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"JazAwesome" by Egoraptor



Becoming the resident "toy guy" for Atomic Fire, I was itching to get in contact with some of the hot Mega Man toyline creators for some exclusive content or information. I called around a bit to a couple companies, and then discovered that Jazwares is located in Sunrise, Florida. Living only an hour away from there, I decided to ask if I could pay them a visit. They kindly obliged.



The Visit



I was greeted by Jesse DeStasio who introduced me to John. At that point I was sat down (in a room surrounded by action figures no less) and we began talking. It was, in short, a really laid back, friendly environment... exactly what I'd expect for a toy company. These guys love toys, man. It was great being in the presence of people who appreciate toys as much as I do as well as being so into what they do and the subject matter (both are big Mega Man fans!). Instantly I noticed something awkward on the back shelf that housed a plethora of toys.





Apparently these figures were made to be a Halloween themed edition of the Retro Roto line that was to be shipped to specialty retailers like Hot Topic, but none of the retailers were interested. The paint is apparently black light paint, though I didn't get to see a demonstration. However, upon the power going out shortly into the visit, I got to see that some of the figures actually glow in the dark. It's a shame that these won't be hitting shelves. They're pretty nifty.



Shortly after, Jesse pulled out a book Capcom had sent them to use for reference in character designs. This book blew me away. It contained original art of the original Mega Man characters... and even of the level enemies as well as the items.





Pardon the terrible pictures (some pictures had to be sacrificed because they were unusable). Next time I'll get better ones, I promise.



Anyway, according to Jesse, this book was the entire basis of the Retro Roto series. They used these guidelines as the basis for the sculpts, and I think the result definitely shows this to be true. As you can see, it's nearly impossible to get details wrong with this thing.



Apparently, the Retro Roto series is selling extremely well. It's very likely we'll see many waves of these toys hitting stores. Really, the way it works: the more we collect these figures, the more they'll come out with. It's that simple, really.



I was shown a bunch of the Wave 3 and Retro Roto 2 prototypes I had linked to in an earlier news post from 2005 US Fall Toy Fair. All of them looked really really great, and Sigma had his colors all finished (the US Fall Toy Fair pictures had the prototype with unfinished colors).





Later on, I got to go back where the sculpting takes place and see some of the really phenominal sculpts for the other licenses they have like Trigun, Samurai Champloo, Street Fighter, and Viewtiful Joe. They really are phenominal sculpts. I can't wait to see how far the Mega Man line can progress. The Viewtiful Joe line everyone should especially be excited about. These sculpts were absolutely spot on.



Upon asking if they planned on making any Mega Man statues, an immediate and unexpected "yes" came to fruition. Jazwares is working on making a Jazwaresstore.com exclusive pre-painted resin statue featuring a totally kickass Mega Man vs. Air Man diorama. It's extremely early into production and I only got to see crude preliminary artwork for the figure. The idea, though, is most excellent I must say.



Near the end of my visit, Jesse was kind enough to give me a Cutman Wave 3 figure and a Mega Man Retro Roto figure. These guys really know how to make you feel welcome. Haha. Upon leaving, they asked for me to come back in 3 months to keep tabs on what's going on exclusively for Atomic Fire. Of course, I happily accepted. This may be the beginning of a beautiful friendship!





Jesse on the left, John on the right. Two cool guys in two cool hats. What a couple of badasses.



The News and Information



Of course I got a lot of sweet information and news! I asked tons of questions and got tons of answers. They were all asked in a rather informal, ballistic way, so that's how this section will be laid out for you guys.



- The biggest news would have to be the Mega Man vs. Air Man diorama. If you skipped straight to this section and missed out on the description, it will be a Jazwaresstore.com exclusive pre-painted resin statue featuring a totally kickass Mega Man vs. Air Man diorama. It's extremely early into production and I only got to see crude preliminary artwork for the figure. They told me a very small amount of them would be made, only about a thousand!



- Retro Roto Wave 2 is shooting for a February 2006 release.



- 6" Wave 5 will include Pirate Man, X8 Vile, Command Mission X with ninja accessories, and the X1 Ride Armor. Retro Roto Wave 3 will include Bass, Skull Man, and Metal Man. All of these are subject to change.



- Future figures will not feature projectile weapons. Some new regulation was passed, and it's apparently a hassle to work them into figures at this point.



- There is an arcade cabinet in the works that will feature about 20 Capcom games in one standalone cabinet. The idea is still up in the air since it's hard to obtain individual licenses for each game, but if completed, the cabinet will feature both true to arcade versions of Mega Man: The Power Battles and Mega Man: The Power Fighters.



- A brief play by play of how a figure is produced at Jazwares:



1. They decide on a figure and find reference material in any way they can. Pictures, movies, cartoons, or just playing the game. They try to think of really original ideas for accessories and what not by playing the games, mostly.



2. They send all the reference material to a sculpter. Sometimes it's inhouse, sometimes it's outsourced. Depending on the situation, it varies whether they send it to China to get sculpted (cheaper, but less in tune to what the figure's about, so it's a bit risky) or to an American sculpter (more expensive, but usually a lot better and easier to work with).



3. They submit the sculpts to the licensor (Capcom) to see if they're happy. The licensor will send back pictures and notes for modifying the figure. This usually goes back and forth for a while until the figure meets their standards. The companies are usually very strict about what the toy should look like, but Capcom is apparently a little more lenient and willing to work with deadlines and what not if need be.



4. Once the licensor is satisfied, the sculpt is sent to their molder in California who makes 2 beautiful sculpts.



5. One of the two sculpts is painted and then sent to the licensor where step 3 begins again. Once the color is decided on, the other sculpt is sent to China with the articulation marked and noted, and back comes the final product.





Questions and Answers



Jesse previously visited the Mega Man Community forums and answered a few questions, but he's been swamped as of late and hasn't really had the time to wade through all of it. So, I rounded all the unanswered questions up and fired away.



Will Vile (X1) and Protoman get a resculpt?



Yes. Protoman has already been resculpted, and Vile is planned to be resculpted (though no work has been done as of yet) and at earliest will be included in Wave 5... in 2007.



Will Jazwares get more retail support?



Jazwares is always looking for more retailers to stock their toys, but many retailers are iffy on the line because of its obscurity. Mega Man simply isn't an A license like say... Spider-Man is.



Will Jazwares produce "Civilian Clothing" figures?



Jazwares actually produced a really slick helmetless Retro Roto Mega Man figure, but apparently Capcom didn't approve of the decision for the figure at all, even in its really swift final stages. Unfortunately I wasn't able to take a picture of it, but it did look really cool, and it's a shame it'll never get released.



Will there be a non-metallic red Zero figure?



There was, but it was in short supply. It's not in production anymore... eBay would be your best bet.



There were rumors of a Treble figure coming in pieces. Is it true?



It was true, Jazwares was considering a Treble figure, but apparently it was just too much money to produce.



Will Jazwares make a White Axl?



Upon asking, Jesse didn't know what I was talking about. He then mentioned he'd never beaten Mega Man X8. LOL He said he'd definitely consider it if he sees what it looks like.



Is there a chance for Zero with real hair instead of plastic hair?



The simple answer was "no."



Does Jazwares do sculpts for fun?



Yes, in fact, Jesse had a few funny "headswaps" of Ryu and Ken in the Subzero armor.



What happened to the Mega Man X helmet?



The prototype was made and planned to be sold in a two-pack with the X Buster accessory, but apparently retailers weren't interested at all in Roleplay items for Mega Man, and it was quickly dropped along with the idea to make a Battle Network helmet.



What happened to the Battle and Chase inspired Dash Racers?



They were simply too much money to produce and retailers weren't all that interested in them.



Will Jazwares consider Battle Network toys?



It's a license they don't have. Due to the show NT Warrior there was a huge licensing ordeal regarding the Battle Network games... didn't really understand the entire meat of it, but it's just a hassle to obtain the license and they're not interested in dealing with it.



What was the deal with the Super Mega Figure Pack?



During the holiday season retailers like to have a big product that costs more than say a 6 dollar figure, so a huge bundle of figures and additional things was sent to one or two big retailers. Didn't have a long run.



What's the biggest problem Jazwares has had with video game licenses?



The extreme lack of referential artwork. It was a huge problem in creating the Sigma figure because that design doesn't have a whole lot of reference or readily available preliminary artwork. The first set of artwork that was sent to China for sculpting came back as a figure unsuited for.. anybody. It was hilariously terrible. Upon fan submission of better reference material, they were able to sculpt an inhouse prototype that lends itself very well to the series. Really good looking figure.



Any plans for bigger bad guys or Mavericks?



The simple truth is: as much as everyone would love to see the big hulking bosses and the cool Mavericks... retailers just aren't very keen on big figures that won't fit into blister packs and have to be put in boxes on the lower shelves. Retailers would rather save the shelf space for A licenses and such.



Will the Legends toys have tons of detachable accessories?



The Legends figure is planned to have a regular arm, buster cannon, and drill arm accessories. Unfortunately, as much as they'd like to and have had it planned, Capcom said no to the interchangable head thing. The figure will only feature helmetless Volnutt.



Why does it take so long to get figures to Canada and such?



International shipping laws vary and are usually a huge pain to deal with. Also, the figures are distributed to bigger cities and areas first as a test to see if they actually sell, then later they're shipped to smaller cities and areas. Becoming the resident "toy guy" for Atomic Fire, I was itching to get in contact with some of the hot Mega Man toyline creators for some exclusive content or information. I called around a bit to a couple companies, and then discovered that Jazwares is located in Sunrise, Florida. Living only an hour away from there, I decided to ask if I could pay them a visit. They kindly obliged.I was greeted by Jesse DeStasio who introduced me to John. At that point I was sat down (in a room surrounded by action figures no less) and we began talking. It was, in short, a really laid back, friendly environment... exactly what I'd expect for a toy company. These guys love toys, man. It was great being in the presence of people who appreciate toys as much as I do as well as being so into what they do and the subject matter (both are big Mega Man fans!). Instantly I noticed something awkward on the back shelf that housed a plethora of toys.Apparently these figures were made to be a Halloween themed edition of the Retro Roto line that was to be shipped to specialty retailers like Hot Topic, but none of the retailers were interested. The paint is apparently black light paint, though I didn't get to see a demonstration. However, upon the power going out shortly into the visit, I got to see that some of the figures actually glow in the dark. It's a shame that these won't be hitting shelves. They're pretty nifty.Shortly after, Jesse pulled out a book Capcom had sent them to use for reference in character designs. This book blew me away. It contained original art of the original Mega Man characters... and even of the level enemies as well as the items.Pardon the terrible pictures (some pictures had to be sacrificed because they were unusable). Next time I'll get better ones, I promise.Anyway, according to Jesse, this book was the entire basis of the Retro Roto series. They used these guidelines as the basis for the sculpts, and I think the result definitely shows this to be true. As you can see, it's nearly impossible to get details wrong with this thing.Apparently, the Retro Roto series is selling extremely well. It's very likely we'll see many waves of these toys hitting stores. Really, the way it works: the more we collect these figures, the more they'll come out with. It's that simple, really.I was shown a bunch of the Wave 3 and Retro Roto 2 prototypes I had linked to in an earlier news post from 2005 US Fall Toy Fair. All of them looked really really great, and Sigma had his colors all finished (the US Fall Toy Fair pictures had the prototype with unfinished colors).Later on, I got to go back where the sculpting takes place and see some of the really phenominal sculpts for the other licenses they have like Trigun, Samurai Champloo, Street Fighter, and Viewtiful Joe. They really are phenominal sculpts. I can't wait to see how far the Mega Man line can progress. The Viewtiful Joe line everyone should especially be excited about. These sculpts were absolutely spot on.Upon asking if they planned on making any Mega Man statues, an immediate and unexpected "yes" came to fruition. Jazwares is working on making a Jazwaresstore.com exclusive pre-painted resin statue featuring a totally kickass Mega Man vs. Air Man diorama. It's extremely early into production and I only got to see crude preliminary artwork for the figure. The idea, though, is most excellent I must say.Near the end of my visit, Jesse was kind enough to give me a Cutman Wave 3 figure and a Mega Man Retro Roto figure. These guys really know how to make you feel welcome. Haha. Upon leaving, they asked for me to come back in 3 months to keep tabs on what's going on exclusively for Atomic Fire. Of course, I happily accepted. This may be the beginning of a beautiful friendship!Of course I got a lot of sweet information and news! I asked tons of questions and got tons of answers. They were all asked in a rather informal, ballistic way, so that's how this section will be laid out for you guys.- The biggest news would have to be the Mega Man vs. Air Man diorama. If you skipped straight to this section and missed out on the description, it will be a Jazwaresstore.com exclusive pre-painted resin statue featuring a totally kickass Mega Man vs. Air Man diorama. It's extremely early into production and I only got to see crude preliminary artwork for the figure. They told me a very small amount of them would be made, only about a thousand!- Retro Roto Wave 2 is shooting for a February 2006 release.- 6" Wave 5 will include Pirate Man, X8 Vile, Command Mission X with ninja accessories, and the X1 Ride Armor. Retro Roto Wave 3 will include Bass, Skull Man, and Metal Man. All of these are subject to change.- Future figures will not feature projectile weapons. Some new regulation was passed, and it's apparently a hassle to work them into figures at this point.- There is an arcade cabinet in the works that will feature about 20 Capcom games in one standalone cabinet. The idea is still up in the air since it's hard to obtain individual licenses for each game, but if completed, the cabinet will feature both true to arcade versions of Mega Man: The Power Battles and Mega Man: The Power Fighters.- A brief play by play of how a figure is produced at Jazwares:1. They decide on a figure and find reference material in any way they can. Pictures, movies, cartoons, or just playing the game. They try to think of really original ideas for accessories and what not by playing the games, mostly.2. They send all the reference material to a sculpter. Sometimes it's inhouse, sometimes it's outsourced. Depending on the situation, it varies whether they send it to China to get sculpted (cheaper, but less in tune to what the figure's about, so it's a bit risky) or to an American sculpter (more expensive, but usually a lot better and easier to work with).3. They submit the sculpts to the licensor (Capcom) to see if they're happy. The licensor will send back pictures and notes for modifying the figure. This usually goes back and forth for a while until the figure meets their standards. The companies are usually very strict about what the toy should look like, but Capcom is apparently a little more lenient and willing to work with deadlines and what not if need be.4. Once the licensor is satisfied, the sculpt is sent to their molder in California who makes 2 beautiful sculpts.5. One of the two sculpts is painted and then sent to the licensor where step 3 begins again. Once the color is decided on, the other sculpt is sent to China with the articulation marked and noted, and back comes the final product.Jesse previously visited the Mega Man Community forums and answered a few questions, but he's been swamped as of late and hasn't really had the time to wade through all of it. So, I rounded all the unanswered questions up and fired away.Yes. Protoman has already been resculpted, and Vile is planned to be resculpted (though no work has been done as of yet) and at earliest will be included in Wave 5... in 2007.Jazwares is always looking for more retailers to stock their toys, but many retailers are iffy on the line because of its obscurity. Mega Man simply isn't an A license like say... Spider-Man is.Jazwares actually produced a really slick helmetless Retro Roto Mega Man figure, but apparently Capcom didn't approve of the decision for the figure at all, even in its really swift final stages. Unfortunately I wasn't able to take a picture of it, but it did look really cool, and it's a shame it'll never get released.There was, but it was in short supply. It's not in production anymore... eBay would be your best bet.It was true, Jazwares was considering a Treble figure, but apparently it was just too much money to produce.Upon asking, Jesse didn't know what I was talking about. He then mentioned he'd never beaten Mega Man X8. LOL He said he'd definitely consider it if he sees what it looks like.The simple answer was "no."Yes, in fact, Jesse had a few funny "headswaps" of Ryu and Ken in the Subzero armor.The prototype was made and planned to be sold in a two-pack with the X Buster accessory, but apparently retailers weren't interested at all in Roleplay items for Mega Man, and it was quickly dropped along with the idea to make a Battle Network helmet.They were simply too much money to produce and retailers weren't all that interested in them.It's a license they don't have. Due to the show NT Warrior there was a huge licensing ordeal regarding the Battle Network games... didn't really understand the entire meat of it, but it's just a hassle to obtain the license and they're not interested in dealing with it.During the holiday season retailers like to have a big product that costs more than say a 6 dollar figure, so a huge bundle of figures and additional things was sent to one or two big retailers. Didn't have a long run.The extreme lack of referential artwork. It was a huge problem in creating the Sigma figure because that design doesn't have a whole lot of reference or readily available preliminary artwork. The first set of artwork that was sent to China for sculpting came back as a figure unsuited for.. anybody. It was hilariously terrible. Upon fan submission of better reference material, they were able to sculpt an inhouse prototype that lends itself very well to the series. Really good looking figure.The simple truth is: as much as everyone would love to see the big hulking bosses and the cool Mavericks... retailers just aren't very keen on big figures that won't fit into blister packs and have to be put in boxes on the lower shelves. Retailers would rather save the shelf space for A licenses and such.The Legends figure is planned to have a regular arm, buster cannon, and drill arm accessories. Unfortunately, as much as they'd like to and have had it planned, Capcom said no to the interchangable head thing. The figure will only feature helmetless Volnutt.International shipping laws vary and are usually a huge pain to deal with. Also, the figures are distributed to bigger cities and areas first as a test to see if they actually sell, then later they're shipped to smaller cities and areas.





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