Rounding out our coverage of San Diego Comic Con 2015 we have a couple gems to share with you. Our own Kickback just sat down with Bandai of America for an interview on current & upcoming products and a few other goodies fans have been clamoring for with Power Rangers Legacy & Dino Charge.
Starting things off we discussed Power Rangers Legacy items. These releases were apparently never meant to be chronological like collectors had assumed, it happened to just turn out that way. Bandai knows that the Ninja & Shogun Megazords as well as the Falconzord are all very obvious choices for the future. Power Rangers Zeo is also internally very popular. They also think a Legacy Gold Zeo Ranger Staff is a interesting idea ;) Legacy Tor was mentioned as well but as a whole they don’t want to destroy collectors’ wallets.
The Thunder Megazord shown at SDCC should be able to assumed the Assault Team sled mode, but they’ll get with their designers and give us an answer post-con. The Legacy Blade Blaster displayed was entirely a mock-up as the retail version wasn’t ready yet. They would like to do a role play item and a mech/figure item together if possible kinda like Saba and Tigerzord. Again they don’t want to break the bank. Fans have also asked recently about a Black & Gold Dragonzord, so we posed that question to Bandai. There response is “would fans buy it?”
For Dino Charge Bandai still asserts that if a Ranger appears in show, of which there’s likely to be 11 between DC & Supercharge, then there’s a very good chance to see it in toy form. When asked about any possible gender swaps or sash swaps in the show, they referred back to the first answer. Bandai is also taking this position with Megazords, if it appears in the show footage it’s very likely to receive a toy. Villain figures are a key point of interest to Bandai as well since this is the first time since MMPR that waves are predominantly villains. Poisandra however is still cloudy. While Bandai is looking into it, it depends entirely on the characters trajectory in the show. They simply don’t know currently. The same can be said for why no Supercharge items were displayed – if it hasn’t been revealed in the show then they can’t necessarily show it in toy form without approval from Saban Brands.
Fans of Ranger Keys from Super Megaforce will also be sobered a bit. Currently no plans for more Ranger Keys as the play pattern is no longer current. Speaking of exclusives Bandai confirmed that they are upping their game for New York Comic Con to match the cons size. They will have an exclusive of some kind for this years show.
Bandai of America takes the fan opinion very seriously. They also want to cater to collectors and use the Legacy line as well as conventions to try and do that. They encourage fans to let them know what they think at conventions and such.
We’d like to thank Bandai of America for their time over the weekend for answering our questions and being awesome in general. The team is super excited for the future and can’t wait to show you what’s in store next. They hope you’ll come see them at this year’s NYCC.
Kickback just finished up a full interview with Bandai of America regarding to of the big questions fans and collectors have about the current Dino Charge & Legacy toylines!
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The Rundown:
Legacy
- Items were never meant to be released in chronological order that's just the way it turned out over the history of releases.
- The Ninja Megazord, Shogun Megazord, & Falconzord are all obvious times to look at doing in the future in their mind.
- On the topic of Zeo, Bandai is very much a fan. Internally it's agreed that it would be fun to do so it's a very good possibility.
- Legacy Zeo Gold Ranger Power Staff? An interesting idea
- Legacy Tor? They don't want to destroy our wallets but its possible.
- Legacy as a whole is meant to be released as one roleplay and one Megazord, or sometimes 5" figures, at a time to spread things out.
- Legacy Blade Blaster at SDCC was a total mock-up, retail copy was not ready. Will follow up with us later with more info on this release.
- Thunder Megazord should be able to assume the Thunderzord Assault Team "sled" configuration but Bandai is going to follow up with the designer and get back to us post convention.
- When asked if a Black & Gold Dragonzord could be made to accompany the Megazord, their response was "would fans buy it"?
Dino Charge
- Last year we asked Bandai about the rangers in Dino Charge for their 5" line. They said then that if the character was in Dino Charge (alluding to the ll different ones in the source material) that there was a good chance of them being made as toys. This year the same question was posed, including gender swaps. Bandai says they're sticking to the original answer. If it's in the show it's likely to be a toy.
- Poisandra. Bandai is looking into it, but it depends entirely on what happens to the character in the show. They simply don't know her future in show. We asked "How about a PMC exclusive for Poisandra?" They're response. "Hey good idea!" (Kickback personally apologizes for this
- They're very eager to see how the villains sell for Dino Charge. It's the first time since MMPR that the majority of a wave has been villains.
- Regarding more Dino Charge Megazords, as with the 5" figures, if it's in the show footage it's a very good chance it will have a toy.
- The reason there were no new reveals for SDCC, if it hasn't been revealed in the show then they can't necessarily show it in toy form without approval from Saban Brands yet. On the topic of the new Dino Chargers that were displayed, we asked what might be printed on their backsides. We'll just have to purchase them to find out
Super Megaforce
- When asked about Ranger Keys they're stance is that it's no longer the "play pattern" that's available. Not much chance of future retail releases. Exclusives for cons are a maybe.
NYCC
The show itself is getting bigger so the exclusives need to be as well. If possibel they'd like us to come this year. And they've confirmed there IS a Power Rangers exclusive for this year.
Bandai takes the fan opinion very seriously. They also want to cater to collectors and use the Legacy line as well as conventions to try and do that. They encourage fans to let them know what they think at conventions and such.
We'd like to thank Bandai America for their time over the weekend for answering our questions and being awesome in general. The team is super excited for the future and can't wait to show you what's in store next. They hope you'll come see them at this year's NYCC.
So how long until we get Lexcon exclusives?
Anyway, some great info here. I love how much effort they put into connect with us dollar signs- I mean fans.
"Would fans buy it?"
I dunno. I would like to buy it, but I'm still working on getting a normal Dragonzord, first
Also, glad to hear they're planning on letting the Thunderzords form their sled thing. It's not super necessary since I only plan on having it displayed combined, but it's nice.
Also, Legacy Ninja Zords? I need to know about the Battle Borgs!
BoA is a fan of Zeo?
If and when we do get a Legacy Zeo Megazord I am soooooo going to buy it. Reading that was just dandy since Zeo as a season gets overlooked at times.
If Poisandra ends up being an exclusive, I know a certain mod who will be angry as hell
. Would give me more of a reason to attend PMC XD
If and when we do get a Legacy Zeo Megazord I am soooooo going to buy it. Reading that was just dandy since Zeo as a season gets overlooked at times.
Zeo is insanely popular with the adult fanbase, cited as one of the better, if not best, series in the franchise.
Sounds like they're still excited about developing the Legacy line and one-day movin beyond MMPR. Hopefully that momentum will carry them up to at least Lightspeed Rescue.
I don't really remember Zeo, or Turbo, In Space, or Lost Galaxy for that matter, but it's nice to know that Zeo fans won't be left out when it comes to the Future of Legacy. I'll need to rewatch it before saying if I have any interest in Legacy Zeo stuff myself.
As for Dino charge, it sucks that they weren't able to show off anything new yet, but it's understandable. That said, they have shown off some stuff that hasn't made it's way into the show yet.
I don't currently plan on getting any of the villain figures, but I do hope they're able to produce a Poisandra figure. If not as a wide-release figure, maybe as a store exclusive. If they do, I think I'll actually get her, most of the other main villains, possibly some of the one-offs, and while I'm at it... probably all eleven Rangers... so maybe they shouldn't make her, lol
It wasn't needed, as I'm sure there was no doubt that they would be doing all the on-screen zords, but having the confirmation is kinda nice. I just wish they could have shown off some of them.
Out of curiosity, but what would be the next convention that we could possibly get some Dino Charge toy reveals at?
Oh boy. Sentai will not be happy if the Poisandra is a PMC exclusive.
Happy to say I inadvertently (Very likely) called the Legacy Ninja/Shogun/Falcon Zords.
A Gold Ranger staff? That could be expensive. The same with MMPR S3 megazords, but that is cool that they are planning to move beyond MMPR.
Keep reading: SDCC 2015: Interview with Bandai of America - Page 2
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