It's hilarious how affordable Star Wars toys from the 90s and early 00s are. You can easily get Phantom Menace and Power of the Force figures sealed for 10$ each
Where I lived no store did a midnight release. The store that opened the earliest with them was K-Mart at 7 AM, and I was there along with a massive mob of people. Star Wars will never ever have this kind of passion again. And yeah; we ALL bought Darth Maul thinking he was gonna make us big money one day. Right now it's still worth its original retail.
I remember getting as many as I could and then going to see the midnight showing and then going around to every store and getting even more . I've still got them all in package and extras out of package. Plus episode 2 and 3 figures .
Yeah.we thought anything star wars is gold.kinda like old baseball cards.as kids we thought theyre gold because it is what it is..but its the scarcity and demand thats valuable..they over produced figures since ep.1.they wont be scarce.ever
Hahaha, that’s so cool that you got to see yourself in this clip. It’s immortalized in history now! I was really young when The Phantom Menace came out - it was actually my earliest movie theater memory - so naturally it has a special place in my heart lol. So, of the toys you bought, do you still have the originals sealed in the box? Did you enjoy TPM when it came out or was disappointed? What’s your opinion on the state of Star Wars today 25 years later?
Well! Let's take 'em in order. I don't keep toys in package so all my Episode I toys are loose. That said, I still have them all, with the exception of maybe a couple of the Battle Droid variations. I did like the Phantom Menace! I grew up on the original trilogy, so TPM felt like a promise that was made to me when I was a child that was paid off when I was an adult. I was also in film school at the time, so the stuff George was doing to advance the technology of film was very exciting for me. And now it's 25 years later and I still love Star Wars and I am very excited about what we're hearing about the direction of the Rey movies!
@ That’s awesome! Thanks for the reply! It’s great to see lifelong fans remain lifelong fans after the many schisms the fandom has endured. May the Force be with you, my friend!
I missed out on the original midnight madness events (didn’t get into Star Wars till like 2009) but I did get to attend the last few they held at Toysrus and Walmart before they stopped doing it. Despite people not liking the sequels, the last couple midnight madness Star Wars events TRU did for episode 7 and 8 was so much fun. Standing there in line and chatting it up with the other fans and waiting for the new figs to drop and see the new characters was incredibly fun. It really was the end of an era at that point. Nowadays, you can never find new figures on the pegs like there were at that point.
This would never happen now, they go up for pre-order several months sometimes a year in advance and if you don't put your order in on certain figures or waves, finding one in stores (or online when they release) is next to impossible. The guy at the beginning is correct though, scalpers are still snatching up sought after figures only now they put them up for sale hours later at 2-3x the price. Collecting action figures in 2024 is stressful and a giant pain in the ass. I miss the 80's when you just went to the toy isle and got what you got, you didn't know what was available or when they'd be released until near Christmas when you got the Toy Catalogs for Toys-R-Us and Sears.
I never had any issues finding new figures when Toysrus was in business. And they had sales frequently, so I got really good deals on figs there. Once they shut down, collecting took a major hit that I don’t think it ever fully recovered from. The shelves were always plentiful and there wasn’t a shortage of what you were looking for. It’s the complete opposite nowadays.
In 1999 the Darth Maul Action Figure was $7. In 2024 inflation that would be $13.5 Your lucky to sell a Darth Maul 1999 action figure for $18. Thats a $5 Profit.
I think everyone knew secretly that new toy lines could never replace the old vintage lines. Although TPM action figures looked far more better than POTF2 figures from the 90's. I sold all these figures in one batch with no loss at all because I once obtained them for low outlet prices at that time. Everybody believed that the new generation action figures would become more worth in time, but history told us that this is not the case. Today you see some raising prices with TVC style action figures and some vehicles. But it is not big booming like the vintage stuff. Oh well, don't put your investment money into SW figures, you better buy Lego.
I can see how people got there, though. My generation had watched the original POTF wave get clearanced at K-Mart for $0.99 a pop and then turn up on convention floors for hundreds of dollars. There was no way that was going to happen again with something as mass-produced as the Episode I line, but I understand the delusion 😂
I did go out to a Toys R Us for the midnight (or maybe it was 9pm) release of the Rise of Skywalker toys. I think there were like... seven of us there?
Wholesome interactions all around! 🤣🤣🤣
"These are gonna put my kids through college!"
that entire cart full coulden't buy you a steak dinner at apple bees now........
It's hilarious how affordable Star Wars toys from the 90s and early 00s are.
You can easily get Phantom Menace and Power of the Force figures sealed for 10$ each
@@YamiAtomsk but common ps1/dreamcast games from that era are commanding hundreds of dollars now. these guys should of been investing in sony and sega
Where I lived no store did a midnight release. The store that opened the earliest with them was K-Mart at 7 AM, and I was there along with a massive mob of people. Star Wars will never ever have this kind of passion again. And yeah; we ALL bought Darth Maul thinking he was gonna make us big money one day. Right now it's still worth its original retail.
I remember getting as many as I could and then going to see the midnight showing and then going around to every store and getting even more . I've still got them all in package and extras out of package. Plus episode 2 and 3 figures .
I remember walmart at midnight. A huge mob descended on the merch just like this vid haha
Only to be found at a yard sale 20 years later lol 😂
you spelt garbage bin wrong
@ true lol 😂
If they only knew!!! Three months later, these toys would be in the discount bins!!!🙄
I was 7 when I got to experience the marketing of the phantom menace everywhere you went was star wars
after the films release they all ended up a landfill.
Yup I did that too, I pretty much give them to nephews over the years. Now I am collecting my old school G.I Joes, man child with adult money lol!
Brilliant! Haha. Wish I was there.
Figures came out they don't understand how many were produced😅 still today in 2024 you can go to a yard sale in pick them up for like 3 to 5 bucks
In 2021 i got almost the full collection of episode 1 figure for 100$ sealed i miss like 8 figure maybe !!!
Crazy .
Awesome! I was on the news twice for midnight madness for the prequels. lol.
There are many clips of me in line at the York Theatre, too...
they should of been buying ps1,n64 games instead. worth a lot more than these toys ever will be . you can't even give these figures away now....
The first scalpers
Glad I wasn’t buying that stuff, but I remember all the buzz around episode 1.
I have over 500 dollars worth of first run Phantom Menace actions figures, still on cards, and they ain't worth squat.
They’re worth a lot to you 🤛🏻
@ Not really...
The boxed véhicules sell well ( i sold them during covid ) but the figures.....it s a mess ! 3 bucks but Big except sio bible and the blue R2
That Darth Maul 1999 Action figure is now worth $18
Yeah.we thought anything star wars is gold.kinda like old baseball cards.as kids we thought theyre gold because it is what it is..but its the scarcity and demand thats valuable..they over produced figures since ep.1.they wont be scarce.ever
Back when ebay reselling was still new.
Hahaha, that’s so cool that you got to see yourself in this clip. It’s immortalized in history now!
I was really young when The Phantom Menace came out - it was actually my earliest movie theater memory - so naturally it has a special place in my heart lol.
So, of the toys you bought, do you still have the originals sealed in the box? Did you enjoy TPM when it came out or was disappointed? What’s your opinion on the state of Star Wars today 25 years later?
Well! Let's take 'em in order.
I don't keep toys in package so all my Episode I toys are loose. That said, I still have them all, with the exception of maybe a couple of the Battle Droid variations.
I did like the Phantom Menace! I grew up on the original trilogy, so TPM felt like a promise that was made to me when I was a child that was paid off when I was an adult. I was also in film school at the time, so the stuff George was doing to advance the technology of film was very exciting for me.
And now it's 25 years later and I still love Star Wars and I am very excited about what we're hearing about the direction of the Rey movies!
@ That’s awesome! Thanks for the reply! It’s great to see lifelong fans remain lifelong fans after the many schisms the fandom has endured. May the Force be with you, my friend!
I missed out on the original midnight madness events (didn’t get into Star Wars till like 2009) but I did get to attend the last few they held at Toysrus and Walmart before they stopped doing it. Despite people not liking the sequels, the last couple midnight madness Star Wars events TRU did for episode 7 and 8 was so much fun. Standing there in line and chatting it up with the other fans and waiting for the new figs to drop and see the new characters was incredibly fun. It really was the end of an era at that point. Nowadays, you can never find new figures on the pegs like there were at that point.
This would never happen now, they go up for pre-order several months sometimes a year in advance and if you don't put your order in on certain figures or waves, finding one in stores (or online when they release) is next to impossible. The guy at the beginning is correct though, scalpers are still snatching up sought after figures only now they put them up for sale hours later at 2-3x the price. Collecting action figures in 2024 is stressful and a giant pain in the ass. I miss the 80's when you just went to the toy isle and got what you got, you didn't know what was available or when they'd be released until near Christmas when you got the Toy Catalogs for Toys-R-Us and Sears.
I never had any issues finding new figures when Toysrus was in business. And they had sales frequently, so I got really good deals on figs there. Once they shut down, collecting took a major hit that I don’t think it ever fully recovered from. The shelves were always plentiful and there wasn’t a shortage of what you were looking for. It’s the complete opposite nowadays.
I waited until after the midnight release. I would get the figures that I want, then get the others later.
Zellers!
Incredible that I had retconned this into a Toys R Us in my mind
@tederickbear Haha those red carts are burned into my mind!
Sucks scalpers were a thing back then too.
In 1999 the Darth Maul Action Figure was $7. In 2024 inflation that would be $13.5
Your lucky to sell a Darth Maul 1999 action figure for $18.
Thats a $5 Profit.
$18? Bro, you can buy Phantom Menace figures all day long for about 9 bucks.
Screw the Star Wars toys Its 1999 I would rather get the Base Set Pokemon Cards!
Wait, people bought Jar Jar Binks??????? Ha!!!
Oh yeah. Still got him. And he's not even my favourite Jar Jar!
I think everyone knew secretly that new toy lines could never replace the old vintage lines. Although TPM action figures looked far more better than POTF2 figures from the 90's. I sold all these figures in one batch with no loss at all because I once obtained them for low outlet prices at that time. Everybody believed that the new generation action figures would become more worth in time, but history told us that this is not the case. Today you see some raising prices with TVC style action figures and some vehicles. But it is not big booming like the vintage stuff. Oh well, don't put your investment money into SW figures, you better buy Lego.
I can see how people got there, though. My generation had watched the original POTF wave get clearanced at K-Mart for $0.99 a pop and then turn up on convention floors for hundreds of dollars. There was no way that was going to happen again with something as mass-produced as the Episode I line, but I understand the delusion 😂
Well now you just refresh pages
I did go out to a Toys R Us for the midnight (or maybe it was 9pm) release of the Rise of Skywalker toys. I think there were like... seven of us there?
y'all act like kids