So what's the latest on the Mego name?

[EMCEtoys]

we wanted to look as close to the old logo as possible, so we wanted the stylized "e". that said, if i has a dime for every time someone didn't read it as an "e" or mispronounced it as "emms"...

..of course, this from a guy who is changing the name of his company because he's tired of having to spell "spherewerx" on the phone.

the model, of course, is polar lights. they are, for all intents and purposes, the aurora model company. they made their logo, packaging, look as close to aurora as possible, and the clever renaming added to the message that they were trying to convey to the target audience. so, when we were pitching the concept to studios and such way back in the beginning, we were showing polar lights' work as an example of our approach.

[samurainoir]

It's funny... I didn't realize up to now that it's pronounced "Em-see" and not "Em-ka".

[Mikey]

I've always pronounced it Eee Em See Eee, in other words I just pronounce the 4 letters

[Astronut]

By the tine they become a multi-million dollar corporation, people will all be used to the proper pronunciation.

[Mister Kennedy]

Personally I think these toys are disgracing the Mego name.

[toyman]

Personally I think these toys are disgracing the Mego name.

You do know that this is not the mattel retro line being discussed,its the trek and and what emce is doing under their name.

[actjac01]

You do know that this is not the mattel retro line being discussed,its the trek and and what emce is doing under their name.

Yes, I totally agree.
For all intents and purposes, Mattel has pretty much distanced themselves from I what I believe is truly Mego, or now, EMCE (The new body design is the best example of this, in my opinion.)

Besides, to this day, I can not find an EMCE logo anywhere on the Mattel 'Retro-Hero' packaging: DC and WB logos, yes. EMCE? Un-uh.
Not even a mention...nothing.

Now, with EMCE, we get Star Trek, Planet of the Apes, Night of the Living Dead, etc. with more to come. Great figures, amazing retro design (hard to distinguish from an orginal, in most cases.)

EMCE seems to have the 'Retro' idea down.
Mattel? Hmmm....

[drmego]

Personally I think you are being very hard on Mattel. The fact that they were
willing to pattern a toy line on a former competitor's style speaks volumes about
the love the designers there have for MEGO.

Most companies want to re-make it in their own image. Mattel's designers
worked with us to make sure it came out the other end of production as a
MEGO style.

This line is not a big money maker for them - not like Barbie or WWE - so it
is pretty impressive that we get as much attention to detail as we do.

[Megazord Mike]

So what about Me-Go?

lol

[Fuzzysnail]

Personally I think you are being very hard on Mattel. The fact that they were
willing to pattern a toy line on a former competitor's style speaks volumes about
the love the designers there have for MEGO.

Most companies want to re-make it in their own image. Mattel's designers
worked with us to make sure it came out the other end of production as a
MEGO style.

This line is not a big money maker for them - not like Barbie or WWE - so it
is pretty impressive that we get as much attention to detail as we do.

If its not a big money maker for them, it probably has a lot to do with the way its marketed. Parents buy toys for kids when they want it, if kids dont know about it....then they dont ask for it. When the neighbor kid has four or five cool toys then you want those toys....
This is not field of dreams....if you build it they wont come....if they dont know about it.
Putting it only in TOYS R US, and making it exclusive to them is a mistake. They need to hang in Walmarts and Targets next to the toys that ARE PURCHASED BECAUSE THEIR IS NOT A SWEET RETRO figure hanging next to them. Hey maybe even an advertisement. hmmmmmm

Well I'm no businessman, what the heck do I know. The kids I have purchased retros for love them, but if their buddies are not playing with them, they will find their way to the bottom of the toy box.
I will continue to pick mine up, love the line, and with the chance for the body improvement, I'm excited.

Thanks again for pushing your dream to fruition Paul.

[EMCEtoys]

Personally I think these toys are disgracing the Mego name.

Hm.

Hold on, let me go ask the Abrams family, who have supported us since the beginning, arranged the Mattel deal for us and participate financially in the enterprise for the first time since they went out of business in the 1980s.

Wonder what they think...

[EMCEtoys]

Personally I think you are being very hard on Mattel. The fact that they were
willing to pattern a toy line on a former competitor's style speaks volumes about
the love the designers there have for MEGO.

Most companies want to re-make it in their own image. Mattel's designers
worked with us to make sure it came out the other end of production as a
MEGO style.

This line is not a big money maker for them - not like Barbie or WWE - so it
is pretty impressive that we get as much attention to detail as we do.

Hear, hear.

[Mikey]

Personally, I don't like to degrade Mattel too much because I know EMCE has a hand in the figures ... and those hands are kind of tied.

But, as for the other EMCE lines --- one word --- SMASHING !!!!!!

I consider the EMCE lines Mego reborn ... I put Mattel in the catagory as a peripheral similar line, like 8" LJN was.

That's just how I see it

[EMCEtoys]

Personally, I don't like to degrade Mattel too much because I know EMCE has a hand in the figures ... and those hands are kind of tied.

But, as for the other EMCE lines --- one word --- SMASHING !!!!!!

I consider the EMCE lines Mego reborn ... I put Mattel in the catagory as a peripheral similar line, like 8" LJN was.

That's just how I see it

Mikey, thanx for the even-handed statement. But I still ahve to express some bewilderment at the (numerically-speaking) tiny minority who have issues with the Mattel line and what's described as "our input".

We are not just consulting on this line. We are designing and prototyping them. The only thing that we did not have a direct hand in was the base body, which was created by Mattel in recognition of their need to own a base body that had no potential claims to it. Mego's alleged public domain status and Paul's assumption of the body form was enough for them to need to find another solution.

And we've been clear on several other threads that this community's input has been sought in making adjustments to the base body.

There are some production process issues that we do not see as the product moves along, and some of it has been an education for us as we broaden our ways of working to include "mego-izing" the properties of our partners. This education will allow us to take these factors into account as the lines continue.

So to be clear, as much as we appreciate the recognition of our 100% owned or produced lines as pure EMCE, we need to be clear that we are responsible as much for the stuff you like as the stuff you don't. We'll be as transparent as possible about issues or production problems or what have you, but we do not abdicate our responsibility for them. If it was something different from our initial process or something that was out of our control, we'll describe it, but in no way are we not responsible for it.

Now, if we just sat back and didn't do anything about it, that would be a different story.

In general, whether it's BBP, EMCE, FearWerx or Mattel, whether it has our logo or not for any variety of compliance issues, these are all EMCE Toys, and we are responsible for their results.

EDIT: And I just have to say "thank you" again for the kind words, Mikey. Didn't want you to think I didn't appreciate the "smashing" comment. :-)

[Brown Bear]

Amen to that brother!