The Argonath by Weta Workshop. My Product Review
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- čas přidán 1. 11. 2022
- My personal opinion on The Argonath Limited Edition Piece I received from Weta Workshop. I will start by saying that I am a long time fan of Weta and own many of their Statues and Environments. I think that they are the industry leader in regards to items produced from The Lord of The Rings and Hobbit Films. I started collecting Weta long after most of the main pieces were released which put me at the mercy of the secondary market values. On many occasions I was tempted to pay a premium for the original Argonath because for me it was such a great part of the movie. Wow was exactly what I said to myself when I viewed it for the first time. Like many others I was very excited when Weta announced they would be releasing a newer larger version. When it became available for pre-order I did not hesitate to purchase it. I received this quite some time ago and due to lack of space decided to leave it in the box. I read a few reviews posted to the online forum and received some thoughts from a friend who is also a collector and who's opinion I value. That brings me to this video. I opened the box with an open mind and wanting to love the piece. For the most part I do, I think most of the statue is well done and I fully understand that Weta does not produce these in New Zealand. There is a major flaw with the way this piece was Approved and Shipped to the Customers. Specifically where the water touches the base of the rocks, there is what can only be described as a sloppy caulked seam that had some rock colored paint slapped on it. This is very unfortunate as it does take away from the magic of the piece and I can not look at it without acknowledging that it exists. Weta outsources there products to be made overseas, at some point someone has to approve a sample or see this prior to being shipped to customers like myself and that is where I have trouble. I understand that stuff happens all the time in transit and things get broken, that is a topic for another time. Weta's name is on the box, this is Weta's design, Weta is paying the company to produce these on there behalf and someone from Weta has dropped the ball when it comes to quality control. The following quote is taken directly from The Argonath's product page on Weta's website. "It takes hundreds of hours to design, sculpt model make, mold and paint the prototype for each new Middle-Earth piece. Whether it be a prop replica, beautiful environment or iconic character, we treat our collectibles with the same level of care and attention to detail that we bring to our film work" end quote. I agree that the sculptors and paint work done on the prototypes are done really well, then you email the file overseas, collect a ton of deposits and turn a blind eye to the final product. If you keep up this trend you are going to lose at least one long term loyal customer (Me) because this piece is unacceptable and a slap in the face to Gary Hunts great piece that he worked so hard on.
#wetaworkshop #theargonath #thelordoftherings #limitededition #productreview #productreviews #productreviewseries #lotr #lordoftheringscollection #lordoftheringscollector
You can find me on social media site @MiddleEarthFanPa
Nice video man, you're definitely right to call out the issues on the base, these pieces got even more expensive recently so the QA needs to be top notch. Looking forward to more of your videos!
Thank you
I agree 100% there is no excuse. I believe the factories have been pushed to the limits with the "anniversary" years and pumping out product at an alarming pace and who know what issue the pandemic has caused. Someone replied on the forum with there response from Weta on this issue and they said it is likely caused from a mold deterioration problem (poor excuse) and no exchanges as they most likely have the same issue. They will offer Weta dollars as compensation as you said or destroy for a full refund. But most of us collectors just want a good statue free of defects and a good paint job. Unfortunately there isn't much recourse besides calling them out on social media or quit buying their products. I've been a loyal customer from the very beginning, but there chances to fix these issues are running out as the damage is done.
Well said and exactly to the point.
I 100% agree. There is no excuse. I have bought this piece and doing final payment this week. Starting shipping by next week I think, coming to Canada from Europe. I can’t wait to get this piece though. Awesome review. Cheers
Even with the flaws it is a great piece and I plan on keeping it as a part of my collection
Good and honest review. As collectors we don't have much option now as Weta does not want to hear us. I sent a review on Sauron, which I love, but speaking about the pauldron issue that should be resolved. Now 4 weeks and my review hasn't passed the cut. So it is clear now that ther is also a censorship by Weta on reviews on their website. I'm also sur that the artists are also very uncomfortable about the situation, but the boss is Richard Taylor, and it's up to him to change something or they will really start to loose some significant number of collectors!
Thank you for your comment
Got mine. Still haven't opened it hahah
Can you show us the details of the heroes in the boats please?
Sorry my friend, I boxed the environment back up after the video. I am currently out of room to display new pieces. Hopefully one of the other viewers can help you out with closeup pictures of the hero's in the boats.
Prices going up, quality down
First Sauron issues and now this
That just makes me wonder how they’ll treat the new Bag End
I have that one coming, I’ll let you know once I receive it.
Were were the the older items made ?
Then were was the new one made that had the issue ?
So, the manufacturer Weta Workshop designs and sculpts the pieces then has there production facilities produce and paint the pieces. I personally do not know where this production is done. But from what I have read on the online forums, my piece is not the only one that suffers from these flaws. It is important to point out that I still like the company and other pieces they produce, I own quite a few. But I stand by my comment that I feel they have let the collectors down with the flaws in this particular piece.
I belive ya,
I was thinking maybe they move the production to a different country.
I would be surprised if the items did not say ware they were made. It might be something to email or call them and ask were are they made also are they made in a different country now ?
They might tellya
I don't know of anyone who has not had this issue with their Argonath. I looks as though there was not enough of a lip on the base to allow for the water effect to be deeper. Very bad result. I'm expecting mine to arrive on the 11th Nov. I have no doubt my one will be just as bad. 😭
Thanks Bill, I hope your piece arrives in better condition
I agree with everything that you said.
I've been purchasing Weta products for 20 years and with these QC issues that have continued to increase over the last few years, it has turned me off and I have now stopped purchasing Weta products. My money is now going to other studios like P1, Darkside, Queen, etc. that are now making really amazing LOTR pieces.
I feel bad for the artists and everyone else that works at Weta creating these pieces of art, the QC issues are out of their control. They create very beautiful pieces and then Weta turns those pieces over to other companies to produce. It's unfortunate that the companies that the Weta administration have contracted with to make these are having QC issues, but the real problem is that Weta is allowing these inferior products to be shipped to buyers instead of pulling them off of the conveyor belt before they go into the boxes. It seems to me that there is no QC department on-site where these are being made. This is a failure that solely lies with the owners of Weta. They could choose to easily rectify the problem of sending an inferior product to costumers if they cared enough to do so. Unfortunately, have chosen not to. It seems that profits are king at Weta now.
In the future, it's my hope that Weta will care enough to invest in a rigorous QC process that ensures that the customer that has spent their hard-earned money will receive a product that they can be proud of displaying.
Thanks for the video. 👍
Do you plan on purchasing the new Helm's Deep?
@@MiddleEarthFanPa I really want to, I think it looks amazing, but I have put Weta purchases on hold. The QC issues that Weta has been having have forced me to stop collecting from them. A letter of concern was sent to Weta this week, so I am hopeful that there will be a response from them addressing the QC problem and I can return to being a customer of theirs. As it stands now, I'm just done with entering the QC lottery every time I make a purchase and I can't support their behavior with my money if they aren't going to do anything about it.
Are you picking it up?
@@silverstreak2871 I am awaiting the final price, but I have a significant amount of Weta dollars, so most likely
@@MiddleEarthFanPa I wish you luck. I'm sure if it arrives without any quality issues, it will be a stellar piece and will look great in your collection. It will definitely need to be displayed in a way that shows off it's back. The detail there is really terrific.
Weta definitely kept the flame alive for the LOTR collectors when no one else was in the space. The pieces they produced between the waning popularity of the Hobbit until the fervor that Amazon brought were some of the best quality pieces. This era of keeping up with the competition by producing 10+ pieces a year has sadly seen a massive reduction in quality control. It is a huge turn off to get a piece like the one you received and more costly to Weta when they have to offer concessions or out right replace the piece. I hope you are compensated to your liking and I look forward to you sharing the outcome. Keep the videos coming.
Will do, thanks Ben
@@MiddleEarthFanPa I inspected mine after watching your video and it has the same problem.
@@BenjaminSchenk That is very unfortunate Ben, from what I have read on the forum, it would seem that replacements for this piece are not available.
@@MiddleEarthFanPa I have messaged Weta and will let you know what options are offered to me.
I am interested to hear how they respond. Good Luck to you.
looking at other videos of the same product they look fine, looks like you got a defective product my friend.
This is what happens when WETA gets sold to a mega corporation rather than being controlled by Peter Jackson
Thanks for the Reply Anthony, from what I gather on Weta's site, I do not believe they are owned by a larger entity. Righard Taylor and Tania Rodger appear to be the owners, they declare that there new facility is 58,000sqft of which is home to there tight-knit creative crew. I do still like the work they produce and feel that they do get a lot right. This piece unfortunately has fallen below standards.
The one sold was Weta Digital, not Weta Workshop.
that is a shite finish with the water sure..... there is some fairly cheap modelling material you can get that you dab on with a brush....and it dries to look like foaming water-bashing against the rock.... would really finish the piece looking great! if you're interested- I will get the name and share a few videos
Thank you, if you are going to perform the repairs you described I would definitely like to see the final results in a video
I was about to pull the trigger on this until I saw this. That is terrible, it's all I can see now. My eye is drawn to the issue everything.
Overall it is a nice piece and from a distance you will not see it. But once you do, you can not forget it. I will keep mine as I have always the Argonath in my collection, I am just a bit disappointed in Weta's QC process for this piece.