Retro Action Wonder Woman Pic

[JediJaida]

That smile creeps me out a little. But it's better than that constipated grimace that the Marvel Legends ladies had.

Since this is only a prototype, I suppose that the bow leggedness isn't an issue. Unless they are actually made like that!

Also, please fix the hands.

[HardyGirl]

I don't see the bowleggedness...I guess I just see a cool Superhero stance...like the opening of '73 Superfriends!

[puckace]

Call me anything but late for dinner!

Getting the look of this character was extremely important to me since
that my daughter Gwen is almost 8. She and her friends will be the
prime target for this figure. I didn't want a manish WW or a sex doll,
so I went to a female sculptor with experience working for
Disney, Nickelodeon, Marvel, etc. to make a real woman who exudes
confidence, grace, and strength.

Thanks for that explanation Paul. I love this figure as is even though I would also like to change a few things such as substituting the eagle emblem, changing the bracelets to yellow, and reducing the red straps on the top. But looking at this from the view of a parent, I have two young girls, I think this version of Wonder Woman is just right.

[Mikey]

Yea, the hands need some work

As of this photo she has fingers like a cartoon character (fat and stumpy)

[Werewolf]

This WW figure has a feminine body without looking out of proportion (Barbie anyone?)

Mattel has not used the 60s style classic Barbie body on playline dolls since the mid 90s. It's only used on adult collector dolls and vintage reproductions.

[SciFiGuyLA]

I might personally prefer to see the hair volume dialed back a notch or two, but other than that.... PERFECT!

[EMCEtoys]

OK, let's see if I can answer some of the questions here. As with last year's SDCC, Paul has the sexy job of actually being in San Diego, while I toil away in the lonely office. :-)

However, this was another one that we wrestled with in development, so hopefully some of the no-longer-secret development stories will help give some context:

1. The "WW" is simple -- legal trademark. We had long conversations over the "eagle vs. ww" and in the end the legal guys prevailed. In the style guide it's as clear as how Superman's "S" and Batman's oval should be rendered. We brought up the Superfriends eagle, but for trademark compliance it's the WW. Period. We did it in gold because we felt that was a) a good way to give it the metallic sheen of the eagle and b) we think the metallics will class it up a bit, whereas the yellow seems kinda "default (see "Shazam" as well).

2. The top is definitely not a tank, it is held by thin clear straps like the 12-inch. In fact, the 12-inch and the Barbie were big influences on the costume; our challenge was how to keep her covered with so little available material in the 8" scale. The peaks are supposed to run in parallel with the WWs, but in this photo it seems they've been stretched a bit. Again, probably an on-site display challenge.

3. The body is actually put together from various Mattel in-progress prototype pieces, before the actual body was even completed. Putting her together was like performing heart surgery, and I'm sure that any perceived awkwardness of posture is solely due to figuring out how to keep her from falling over in the case.

4. The hair certainly looks a lot poofier than it looked when she left the building, so it's gotta be the angle or something.

5. The red matches the comic and style guide; anything different is solely on-site lighting variances.

6. The knees are articulated. Good god, man, what kind of people do you think we are? :-)

7. There is an invisible plane. Can't you see it?

Okay, I'm sure more to come.

J

[saildog]

OK, let's see if I can answer some of the questions here. As with last year's SDCC, Paul has the sexy job of actually being in San Diego, while I toil away in the lonely office. :-)

J

First off, I can't believe it has already been a year. I clearly remember following your reports and comments last time.

Thank you for all you have done and I really appreciate you taking the time to respond to questions and comments and give all of us some insight into the decisions that went into these figures.

[The Bat]

Wow! Thanks for the inside scoop...that was a great read!

[Blue Meanie]

Here she is with here other Retro Action brethren :

[rlkrefft]

Do you think the actual Wonder Woman that shows up in stores will have the top fixed so that the peaks run in parallel with the WW? Please try to find out. This is the only real problem I see with the otherwise great Wonder Woman figure.

One other question...why couldn't Martian Manhunter's body been cast in green instead of using a skinned outfit?

Thank you for any comments.

OK, let's see if I can answer some of the questions here. As with last year's SDCC, Paul has the sexy job of actually being in San Diego, while I toil away in the lonely office. :-)

However, this was another one that we wrestled with in development, so hopefully some of the no-longer-secret development stories will help give some context:

1. The "WW" is simple -- legal trademark. We had long conversations over the "eagle vs. ww" and in the end the legal guys prevailed. In the style guide it's as clear as how Superman's "S" and Batman's oval should be rendered. We brought up the Superfriends eagle, but for trademark compliance it's the WW. Period. We did it in gold because we felt that was a) a good way to give it the metallic sheen of the eagle and b) we think the metallics will class it up a bit, whereas the yellow seems kinda "default (see "Shazam" as well).

2. The top is definitely not a tank, it is held by thin clear straps like the 12-inch. In fact, the 12-inch and the Barbie were big influences on the costume; our challenge was how to keep her covered with so little available material in the 8" scale. The peaks are supposed to run in parallel with the WWs, but in this photo it seems they've been stretched a bit. Again, probably an on-site display challenge.

3. The body is actually put together from various Mattel in-progress prototype pieces, before the actual body was even completed. Putting her together was like performing heart surgery, and I'm sure that any perceived awkwardness of posture is solely due to figuring out how to keep her from falling over in the case.

4. The hair certainly looks a lot poofier than it looked when she left the building, so it's gotta be the angle or something.

5. The red matches the comic and style guide; anything different is solely on-site lighting variances.

6. The knees are articulated. Good god, man, what kind of people do you think we are? :-)

7. There is an invisible plane. Can't you see it?

Okay, I'm sure more to come.

J

[EMCEtoys]

Do you think the actual Wonder Woman that shows up in stores will have the top fixed so that the peaks run in parallel with the WW? Please try to find out. This is the only real problem I see with the otherwise great Wonder Woman figure.

One other question...why couldn't Martian Manhunter's body been cast in green instead of using a skinned outfit?

Thank you for any comments.

re: ww outfit: we'll find out when everyone else does. production is production.

re: mm green -- the body will be cast in green and collectors will certainly be welcome to remove the bodysuit if they want (unless something changes in production). we felt that a) mego would have done this and b) frankly, when we did the should we/shouldn't we comparison (and we do do this, you know), he looked a bit too naked for our tastes. there's another character coming soon who falls into a similar category and we made the same decision.

[ScottA]

I like that MM has the green "flesh" suit. Nice touch. I'm liking all the choices here. Thanks Joe and Paul.

[stabilio]

Interesting stuff, Joe. How about the decision to put boots on Cheetah? Was that a should we/shouldn't we? I assume it was about her being an otherwise accessory-less figure but it looks odd to me.

And when it comes to Darkseid, word is that he will be on the same standard Mattel body rather than a new larger body, what was utilized to give the beefed up look, if anything?

[JediJaida]

Isn't the point of an invisible plane to actually BE invisible? You know, as in unseen by human eyes?

Huh. I wonder if that applies to all light spectra, and not just the one that humans are capable of seeing.

I know that cats and dogs see things not only in a different perspective than we do, but also in a different spectrum. Are they capable of seeing an invisible jet?

*Sigh* That question is either truly stupid or ultra geeky. I can't decide which.