F4F Q&A #79 Recap: Cowboy Bebop Spike Figure Exclusive Statue Reveal!

It’s a huge week for the collecting world in general, as hundreds of new products are being debuted from dozens of collectibles companies at San Diego Comic-Con 2018. But while First 4 Figures isn’t attending SDCC 2018, that doesn’t mean that they don’t have a major event of their own going on, as the first-ever high-end resin Cowboy Bebop statue went up for order today: the F4F Cowboy Bebop Spike figure! And that’s not all–aside from the Spike statue launch, First 4 Figures CEO Alex Davis will be answering a spaceship-load of collector questions, update us on progress on statues going through production and more!

Announcements & The Week in Review:

Pre-orders for the Exclusive Cowboy Bebop Spike statue will go up for order at the end of the Q&A! The pricing and details for F4F Spike will all be revealed toward the end of the stream. This is the first piece in the Cowboy Bebop line, so low numbers will be up for grabs.
Pre-orders for the Exclusive Crystal Dragon and Crystallized Dragon close on July 24th
Banjo-Kazooie POs will remain open until August 7th
NYCC was a colossal disaster for F4F for a multitude of reasons; F4F really needs Gamescom to do well in order to keep doing conventions viable for the company
First 4 Figures has only done one convention before in 15 years, so it can survive without conventions–but love being able to go to cons and meet members and collectors like a mobile collector’s club
NYCC 2018 was only slightly below Alex’s expectations right after the event, but when Alex saw the bills from New York Comic Con 2018, he was like “Fuck me!”
Alex believes that Gamescom will at least definitely be the right audience for F4F
Getting people to actually place pre-orders at Gamescom for statues that have already gone up for pre-order will be key in allowing F4F to make enough for conventions to be viable
All statues that will be available at Gamecom will have a 50 euros deposit
You’ll get a pre-order pack at Gamescom for 50 euros with a special Gamescom authenticity card and a code inside worth 70 USD that you need to use on the F4F website–this is how F4F will “capture” credit card or Paypal information in order for new customers from Gamescom to have accounts on the website
The codes won’t be keyed to any specific item–they can be used on any available product on the website, so you can change your mind after obtaining your Gamescom pre-order pack
This is going to be “boom boom boom!” efficient at GamesCom and allow for people to go on Flexipay plans; and also avoids privacy issues since First4Figures isn’t writing down information and worrying about losing forms or paperwork–F4F worked really hard this week to figure this out
Three PVCs will debut at Gamescom if all goes well
Crystal Dragon has had the smallest change, modifying the tip of the tail–this was something F4F felt internally they should do because they wanted to, even though there haven’t been a lot of requests from F4F OCC members
Three Tee-Hees (Sneak Peeks) this week: Something Brown and Furry; Never Gonna Get It; and a picture of some hair
The F4F OCC actually has a really nice community with an attitude that shit doesn’t fly, where almost everyone is helpful and respectful of each other, so Alex thinks that having Admin Approval required for posts in the OCC isn’t necessary
Will be a booth at ACG Hong Kong next Friday–hopefully photos and information will be posted from the show that Friday, and there will still be a stream next week
After today’s stream, a blog post will be posted on the First4Figures website containing FAQs regarding the Cowboy Bebop Spike PO, as well as hopefully an article about ACG Hong Kong this weekend

Temptation Tuesday (TT) Polls:

[This section will be filled in during the livestream as it happens. Stay tuned!]
Hollow Knight TT: 208 Yes, 76 No — A majority of voters have said yes, but this needs a lot more votes
Divinity Original Sin TT: 24 Yes Votes so far; Low votes overall — Are people not seeing the TTs come up in their Facebook Newsfeeds?
Code Geass TT Next Week!
This week’s hashtag for a chance to win Reward Points next week is #F4FCowboy

The Q&A!:

There was the briefest moment that Gaming Heads and First 4 Figures were going to merge in 2012-2013, but ultimately that never happened; collaborations in the future would be possible and make sense, as the companies have a good relationship
Cowboy Bebop Spike Spiegel figure Launch will begin following the Q&A; no Who Dat Who Dat this week
Alex hasn’t decided yet if all the Wait Lists will convert when pre-orders are reopened from Gamecom next month
Chocks has two cans of Red Bull for tonight–that’s all for today
Warp Star Kirby is coming along nicely; hoping he sells much more than Fighter Kirby, who didn’t have the sales necessary–hoping Warp Star Kirby will be equivocal to the Kirby line what 25th Anniversary Sonic was to the Sonic line
@Edgar Ramirez Questions:
1) If the Bebop line is successful and we rally the fans, could we see Vicious and the Swordfish (ship) being made? — Absolutely–Rally the Fans!
2) How hard do I have to rally to get a life sized Ein statue? — Alex can get one for you very easily, but you have to take it for walks a lot.
3) Is the Worms line dead? — Deader than a doormat, deader than a dodo
4) There probably won’t be a Meta Knight 2 in the future will there? — No plans just yet
5) If I sent you my future Saitama, could you add the cool little sketch marks like with Mugen? — Alex recommends you get a little pen and scribble on the sketch marks yourself–just make sure you do it straight!
6) Ein plush when? — That would be sweet! Plush is something F4F will focus on next year. F4F’s next pillar.
7) Can you guys end this week’s Q&A, as well as the Making of, by pointing at the screen and saying “bang”? — Yep. Will try that this week.
8 ) Why has the wait between Saitama and Genos been so long? — Saitama’s sales were poor, and F4F figures the longer they waited between Saitama and Genos, the more anime fans there would be who would know about First 4 Figures and have the potential to purchase Genos. Can’t reopen orders for Saitama after so long.
9) For being late on his Q&A recap last week, have you guys given Dabid a slap on the wrist? [WHAT?!] — Dabid gave himself a slap so it’s all good
10) Are variations a possibility for the Bebop crew? Could we get a Spike with his trench coat etc? — Possibly. There’s nothing more than what you see is what you get for Spike–people have already figured out the exclusive. Alex wants to taper the expectations.
11) Alphonse Elric, well known for being the most expensive F4F piece ever, any plans to extend payment plans for him? 14 months or such? — Nothing to report on that right now.
12) Anything to say regarding the Modern Sonic line? — Amy Rose is in the works.
13) Which statue would you say has been the most fun to develop? — The next one in the works. Always.
14) Bebop hexagonal bases? — No, round.
15) Do you guys ever feel overwhelmed by people who ask a lot of questions? — Nope! Only 20? Pathetic! Do 40 next time!
16) Which statue would you say has been the least fun to develop? Not gonna go there.
17) If we get to that point, will there probably be variations besides ornate for Plague Knight and Specter Knight? Would do lots of variants if Plague Knight gets done.
18) College or F4F? XD College always comes first. F4F will still be around when you’re done with it.
19) I’m currently trying to buy pieces that have a colorful style to them, so that no statue I own looks out of place, would you say Alphonse is going to be closer to the realism of Guts, or the vibrant look of Mugen and Saitama? Right in between? — Too far; would give away too much answering
20) Which statue has had the longest time from PO to release? Which one has had the least? — Quickest has to be the Crash PVC; Longest must be Light Suit Samus or Varia Suit Samus
No Batman figures in the works
Mimic PO in September/October
First 4 Figures can’t get a SDCC booth–waiting list is like 10 years long
No updates on Guts changes just yet
Chocks’ Snack Review: Charcoal Bamboo Peanut — Looks like rabbit droppings; You can taste the bamboo, the charcoal and the peanut–just like it says on the package!
Leaning toward doing the Minis like Mini Crystal Dragons and Jiggies
Would like to have a new PO every other week if they had their way, but things have to fall into place in order to have such frequent POs
No plans for Midna on Wolf Link PVC right now
Chocks likes a little bit of spicy, but not the kind that burns your tongue and mouth
Alex has been getting into this really bad habit of going to bed at 3AM and waking up at like 8AM or 9AM
Alex watched this amazing Tonsil Stones Removals video on YouTube–we should all watch it
Alex’s wife pushed in his throat to try to remove tonsil stones from him and it made his throat hurt, so Alex had to go to the doctor today for the inflammation
Sonic Mania is definitely on the list of things for F4F to examine, although the poll didn’t do very well
Turtles in Time–No TT, too similar to the regular arcade game versions
Alphonse PO probably in about 2 months
Edward Elric probably 4-5 months after Alphonse PO
Varia Suit Samus — Shipping estimate unknown until Alex visits the factory to see what’s going on
More female statues are coming
Rally the fans if you want to see a Banjo-Kazooie with instruments PVC someday–Alex already has a different pose in mind for Banjo-Tooie
Sparx statue — not sure if it will be released
Player 2 Shovel Knight and Black Shovel Knight will go up for order at the same time once Black Shovel Knight is done
Working on card stands right now in 3-D
Yes–Multiple colored versions of Mario on Yoshi
Bowser will be available toward the end of this year if everything goes smoothly
No Bloody Portrait of Spike coming with the statue
Regular Artorias SD will be available at Gamescom as a Collector’s Edition with no packaging
Contact CS if you want to pay the balance for your pre-ordered statues upfront
Worms line is done-zo
Street Fighter is not included as part of the Capcom All-Stars license
Alex will update on Solaire in the
Not sure if there’s still demand for a Metal Gear REX after excellent one done by ThreeZero
All the Bebop characters are Alex and Chocks’ favorite
Capcom only wanted a darker blue on Phoenix Wright for most recent revisions
Spike coming before Jet because club members bitched about Jet’s head
@Troy Blair Questions: (Never change, Troy–Never change)
1.) Alex why have you stopped reading my questions out loud lol? — Because you love it
2.)since it’s been such a long time since the last preorder for the legend of zelda series not including TFM will you start making up for that or will it continue to be more of a slower process? Basically are you looking to start aiming for 3 statues a year for loz? — F4F would do one every week if they could; Done at the speed Nintendo will allow
3.) How long till we see another legend of zelda item from you guys? — Don’t know
4.)why does it take so long for s Nintendo pieces to be approved? — Because they’re super busy
5.)if you could choose what would be the first legend of zelda life size statue excluding majoras mask and prop line? — Twilight Princess Link so Alex could hear collectors bitch about it not being 1:4
6.)why the shiekan slate before rider link? Because it will likely be ready first
7.)why doesn’t the legend of zelda majoras mask have it’s own line? Because there’s no guarantee F4F will continue doing statues from this line
8.) Do you plan on showing any legend of zelda pvcs at gamescom? Excluding breath of the wild link — No
9.) How long till we see the next legend of zelda piece? — Isn’t this the same question as 3?
10.) Do you think the legend of zelda mask line will continue? — Hopefully
Compare BOTW Link to Link on Epona or Skyward Sword Link on Loftwing — if they’re the same scale, then that’s the scale of Rider Link [Rider Link is scaled the same as LoE and LoL]
Would need to sell hundreds and hundreds of resin pieces in both 1/4 and 1/6 to be able to offer both scales for one statue
Alex doesn’t want club members to go home crying, so he won’t be bringing Soul Calibur II for members to play against him there
No more Crash PVCs planned for right now
Will bring fliers with reward points to Gamescom
Jet PO 4-5 months after Spike
Chibiterasu not this year; Warp Star Kirby this year
Faye’s clothes will be polystone, not soft goods
Dracula and Death submitted to Konami the other day
Mini products are definitely on F4F’s radar
Ivy is next in the Soul Calibur line
Really happy with updated concepts for Morrigan
Nothing to report on Persona 5
How can Alex best write a poll on Aika to get people to vote?
As long as collectors support it, the Cowboy Bebop line will absolutely be finished — will lower the sales bar to do so if necessary
Alex & Chocks’ Favorite SDCC 2018 Reveals — Iron Studios; Hot Toys PS4 Spider-Man figure; Weta Tomb Raider; PCS Ultimate Warrior
Pikmin TT didn’t get enough traction; would get a Create-Your-Own-Diorama if it got done; needs a lot more votes because it’s a Nintendo piece
Varia Suit Samus is deep in production at painting stage
Alex doesn’t need any poll to know PVC Wolf Link & Midna would do amazingly well — but PVCs at this stage will focus on BOTW and not Twilight Princess at this stage
Cyborg Ninja is next after Psycho Mantis in Metal Gear Solid line
Figuring out size of Sonic and Tails diorama and then will 3-D print it
Ornstein will be pulled from factory that’s scheduled to do its production and taken to another factory if that factory doesn’t meet deadlines for Bowser and Varia Suit Samus
Mini Chocks Poll? “Watch this space.”
Kiryu’s face has to be redone because Alex lost the file with the reworked face; didn’t seem like an issue at the time because F4F wasn’t going to be doing a Yakuza statue at that time
Couldn’t get the rights to use Cowboy Bebop music for Spike documentary
No life-size Alex and Chocks pillowcases in the works
Rally the Fans for the Digimon TT if you want Digimon
Haven’t been able to get anywhere with Studio Ghibli
Will talk about Spike in a minute
Berserk news when Skull Knight is farther on down the line
Time for Alex to do his #1; not a #2

Cowboy Bebop Spike Statue Exclusive Reveal & PO Details:

Those who are new to collecting resin statues may be shocked by the size of 1:4 Spike Spiegel resins statue as opposed to smaller anime PVC statues that they may be familiar with
There are green hints in Spike’s hair, although they may be hard to see on a webcam
Eye colors are different on Spike figure (as they should be)
Anime figure collectors may be used to smaller scales and spatial footprints
Spike Spiegel has an amazingly aloof and cool personality, but you know he can kick your ass at any time–it was a challenge to find the perfect pose to capture this in statue form
Pose is loose and shows Spike’s personality, but also looks natural and not stiff
One hand in his pocket and one hand on a gun, so you know not to piss Spike off (not in America, so a guy holding a gun isn’t as common)
Base itself is a matte finish with a gloss cover to make the logo shine
Spike’s base has a blue stripe on it; idea for the character colors on the base came from club members
There’s imagery of Spike Spiegel going around the blue stripe on the base–from official artwork; Spike with a cigarette, the Swordfish, Spike with glasses, etc.
Bases don’t have to be complex or elaborate–a simple base keeps the emphasis on the character and can also keep the overall cost of a statue down; there’s no right or wrong answer when it comes to bases
Wanted to keep the base and footprint of the 1/4 Spike statue small for those with spatial concerns, but also has a lot of presence because of the scale

Spike Statue Details:

The F4F community really helped out with face on this statue
Spike’s right eye is lighter than his left eye, just like in the anime
The hair itself was really tough to do because of the layers required to create the shape of the hair
Cigarette is slightly bent
Spike’s face is flat and planar; hopefully F4F has captured his likeness as much as possible
Left arm is in trouser pocket, so the pocket has a thickness/bump in it that the right pocket does not
Collar is up and goes all the way around; has some wrinkle details in it
Proportions: “This boy is weird! This is not normal! This length of these legs!”; Ridiculous length of proportions with the length of his legs, but bang-on from the anime; “He’s got legs for days!”
It’s not just about the pose or the details–it’s about the proportions as well
Alex notes that Bayonetta’s legs are also super super long
There’s creases in Spike’s boot because his right foot is bending; it’s very easy to miss these little but important details
Wanted to add some subtle details beyond what’s seen in the anime, such as the stitch marks on Spike’s suit; it’s about adding the extra detail that F4F is known for without ruining the anime feel
When you see the video and hi-res photos, you’ll be impressed–the shitty webcam used for the livestream doesn’t make Spike look his best
There’s an hour and twenty minute Making of Spike documentary that will be posted after the livestream for those who want to know more about his development
Spike’s fingernails have come out nicely
The tie is absolutely sculpted and not just painted on–it has a nice thickness to it three-dimensionally
Checkboxes: Does it look like the character from the anime? Does it match the proportion of the character? Does the pose match the character’s personally? Do the details that make this character “him” make sense?

Spike Exclusive Version Statue Reveal & Pre-Order Info:

Spike EX will be going up for pre-order at the conclusion of the livestream
Those following the club won’t be surprised that the exclusive item is a switch-out “Bang!” arm that will be attached via a strong magnet
Spike’s head is very, very subtly looking down; didn’t make his hand completely straight — Didn’t want Spike to look like he’s pointing in anger and aggression; the eyes follow the same direction as the “Bang” hand
Unfortunately couldn’t get the rights to use the music from Cowboy Bebop for the reveal video or documentary, but it is what it is
There’s a 0% chance of this statue developing a lean. There’s a square peg, a metal rod and no heavy weight to bend this to a lean–Trust Alex!
This a 100% resin statue–there’s no PVC on this statue to bend or warp over time
Cowboy Bebop Spike EXCLUSIVE version statue will be open for 4 weeks, but if Spike doesn’t hit 1000 orders, the pre-order will be left open either until he hits 1000 pieces ordered or until Spike begins production
F4F has significantly gotten better at understanding how to use Facebook marketing to reach the right people and hopes that collectors have noticed this improved
First 4 Figures wants Spike to do well so badly; decided to scale back and make the base simplistic to keep the price down and attract first-time buyers so that this piece doesn’t fail; it would break Alex’s heart to see “#FinishTheLine” for Cowboy Bebop
Saitama is the same size as the Cowboy Bebop Spike figure, but cost $375 in 2016 and had a more complicated base; Mugen cost $450 and went up for order last summer with a vastly more complicated pose and base
The price for the Spike figure–F4F really needs this piece to do well so anime pieces can come out more often–is literally the lowest that First 4 Figures can go in terms of just doing this statue for collectors; this piece is about getting people to buy it rather than making money for F4F; trying to get an anime statue to sell well in any which way that it can
Things didn’t go as planned with Saitama and Mugen; motivation between so long between anime pieces coming out is for more of an anime customer base to come in and know about F4F anime
Price is lower than anything else; this price is not sustainable–Jet Black will cost quite a bit more than the Cowboy Bebop Spike figure because he’s thicker and uses more material, and also because F4F can’t keep the lights on selling statues for as cheap as Spike
12 Month Payment Plan available–Payments would be just $26.25 per month!
The MSRP is $349.99!! This price will not be sustainable for Jet Black, though. This is introductory pricing, and Spike really needs to be the statue that gets F4F out there for anime fans. Had to make Spike less complicated than Mugen to keep the price down!
There’s an opportunity cost between anime statues and video game statues–trying to use this piece to springboard the anime line and get it more in-line with the video game series
Shipping: Just $35 in the United States!!
Validation day will be on Tuesday at 11AM EST; place your pre-orders for Spike today and come back on Tuesday to hit the “Validate” button to get a signed Alex Davis signature card, extra F4F Reward Points, and a holographic sticker as bonuses!
Estimated pricing for the other three members of the team will start with a ‘4’; think about the savings that you save from Spike and it will hopefully help you feel better about the other statues in the line

…And that’s it for this week! What do you think of Spike, #F4Family? Will you be reserving your EX Spike statue this weekend, or is the first Cowboy Bebop statue a misfire for you?

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