# My First Skit - The Elvira Topper is How Much?! **Source:** Cary Hardy **Type:** video **Published:** 2020-09-04 **Duration:** 3m 37s **Beat:** Pinball **URL:** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FnN6K7Dat5o --- ## Analysis Cary Hardy performs a satirical skit criticizing aggressive topper pricing and limited-edition scarcity tactics in the pinball industry. The skit mocks manufacturers for charging unsustainable prices ($1,000) for basic toppers by exploiting FOMO and collector mentality, using specific examples like Jurassic Park toppers and Elvira merchandise. ### Key Claims - [MEDIUM] A recent topper (implied to be Jurassic Park) was priced at $600 — _Character dialogue: 'Are we doing the $600 price tag like Jurassic Park?'_ - [HIGH] Topper manufacturers use limited-edition scarcity tactics to drive sales of low-quality products — _Core premise of skit: 'all you gotta do is just make it limited, and those suckers will buy every single one of them'_ - [HIGH] Collectors will purchase toppers regardless of quality or value proposition — _Character: 'You've worked here long enough to know that people will buy anything from us. ANYTHING.'_ - [HIGH] An Elvira topper was proposed at a $1,000 price point — _Direct dialogue: 'I've got it. $1,000' in response to finding 'the ceiling' of what customers will pay_ ### Notable Quotes > "You've worked here long enough to know that people will buy anything from us. ANYTHING." > — **Character (implied topper company executive)**, ~0:45 > _Core critique of collector spending behavior and manufacturer exploitation_ > "All you gotta do is just make it limited, and those suckers will buy every single one of them." > — **Character (implied topper company executive)**, ~1:00 > _Direct commentary on FOMO-driven sales strategy_ > "We need to find the ceiling. We need to find out what these suckers will pay for a crappy product that your toddler drew for us." > — **Character (implied topper company executive)**, ~2:15 > _Satirizes low design quality paired with premium pricing_ > "Ask me if I give a shit." > — **Character (implied topper company executive)**, ~2:50 > _Expresses indifference to customer backlash, implied cynicism about market response_ ### Entities | Name | Type | Context | |------|------|---------| | Cary Hardy | person | Content creator performing satirical skit critiquing pinball topper pricing | | Jurassic Park | game | Referenced as example of $600 topper pricing | | Elvira | game | Hypothetical/satirized subject of $1,000 topper in skit | | Avengers | game | Referenced as recent successful pinball release in skit setup | | TMNT | game | Referenced as game not yet released with topper in skit | | Stranger Things | game | Referenced as poorly received game in skit dialogue | ### Topics - **Primary:** Topper pricing and market saturation, Limited-edition scarcity tactics and FOMO, Product quality vs. price justification, Collector spending behavior and market exploitation - **Secondary:** Manufacturer cynicism toward customer satisfaction ### Sentiment **Negative** (-0.85) — Skit is intentionally satirical and critical of topper manufacturers' pricing strategies, perceived low product quality, and exploitation of collector FOMO. Tone is sarcastic and mocking throughout. ### Signals - **[business_signal]** Topper market perceived as increasingly unsustainable; manufacturers prioritizing short-term revenue extraction over customer value (confidence: medium) — Skit premise depicts manufacturer indifference to customer satisfaction and willingness to charge extreme prices for basic products - **[sentiment_shift]** Growing frustration within pinball community about topper pricing and FOMO-driven sales tactics; sentiment shift toward viewing these practices as cynical market exploitation (confidence: medium) — Cary Hardy creating dedicated satirical content on this topic suggests community-wide concern worthy of artistic commentary - **[market_signal]** Manufacturers using limited-edition labeling as primary sales tool regardless of product quality or design substance (confidence: high) — Character: 'all you gotta do is just make it limited, and those suckers will buy every single one of them' - **[market_signal]** Satirical critique of unsustainable topper pricing, with specific examples of $600 (Jurassic Park) and hypothetical $1,000 (Elvira) price points being criticized as exploitative (confidence: high) — Core premise of skit; dialogue about finding 'the ceiling' of what customers will pay for low-quality toppers --- ## Transcript Ah, hey there buddy. Oh, hey. So, uh, how are things looking on social media with us since the Avengers launch? Everything looking okay, or... Uh, things are actually looking pretty good right now. People seem to agree that we've made another good hit. That's horrible. What? Yeah, we can't be pleasing people for too long. We need to shake things up a bit. What? Why? How? Hmm. I've got it. Let's release a topper. Sweet. We've got a TMNT topper that has a techno... No. We can't release TMNT yet. That makes too much sense. Let's go back further. Oh, well, the game wasn't really well received, but we could always get the Stranger Things. No, don't even bother making a topper for that game. We need to make money. I've got it. How about the Elvira topper? Whoa, I do not think that's going to be a good idea. Why? Because that would be two toppers in a row that are pretty basic and there's not much to them and I just don't think- Shut your face. How long have you worked here? Uh, like five? You've worked here long enough to know that people will buy anything from us. ANYTHING. I'm not really sure why you're yelling. So whose idea do you think it was to charge people a ridiculous amount of money for a piece of cloth? Hmm. And the morons bought every single one of them. It was my idea. Mine. All you gotta do is just make it limited, and those suckers will buy every single one of them. Okay, I mean, are we doing the $600 price tag like Jurassic Park? Because, I mean, this topper doesn't even require any kind of licensing cost or any kind of approval for anything like that, so that'll actually be more money in our pockets. We can get this going right now. No. Like, 700? Nope. I mean, we could shoot for 800, but I doubt very seriously that it's going to sell for that. We need to find the ceiling. We need to find out what these suckers will pay for a crappy product that your toddler drew for us. She draws on a first grade level. I've got it. $1,000. There is no way we can sell them for that. Do it! Okay. I have to warn you that this will not settle very well with our customers, though. Ask me if I give a shit. Do you give a... Okay, I'll get this topper out to the public as soon as possible. I don't think we're going to have anybody fall for this. Thank you. _(Acquisition: youtube_groq_whisper, Enrichment: v3)_ --- *Exported from Journalist Tool on 2026-04-13 | Item ID: a9c206f6-ab4a-4e04-9f8a-c18c51ce6b1e*