In my opinion...

[Figuremod73]

All I can say is I thank the Retro line for making me remember megos to begin with. As a line themselves I think they were more of a collectors line from the beginning. Cant beat an original mego but remegos look alsome on a shelf. I like the look of them to because I was a big time fan of the original superfriends cartoon back in my youth.

[Toyman_Chris]

I think there is a disconnect with people who didn't live in the Mego Age of figures. We "got it". We understood the magic of 8-inch clothed figures and vehicles and lived a large portion of our childhood through those figures. After Star Wars, the magic shifted to another market. It's nothing more than evolution.

In reality, the RA line was no more or less goofy than the Super Powers figures, which I possibly consider the second best superhero line ever made. It's a generational thing with Mego, and we cannot expect anyone under the age of 35 to really understand, though some are smart enough to. Two of my co-managers are 30 years old and have ZERO clue what a Mego is. They had never seen one till I showed them.

RA got a lot of things right and only a couple wrong. The spirit of Mego was present from the creators, just not the passion for them from a corporate level.

And I shall dub thee, "The Voice Of Reason"....eh? Already dubbed that? ok. well then.....touche!

[ctc]

>The retro action stuff was aimed at us.

For the most part, true. But you gotta start somewhere. I think the idea with the superheroes was that you'd make stuff that'd appeal to the parents, who are a big part of who you market a toy towards. If they went over in that regard, they could expand production. If not, they could always pull the plug. I think this was where the problem came in though; they were trying to cross-pollenate between older collectors and kids. A noble goal, but a difficult one. For the heroes, I think the biggest obstacle was cost. $20 is a bit much for something that a kid's gonna end up destroying.

BUT.... for a more grownup oriented product, it's not so bad; hence the Twilight Zone and Venture Bros. The trick on THIS end is juggling the production run numbers (more produced= lower overall cost) vs how many you'll actually sell. Also tricky, but given the number and breadth of product crerated, I think they've had a leat modest success with the various lines.... 'specially considering there's still a fair amount of new stuff in the works.

It's difficult to judge the effectiveness of a lot of entertainment any more, since we only ever hear about the big successes: the summer blockbusters, the comics that sell in the 100,000s, the toy runs from the giant companies.... but sometimes putting something out there, everyone gets paid and you make just enough to do it again is a worthwhile achievement.

Don C.

[SPittVol]

I'm 34 and until a couple years ago, I hadn't heard of Mego. I stumbled upon them by searching ebay for Incredible Hulk action figures. I purchased a carded hulk, and shortly after, purchased Ben Holcomb's book. The book reeled me in and now I'm hooked. I've been actively collecting since February of this year. In fact, I've been so active that I'm only a Wondergirl away from completing my loose Mego collection. I love the charm of the old Mego figures. I've even sold some of my modern era action figures so I could buy more Megos. I personally like the RA line and I'm actively trying to collect them all. I guess once a person gets bitten by the Mego bug......anything that keeps the thrill of the hunt alive is welcomed.

[thunderbolt]

I don't really get the price point arguement when you look at it compared to DC U CLassics and other figures on the market right now. 10 bucks for a 4 inch young justice 5 point articulation Happy Meal looking figure is nuts.

[ctc]

>10 bucks for a 4 inch young justice 5 point articulation Happy Meal looking figure is nuts

It is, but it LOOKS better. (I suspect for that reason they're actually $9.99....) It's easier to part with $10 than $20, and you get twice as many figures!

Yeah; it's silly, but that's how the brain is wired.

Don C.

[jetzjungle]

They could make the figures look cool and provide articulation just like the Marvel Universe series which really rock! I find it hard to take YJ figures seriously in the smaller line because Mattel can't keep up with the fanbase! Their saving grace is taking a chance on the RA's! I really would have like some YJ RA's even before Real Ghostbusters to get the line more current with a wider fan base!

[MIB41]

I don't really get the price point arguement when you look at it compared to DC U CLassics and other figures on the market right now. 10 bucks for a 4 inch young justice 5 point articulation Happy Meal looking figure is nuts.

I agree. My childhood was in the early to mid 70's and so I came from an era that gave me quite a bit of action figure for the money. For 3 or 4 dollars I got an action figure with interchangeable outfits and often in a box I could place him back in and display when I was done. In addition, I had this entire universe of accessories and playsets for those figures to exist in. Today companies want you to be impressed with their tiny plastic figures with crappy paint jobs on backer cards that are instantly destroyed when you open them. They contain enough plastic to perhaps mold the forearm of of one of my Megos. I'm sorry. That stuff is crap by any measure you give it. The prices are out of sight and the you get no value for your dollar. BUT if that is what sales the market today, then so be it. Kids have realistic online gaming worlds that keep them hypnotized for hours on end. So the need to 'imagine' for play time has lost it's relevance in this generation. The computers do it all for them. The quality of action figures is symptomatic of that environment.

[Figuremod73]

I also agree. That includes Transformers to. Back when I was heavily collecting them in the mid eighties they were one of the best series of toys ever put in production, now most of the time they are cheap crap that dont really look good.

[Mikey]

I always thought Retro Action heroes kinda sucked but I didn't wanna put them down while they were still in production out of respect for Doc Mego

Now that they're ended I can say it --- Retro Action heroes were pretty crappy and laughable

[Figuremod73]

the design of the clothes and heads were fine with me. its just the bodies i dont like. they should have used docs bodies, but i guess that would have been to easy...

[berges33]

Hello,

I think quality turns better from wave one to wave four. For example the Superman. The body is not good even the cloth. If you compare the old Mego Superman with the new one the old is better in every point. But the Martian Manhunter or the Darkseid is pretty good. Two Face and Green Arrow are very good.
I`d like to have more common charakters like Thor or Robin, Joker or Green Goblin. A silver surfer would be great. Of course they need a Marvel Licens.
In my opinion it is worth to continue the line with little changes.
The bodys should be less athletic and i love the " ovengloves" from the old Megos.

All in all i like the new line and i hope for new charakters.

Greetings
Dirk

[SPittVol]

Would love to see a Retro Action Marvel line. Aside from Batman and Superman, it seems like Marvel has more widely recognized characters than DC. I think a RA Marvel line would be a big seller.

[drmego]

When "Bonfire of the Vanities" was made into a bad movie, someone asks
Tom Wolfe if the movie ruined his book. Wolfe said his book is still on
the shelf doing fine - an interpretation can't affect the original - or something
to that effect. I'm not going to bother finding the exact quote.

In business, the guy who puts up the money, calls the shots. Mattel
paid Joe and I for our prototyping and input - when we saw something
wrong, we brought it to their attention. Ultimately what was delivered
to retailers was the product of their factories - and will continue to be,
if they decide to continue.

[Figuremod73]

drmego, you efforts were still appreciated. we wouldnt want you to ever think otherwise