Today On The Boulevard: Target Red Editions - Are They Worth The Hype?

Hello everyone, welcome to a new edition of Today On The Boulevard. Although they aren't a priority for me, it's no lie that store exclusive colors are cool releases to have. And I still remember how excited I was when I found out that Hot Wheels was going to be making special releases for Target. Back then, the idea was fresh, so I really didn't put much thought into the design choices that were made for them. However, as time went on, I started to reconsider how I felt about them. So for today's post, I'm going to be sharing why that is. So let's get started.

So, are they worth the hype? In my honest opinion, no they aren't. I actually started to feel that way about them last year. After the excitement wears off, you start to notice something about the design choices that are made for them. One of the main things that I noticed, is that a lot of the times they look like regular mainline releases. The best example of this, is seen with the '90 Acura NSX. 

This casting made it's debut back in 2015, and it's first color is the one that's on the left side of the picture. As you can see, it too is red. Despite being a slightly different shade of red, the one that was used for the Red Edition is too close to the one that was used for the debut release. Personally, the Red Edition would have been better if they chose a much darker shade of red instead. 

Now, there is one small difference between the two, and it has to do with the spoiler. A black tampo was applied to the debut release's spoiler, while nothing was applied to the Red Edition's spoiler. Not having this additional tampo detail is still not enough to make it worth the hype. In my opinion, the Red Edition basically looks like a rare error of the debut release.

The wheels are the only real noticeable difference, but even this isn't enough to make me say that it's worth the hype. Okay, now I'm going to move onto the next thing I've noticed about these.

These releases are know as "Red Editions," however, some of them aren't even red. For this example, I'm going to use two different releases. The first one I'm going to show, is the Triumph TR6 that was released earlier this year. This release was finished in black, and features a red stripe design. Although this color scheme made it my favorite release, it's really not that special. 

Last year, Hot Wheels released a Shelby Cobra 427 S/C in their HW Roadsters mainline set. It features the exact same color scheme that was picked for the TR6 Red Edition. So it too is black with a red stripe design.

What's interesting, is that a little later they ended up releasing a recolor of the Triumph TR6 that was actually red, and I feel it's the true Red Edition. I know it's not, but when the regular mainline release is red, it truly takes away from how special the actual Red Edition is. 

The next one I'm going to show, is the Dodge Viper SRT10 ACR. This Red Edition features a color scheme that's similar to the Triumph TR6. The only thing that's different, is that it was finished in dark grey. One could argue that the red design is what makes it a Red Edition, but as you saw with the Cobra, there are plenty of regular mainline releases with red designs. Now, similar to the TR6, the regular mainline release of this Viper was also red. 

To be fair, the Red Editions aren't necessarily bad releases, which is why I'll still get them when I happen to find them. I just feel they aren't worth the hype, as well as the issues you might run into when someone else shows up to the pegs. I don't know about you, but I think they should do something else to make them special. I know the ones from this year feature the RE5 decal, but that isn't enough for me. In my opinion, they should create a special shade of red that is only used for them. 

So, what are your thoughts on this matter? Do you also think they should do something else to make them special? Go ahead and let me know your thoughts down in the comments section. Alright, that's all for this edition of Today On The Boulevard. Until next time, thanks for reading, and happy collecting. And remember, these are just toys.