Some People Hate FTC

[Megotastrophe]

And that is OK. I am not a fan of the 3 3/4 Joes. Not a fan of Micronauts. Not a fan of a lot of things. But I don't go into the forums for those fields and say nothing but crap. There are at least ten members I know of that if I see their name in a CTVT/FTC thread I know it's a negative comment without even reading it. No toy company is without fault. Not even Mego. Or Mego 2.0. There are issues with all of them. Either acknowledge the issues are too much for you and move on or do what you have to do to make peace with them. Right now they are like exboyfriends stalking the girl online and leaving nasty notes on their posts. If you don't like a particular company, don't buy their product. And it's really petty to lead the hater parade.

[thunderbolt]

I love the 66 Batman line, if FTC would apply the same effort elsewhere there would be a lot more positive thoughts on them. All this time and they haven't improved the bodies, especially the females, and don't seem to want to address the head size, and sculpting issues that have popped up time and again. I really wanted to get the Space Ghost line but it was a hot mess and I just couldn't see plopping down all that money for a bunch of half decent figures. At the price point they charge there really should be a higher standard there. They are way better than they were when they started but the time has come and gone where they should show some improvement and a bit more care.

[hedrap]

Complaints about FTC only erupted due to the WB license. Before that, they were widely seen as flawed but acceptable, and a great custom resource. Holding the WB rights means you want to be a legit toy manufacturer. There's a standard attached to that.

[TRDouble]

I understand your point and agree, Megotastrophe. There are probably some people who haven't purchased a FTC figure (or insert any company in its' place) in years, yet feel compelled to go to a board that is specific to that company and make nothing but negative comments.

The flip side are those that feel a need to overly pump a company's product up (that's fine), but get defensive when there is constructive criticism on a release or a company. Those posts aren't really any better, IMO.

It's usually a few voices, but those tend to be the loudest voices... or the ones that post the most!

And then some are just trolls.

The easiest solution would be for those that do not like a company or their product to avoid those boards, but some people just cannot help but take every opportunity to repeatedly voice their negative thoughts & opinions, almost as if they have an agenda, or to take the joy away from others. I have no idea on what to say about the overly enthusiastic types... maybe hope for balance from them and that they realize a negative comment about a company is not a negative comment about them? Not everyone is going to like everything and blind loyalty isn't a good thing either.

I don't know. All I do know is that none of it is going away, so it's best to try and ignore it when you can. I try to avoid responding to either type of post, even when they respond to one of mine. It's not worth the engagement and qualifying their post for more than it really is.

[houseofdracula]

Believe me, between the Batman 66 line & the KISS lines, I have given FTC a lot of my money.
Yes, I am happy and thankful for the product that they have produced.
HOWEVER, I do hope that now with Mego being back in the game and FTC not being the only game in town, maybe they will be forced to address some of the issues like "Bodies that can't pose" and "Head sizes".

[Megotastrophe]

Oh I agree on the ignoring the troll part. And I am not blind to the issues FTC has. I just also think we tend to ignore those same issues in Mego and Mego 2.0. Big heads were a huge problem throughout the TV licenses especially with Ponch. Subpar plastics led to the TeenTitan figures among others degrading on the card while still at the store. The Famous Covers were slick with oozing plasticizer less than a year after release. And only Mego 2.0 Wonder Woman had a head to compare with Mego 12" Captain America. Sereiously he looks like a 25 watt light bulb. And the figures I don't like I don't buy. Or I work with them. It just seems so petty to crap all over other people over a difference of opinion.

[Megotastrophe]

Complaints about FTC only erupted due to the WB license. Before that, they were widely seen as flawed but acceptable, and a great custom resource. Holding the WB rights means you want to be a legit toy manufacturer. There's a standard attached to that.

A standard which even Mego in both of its incarnations struggles to uphold.

[Teemu]

I own over 40+ FTC figures from 2 specific lines and I have no complaints after I fix them.

[enyawd72]

A standard which even Mego in both of its incarnations struggles to uphold.

I have to agree with this...for these new Mego figures being marketed as limited exclusive collectibles we've already seen or heard reports of Dracula with two left hands, unpainted mouth, backwards torso. Sulu with missing emblem, blistered upside down, missing tricorder. Kirk with smashed heads. 14" Batman missing gauntlets...these new figures have PLENTY of quality issues. IF you can even find them.

[Boywonder0]

Yup! I call them "The Usual Suspects"... I'm not a psychologist or anything like that, but I'm certain that is the other way around... They like CTVT figures so much, but most likely because they can't have them, they try very hard to convince others to not buy them either... I really feel pity for them...

It's very funny too. All you have to do is to slightly invoke them and they will introduce themselves...

[tllgn]

^^ actually Boy wonder i kinda thought the same thing about people who trash figures toy company figures all the time with every new figure that comes out ,they point out every negitive
thing about them .perhaps your on to something there .they cant have them ,they cant afford them ,so why not hate them ,perhaps it makes them feel better -weird i tell ya .they should just ignore them .
but i think their good ,i like the new megos also .

[Megotastrophe]

The old Aesops sour grapes theory. Possible. I think it's more likely they are trying to evince a snob appeal thing. Trying to show how very elite and refined they are that they can't be satisfied by such plebian products.

[wise guy]

I hope that FTC keeps the DC 8 " figures because I don't wan't to run around to Targets
stores when I can get free shipping and no sales tax.

[huedell]

I've always said that early on I was loudly critical of certain decisions they made with the DC characters, the figures themselves, and how they were rendered, many critical statements which now seem paper-thin, now that FTC have come so far.

Nothing feels more appropriate than the Luthor quote from Superman II: "I never thought this thing would go the distance."

But now that it has (what with so many key characters having been released)... kudos FTC.

AND:
Megotastrophe's "A standard which even Mego in both of its incarnations struggles to uphold." has been a KEY element from way back for me... with EMCE as well.... let's not pretend our cherished Mego was not defined by flaws in a big way.

This is especially vital to consider when, like me, you're a fan of modern retro figures mimicking the hard to define "Mego" feel.

[Mary Canary]

I hope that FTC keeps the DC 8 " figures because I don't wan't to run around to Targets
stores when I can get free shipping and no sales tax.

Free shipping only applies if you spend $100 or more.
And they're already charging $30 a figure.
While I agree running around from store to store can be a nuisance, FTC is still more expensive than the $15 figures at Target, even with sales tax included.
In fact, their shipping prices can be pretty outrageous, especially if you're just wanting to order some small CTVT items like clothing or accessories that weigh next to nothing.
The more you buy, the more the shipping price goes up, even though the weight of an extra plastic accessory or fabric jumpsuit doesn't merit this.

I personally want to champion FTC!
I'm always excited to see what their new DC releases will be.
And I do have a number of their figures that I enjoy.
These are retro-style toys, not high end figures with sculpts that defy logic. And to me that's what makes them charming.
But quantity should not supersede quality.
I have also had so many problems with them - figures arriving broken, heads that swivel at the slightest touch, clothing that isn't assembled correctly or doesn't fit.
If it happens once, it might seem like a fluke.
But I can personally count about 10 individual issues I've had from personal experience.
And it's quite disheartening to be excited for a new figure to arrive in the mail and then discover you've paid $30+ for a dud.
Regardless of how I feel about the number of characters they make that I like, or whether or not I can overlook a slightly oversized head here and there (this bothers me a lot less than it bothers some), I've become reluctant to keep purchasing when I'm scared I'm going to get a figure that has escaped quality control.
At one point I had a list going of all the figures I wanted to buy from them... but I've since decided it's not worth the risk.
For those who have never had a problem, that's great and consider yourself lucky!
If someone just wants to complain ad nauseam or be hyper-critical about every figure because the heads are out of proportion, there are lots of other toy lines to go collect instead of complaining about something you don't like.
We can all decide what we like and what we don't and support our decisions with our wallets.
People should buy what they like.
But when you do buy what you like and personally experience disappointment with multiple purchases, it's a legitimate turn-off.
FTC can do better.
I don't think it's too much to expect someone to check the figures to make sure they aren't damaged before they ship, or to say "how can we make our products better?" instead of "how many more characters can we crank out?"