Is POTF2 Entering Its “Collectibility” Phase?

The collectibility of the vintage Kenner line and the modern (post 1995) line operate under two completely separate market dynamics. Nostalgia and scarcity are the driving forces for the classic line. Specifically, that would be nostalgia for one's childhood. The Kenner figures are objectively terrible compared to modern Vintage Collection figures, but that has absolutely zero impact on their desirability. On the flip side, utility typically governs value for the modern line. Once a better version comes along, it guts the value of the previous iteration.

It then follows that the worst version would be the least valuable to the market (again as a general rule of thumb). With six points of "flat plane" articulation, and ridiculous proportions, POTF2 was the worst of the worst both in terms of form and function. As a result, POTF2 is often worth the least in the modern line, but this lack of utility wasn't the only limiting factor in their initial collectibility.

In terms of production, the vintage Kenner line was not rare. Millions of each figure were made, but they were mostly seen as toys during their era. As such, high grade samples weren't preserved. This leads to shortages today, and the corresponding insane values (the Jeff Jacob's AFA 85 unpunched 21-back Fett is already bid up to over $8,000 with 15 days to go). Conversely, everyone was hoarding sealed samples of POTF2 figures during the mid-nineties, and I'm not just talking about collectors. Parents were socking them away to pay for their children’s college tuition (this isn't hyperbole). As a result, the secondary market became glutted with carded samples, which further suppressed the value of POTF2 figures as they became obsolete.

Isn't this always the pattern? Something that wasn't originally thought of as a collectible becomes collected. Because those things were not curated as a collectible, high grade samples are scarce and become highly valuable. Then speculators gobble up the new merchandise, which is mass produced and very common, and preserve it as an investment. The market is eventually glutted, and crashes. This has happened with baseball cards, comics, and toys. It's always the way.

Another reason that POTF2 hasn't been heavily collected is that many of us collected it as an adult. Thirty year olds don't typically feel nostalgia for their twenties, so that draw didn't initially kick in. For those that collected POTF2 as kids, they never had the line taken away (2015 - 2017 not withstanding), so it's initially hard to see that as something exclusive to childhood, the way the Kenner line was for us olds. Still, I have heard millennials starting to romanticize the line. Also, while thirty year olds might not be nostalgic for their twenties, collectors a decade or two down the road might be (raises hand).

I'm kind of wishing I had a complete, high grade set of at least the orange cards. Here's the rub. While perfectly preserved samples were widely available for several years, they're starting to dry up a little bit. People don't tend to curate "worthless" things. Those future college tuitions have been neglected in storage, or sold off to comic/collectible shops where they've sat getting dog eared and faded. A quick check of Ebay shows only 27 of the orange (red?) carded Boba Fetts, and the less expensive options show clear signs of "shelf wear". Meanwhile, high grade samples appear to push toward $30.

Amazingly, POTF2 turns 30 years old this year. That's absolutely astounding. When it debuted in 1995, the classic Kenner line was only seventeen years old having debuted in 1978, and was already highly collectible. Now that POTF2 is almost twice that age, it might finally become a collectible. I think the combination of burgeoning nostalgia and years of neglected curation say, “yes”, at least for high grade carded samples.

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