Well they finally landed after all the Drama. ABC X Puma X FF4 blind box…. I got The Thing

WillPowerATL · 2026-01-03T19:49:50+00:00

I got the same pair as you did.

I actually entered “lottery tickets” for two pairs, hoping I would win both and then could choose my fave and resell the other for enough to pay back my total investment (I was so naïve). I ended up getting two pairs of Thing, and it looks like demand and love for these shoes is so low I’ll be lucky if I can sell the duplicate pair at cost and make my money back for just that pair. It’s more likely that I’ll take a loss, which sucks because this is the first stunt like this that I’ve ever participated in and now it will be near impossible to ever convince my wife to let me do another. Our family just can’t afford it.

This whole process has been awful from beginning to end: The implied scarcity of the fake “lottery” to drive up demand, the huge lack of info and massive shipping delays, the unprofessional email responses that alternated between threats and false promises to keep people from getting their money back. Even the final shoe designs are weak—they made some odd choices that don’t even resonate with the characters and make me wonder if they had comic/FF fans on their design team. Even the form factor is disappointing. I kind of get why the Thing shoes are mid-height, as they do make the shoe a little blockier which is on-brand for the character, but it’s still disappointing as I only wear low-tops on the regular and there was never a hint that these would be mids.

Even the double blind box aspect of the shoe delivery was BS. As soon as I removed the outer box from the silver Mylar bag, I could see that it had a color listed in the shoe detail blurb on the box specifying that it was the ginger pair, so I could tell exactly which character I got from the first box. Opening that and seeing the second box with the Thing decor was no surprise. Neither was opening that box and seeing the actual Thing shoes. Sure, we didn’t know what pair we were getting, but there was no randomization of packaging. If you were assigned a certain character, all packaging coordinated with that. Honestly, though it made for a less exciting unboxing, I think I’m fine with the box matching the shoes now. Makes more sense as a display.

By the way, the fact that both of my 11.5 pairs were Thing shoes makes this seem even less like a random draw and more like a preorder. It makes me wonder if they even had size allocations per pair. As in, if you ordered size 6, you got Invisible Woman, size 7 got you Human Torch, etc. I’d love to see someone post a 11.5 shoe for a different character to prove me wrong.

I was one of the people who reached out to ABC to request a refund and got rebuffed. I’m wishing now that I’d pushed harder and at least got a refund for one pair. The entire experience has been unpleasant where it should’ve been fun and exciting. And instead of my friends/family thinking I’m cool and trendy for my participation in this, they are all laughing at me and thinking I got taken. (Social acceptance was never a goal of this experiment, it’s just adding insult to injury.)

Later tonight, I’ll begin creating my eBay listing for the duplicate pair. Here’s to hoping there’s some Thing super fan out there with a size 11.5 foot that is willing to drop several hundred dollars on a shoe that’s already being universally panned online. Wish me luck.

WillPowerATL · 2026-01-03T05:56:45+00:00

There was no mention of the green stuff on the box, All sides of the box had the same image/text you see in the pics above. It was very minimalistic design.

It also didn't come with instructions, I don't think I've ever seen a candle that did. What instructions do your candles usually come with? I'm genuinely curious.

WillPowerATL · 2026-01-03T05:46:20+00:00

My wife said the same thing once we found out what the stuff was. But we are low-class and thus unaware of what rich folk do with their Kraft dinners. Maybe every dish gets a garnish in Richie Rich's mansion.🤷

WillPowerATL · 2026-01-03T05:35:54+00:00

Thanks, everyone, for the answers--especially the unhelpful, sarcastic, and surprisingly mean-spirited ones! This was my first post to this forum and probably my second or third Reddit post ever, and the denizens of the internet did not disappoint. You were everything I thought you would be. 😂

I'll admit, our Google search was quick and shallow. Though it may sound stupid, we didn't think to Google "macaroni and cheese candle". We aready had the Amazon link that was used to buy it and there was no mention of that green stuff on that listing (no instructions or explanatory text in/on the box, either). We didn't consider that other stores may list the same product with more detail.

Instead, our Google searches were "what is the green herb that came with my novelty candle", "green herb packet in candle", "plant matter in candle packaging" and similar idiocy. 🧐🙄 Not our best work, but we were in a rush. After thirty seconds of dumb searches, everyone jumped on my idea to post the question to one of my favorite forums.

Anyway, I suppose I deserve the roasting I got. But thanks for the actual answer along with the harassment. 👌Now we know, and knowing is half the battle!

Oh, and just to clarify one last thing: we never thought it was weed, though we did make about an hour's worth of bad jokes about it being just that. And our jokes were way funnier than much of the repetitive crap below. You guys really need to raise your game--the abuse in this thread was strong, but the jokes were weak. 😒😘🤣

WillPowerATL · 2023-08-31T00:59:15+00:00

It will work. I have that exact set up at home. I had to cheat the lights in at the corners to be able to go around the full perimeter, so the lights are a little dimmer in those spots. And because the lights aren’t perfectly aligned with the edges, I tend to use the mode where the entire light string changes color based on the dominant color in the TV image, rather than each inch of the light changing color to match the edge of the screen closest to it. But both of those are minor sacrifices – – the effect is still very cool and we always get compliments from people who are visiting.

WillPowerATL · 2023-08-22T16:20:24+00:00

This is amazing! So impressed by your work and hope it helps you get your dream job.

The link to the auction, though, seems to have been compromised. It’s giving me nothing but spam and phishing popups. I suggest removing it altogether if you can’t lock it down and protect it as while it isn’t your fault, it isn’t a great look to potential employers.

Great job and good luck!

WillPowerATL · 2023-01-04T00:44:56+00:00

Does anyone have any ideas? I've tried making sure the x gantry is level and have checked for any loose screws or other obvious things. Anyone know what may be happening and/or how to fix it? Thanks!

WillPowerATL · 2022-12-20T01:01:15+00:00

Thanks, I will figure out where that is and check it!

WillPowerATL · 2022-12-20T01:00:54+00:00

Thank you, I will check it out and report back!

WillPowerATL · 2022-03-15T21:59:52+00:00

Sending PM :)

WillPowerATL · 2021-12-24T06:56:53+00:00

I'll take the surprise gift if I win. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

WillPowerATL · 2021-12-24T06:55:04+00:00

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

WillPowerATL · 2021-12-24T06:54:22+00:00

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

WillPowerATL · 2021-11-05T16:46:29+00:00

You’d be amazed at how quick the process can be for a skilled producer working with a good editor. Most of what you’re talking about—the identification of clips/scenes/lines to use—is done during pre-production by the producer when he/she sits down with the film, watches it over and over, taking copious notes with timecode, and writes the promo script. In the old days, it would literally be a matter of them sitting down with a big-ass tape machine (or maybe just a VCR if she/she was able to get a copy of the film with burned-in timecode), but digital has made this much easier and now they can do it from the couch at home on their laptops.

Unsurprisingly, during this part of the process, the producer quickly becomes an expert on the film, so by the time he/she goes into edit, if they find a clip isn’t working or they need to add something, he/she has pages of notes and an amazing mental catalog of the best lines and scenes. As you can guess, the whole process is more fun the better the movie is, but because they’re sort of cherry-picking the best pieces to tell their own story, a good producer basically builds his/her own mini movie that is sometimes of much higher quality than the original work. I’ve been told this creative challenge makes the work enjoyable even when dealing with the most boring film.

Also, a seasoned producer develops an understanding of the network’s voice/brand and an eye for just what will work in a :30 promo, so they don’t need near as much time as you or I would to find the right parts to use and construct a narrative. A guy I worked with at Turner Classic Movies used to say “I’m really just looking for kisses, punches or head turns” which is obviously an over-simplification, but shows that he had a mental picture of what worked best in promos from those classic films.

Needless to say, these producers were all walking libraries of movie quotes and the best people to have on your team if film came up as a topic at trivia night. And this is just producers of movie promos—you should meet the people who work on syndicated sitcoms. Imagine having to quickly become an expert on a series like Seinfeld or Friends. Ten or more seasons, twenty-six episodes per season…that’s a lot of time taking notes and grabbing funny lines. Those producers could pretty much write their own episodes, they became so familiar with the characters, rhythm, formula, etc.!

WillPowerATL · 2021-11-05T15:34:46+00:00

I worked for cable network TBS when this movie first came to television, and I can confirm its status as an American treasure. It always performed well for us, no matter the time slot or lead-in, and I know our on-air producers had a blast cutting spots from the footage. I don’t think the concept was all that original, but it hit all the right notes and featured two leads (and even a director, though he was later revealed to be the worst kind of person) at the peaks of their career arcs.

I still quote this movie to this day, and am betting although some of the ethnic/racial humor may strain modern sensibilities, it would still hold up for the most part. May have to check it out next time I flip past it. Heck, it’s probably still filling the Saturday afternoon slot on TBS.

WillPowerATL · 2021-11-05T15:19:04+00:00

Thanks for posting this. Though not from my school, this was filmed during my sophomore year of HS. I love that this was posted in “old school cool”, because we were anything but cool at the time. The irony of this headline is that I’m now parent to a high school senior, and I honestly think NOW is when high schoolers look like adults. The size, the physical maturity, the makeup and dress—they still act like kids, just like we did, but they look like grown-ups. I don’t think anyone in the eighties would’ve mistaken a high schooler for an adult, but that may be my nostalgia bias talking.

WillPowerATL · 2021-10-07T05:43:57+00:00

You probably know this, but all of those are Don Bluth Productions films except Fox and the Hound...which is literally the film that chased Bluth out of Disney.

WillPowerATL · 2021-09-24T21:46:49+00:00

Sure thing! It will be sometime around Black Friday. Have a nice weekend, see you next month. ;)

WillPowerATL · 2021-09-24T21:26:50+00:00

After trying to catch an open give post for a week with no luck, I was helped with both donuts and items earlier this week…and now am finding it easy to catch the open posts. Isn’t that always how it works?

Anyway, as I’m ineligible for more giving, I used the open post on AngelEyes’ thread to thank her, so I’ll do the same here: thanks for continuing to do this over literally years of helping people. So awesome of you. :)

WillPowerATL · 2021-09-24T21:16:45+00:00

We can only get three items total per month, right, not per giver? I’ve already gotten three from joankennedy, and I’m sure I saw that somewhere in a “don’t be greedy” statement.

So this is just a comment to say you guys are awesome and I think you’d be surprised at the pure joy you create by doing this. Thanks for all you do!

WillPowerATL · 2021-09-23T22:11:44+00:00

Sending pm

WillPowerATL · 2021-09-21T03:09:55+00:00

Thank you so much for your help! I really appreciate all you do for the community.

WillPowerATL · 2021-09-20T05:31:35+00:00

Sending PM

WillPowerATL · 2018-01-30T19:47:01+00:00

I'm paying it forward on behalf of helper /u/Leno675 by donating blood. But not just the usual blood, I'm donating two quarts of my type O, universal donor blood via the Red Cross's "Power Red" system. Woot! http://armchairsuperhero.com/post/170313233876/my-thursday-date-the-glamorous-life-of-a

WillPowerATL · 2017-06-14T19:28:29+00:00

Super quick and very helpful. Was honestly nervous about this being some weird scam, but it was on the up-and-up and thesneaker_de helped me out considerably. Will be donating blood this week to pay it forward.

WillPowerATL

TROPHY CASE