported it in abundance. Hopefully these are issues Mattel has worked out with their new strategy toward the line. But that brings up the question "When does the new strategy actually take hold?".