WETA Vs. PF

[customizerwannabe]

In the long run which do you think will hold the greatest sway over collectors? I know there will be certain WETA statues that could never be duplicated in the premium format, but overall which do you think will have the greatest long term collector appeal? My gut tells me the PF figs are going to become the new standard. Your take?

 

[Shai]

I like the PF better but wetas were more limited...And if you wanna invest in something good not LOTR, I would say the Sideshow Marvel exclusive V.S. line is the way to go ...limited editions,amazing sculpt,lots of fan appeal,These are IMO the high value items of tomorrow...

 

[Darklord Dave]

As much as I prefer the mixed media format over statues - I don't think it's been fully embraced by the collecting community as of yet. It may be just a matter of time and I think SW and LotR will help in that regard.

 

[Seaward]

I was two pieces away from a complete Weta statue line (legolas/gimli and Black Gates Aragorn), and just cancelled those orders the other day and boxed up my complete statue collection and passed it along to a friend who sells on ebay. I love the Weta stuff, but the likeness were never a strong suit for me, and some of the choices were strange, like nekkid Lurtz and Armored Pip. When I saw the PF Lurtz, I was blown away, and having seen some of the other Premium Format stuff up close, like Freddy and Jason, Luke and Han, I was ready to make the switch.

Personally, I like the larger scale, I like the mixed media, and I like the better portraits (in my opinion).

The Weta stuff always had a certain appeal that the guys and gals that actually had a hand in the film sculpted some of the pieces, and not to discount what they have created, but I much prefer the sculptures coming from Andy, Mat, and others at Sideshow!

 

[Shai]

Personally, I like the larger scale, I like the mixed media, and I like the better portraits (in my opinion).

The Weta stuff always had a certain appeal that the guys and gals that actually had a hand in the film sculpted some of the pieces, and not to discount what they have created, but I much prefer the sculptures coming from Andy, Mat, and others at Sideshow!

Very well said !!!!! I'll take Sideshow stuff instead of weta's anyday of the week.No one can beat Sideshow's sculptors not even weta.

 

[lcummins]

Another concern I have been thinking about over the past few months is how fragile the polystone statues seem to be. I know the PF have polystone parts, but they seem to be stonger and less likely to break just by dusting them, which has happened to some board members with the statues. I have been trying to decide if I really want that worry hangin over me by hanging on to the SS/W statues...

 

[LOTRFan]

Another concern I have been thinking about over the past few months is how fragile the polystone statues seem to be. I know the PF have polystone parts, but they seem to be stonger and less likely to break just by dusting them, which has happened to some board members with the statues. I have been trying to decide if I really want that worry hangin over me by hanging on to the SS/W statues...

I hear you on the fragile nature of these masterpieces (I suppose I have betrayed my first love), but I am not sure the PF has been around long enough to fully appreciate the long-term durability of the cloth? I am sure that give the right display (some form of a case, which is also required for long-term poly success) they will endure, but I am more concerned about their longstanding.

I am only posting my thoughts on the long-term durability, as for preferences; I still prefer Weta, though I am excited about the PF.

 

[Seaward]

I have also thought about how to care for cloth and polystone, and what steps may be needed...I am guessing I will be investing in some acrylic cases too in the future! Now if my buddy can do a decent job selling of this stuff, I hope to put a massive down payment on a car and buy an engagement ring for my girlfriend. She has already insisted it be inscribed with something in elvish, to remember where her ring is coming from! I also hope to buy a hybrid car, and being a huge nerd, seeing if the plate "4 Frodo" is available...

And I mean Nerd in the most empowering sense of the word!

 

[lcummins]

I have also thought about how to care for cloth and polystone, and what steps may be needed...I am guessing I will be investing in some acrylic cases too in the future! Now if my buddy can do a decent job selling of this stuff, I hope to put a massive down payment on a car and buy an engagement ring for my girlfriend. She has already insisted it be inscribed with something in elvish, to remember where her ring is coming from! I also hope to buy a hybrid car, and being a huge nerd, seeing if the plate "4 Frodo" is available...

And I mean Nerd in the most empowering sense of the word!

Now THAT is a girl to hang on to!!!!

 

[elwood49]

I was two pieces away from a complete Weta statue line (legolas/gimli and Black Gates Aragorn), and just cancelled those orders the other day and boxed up my complete statue collection and passed it along to a friend who sells on ebay. I love the Weta stuff, but the likeness were never a strong suit for me, and some of the choices were strange, like nekkid Lurtz and Armored Pip. When I saw the PF Lurtz, I was blown away, and having seen some of the other Premium Format stuff up close, like Freddy and Jason, Luke and Han, I was ready to make the switch.

Personally, I like the larger scale, I like the mixed media, and I like the better portraits (in my opinion).

The Weta stuff always had a certain appeal that the guys and gals that actually had a hand in the film sculpted some of the pieces, and not to discount what they have created, but I much prefer the sculptures coming from Andy, Mat, and others at Sideshow!

Your feelings sum it up for me perfectly. It's mainly the larger scale. The Weta pieces are just so tiny. For me personally, they have a "toy" or "figurine" quality to them. Kong v. Rex is the straw that broke the camel's back for me. That piece blows every LOTR piece out of the water. If they had made even a few LOTR pieces of that size and quality (Balrog, Battle Troll, Fell Beast, Mumak), it would be the ultimate line. Hopefully there will be a HUGE Smaug from the Hobbit.

The Weta pieces may very well be worth more in the future, but I have no interest anymore. The quality is far surpassed by the SS 1/4 line, IMO.

 

[NASEDO]

I'm surprised. Some sculpts maybe off from Weta but PF Frodo took his bashing to. The Weta bust line is Excellent. Some amazing sculpts there. Same with the statues all at 1/6.

I dont have all the WETA stuff and the PF stuff everybody will be able to get. And thats the difference. The WETA stuff has good edition sizes and I imagine being fragile they get lower all the time. The PF line will not be as rare, and it wont be a problem to get.

Star Wars is the real collectors line. That stuff sells out fast, LOTR takes time.

So I do not see the PF line being more valuable then WETA ever. And I do believe the WETA line will be back in 2009 when they help Peter Jackson make "The Hobbit" and I hope they team up with SS again. Thats why you should keep your WETA stuff. Now is a bad time to sell.

 

[DarkArtist81]

I don't see the WETA items as being bad per se or less cool... But I'd take a PF over a standard statue anyday. I'd just rather have the added realism of the mixed media format that they employ for the Premium Format.

Don't get me wrong, there were a ton of awesome items produced as statues, but I've always been more interested in the added cool factor of clothing and such. Just my take.....

 

[customizerwannabe]

The care of the PF figures is not a concern. As a 1/6 collector, cloth is no more difficult to maintain than polystone. Keep it dusted regularly and it will always look good. A display case is always a good idea. I hope they do revive the WETA line with the Hobbit movie. That will resurrect the values, because if collectibles history has taught anything, it has shown that once lines die, their values diminish. David Winter cottages is a good example. In the height of popularity they were thriving with great aftermarket values. Now that the line has decreased production to a trickle they can be had for a fraction of their prices 10 years ago. LOTR is such a popular license I don't ever see them bottoming out, but there are still going to be some downward spirals in values as the line starts to close and the interest wanes a bit due to no new pieces. My 2 cents anyway.

 

[revilal]

Whoah, JLCMSU will be rolling in his grave if he hears of the comments in this thread.

Personally, I'm sticking with my WETA polystone and have only bought the sculptures that I like. As for the PF, not really a fan of the mixed-media and collecting the line is a no-no because of the sheer size of the figures.

I loved the WETA pieces and spend endless hours just staring at the art in them. Just because a new line has been announced doesnt mean Im gonna rid of them and quite frankly Im a little surprised that some folks are doing so. But each to their own, and you guys probably think Im mad for keeping WETa and snubbing the PF's.

Sayin that, if a very good PF figure is shown I will be all over it...

 

[Shai]

Whoah, JLCMSU will be rolling in his grave if he hears of the comments in this thread.

Josh is dead....????

 

[Shai]

Sayin that, if a very good PF figure is shown I will be all over it...

What about the premium format 1/4 Lurtz ???

 

[customizerwannabe]

PF Lurtz is beyond good. It is an excellent example of how incredible mixed media can be. You simple cannot do that figure in polystone alone and have it look as good. I'm not knocking the WETA sculptures. I'm planning on picking up several of them. The mounted figures are particularly well done. The point of the thread was to poll collectors and see which format they thought had the longest potential. Both have their positives and negatives. For the record I don't think any PF figure will reach the dollars commanded by the Cave Troll or Stone Trolls, due to the edition sizes and artistic constraints of the format. It will, however, be around in 3 years when WETA probably will not.

 

[Lynxje]

For me Weta will always have more appeal, I just prefer the 'full sculpted' to the mixed-media. I will still get some LotR PF figs, but not as fanatically as the Weta line.

 

[The Josh]

Whoah, JLCMSU will be rolling in his grave if he hears of the comments in this thread.

LOL

I love my SSW stuff and despite the fact that the likenesses are not the best on every piece they do what I would personally want. Capture what I saw on screen or what I felt when I saw what I saw on screen and had in my head from the book. These pieces are so amazlingly detailed that I simply cannot find any problems with that. These pieces mean a lot to me personally and for that they will always be special. So you won't see me be like a lot of others that praised them then bailed later on when something supposedly "better" came along. I still prefer statues over PF pieces.

However, PF pieces rock big time and I'm now a big supporter of them. I admitted after SDCC last year they where much better than I thought. I've done a lot of looking over my Vader since I got him yesterday and I admit he is one of the best pieces I own. I won't compare them really though to my statues they are different medias so I find it absoluetly silly to do so. I'm gonna get as many LOTR and SW PF pieces I as I can afford because of the level of detail SS is putting into these. These PF figures are just plain awesome and anyone who calls them dolls doesn't have a clue as much as I think anyone who calls the SSW statues "toys" or "figurines" is in the same boat.

For me both kick ass and I'm a huge supporter of both. Especially the LOTR stuff because of what that story means to me personally.

 

[Seaward]

Nicely said about both lines.