I agree - being angry doesn't make sense - but I can understand people being disappointed.
When someone like Blitzway, Sideshow or XM.....even Queen Studios, releases something out of left feild (Marilyn Monroe, Kurt Cobain, Michael Jackson....) it doesn't seem so bad, because they do a multi release - and there's (usually) something in there to keep the unwashed masses happy. However, with JND's release model, and the time in between releases - it might seem to some, to be a wasted opportunity.
In addition, JND has, in fact, dropped various hints about the "lines" they will produce (e.g. Lord of the Rings) and has also heavily indicated that certain, awaited characters would be released (Aquaman, Aragon and Geralt of Rivia to name a few) - so, while this isn't a promise as such - people's disappointment isn't coming from nowhere
They have dropped hints of particular characters, not necessarily lines. It's implied they will, because of course you have JL WW and Superman, so therefore naturally there will be Batman, just as there was Bale Batman to Heath's Joker. Yet they release characters like Catwoman first, or Harley Quinn from Suicide Squad with no expectation of continuing that line etc.
It's different to collecting Hot Toys or Inart for example, people are happy to drop hundreds of pounds on each character with the want and hope to finish a six character line. With £2000 statues I would say, based particularly on my own thinking towards it mostly, that people will splash this much money down because they particularly love that character regardless of there being an accompanying piece or not.
It's always been in JND's blood to do something different or left-field. Arthur Fleck instead of Joker in make-up for example. Arwen before a member of the Fellowship another.
But then throw into the mix characters like White Beard or Oh Dae-Su from Old Boy (which I can't believe they're making, and really hoping to get one), it's quite clear they like making different things and certainly now, but definitely early in their career, have never really wanted to be a company that does a line of characters. They, as their slogan goes, want your collection to 'stand apart', but also, I'd say they also want characters to stand apart.
People chastise them for sure over their cock-suredness, potential pretentiousness etc. but to honest, I think they've always angled themselves as their statues being Artist pieces, I think the response to fans in relation to Arwen; I think it was, that the overall statue will always be down to the particular artists interpretation shows how heavy they lean into their statues being artistic displays. The price point certainly reflects it.
And to be honest I wish I cottoned onto this sooner. I do love the Snyder DC characters, their design and from where they come from. But if I'd have known that they'd create characters like Oh Dae-Su, and niche projects like Basquiat, that have a lot more deeper meaning to me, I certainly would have chosen to miss out on some of the comic statues.
The artistic slant certainly interests me. And I think there is definitely a market that would want this. Certainly I've seen from a lot of rich Chinese and Korean custom collectors that show their unique pieces on Instagram, odd-ball characters and things you would not expect to see as a highly detailed 1/6 collectible are purchased.
Either way, this company isn't, nor has it ever been anything like other statue companies, and I don't mean it in a 'because they're so much better' way, but rather in an artistic vision of what the company is and produces. I certainly never have expected them to create lines, just characters. And I really can't see too many people complaining about such an issue when to complete some lines you'd need to drop 10k or so.
Time will tell if it works out, I hope it does!
Also, just as a further point, I do believe things are mentioned in Daniels updates for hints. I imagine when he makes them the plan is for that hint to be the next reveal, but I think clearly licensing comes down to a lot of it. For example, and you can tell because they weren't really pumped for The Batman, WB said to them from what I remember that he had to be released at a particular time. Then you have cases where Indiana Jones is greenlit etc. But I don't think they have ever promised to complete lines, just hinting at more characters or an intention to do more characters from a franchise.
EDIT: Actually, I just remembered that James did say he is doing Batman Affleck on the FB group. It's been said how much he loves DC but particularly Batman so there is the assumption and borderline promise of characters. But they purposefully don't and refuse to reveal a planned schedule. I've asked so many times
