A New Diamond Select Toys Minimates Q&A

by Jay Cochran
June 07, 2010
DSTChuck has released a new Diamond Select Toys Q&A over on their Art Asylum website for your viewing pleasure.

In this weeks edition focuses on Minimates questions. Check out the entire Q&A below:

Brad Martin
I’m sure it’s been asked before but would you guys consider doing minimates for Atomic Robo? I think the whole series would fit perfectly with the ‘mate design. In case you don’t know who he is, (shame on you if you don’t!) here’s a pic of a comic cover. Thanks.

DSTChuck: Sorry Brad still no plans for Atomic Minimates.


Paula Hearn
Hello, Do you ever sell plain, bulk minimates? My fiancée is a huge Minimates fan and I thought it would be fun to give a black (groom) and a white(bride) Minimates away as favors at our Wedding in August. I would need about 100 of each color. Thank you, Paula

DSTChuck: That’s a GREAT idea but I am sorry we have no plans to sell blank Minimates.


J. B.
Hi Chuck, I know you said in the last Q&A that you had no plans for any Trek TNG Minimates, but have you ever considered instead of the standard 2pks how about releasing two 4pks with 2 sided faces & extra hair/appendages/oversized chest pieces so each Minimates can make 2 separate characters. For example the ‘A’ set could contain Data (turns into Lore), Dr Crusher (turn into Cmdr Troi), Gowron (turns into Duras) & Judge Q (turns into Wesley) . The ‘B’ set would have Cmdr Riker (turns into Cmdr Shelby or Ens Ro), Worf (turns into Geordi), Romulan Cmdr Tomalek (turns into Sela), and Guinan with extra pieces for different outfit. Throw in some phasers, tricorders, etc you’d have a 2 sets that has great customizing potential and not to mention a lot of fans would buy double sets to make the cast. Perhaps you partner with AFX as they are great MM supporters? Hope it’s an idea worth considering. Thanks!

DSTChuck: Those are some really cool ideas but while we’ve done a little bit of that with some of our Iron Man Minimates we have no plans to expand those type of sets.


Scott Potis
Hey there Chuck, I’ve got two questions for you. With army builders now a common thing in the Marvel waves, would you consider possibly adding some diversity ala different face expressions on the characters? For example, a bunch of Multiple Man’s would have looked even cooler if they didn’t all have the normal face expression. Possibly a face tampo on both sides of the head? Or maybe a different face on the figure that comes in the variant pack? Some characters like the SHIELD Agent can be easily differed with a spare head swap, but that seems to be the only exception… Also regarding army builders, after a few more nameable “goons” (616 SHIELD Agents, Hand Ninjas, Spider Slayers, and Moloids come to mind), would re-releasing already produced army builders like AIM or Skrull agents be an idea? The more the merrier, and it would bring an opportunity to maybe re-deco them beat up or something. Thanks!


DSTChuck: Another cool idea but DST has pledged not to make any figures that come in a case at less than one per case so it’s not something we could do. I think your second question is about re-issuing. We would not do them the exact same in the exact format but yes some of them could come back later in some form or another. Before you ask we have no plans right now to do that.


Will Reid
I have been enjoying collecting Minimates… but I wondered since the movie STARCRASH is going to be released on DVD… as part of a Roger Corman collection… if there were any plans to do a Minimates collection from the film…? Just wondering… WILL REID

DSTChuck: Glad you enjoy collecting but we have no plans right now for any Roger Corman Minimates.


Adam Eugene
Dear DST, Any plans to release more Friends or Foes Box sets based on other famed Marvel Characters? Thanks.

DSTChuck: We’ve got the ideas to maybe do some as well as maybe some more through the ages. Both ideas seem to have been well received and might have some legs.


Feroz Nazir
Hi, compliments on what you’ve done with the Iron Man 2 Minimates. Since there will be a second TRU series for them, will it feature a final battle Whiplash?

DSTChuck: YES TRU should be getting a new refresh of product with new figures in any time now. Sorry we did not have enough refrence in time to make the final Battle Minimates.


Sinjin Beem
Hello this is the second time I have asked a question on minimates the first was back when I requested to see maybe some minimates of The Tick. But now I have a new more refined request that could possibly get you sales over seas as well… it is why don’t you all make Minimates of Kinnikuman and Ultimate Muscle. Both are great mangas turned Animes and are very popular over here but even more popular over in Japan. And I would really just like to see some of these if at all possible. Thank you for reading my suggestion.

DSTChuck: Right now we have very little to no market for Minimates in Japan so that’s a big reason we have focused on US based properties so far. That does not mean some property like Dr. Who or such could expand our market, but we’re not ready to test the appeal of the brand to that extent yet.


Michael Cooper
Hi, I have 2 questions: 1: Will you ever sell Unification Spock? I know you guys hand them out at conventions, but I can never make it and eBay’s expensive! 2: In the last Minimates QA (87) you said that there were no Star Trek minimates in the works. Does this mean the Shuttle’s cancelled? Don’t do this to me Chuck! Thanks, keep up the awesome job!

DSTChuck: Yes for now the shuttle is off the schedule. We do have some more Spocks and we’ll be getting more into play at SDCC so hopefully the more we get out there the easier it will be for you to get some, even if you’re not at the show.


David King
Hey I’m guessing there will not be any MvC3 minimates right? You have no plans and/or the rights to make them…just checking…

DSTChuck: Our rights do not extend to there, so sorry, no plans for any right now.


Marcello Quarante
Hello, I would like to know if you guys are going to make any sports minimates? Like a lebron James Minimates or like a Reggie bush Minimates because that would be cool.

DSTChuck: Many of us in the office are big sports fans but we have no plans to enter that arena.


Dan Liberg
The new Toys R Us Exclusive Wave 4 Ghostbusters line looks great! One idea though, similar to how the marshmallow goo was added to the Walter Peck figure… How about a bus driver’s hat for the Slimer in the GB2 Venkman/Slimer 2-pack? We already have a lot of Slimer’s, that are all a little different but still similar. This is a great way to make the figure different, while still being authentic to the movie!

DSTChuck: I can’t speak for the designers but I never though of that. Maybe its something we can consider down the road.


Justin B
As always, I love the Ghostbusters minimates, and seeing everything that’s coming in the near future I was curious about a couple things: 1. Will a Janine based on her 1st movie appearance be made? 2. With Janosh coming in TrU’s wave 4, will a ‘ghost-nanny’ Janosh variant be made? 3. Do you have plans on making Minis based on the cartoon the Real Ghostbusters? 4. Will there be any more minis based on the Ghostbusters Video Game that was released last year? more game related ghosts or even a rookie figure would be nice. 5. Seeing the preview for Ray’s Slime Blower blew me away (no pun intended), I’m hoping Winston with a Slime Blower won’t be far behind. ~Justin B PS: I absolutely love the Scoleri Bros minis, I felt they were well represented in mini form. Certainly a possibility for “Energized” variants there *nudge nudge wink wink*

DSTChuck: I think at this point we’ve showed fans all we have planned for 2010, so well have to see what we want to do next year before I can comment on the variations you thought of. We have considered maybe trying Real Ghostbusters in the future but nothing is decided yet. Right now we have no plans to make any more video game figures. Glad you like what we are doing with the line and hear you are looking forward to the new releases.


Chris B
Great job with all the cool, fun minimates products - Ghostbusters (including the new TRU wave 4) are especially outstanding. I’d also like to throw out a big Thanks for finding a way to get the final BSG characters to the collectors. That being said, I had a couple questions about things to come. (1) I saw the pre-order for the TRU DeLorean on their site, but it says that it’s packaged with Radiation Suit Marty - I thought one of the Q&A’s hinted that it would be another character (Radiation Suit Doc, if I recall correctly). Can you tell us which it will be? (2) The last minimates Q&A pretty much ruled out any more Star Trek for the foreseeable future. Does that mean the Shuttlecraft that was shown at Toy Fair is a “no-go”? Thanks again.

DSTChuck: 1) There will be a different time machine for the TRU stores and a different one for specialty market and each one will come with a different Minimate.

2) That is correct the shuttle craft is no longer in production. It might come back at some point in the future , but the response to the item was not what we hoped it would be when we showed it at Toy Fair.


Feroz Nazir
Hi, I saw the pictures of the upcoming TRU Ghosbusters wave. I was very happy to see Janosz, Mayor Lenny and the theater ghost getting the Minimates treatment. Lady Liberty and the Subway Ghost are simply awesome. Word has it there will be one more TRU set, I have to ask, will it feature Slime Blower GB2 Winston, GB1 Janine or GB2 Dana with baby Oscar? As far as ghosts are concerned the only one I’m missing is the GB2 Baby Sitter Ghost, but I’m sure you’ll come up with something creative. Kind regards, Feroz Nazir

DSTChuck: I don’t think we’ve said at any point exactly when the line will end. I have said that I do not want the line to outstay its welcome. I do think we’ve done a very good job of representing the two movies. Maybe we will not do every figure every fans wants but its our job to cover the property as best we can. I like some of your suggestions but I can’t say if they are coming out in the future.


Joshua Hesselgrave
Hi again. Chuck. As always, thanks for answering these. I have a question, an observation and a request. First, can you make any comments on how Toys R Us carrying Marvel Minimates has affected the overall sales? With several of the normal wave 2-packs showing up at TRU before arriving at LCS’s and on-line retailers, has this made a noticeable difference in sales to non-TRU places (if you can comment on something like that)? Second, from the stand point of someone buying a lot of troop builders, it seemed like there were less packs pegwarming at TRU when there were army builders in each wave. Just an observation that it was easier to justify buying multiples of Cap/AIM Soldier than it is Thor/Lady Loki. And finally, could there be more blogs with pre-production drawings of stuff that never got released? Thanks again.-Joshua

DSTChuck: My pleasure, glad all of you out there still have questions about this line. We could not be more pleased with the support TRU has given the line. It has enabled us to do more then we ever could have without them. The intention is not to ship to TRU before comic stores but its just been an unavoidable growing pain. For good or bad, the sales in specialty stores have been stable for some time. I’m not sure what you mean about army builders in TRU, we’ve kept those for comic stores. I’d like to see more blogs from the product managers and designers but its really something they have to do in their free time so I can only cajole them.


Mike Fager
Any chance of any classic or new of Guardians of the Galaxy minimates? Thanks Mike

DSTChuck: Right now we do not have plans for any characters from those lines.


Sean Jiranek
Don’t suppose there is any chance you could stop making exclusives for Toys R Us? I ask as they’re a lousy company who often don’t bring these exclusives to their international stores in places such as the UK, making items like the Ghostbusters minimates very hard if possible at all, to obtain. With other companies having the exclusives, they’ve generally been easier to obtain here for some reason.

DSTChuck: I’m sorry you feel that way. We very much value the relationship the have with them and only look to expand that in the future. I will say the buyer we deal with has nothing to do with international. If they are not buying it, its because of their local buyers. TRU U.S. has even gone so far as to allow us to sell their exclusives into other international markets. If the items are not there it’s because the buyer for the distributor in your area has chosen not to buy it.


Brad Martin
I have finally completed my Marvel Minimates collection. I have them all except the Silver and Gold Spider-Man promos which are acceptable losses. Now that I’m done bragging I’ve been wondering if we will ever see Boondock Saints Minimates. I’ve actually thought of numerous characters AND variants. I was hoping with the release of the action figures by NECA that this might become a reality. Is there anything we, as fans can do to help see the release of a certain line? Would a petition help? Would it help if fans tried contacting the creator of the films Troy Duffy?

DSTChuck: Right now we have no plans to make product for Boondock Saints. The first movie was pretty cool so you never know maybe a bit down the road.


Brad Martin
When we all saw the pics of this years Toy Fair we got to see some pretty amazing stuff. Are we still going to see the Pirates? I’m a father of three and I was hoping to see the father’s day minimates? Any details on those?

DSTChuck: Some of what you saw was worked up for buyers so we could see if there was some interest in the ideas we had been tossing around. You will not see the pirates in 2010 but I would be shocked if they did not find a home in 2011 - based on the response at the show. The Father’s Day one was done to show buyers we could do special promotions etc. for them if they needed. There was some general interest but any real feedback would have to come from meetings our sales folks have with buyers over the next months.


Brian Felgar
It has recently come to light that Mezco has signed a deal with Warner Bros Consumer Products on behalf of DC Comics for license to produce DC character toys. Considering that Mezco seems to be a company on a similar scale as DST, is there any possibility you’ve looked into this direction, rather than working through DC Direct, to revive the DC Minimates brand? There’s still a lot of demand out there for DC ‘mates. Just keeping the dream alive… :)

DSTChuck: Brian I think every possible angle has been looked at for DC Minimates and you’re just going to have to ask them. We’re ready willing and able whenever they are.


Brad Martin
A couple of quick but, specific questions. Is there a chance we will ever get to see a movie Green Goblin or Doc Ock? Will we get to see any more Ultimate characters ? If we do, will it matter if most of the characters are dead now? Is there any chance of any other newer villains or older ones like Puma, Spider-Cide, Toxin or the best villain EVER… THE SPOT? Thanks.

DSTChuck: The way the movie deals worked for us was we were given a limited time before and after the release date to get product out and then no more. Yes the fact that many of the Ultimate characters are dead does play a role. If it’s a character like the standard universe Kraven that was around for over 30 years before he died, it might not be as much of a factor.


Jason Darling
Hello, I’m a huge Minimates fan. You guys are doing a awesome job! Is the minimates Secret Wars poster going to be for sale anytime soon?

DSTChuck: We are not able to sell the promo posters we do, but we have asked Marvel from time to time if we could give them away at a show, so we’ll keep trying and you keep up hope.


Mikael Francisco
Hi! Huge Spidey & Minimates fan here. Sorry in advance for the character-specific questions but I do hope you’ll take some time to answer them. 1. Any chance we might see an updated and properly bulky Rhino? He had one of the best stories in the Gauntlet story arc in current ASM. 2. Will Iron Spider-Man ever get released with the three appendages on his back? Maybe with a backpack-style attachment ala Angel/Scorpion? 3. The Noir, 1602 and 2099 universes would be good possibilities to explore, not just for Spidey, but also for the rest of the Marvel universe in general. A Heroic Age box set with Disco Armor/Bleeding Edge Iron Man would be so awesome. Also, a Secret Avengers box set! Any chance we’ll see those? Thank you and keep on being awesome ;)

DSTChuck: I’ll make the time but we really can’t answer specific character request here except maybe in a very general way. Right now none of those are planned but some have a better chance then others.





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