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Is it just me or...(figure selection question)?

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  • MarkStalcup
    Chases Ambulances,Customs
    • Feb 6, 2008
    • 120

    Is it just me or...(figure selection question)?

    I really love all the DC lines from Figures. Sooner or later I usually buy most of the toys. (And I have all my original Megos.)
    That said...does it ever seem like Figures kind of goes with their own personal preferences rather than the stuff people ask for?
    I mean, it's cool to get some of the choices they've made...Outsiders, Swamp Thing and so on...but what confuses me is that there's an evident demand for the Justice Society (and my personal preference for more villains) and yet, despite most of the JSA being easy to make with existing parts - which some of us have done - and being variants in some cases of the big heroes (Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman) there seems to be little interest.
    This confuses me, as does making Ma and Pa Kent as opposed to Parasite, Terra Man, Zardoz, Master Jailer, Doomsday, Prankster, Toyman, etc in the Superman line...Pa Kent hangs on the hooks at clearance in the local toy shop and I heard a kid the other day ask who'd want an "old guy" figure.
    Just seems like they make some confusing choices.
    “As human beings we all want to be happy and free from misery… we have learned that the key to happiness is inner peace. The greatest obstacles to inner peace are disturbing emotions such as anger, attachment, fear and suspicion, while love and compassion and a sense of universal responsibility are the sources of peace and happiness.” - The Dalai Lama
  • hedrap
    Permanent Member
    • Feb 10, 2009
    • 4825

    #2
    I see the common denominator with Outsiders and Swamp Thing as their 80's nostalgia, which could be the personal preference. Sort of like when they rebooted the Fist Fighters line into a psuedo Super Powers. But the human characters over heroes or villains, I've assumed it was cost. They dropped a number of normies into the market at the same time, including the Stooges, Monkees, Conan, Tarzan etc...so their had to a production value to it. I think they would have been better off doing Superman and Batman variants, like Composite Superman.

    But yeah, is there anything easier then old-school Parasite?

    Comment

    • jeffbearco
      Persistent Member
      • Mar 27, 2011
      • 1325

      #3
      I'm still confused that they did gold variants of Mary and Capt Marvel Jr but never went back to do a gold variant of Shazam! With the movie coming up, you would think this would be a no brainer.

      JeffBearCO

      Comment

      • rodkeith
        Veteran Member
        • Mar 16, 2008
        • 407

        #4
        I agree with you, jeffbearco, I would like to think they'll come up with a gold-trimmed Captain Marvel in a second Shazam! wave with, oh let's say, Black Adam, Tawky Tawny and Wizard Shazam. Otherwise those Junior and Mary variants make little sense.

        But to Mark's point, it does seem odd that we got Ma & Pa Kent way before any of a dozen recognizable Superman villains, which seems to have killed their desire to make more Superman waves. Even Jor-El and Lara would have been far better received.

        It seems they want to focus on Bronze Age/1984 DC style guide versions of everything, which is just fine with me, but even within that parameter they see to be all over the place.
        Last edited by rodkeith; Jul 2, '18, 11:02 AM.

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        • PNGwynne
          Master of Fowl Play
          • Jun 5, 2008
          • 19444

          #5
          I'd give anything to be a fly on the wall during FTC design and development meetings. My mind boggles at the choices they make and the sculpts they approve.
          WANTED: Dick Grayson SI trousers; gray AJ Mustang horse; vintage RC Batman (Bruce Wayne) head; minty Wolfman tights; mint Black Knight sword; minty Launcelot boots; Lion Rock (pale) Dracula & Mummy heads; Lion Rock Franky squared boots; Wayne Foundation blue furniture; Flash Gordon/Ming (10") unbroken holsters; CHiPs gloved arms; POTA T2 tan body; CTVT/vintage Friar Tuck robes, BBP TZ Burgess Meredith glasses.

          Comment

          • scott metzger
            Persistent Member
            • Jul 9, 2007
            • 2088

            #6
            Swamp Thing has a series coming on the new DC streaming service next year, and Abby apparently plays a big part, so that one makes sense. Outsiders may be a little more oblique; Young Justice third season on the aforementioned service is called Outsiders, but I have no idea if it's directly connected to the Bronze Age version. As for things like Ma and Pa, I credit the DC movies like Man of Steel bringing them to the forefront. And keep in mind, they aren't targeting the kid who doesn't want an old guy (Mego seemed to do okay with a couple old guys with the Waltons, though), but collectors. Still, I do think the choices sometimes are a bit befuddling; I like Silver Swan, and Wonder Woman doesn't have the most known rogues gallery, but she is a tad obscure for the opening wave. Overall, though, the choices aren't that out there if you look at other media and the target market. Everyone will have different preferences, and there's sadly no science to making good choices. In the DC Universe line from Mattel, Power Girl topped every poll and want list, but when they made her, she peg warmed. Go figure.

            Comment

            • TrekStar
              Trek or Treat
              • Jan 20, 2011
              • 8354

              #7
              Maybe FTC on a budget and head sculptors come and go. I think the sculpts on the 66 Batman line for the most part are pretty darn good but then you have other lines with some terrible looking head sculpts, especially most female characters.

              I'm assuming head sculpts are made and brought in from another country, curious to know what FTC sells that's made
              in the U.S.A.?

              Comment

              • Capt_Kirk
                Career Member
                • Nov 22, 2011
                • 614

                #8
                Originally posted by tjacwave50
                Maybe FTC on a budget and head sculptors come and go. I think the sculpts on the 66 Batman line for the most part are pretty darn good but then you have other lines with some terrible looking head sculpts, especially most female characters.

                I'm assuming head sculpts are made and brought in from another country, curious to know what FTC sells that's made
                in the U.S.A.?
                I agree. not happy with the most the sculpts. I was very disappointed in Gilligan's Island. I was hoping for better sculpt and all 7 castaways. Same with other lines. some of the DC, females for sure are just bad. You can tell they were done fast and no quality control of any kind. Then to throw a 25.00 price tag on it just ticks me off. Hoping for SO much more from the re-release megos.
                "May fortune favor the foolish"

                Comment

                • scott metzger
                  Persistent Member
                  • Jul 9, 2007
                  • 2088

                  #9
                  Originally posted by tjacwave50
                  Maybe FTC on a budget and head sculptors come and go. I think the sculpts on the 66 Batman line for the most part are pretty darn good but then you have other lines with some terrible looking head sculpts, especially most female characters.
                  Something has majorly changed. Stuff like the '66 figures and even the Stooges had exceptionally good sculpts, even if some turned out too big. Aside from the size, the Ra's Al Ghul figure had the most perfect sculpt of that character I've ever seen, beating even the legendary Four Horsemen. The most recent stuff, especially the new female head from the Wonder Woman line, is just...bad. In Wondie's case, really bad, especially with the neck hole placement. Looks like something put together by that famous company, "Made in China." It's not just a little downturn, it's a plummet...

                  Comment

                  • CrimsonGhost
                    Often invisible
                    • Jul 18, 2002
                    • 3568

                    #10
                    I'm pretty sure, based only on how they look to me, that all of the sculpts are done by The Farrow Danny Anniello. I think his KISS sculpts are good, as well as The Stooges and a lot of Batman '66. The ones that are, or at least were, meant for 12" figures seem to come out better than the ones that aren't. Batman '66 was originally going to be both 8" and 12" when it was announced, so I'm guessing they were sculpted larger? Same with KISS and I wonder if the Stooges were also meant for 12".
                    I'm curious as to what deadlines they give him as well. I used to see him at the Chiller Theatre shows in Jersey all the time, but not in recent years and now I've moved so I'll probably never have the opportunity to ask him.
                    Expectation is the death of discovery.

                    Comment

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