I often say there are two types of collectors. There are those who collect for nostalgia, and those who do it as an investment. I am amongst the tribe of both, although mostly nostalgia. Both have merit, but for the novice, sometimes the terminology might get a little wonky so I have put together a small list that might help for those new to the collecting game!
Loose figures mean it is just the figure, no packaging.
Complete means it has everything that originally came with it.
Carded means the figure is in its original packaging.
Mint on Card (MOC) means the toy itself is in mint condition and complete and is factory sealed. It does not necessarily mean the card is mint though.
Mint in Box (MIB) means the toy is in mint condition and complete in original box. Do not confuse this with Mint in Sealed Box (MISB) which means it is still sealed like the day it was placed on the shelf. MISB and Mint on sealed mint card (MOMSC) doesn’t happen a lot on vintage toys and it will increase the values a good deal. There is also just Boxed, which typically mean the toy comes with original box but it doesn’t mean the toy is sealed or the box is in perfect shape. Still, having the original packaging does increase value in almost any condition.
Unpunched refers to the little chad that gets pushed out of the carboard where a package is hung at the store. If the cardboard chad is still in place the item is considered Unpunched and that could mean it was never circulated.
Articulation refers to how the toy moves. Are there a bunch of joints, a few? Can it be posed etc.
Most of us know what a Bootleg or Knockoff are but just in case you do not, these are when another company takes an existing item and makes a fake version of it. Sometimes these are silly, but they are sought out by certain collectors from time to time and can be a lot of fun.
A Variant is when an existing figure is taken and then changed and released in a limited number. Typically, this is a different paint scheme or a slightly different mold. These can sometimes be worth a nice amount if there weren’t a lot produced and they are in high demand. This also leads to Resculpts or Remolds. This means they change parts of an existing figure or change the design for the next run.
Last, we have Reissue. A reissue is when a toy is re-released by a manufacturer. It is typically the same design and mold as the original but often the packaging is changed. This happens quite often for anniversary editions. These can also become valuable (especially if the original is hard to find and these are in limited numbers) but do not typically exceed the value of the originals.
Below is a great image to help with a few of these. It shows a MIC figure and a loose figure. It also shows an unpunched card and a variant of an original character!
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