Richard, if I remember correctly, the tested area in France is North of France, Normandie, Lorraine or somewhere around... If you have family there...

You may also try to contact the distributor in France, they may tell you which departements are the lucky ones!

As for me, I will have to follow the American schedules for the releases in HK, which means ... Sometimes next year.... Argh !

Hi Didier, I was just thinking to contact the french distributor since I have no family in this part of France (I am from the south !).

I went to Gael Comics Shop this WE and managed to purchase few figurines I missed (Magneto, the Beast, Phoenix and Cyclops). Man, Magneto is very good ! So far, the worse paint job I had is Wolverine, he presents very bad flesh paint color distribution over his face and his arms. I even considered to buy another one ... I am also a little bit disapointed with Phoenix lips (but with the size of the figurines, who cares !)

One thing I would like to know, since I buy them via the french distributor : is it just the french version of the booklet which is bad, or do you US / UK fans feel the same ? The reference of pencillers are sometimes false, I don't like the kind of "humor" they put in that booklet, I don't like the choice made for the inside poster. What do you think about it ?

Richard - "is it just the french version of the booklet which is bad, or do you US / UK fans feel the same ?"

The booklets generally aren't great and I really don't like the humour at all. To look at them positively, however:- they can be informative and the 'behind the scenes' section is often worth reading - in the latest Luke Cage issue; the white writer (sorry, can't remember his name) says that Billy Graham (the black artist working on the book) had helped him write for a black character. I think this section of the book gives us an interesting insight into the creation and development of characters. 

Richard -  "but with the size of the figurines, who cares !"

Je m'inquiète, Richard. :-) But the scaling issue is something that's been covered here before, and I shall let it rest! :-)

It sure ain't the classic Beast we all know and love, Richard, but it is a good sculpt of the Astonishing X-Men version.

I agree, the sculpts are good in general, it's just the choice of the versions I regret : there is no continuity in the choice being made. Why the classic Phoenix costume (green and yellow), the classic Magneto costume and suddenly the "new" version of the Beast, the new Cyclops costume without the yellow boots and gauntlets , I don't know ...

I would have liked a "classic" JB Xmen team, but hey, we are happy enough that this figurines exist !

Beast was one of the figurines that generated a lot of discussion on Steve Reaper's forum (superherofigurineforum.com)... Q&A #3 has a response from Alan at EM about how EM decides on which figurines to create (EM wanted to do the classic Beast and Marvel asked them to do the new beast)

1.What is the criteria for choosing which characters are being made? Does Marvel send a listing or does Eaglemoss decide? How are disputes about characters handled?

The team basically choose all the characters. We base it on popularity and, when there's a dispute, a lot of shouting and debating (followed by a bit of name-calling and sulking). Technically I have the final say but both Dan and Gary are bigger than me so I have to tread carefully. Richard's the youngest of the team so we bow to his knowledge of modern characters like Apocalypse and Mr. Sinister and that no one but me is remotely interesting in the original Living Brain. Some figures Marvel ask us for specifically. The Beast was a good example. We tried to go for a classic blue furry version but were asked to do the modern version.

LOL "I only ordered ........" is a very common phrase associated with these figures.  It is usually followed by "I just had to get ....and.......Oh and whilst I was at it I bought......."

Which leads ultimately to "Damn I'm hooked, where can I get a bigger display cabinet" :) :)

Someone earlier hit the nail on the head when they likened this collection to a drug   (not that I have ever taken drugs - but I assume it to be a nailbiting time until the next fig(x) arrives).

TGR