Toys : Batman: The Dark Knight - The Joker with Crime Scene Evidence

In association with Amazon.com

Rating:

- Great Toy Destroyed by greed
This line of figures was very impressive to me. I did not expect it to be as good as i am seeing. This figure in particular is a great replication of the joker as to the other one which is to cartoon-y. I wish that it was respected more for it's purpose (fellow batman fans) than for people who just want money. To bad that this figure came out after Mr. ledger's death. so guess what, it isnt worth anything! wait and find it in stores. I dont think it's that important to spend 70 bucks. thanks

Rating:

- good things come to those who wait
First of all, I have been waiting for this toy line (Movie Masters) to come out for over 6 months and boy it's better than I expected. I knew that given the circumstances, this figure would be highly sought after. I have tried numerous stores (i.e. toys"r"us, wal-mart, target ect.) and unfortuately I had to resort to a private seller. Here's the thing, if you want these that bad and soon, pay the extra money. Otherwise wait until they hit stores in a much higher quantity. I think that Mattel did this for a reason. To see what the Batfans would do in trying to obtain these figures. I'm a collector, so opening these isn't really what I had in mind. These are great works of art and should be treated as such. The figures themsevles are very evocative of the characters in the upcoming film The Dark Knight. They lend to a higher quality than most, with encredible detail. Be warnned, the (Heath Ledger) Joker figure has a small fillet knife included for continuity of the character and may pose as a choking hazard for younger children. Also, I noticed that very few of the Batman figures in particular have mismatched legs, meaning two left feet and the paint jobs can be a little messy. Overall, these are really great figures to say the least. However, you might be better off checking these out at the stores if you are a meticulous collector. Again, my only gripe is the rarity of such items. I'm sure the movie masters Joker will find its way on the shelves soon enough without anyone having to pay such high prices. Good things come to those who wait.

Rating:

- 5 stars for the toy, 1 star for the dealers
Strange, for a figure that is so "rare", there sure are a lot of them around for sale, here and on E-bay. Hmmmm...

Assuming Heath Ledger did not die, this figure still would have been highly sought after by fans, but not at these exorbitant prices. Heath's passing changed one thing - the insatiable greed and avarice of those willing to capitalize on his death.

The Joker is hard to find due to collectors/fans buying them and predatory dealers buying multiple copies at local stores to resell them at much higher prices, but the Joker figure is hardly "rare". The actual chase figure of the "Movie Masters" series is Bruce Wayne, clearly denoted on the back of the Movie Masters card as "chase figure", meaning *that* one that will be hardest to find. I've tried, but cannot locate any dealers on Amazon selling the Bruce Wayne Chase Figure, and can only find one on E-bay. Compare that to the dozens and dozens of the "rare" Joker figure that are for sale here and elsewhere.

Besides, Mattel is in this to make money, too, and do you honestly think that they will produce less of these once they see the price-gouging that is going on in the secondary market? Mattel has nothing to gain from scalpers, and more to gain from increasing supply for legitimate consumers. Expect that to happen.

And for those expecting this to be worth a lot some day, take a look at Batman Returns Catwoman; hard to find back in the day, and very expensive from dealers at the time. Nowadays, it is readily available from third party Amazon sellers for as low as $8.98.

Rating:

- The toy, and it's general reaction
Hmmm. To start with, I will review the toy itself. It is as good a likeness as I have ever seen. It is impossible to expect the toy industry to spend the time and money to produce an identical image of any action hero, but this is as close as they come. It truly does look like Ledger's Joker, who I am guessing will be remembered as the best Joker portrayal ever. At least according the previews, Ledger did a masterful job.

Now for the reaction raised by the toy's outrageous pricing... Sure, it retails in stores for $9.99; but it is now considered a collectible, so retail pricing no longer has relevance. It is a collectible because of Heath Ledger's passing, God rest his soul. In our economy (and culture in general), things that are rare are (to be obvious and redundant) harder to come by and thus carry more value. The 20 dollar bill is worth twice as much as the 10 because there are half as many 20s in circulation. Rarity and value are generally inseparable in our system. So if anyone wants to cry out against the vendors who are "gouging" the prices of these collector's items, the cry needs to be made against Western capitalism, not against Amazon and its respective sellers. Said vendors are merely acting according to the rules of their economic system, a system that we all bow to daily in one way or another, and a system that we all voluntarily remain in.

P.S. The second paragraph is obviously geared toward American consumers. If you are not American, these thoughts aren't meant to apply to you in quite the same way...

Rating:

- Regarding Amazon's Sales of this toy
AMAZON: YOU OUGHT TO BE ASHAMED OF YOURSELF. YESTERDAY (5/13/08) YOU WERE RIPPING PEOPLE OFF TO THE TUNE OF $57 FOR THIS TOY..... AND TODAY (!) YOU HAVE THE UNMITIGATED GALL TO JACK UP THE PRICE BY $7 TO $64. YOU ARE SLIMEY JERKS -- AND EVERYONE SHOULD BOYCOTT AMAZON FOREVERMORE. THE IDEA OF CAPITALIZING TO THIS GLUTTONOUS EXTENT ON THE SAD DEATH OF THE LATE, GREAT HEATH LEDGER MAKES ME WANT TO TAKE A SHOWER. SHAME ON YOU.....

page 6 of 8