I ’d been looking forth to this for months : Force Friday , the bounteous reveal and firing of the first toys from Star Wars : The Force Awakens . I ’d antecedently trace up for plaything from Episodes I , II and III — and VII was going to be no different . But this Force Friday was a truly horrendous experience .
https://gizmodo.com/the-best-star-wars-loot-from-force-friday-1728756436
And the shuddery thing is , I ’m not the only one . After I spout on Twitter , I got scads of masses telling me the same thing . That their Force Friday sucked because retail merchant severely understocked on the most pop items — action figure . People who waited 60 minutes pay off only a fraction of what was on their wish list , if at all . loads of people had a great time , make no mistake , but that was n’t the case for me and band of others .
So here ’s my Force Friday report . Though I experience in Los Angeles , I ’m spending Labor Day weekend with some admirer who live in Walnut Creek , CA , just outside of Oakland . We specifically booked a flying late Thursday Nox so we could land and channelise right to Force Friday , which is what we did . We got to the Toys “ R ” Us in Pleasant Hill , CA at 11 p.m.—later than I wanted , but still fine .
Why toy “ R ” Us ? Well the fair game in the area were n’t open at midnight and toy “ R ” Us was render out an sole Lego piece , check above . Not pose , slice . One piece . well than nothing . When we arrive , there were about 30 citizenry in note . That ’s a lot , but not softheaded .
Time fell by , spill the beans and joke in the brisk northern California eventide . The olfactory property of nearby In & Out did n’t hurt either . As we got closer . Toys “ radius ” Us employees came outside and stimulate us pump up . “ Are you quick for Star Wars ? ” they scream . “ I ca n’t pick up you in the back of the line ! ” This unbridled ebullience surely suggested everyone in line would be impart happy .
At 11:59 p.m. , a person dressed as Geoffrey , the Toys “ R ” Us Giraffa camelopardalis , came out to take photos . He had a lightsaber . Simultaneously , one of the employees handed over our sole Lego while . Then the threshold opened . The line , which included several very drunk unseasoned men at the front who ’d been there most of the day I assume , was actually pretty polite . We were even handed a cool Kylo Ren poster upon entranceway .
Then , as the single file line crop their way back to the Star Wars gangway , you bulge to see the people at the front walk out with Brobdingnagian piles in their manpower . A mark said each client was fix to only 3 of each single item but still , it was scary . “ Are the Legos in there ? ” asked one gentleman . “ No , they ’re a few aisles down , ” responded another employee . Quickly the melody broke in two .
I last out in the normal agate line while I assure my fiance , who I embroil along with me , to head to the Lego line . I could n’t buy anything big because I ’d have to transport it home , but a low piece of music could n’t spite . She was back with my Rey Speeder before the 25 or so people in front of me made their way through the gangway .
When I become the corner , it looked like there had n’t been any toy at all . One or two 3 ¾ in figures hung on the 20 or so pegs . The 6 column inch Black Series pegs , of which there were importantly less , were empty . great deal of other leg were empty too . The Funko Pops had been decimated , with just a few Finns and Reys remaining . I eye a Captain Phasma near the back but as I made my agency to grab it , someone in front of me induce it . I looked around . There were a few larger items , a few smaller items tied to the original trilogy , but almost everything Kylo Ren , Finn , Rey , Poe or Phasma was croak . And all of the material body . I asked the employee if they had more in the back . They read they did n’t . Even if they were uninformed or lying , I ’d never know . I did another ambit of the aisle and then went over to see the Lego .
There , thing were a little less bare . Several of the gamey end Lego Millennium Falcons were useable , as was Poe Dameron ’s X - Wing , but nowhere to be seen was Kylo Ren ’s ship or a few other sets . I require the gentleman who mentioned the Lego before if he was felicitous . “ No — they did n’t have all the sets . How can they not have all the sets ? ”
I look at my Rey ’s Speeder Lego and debated just putting it down . I had been so excited to geek out with Star Wars devotee and now I just felt direful . I decided to take it just so this was n’t a total wastefulness . While checking out , one of those intoxicated kids was next to me . “ 10th in melody . Tenth in fucking melodic line , and I get one figure I wanted . How the hell on earth is that possible ? I ’ve been here all day . ” Just as he sound out that , a man walked by us , on the speech sound bragging : “ I got em all , three Kylo Rens . ” The drunk Thomas Kyd yelled , “ It ’s cause of assholes like that I did n’t get my figure . You really should have handled this intimately . ” The employee just shrugged . I walk out , bitched on Twitter — as we do — and rule I was n’t alone .
@GermainLussiersimilar story here . After all the build - up , this section was all they had & only the stock to fill itpic.twitter.com/lEyXgOKFj6
— Adam Lamping is timeworn 🇨 🇦 ( @AdamLamping)September 4 , 2015
@GermainLussierthis chance at reasonably much EVERY locating from what I ’ve gathered . I was 4th in line and still missed out on 2 things
— Feel deAss Tyson ( @yrocAfella)September 4 , 2015
Same here . Terrible.https://t.co/pkq13UOlYc
— Sean Gerber ( @MrSeanGerber)September 4 , 2015
https://twitter.com/embed/status/639701043236896768
@GermainLussier@dveeseSame here ! 18th in production line . Only got 4x 3.75 and no 6 " .
— StudShooter ! ( @studshooter)September 4 , 2015
@GermainLussierHappened at Target , too . Hundreds of masses in line , only about 20 total Black Series toys .
— Jacob Hall ( @JacobSHall)September 4 , 2015
@GermainLussierIt was more#FarceFridaythan#ForceFridayLess than 2 pillow slip of Black Series and less than 5 lawsuit of 3 3/4 " at my@ToysRUs
— UltraMonkeyTron ( @ultramonkeytron)September 4 , 2015
@GermainLussierAlso@ToysRUsdidn’t have any Lego X - Wing , BB-8 ’s or Black Series TIE ’s on#FarceFridayReally disappointed at stock levels .
@GermainLussiersame experience . fearsome .
— Gellman ( @SCUncensored)September 4 , 2015
@Ethan_Anderton@TheEricGoldman@GermainLussierEighth in phone line . All Black Series figures were break .
@GermainLussier@ToysRUshappened to my young man too at the Chino Hills positioning . 100 people in bank line , only 1/4 fetch toys
— Lily Flores ( @rockerchk4)September 4 , 2015
@GermainLussiersame . Terrible
— Larry Bubbs ( @LarryBubbs)September 4 , 2015
@GermainLussier@ToysRUsSame tuning go on to us in Florida last dark .
— Kev ( @KevMerica)September 4 , 2015
@GermainLussier@ToysRUswas at@targetthat unfold @ 8 am this morning – 3rd person and nothing – either no blood line or employees find it all
— Trevin Sandlin ( @banjax451)September 4 , 2015
@GermainLussier@ToysRUswas atrocious , I was 12th in line and everything I wanted was sold out , find 2 smuggled serial later at object
— Mikey 12 ( @ShadyGFella)September 4 , 2015
@GermainLussier@ToysRUsI did n’t get ANYTHING from mine . There ’s a reason why I do n’t go there anymore
— jAsian ( @jAsian)September 4 , 2015
@GermainLussier@ToysRUsMy TRU did n’t even get any Black Series .
— Chris Pugh ( @ChrisLikesDinos)September 4 , 2015
https://twitter.com/embed/status/639840048129507329
And those are just response to my tweets . A quick search shows many had problems .
Stop at my local Toys R Us . All the full military action figures were taken .
— Brian Heinz ( @InGeekWeTrust)September 4 , 2015
Damn , I guess all the grownup nerds strip out Walmart , Target , and Toys R Us . All I wanted was a infernal Storm Trooper.#ForceFriday
— JR ( @TheJSRobinson)September 4 , 2015
@TheStarWarsFeed120 - 130 people in line and 18 in & they were out of 6″ TBS & 3.75 stormy . That ’s ridiculous .
https://twitter.com/embed/status/639838773983989761
patently the Force is not strong in my town,@toysrusa bounteous binge on#ForceFriday.#StarWars#sadnerds#fail
— Bryan ( @NachoHelmet)September 4 , 2015
Some fans even started a Hashtag , # FarceFriday
Stop 1 : Wal - Mart – Nothing Phasma , move along.#ForceFriday#FarceFriday
— Matty Breeze ( @mbrazee84)September 4 , 2015
Such a disappointing toy launching . Winchester TRU had like 2 cases of figures for 75 - 100 people.#farcefriday
— sbswfc ( @sbswfc)September 4 , 2015
@StarWarsJunk Stores have open up at midnight here in Australia and there is ZERO new TFA product , online or otherwise.#FarceFriday
— Steve Molk | The Guidefather | 👍 🇦 🇺 📺 ( @SteveMolk)September 3 , 2015
I desire my friends , lad gatherer , & Star Wars fans had a near night than I did.#FarceFriday
— Andrew LoVuolo ( @TheRifter)September 4 , 2015
So heavily to sleep when you ’ve been rent down after when all day your building up to something great#farcefriday 😔
— Andy ( @ThatGeekAndy)September 3 , 2015
I love Star Wars . I love pile up . And I ’m not sure who is to find fault here . Did Hasbro and the other manufactures not make enough product , hop to arouse demand by cutting supply ? Or did Toys “ R ” Us , Target and others just not order enough , severely underestimate the mightiness of Star Wars ? I do n’t know . What I do know is that Force Friday was a major let down for some . And while others sure got what they wanted , and everyone will be capable to get all these intersection in the weeks , calendar month and age ahead , it still sucks for even a few to be left with such a spoilt gustatory perception after so much buildup .
Image credit : Top – @AdamLamping
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