The Return of the Ebay Muppet figure price report!

[MM-III]

Well, it's been a few crazy weeks for me so I haven't been monitoring the figure market as closely for a while.... but in case anyone still cares, here's the numbers for this week.

Supply of Dr. teeth exclusives now hovers around 3-4 figures on any given day. Due to a combination of less supply, and increased demand due to the release of the main line of figures, prices have gone up again. We're now seeing auctions closing well north of $60.00 and even one that closed at $71.00.

If I were a stock broker I would recommend this as a good selling period. (but of course, we're collectors so that's probably not going to happen) I predict that as dr. teeth was an exclusive before the "word" was truly out there about the figures, and it was a run of only 424 figures, this may prove to be among the most valuable figures in the entire line.

The price of kermit in the lunchbox continues to be in the stratosphere. After a lengthy period of time where none were available... one finally listed and is already sitting at 152.00 with about 2 days left.

Quite simply, there's never been a "great" time to buy a kermit lunchbox figure so anyone who really wants one is probably going to have to bite the bullet and pay the 150.00 If you do snag one outside of ebay for 100.00 or less, I'd say jump on it, hold on to it and sell it for a handsome profit. The proceeds could buy you another series worth of figures.

I'm not going to attempt to monitor the "regular" figures on ebay just yet. There was a very brief window in which regular figures were selling briskly to those who wanted it before it was widely available but that window has passed. Suffice to say, most are not selling due to their high availability through regular channels. It will not be until series one is not on store shelves before we can expect any upward movement on prices with those.

The same goes for the retailer exclusives and the playsets. Anyone who pays ebay prices for something they can buy at the local TRU or EB has too much money for their own good.

Well, that's it for now. Happy Hunting!

 

[Aerosmith]

Im kicking my self about the Dr.Teeth exclusive. I could have had a friend pick it up but I didnt know about it.

 

[Luke]

Do you do stock price updates too ? ;-)

 

[MM-III]

Only on what I personally own... and believe me based on my portfolio, you don't want stock advice from me.

By the way cisco sucks!

 

[MM-III]

Another record has been smashed.

The muppet lunch box kermit is now at 202.50... another day and a half remains.

unbelievable...

 

[Louis Kazagger]

I couldn't disagree more about your statement that now is the time to sell the Dr. Teeth exclusive. I think the prices we're seeing on ebay now are only the tip of the iceberg. Sure the bell curve is swinging back up now after bottoming out at $35.00, but I think a lot of these figures will never resurface again, so the supply is going to become even shorter. Soon, you'll be lucky to see one Dr. Teeth a week on ebay. Most collectors didn't or still don't know that this figure exists, and will only discover it once they find the regular line of figures at a retailer and start searching ebay. Once the Dr. Teeth variant gets some press in a toy mag, watch out.

The supply is just too short. Let's comparison shop on ebay for a minute or two.

The Wizard Radioactive Homer Simpsons figure easily gets $150.00 on ebay, and there are 10,000 of those. The Jorg Sacul Star Wars figure gets about $75.00 on ebay and there are 26,000 of those. The Tapestry Star Trek Jean Luc Picard figure still gets $250.00 on ebay, and Star Trek is about as dead a toy line as they come nowadays. There are only 1,701 of those, and you're lucky if one a week shows up on ebay.

Now, run all those numbers through your head for a minute and tell me again that now is a good time to sell one of the 424 Dr. Teeth variant figs on ebay, because they're selling for between $60.00 and $71.00.

The one closing on ebay tonight is already at $87.00 and I still think that's a bargain. If you need this figure, don't hesistate to buy it asap, as the prices are only going to go higher, and I predict that this will easily be a hundred dollar figure by July 1st.

muppetlabs

 

[MM-III]

You could be right... although I don't think that the muppet line will ever be as popular as the star wars line. You'll never see a muppet movie grossing 300-400 million, know what I mean? Also, the line has a long way to go in terms of sales before we can really call it "the next simpsons". And let's face it, Simpsons is still a top 30 show after eleven years and the muppet ventures have thus far failed to attract an audience.

Yes, the dr. teeth repaint supply is EXTREMELY short, but when you're talking about such a reduced fan base, it may not be so extreme as the comparisons suggest.

(by the way, I'm only playing devil's advocate here.... you all know I love these figures to death)

I would agree that all things being equal with star wars and simpsons we'd be in for astronmical prices but from where I sit... I can't reccommend buying him at 87.00. He will always be a pricey figure but I think the patient collector can do better than that.

As for the sell recommendation.. well... Most people here would never sell their figures anyway so it was really not meant as a serious reccommendation. But I do believe that dr. teeth will follow a wave pattern in terms of value and at some point, it would be wise to cash in if you only collect for a quick buck.

 

[MaxGoof]

<<The Wizard Radioactive Homer Simpsons figure easily gets $150.00 on ebay, and there are 10,000 of those.>>

That was once upon a time. The market is falling out on the Simpsons figures now. I have a Radioactive Homer MIB on eBay now that ends tomorrow that's currently at 60 bucks--I don't expect it to make it to 100. It took around a year and a half for the bottom to fall out of the Simpsons collector market... How long do you think it will take for that to happen to the Muppets?

The Muppets line is *HOT* now because the GREAT first assortment came out with 5 characters from the MAIN cast. However, The Muppet Show hasn't been broadcast in 10-20 years. There not a snowball's chance of these things being the next Simpsons, as I've heard at least 3 dozen people declare they will. Yeah, Bunsen and Beaker and the Electric Mayhem and Kermit and Piggy and Fozzie and Gonzo and the Swedish Chef will sell BIG-TIME... but Crazy Harry? Lew Zealand? Link Hearthrob? News reporter? If those are the biggest characters that Palisades can come up with to extend the line out to surviving more than 6 months, they're totally screwed. The Muppet Show hasn't been broadcast in years, and comparing the market for these figures to the market for a show that's broadcast about 4 times daily nationwide is a joke.

Don't get me wrong--I *LOVE* this line. Palisades has done EVERYTHING right. From the sculpting to the articulation to the paint to the packaging to the accessories it's a winner--but I think the market just isn't going to be there a year from now. Wait--you just might get yourself a Dr. Teeth for 30 bucks or less.

 

[gorry]

i really couldn't tell you like the figures from that post.

 

[MaxGoof]

I adore the figures... Bunsen and his Robo-Rabbit have taken a coveted spot on top of my computer with Ralph Wiggum from "The Simpsons", Super Saiyan Young Trunks & Young Goten from "Dragonball Z", and the old Triple-Changer Springer from the G1 "Transformers". Unfortunately, liking the figures has NOTHING to do with the market.

Take the X-Men: Evolution figures for example. The figures were GREAT! Dead-on sculpts, beautiful paint and articulation, and currently the number ONE cartoon on TV...! A guaranteed success, right? Wrong. Three series and the line was dead in the water.

The Muppets figures are probably the best action figures to come out this year and maybe even some of the best ever--but that does not guarantee their success, especially considering they're an old-time show that a lot of people don't care about or remember anymore. And the show hasn't been on TV in 10-20 years so there won't ever be an influx of new fans of the show (although I bet there will be a LOT of action figure fans that jump on the bandwagon temporarily).

And remember--one of the BIG reasons the popularity of The Simpsons figures is waning is the exclusives like Radioactive Homer and Pin Pal Burns that a lot of fans couldn't get. Fans WILL stop collecting a line because they can't get every repaint. I don't agree with it, but it's true. And with TONS of ultra-limited show exclusives on track and an already-limited fan base AND a limited number of highly-recognizable characters, that just doesn't bode well for The Muppets as a toy line.