I remember when this made the news, but I haven't heard any more about it since. (YouTube posting is a few years old)
First, like it was implied, a patent can be almost worthless, especially if held by an individual or small corporation.
Second, the patent dispute can take many years to go through the court system and cost the original patent holder hundreds of thousands of dollars in lawyer fees, which may never be recovered, especially if Sears goes belly up.
I, too, hope Sears assumes room temperature. The sooner, the better.
EDIT: The Bionic Wrench is listen in the Sears Web Site. Did the inventor win the court case?