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HasLab Sail Barge Demo And Q&A

Posted by Chris on 03/22/18 at 04:00 PM Category: HasLab
We had the honor of participating in a video teleconference with Hasbro that served as as demo and Q&A session for the HasLab Vintage Collection Sail Barge. We were joined be fellow fan sites Jedi Temple Archives and Star Wars Action News. Other sites participated in similar sessions. I implore you to read this entire article. There is a wealth of information. I also ask you to share as much as possible. The gallery at the end is from screen grabs of the video teleconference, so the quality of the images is commensurate with my broadband capability.

Disclaimer:The following answers are paraphrases from hand written notes. Any inaccuracies in Hasbro's answers are to be attributed to unintentional misquoting by Bantha Skull and not attributable to Hasbro themselves.

Bantha Skull Questions:


What is your ideal rate for HasLab Star Wars campaigns?

One per year


So that collectors have time to budget, is there a way to work with fan sites to prepare the collecting landscape for big ticket items without spilling the beans on the specifics of that item?

They've gained a lot of insight with the Sail Barge campaign and can take that in consideration for future campaigns.


Will the success/fail of the Sail Barge be evaluated in a vacuum, or could it impact decisions with the VIntage Collection.

It will not impact the mainline Vintage Collection. It may inform future "left field" HasLab campaigns. Hasbro understands that Jabba’s Sail Barge is a very special item for a special audience. They would never allow this campaign’s performance to influence their plans for the mainline.


Jedi Temple Archives Questions:

How will Hasbro handle broken or missing parts?

Everything will be handled through their standard methods via Hasbro.com (https://www.hasbro.com/en-us/customer-service/) or by calling (800) 255-5516.


Will Hasbro keep #backthebarge buyers appraised during the waiting period until delivery?

Yes


Why wasn’t some form of monthly payment plan offered for Jabba’s Sail Barge? Is this something possible for future campaigns?

This was Hasbro’s first HasLab project and they explained that they are learning things daily from it. They hope to take all feedback garnered from this campaign and apply it to future HasLab offerings.


Is the included Jabba The Hutt an all-new figure? It looks very similar to the Jabba’s Rancor Pit Jabba The Hutt, yet different at the same time.

Mark Boudreaux confirmed it’s the same sculpt as The Black Series [Phase II] Jabba’s Rancor Pit figure. But Hasbro has gone “all out” with the deco this time to give him the most realistic paint job possible.


Star Wars Action News Questions:


Disclaimer:The following questions are paraphrasing on the part of Bantha Skull. They are not direct quotes from Star Wars Action News. Any misquoting of SWAN is an unintentional mistake on the part of Bantha Skull:

Could you give clarification on whether or not the Sail Barge will ever be sold at retail? The HasLab FAQ and the Hasbro Pulse Q&A appear to be contradictory.

For the US and Canada, this HasLab campaign will be the only way to purchase the Sail Barge. It will not be available via traditional retail. If the campaign reaches the 5,000 goal, Hasbro may look at using traditional retail options to deliver the Sail Barge to international customers.


If the Sail Barge reaches a hypothetical backing of 6,000, is it safe to say that the Yak Face figure will be the rarest modern carded figure in history?

I think so. Certainly less than the levels for SDCC exclusives.


Editor's note: This is huge, folks. We can easily spitball the secondary market value for the POTF Yak Face now. We will cover this more in depth in a separate feature tomorrow. #backthebarge Don't be left out on this.

Is the campaign performing to your expectations to this point?

Yes. It's following the trajectory we anticipated.


Other important details:

  • The door to the prison cell opens and closes. There will be two metal chains with different sized shackles so you can imprison your other figures with that unfortunate Ithorian. There is a trap door from the deck that leads directly to the prison.
  • The weapons in the armory are decorations and cannot be removed, but there is a horned rack in the armory where you can add your own vibro axes and vibro blades.
  • The plan is for the carded Yak Face figure to be placed inside the TVC box for the Sail Barge at this time.
  • The microphone with which Jabba instructs Paghetti Rook to "put him in" will be on an extension cord so Jabba can hold it in his meaty paw.
  • Jabba's dais can slide left and right to give optimal display options.
  • With the exception of two pegs around the deck cannon, foot pegs have been eliminated as a conscious decision. It would distract from the aesthetic (editor's note: heartily agree) and also pigeon hole the display configurations (editor's note: here here).
  • As you traverse from the prison cell at the bow of the barge to the lounge at the stern, the appointments become more and more refined. Whereas the lounge is luxurious, the bow is utilitarian in the design and simulated with the materials depicted. Metals toward the bow and woods toward the stern.
  • Packaging is being taken very seriously. The packaging team has been explicitly challenged to ensure that both the contents and the TVC box arrive to you as unblemished as possible. The TVC box will be snuggly surrounded by an inch of padding (assume 1/2" on each side) in all three dimensions. This will both ensure that the TVC box does not slide around during shipment as well as protect it against damage. The contents inside the TVC box will be in trays that slide out so that even the unboxing plays into the overall experience. Folks, with this kind of attention to detail we are really bridging the gap between "toy" and high end collectible. Sideshow fans should definitely be getting in on this.
  • Paul from Jedi Temple Archives made an outstanding suggestion. He suggested that Hasbro does not tape the TVC box shut. Brilliant! This way openers can take the Sail Barge out of the package without ruining the "MISB" sanctity of the collectible. I may have misinterpreted, but appears this will be done.
  • One final huge take away: THE RAILINGS ARE CURRENTLY BEING RETOOLED SO THAT THEY WILL ACCOMMODATE THE RAIL CANNON THAT CAME WITH THE TBS VIZAM FIGURE AND THE TLC NIKTO GUNNER (NYSAD). It will still come with the two rail cannons currently shown, which can be moved to six positions around the barge.


Some final editorializing before the screen grabs from the video conference. There is absolutely zero question that this is the ultimate passion project and a labor of love by Steve Evans, Joe Ninivaggi, and, most especially, legendary toy designer Mark Boudreaux. It is abundantly clear that this is a master work from a master artisan. There is no detail that was not agonized over. Every single nook and cranny was considered. The passion is palpable. I earlier said that this bridges the line between toy and high end collectible. It also verges on fine art. It would be an unbearable sin against the creative universe if the HasLab Vintage Collection Sail Barge does not go into production.



Update: Starting at image 14, the images are graciously supplied from Litzky PR.


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