This just in...

[ScottA]

Look what DaveMc did in the reimagine catalog. If they produced something half that good I'd be on it. And I don't even collect Star Wars.

[pmwasson]

I think the biggest complaint again Mego-like figures is that they are goofy looking. I personally love a goofy 8" figure, but I don't see why we can't have 8" figures with more modern aesthetics. (ZICA comes to mind.) 8" have a some advantages over 12" figures: take up less room and cheaper to manufacturer (I assume).

I think a nicely detailed 8" Star Wars line would do very well and hope we see it someday.

[galaxyexplorer42]

Just my 2 cents on this...

I'm no expert on the toy business, and no expert in business at all. But I don't necessarily agree with everything the author said. I think that people who buy Star Wars action figures are gonna buy whatever Star Wars action figures are at the store. Target, KMart, Walmart, Toys R Us, whatever. It seem that pretty much EVERY IMAGINABLE SCALE of Star Wars toys has been made. And they all probably still sell. I see Star Wars toys at all of these stores, and have been seeing them for lots of years. So SOMEONE is buying them. Someone is buying them because THAT'S what the store has for Star Wars toys & action figures. He says:

"As a post-Mego person I'm not crazy about introducing it as yet another scale in Star Wars. Since 1995 I've suffered through 3 3/4-inch, 12-inch, Unleashed (6-inch), Unleashed (2-inch), Galactic Heroes, Jedi Force (2-inch), Jedi Force (5-inch), Epic Force, Mega Action, Force Battlers, and that's just Hasbro and Kenner."

Its not like people who collect those things are saying, "Oh great, these are the scale that I like, so I'll collect them. Boy am I glad they're not 8", and don't have real cloths. 'Cause I wouldn't buy them if they were." No one is saying that. "Yet another scale" doesn't seem to be an issue.

I think that IF people wanna buy and collect Star Wars toys, they're gonna buy whatever kinda Star Wars toys are on the shelves at the stores. There's no reason that Mego style WOULDN'T sell simply due to the fact that they're MEGO style.....That's doesn't make sense to me....

If people buy toys and action figures, and I can assume they DO buy toys & action figures because Target & Toys R Us etc has had action figure aisles for literally DECADES, then if MEGO style Star Wars action figures were all over the aisles INSTEAD of many of the other styles of action figures, then THAT'S the Star Wars action figures that people would buy. Cause THAT's the option that people would have.

He also says:
"With the death of Twisted Mego/ToyFare Theater, aging collectors, and collectors not wishing to approach a new scale I have my doubts we'll see them any time soon. Really, the time for a mass-market Mego revival was probably when Playmates and Toy Biz were doing theirs in the late 1990s."

Its not like we 40 something Mego collectors are the only people who buy toys. I also don't think that people who buy Star Wars toys are afraid "to approach a new scale...." (Its not new).... I think that we (members of the museum) are the people that would LIKE TO SEE them in Mego scale, and other people, people who are NOT members here, the average Joe who buys Star Wars toys for their kids or themselves, who obviously don't seem to care what the scale is, IF they are gonna buy Star Wars action figures, would buy whatever scale is on the action figure aisles. So why NOT our scale & style? If Mego style Star Wars toys are in the action figure aisle, as one of the options, people would probably buy them..... Just my opinion....

[SeattleEd]

Adam Pawlus has been doing Star Wars reviews and QA for over 12 years. He is in the Toy business now...possibly Sideshow..but not sure.

I recall his reviews back on the Rebelscum days of the early/mid 90's when it was starting out. Always had some inside information of new items coming out.

[drmego]

Making noise

He siad we need to make some noise about a Star Wars Mego, can we do that?

Well, we could always charter a bus to Skywalker Ranch and break
into Lucas' bedroom, waving custom mego Vaders in his face while
he sleeps.

Or stalk him at Celebration - wait - people already do that.

[stevenlore]

So who is this guy? Is he connected to Hasbro? Or is he a fan who
follows all the news?

Adam Pawlus has been doing Star Wars reviews and QA for over 12 years. He is in the Toy business now...possibly Sideshow..but not sure.

[jimsmegos]

While I would get a kick out of 8 inch Star Wars figures, I don't know how far I'd go out of my way to get them. For nostalgia purposes the 3 & 3/4 vintage figs fit the bill just fine. Plus considering what we've learned from Mattel's RA line in comparison to Bif Bang Pow and Diamond Selects lines; if EMCE isn't involved it's a crap shoot on the bodies. So if Doc and his pals make this happen I'm in.... if not then it'll take some hard selling to win me and my cash over.

In fairness though I would also consider the line if Castaway or ZICA contributed to the bodies.

[ctc]

>But I believe the days of walking into a store and seeing pegboards lined with 8 inch figures will not happen again unless the latest generation embraces them.

Or the NEXT generation.... or the one after that. Entertainment; toys included, is based on the idea of novelty, and there's a limited amount of permutations out there. Eventually SOMEONE will hit with Mego-styled figures.... or something similar. We might be dead by then, but it'll happen.

>we're really talking apples and oranges in comparing them to Megos.

Maybe; but it's possible someone will follow the same reasoning Mego did back in the day and re-invent the 8" figure: super-detailed figures like the 12" ones, but smaller so's to save on cost.

>perhaps Star Wars could resurrect the format today.

Hmmmm.... it's an exciting idea, but I suspect the something that brings back the 8" format to the mainstream would be something completely new, something you couldn't get in any other format. I think (for a while, anyhoo) Star Wars is kinda played out.

Don C.

[MIB41]

>The market for Megos is simply not big enough to justify creating another license to do them.

Yeah; ESPECIALLY Star Wars. Even the diehard collectors seem tired of buying ANOTHER Vader. (Subjectively speaking....)

>And even so, being in your 50's is not a death sentence.

No; but "dying off" doesn't just mean dropping dead. (Although that IS getting to be a concern.) It also includes collectors losing interest, finishing collections, moving on. It's like the hubub over Marvel and DC's comics; how many oldsters do you find saying things like "I'm SOOO done with this!"

After a certain critical mass, catering to the old school fans doesn't make fiscal sense. Sure, you can argue "but it's the OLD fans who cultivate the NEW fans!" which is true, to a point. Kids find their own things; much to the chagrin of their folks. After that certain critical mass the template usually shifts enough that the nostalgia is two generations removed, and the influence wanes. (How many of us care about the rising tide of Power Rangers nostalgia?)

>It clearly speaks to the early demise of large production efforts (like Mattel's Retro line) and smaller efforts as well.

I think the 8" figure isn't doomed. They may never be mainstream (at least not in our lifetimes) but there's enough niche demand that small companies can cultivate an audience. And like the genius of the original Mego 8" figure, there's enough existing TOOLING that a smaller company doesn't have to fire up production from scratch. Mix and match, like Mego did.

Don C.

Great points! And make no mistake. I think there can always be a niche for this market, no doubt. But I believe the days of walking into a store and seeing pegboards lined with 8 inch figures will not happen again unless the latest generation embraces them. Star Wars has recently been picked up by Hot Toys which has never had a high distribution. But their quality is legendary. Of course we're really talking apples and oranges in comparing them to Megos. But if enough noise is made, perhaps we could get their attention and thus bring that new generation into our camp. Just as Star Wars was the death of the 8 inch figure in the 70's, perhaps Star Wars could resurrect the format today. I would be willing to make noise!

[PoorMansJB]

Although they were 6" rather than 8", Takara of Japan offered a selection of SW figures that are still among the most desirable with fans (though mostly for their rarity as opposed to accuracy, etc.). The point is, there is a precedent: SW figures in more or less the scale we're describing have been made and remain highly collectible. If nothing else, an argument could be made for revisiting/expanding that line in a retro move, but at a slightly larger size to allow for greater detailing and compatibility with other product.

[ctc]

>The market for Megos is simply not big enough to justify creating another license to do them.

Yeah; ESPECIALLY Star Wars. Even the diehard collectors seem tired of buying ANOTHER Vader. (Subjectively speaking....)

>And even so, being in your 50's is not a death sentence.

No; but "dying off" doesn't just mean dropping dead. (Although that IS getting to be a concern.) It also includes collectors losing interest, finishing collections, moving on. It's like the hubub over Marvel and DC's comics; how many oldsters do you find saying things like "I'm SOOO done with this!"

After a certain critical mass, catering to the old school fans doesn't make fiscal sense. Sure, you can argue "but it's the OLD fans who cultivate the NEW fans!" which is true, to a point. Kids find their own things; much to the chagrin of their folks. After that certain critical mass the template usually shifts enough that the nostalgia is two generations removed, and the influence wanes. (How many of us care about the rising tide of Power Rangers nostalgia?)

>It clearly speaks to the early demise of large production efforts (like Mattel's Retro line) and smaller efforts as well.

I think the 8" figure isn't doomed. They may never be mainstream (at least not in our lifetimes) but there's enough niche demand that small companies can cultivate an audience. And like the genius of the original Mego 8" figure, there's enough existing TOOLING that a smaller company doesn't have to fire up production from scratch. Mix and match, like Mego did.

Don C.

[rche]

I can make lots of different noises.

[bobws]

He siad we need to make some noise about a Star Wars Mego, can we do that?

[Figuremod73]

i may be the exception to the rule. i grew up mostly in the '80s but i think the stuff from the late 60's and 70's are real cool to. much better than a majority of whats out now (thats a opinion of course)
i think that marketing has just been less than ideal.....

[MIB41]

Yeah, as much as I may not like it, I do think this person's overall views on Mego-like figures may be correct. I know we've seen an awesome amount of re-Mego'ed lines, but I still feel like many of today's toy collectors are focused on the 80's. We are getting older and and are financial focii are changing- houses, kids, etc. And yes, the high-end, packaged stuff will also be in high demand, but it feels like some of the loose stuff has leveled off (if not got cheaper). Just as the 3 & 3/4" figures replaced 8" back in the day, it feels like the same thing is happening in the toy collecting circles today.

Yeah, even if that guy is just offering an opinion and has no actual insider perspective, there is still a lot of truth to what he says. Although I'm still laughing at his "dying off" comment. Clearly he's very young to think we're THAT old. I look at it like this - If an eight inch Star Wars figure is ever to become a reality, it will be because Dr. Mego (Paul) went after it. He's on the front battle lines pushing to keep this scale alive. And he seems to have the proper people in his corner to make things happen. The day he gives up is the day this line reaches it's ultimate demise. Until then, I dare say we will be more cult than commercial for this scale of figures. I don't like it like that, but that seems to be the indication based on the small distribution of new product.