The chase figures in AEW Unrivaled wave 2 will likely be MJF and Jon Moxley, Jazwares partner Jeremy Padawer shared during a nearly hourlong Instagram live Q&A Thursday evening. Padawer wasn’t 100% certain if MJF and Mox would be the chase figures in the set, as he works on a lot of different lines, and let’s face it, the man is busy.
The Chris Jericho (1-in-1,000) and Cody Rhodes (1-in-500) chase figures are out in the wild, and Padawer said he plans to give away his chase Cody. Details on that giveaway are still to come.
Padawer also defended the chase figure concept as important in making the AEW Unrivaled line a 100 wave line because they create excitement not just with wrestling figure collectors but also people outside of the niche hobby. He explained that action figures are only interesting to a certain number of people, however collecting for value is interesting beyond the brand. So chase figures create excitement outside of the wrestling figure collector bubble.
“If you don’t get people stoked, then you’re done,” he said.
One idea that Padawer is clearly stoked about is the much talked about Sammy Guevara figure and golf cart. This is in the works, but it’s unclear yet whether it will be packaged with Guevara or a standalone offering.
In an interview on the AEW Unrestricted Podcast, Padawer acknowledged that an entrance stage is a possibility but it’s unlikely to be plastic like the playsets of yesteryear. A cardboard stage is more likely. Recall that Wicked Cool Toys made the authentic scale pop-up cardboard Raw and SmackDown stages, so this is likely an idea of what may be coming.
Padawer also acknowledged several figures that he’d like to see made, from AEW founder Tony Khan, to the Best Friends, to Christopher Daniels, to Awesome Kong. As for AEW women’s champion Shida, “don’t worry, you’re going to see Shida soon,” Padawer promised.
Asked if manager figures such as Arn Anderson and Tazz will be made, Padawer said “of course, that’s the goal.” And the TNT Championship is going to get released at some point.
Other projects Padawer think would be fun include making Trent’s mom Sue and her minivan and legends figures, of course.
On the AEW launch at Walmart getting off to a slow start, Padawer admitted that providing a date was a mistake. He said demand is great and the supply so far is that of a brand with moderate demand. The supply will increase with wave 2, he added, and he’s trying to strike a balance of not oversupplying the market and meeting demand. That’s one of the reasons why figures of Brandi Rhodes didn’t hit in the initial wave, as more focus was put on putting out the first AEW figures of The Young Bucks and Kenny Omega, as well as Chris Jericho and Cody Rhodes. But Brandi will be in replenishment cases in the future.
Wave 2 is expected to ship from Hong Kong in early September, and it should take six-to-eight weeks to make it to the U.S. Once the shipment reaches the port and is handed off to the retailer, then it’s up them to get the figures on shelves. Padawer said to expect Wave 2 in stores mid- to late-October, and maybe later.
AEW figures will be sold in Target stores starting in the spring, Padawer announced. They’re discussing how many stores that the line will be available in to start. He said they’ll be in at least 40% of Target stores.
In the United Kingdom, Smyths will carry the line later this year, as well as Toys R Us and Walmart in Canada.
Wrestling Figure News 