LEGO SDCC 2012 Symbiote Spider-Man Help

[clra2]

Hi guys, not sure if this goes here or under Licensed but I need help from other fellow exclusive collectors!  Sorry for the long post, maybe the mods can help me on where to put a post like this for next time.

I recently came across a LEGO SDCC 2012 Symbiote Spider-Man to add to my collection (off of Mercari).  I was originally apprehensive to purchase this particular one due to it being so easy to replicate by custom printers and imitation brands.  However, in my quest to complete the entire SDCC minifigure collection (of which I only need 3 now) I figured with a 10% off coupon and lowest pricing compared to eBay/Bricklink I pulled the trigger.

The listing passed my checks: it came with the card, the red 2x2 plate that was originally glued to the card, and the eye printing on the head is translucent.  I cross checked the listing with images from google and youtube videos and it looked good.  I received the item and at first glance still felt good about it.  The card looked the same as the one I got with SDCC 2012 Phoenix - actually the card that came with Phoenix has "lighter printing" but I would guess from sun/light damage over time.  Dimensions of the card matched exactly.  The 2x2 red plate was ripped off the card but the 2x2 plate still has the glue and "ripped paper" on the back and the plate also has the head imprint from where the head rested against the card.

Here is the item I received, 2x2 plate ripped off with some of the paper, if you look carefully you can see the imprint on the card from the minifigure head right above the middle O in BOOOM.

The head printing looks good to me, there is a very prominent line through the eyes from where the top stud meets the "face" of the minifigure (I am not sure how to describe this in words..) which was very common for minifigures that had prints that extended up close to the stud at that time.  There is a barely noticeable white dot in the left eye which shows up in images for this figure.  The left eye also is slightly "smeared" could be from the printing process but images of other people's figures also shows the eyes are not exactly symmetrical.  In addition to the above stated slightly translucent eye color on black head, the printing, to me checks out.  LEGO's printing on minifigure heads is not perfect, especially back in 2011/2012 when this figure was likely printed, and I find that the PAD printed replicas from Christo and MRM look more symmetrical and whiter in pictures, although I do not have confirmation as I never seen the customs in person.

Closeup of the head I got

Best picture I can find of the figure from an active eBay auction... notice the whiter dot in the left eye, I am asking the seller what kind of stud the head has

The only issue I noticed about the head is that I got a blocked open stud but the Bricklink inventory for this head is a hollow stud:

https://www.bricklink.com/v2/catalog/catalogitem.page?P=3626cpb1072&idColor=11#T=C&C=11

Top of my figure head has an open block stud

Now the seller has assured me that he has 2 of these and he made sure it was authentic before selling.  I don't blame the seller but it is kind of strange that the one I have has the blocked open stud and the Bricklink entry is for a hollow stud.  The fact that this one does come with the card is causing me even more confusion.  I reached out to a friend that does have this figure and he sent a picture that his did indeed have the hollow stud. 

Image from my friend's collection with hollow stud.. also notice the left eye has a slight "smear"

LEGO has printed minifigures with both hollow studs and blocked open studs, Deadpool's head is one that has inventory lists for both, which is also a 2012 minifigure, although the reason for this is unclear:

https://www.bricklink.com/v2/search.page?q=deadpool#T=P

Even the very common Spider-Man minifigure used from 2012-2019 SH038 used blocked open stud:

https://www.bricklink.com/catalogItemInv.asp?M=sh038

So I am reaching out to any other collectors that own the SDCC 2012 Symbiote Spider-Man for advice.. any way of knowing if there are any of these were produced with blocked open studs but just not in Bricklink's inventory?  I think it's totally possible, given the exclusivity of this minifigure and how old it is that some heads were printed on hollow studs and some were printed on blocked open studs.  It is not out of the realm of possibility if the factory was transitioning their molds from the blocked open stud to the hollow stud around this period that the heads got mixed up at some point along the production process. 

But given how much we spent for this figure, I'd like to make absolutely sure.  Thanks for reading to the end, and any comments are appreciated!

 

 

[MAB]

I can't help with the stud types in that figure as I don't have one.

Deadpool has been found with different head studs, but then being a regular retail minifigure  he is not such a good comparison as he was in sets produced for North America and for Europe/Worldwide, so in different factories. The set was even redesigned during production, so there are different versions of the set depending on when and where they were produced. As Deadpool was in a regular retail set, they would have been produced in batches and more likely to have different stud types than a highly limited figure produced in a small batch for a comic con.