And that's not what I'm encouraging. Criticism and negative comments -- about real and actual problems -- have their place in discourse. However, Nimrod and ThorOdinson aren't even buying McF's action figures. They want to buy action figures that don't exist.

They should commission customs or make their own. Otherwise, they're just banging away on their keyboards because they're bored and having nothing better to do.

I'm not buying them either because they aren't giving me characters or versions I want to buy. I would totally buy an entire Silver/Bronze Age Flash line if MacFarlane released one. I would be down for an All-Star Western line with the likes of Jonah Hex, El Papagayo, El Diablo, Bat Lash, Pow Wow Smith, Scalphunter, Turnbull, Tellulah Black, etc.

That's not at all what MacFarlane is doing though.

Well back on the topic of this thread

Batman Zur-En-Arrh has already been spotted overseas. Not that it really says much about when the figure comes out in say the US but it seems more ready to go then some other figures.

Yes, we already know.

With those colors im sure the aliens 8n the andromeda galaxy could see him. ;)

Their character selection is far more diverse than what we've seen out of DC Multiverse under Todd. That they have such a built-in audience base by now is one of the things that allows them to get into more deep cut territory. While yes, they absolutely do frequent variations/rereleases of the A-listers, that generally allows them to also include more obscure pulls.

Hell, to use your own Wolverine example, the most recent X-Men wave has the obligatory Wolverine variant, but also includes the likes of Siryn, Maggott, Darwin and Kid Vulcan, a quartet of characters that most who aren't serious comic readers would likely describe as "Who?"

And? The Eternals stuff bombed but I'm not sure what that has to do with my point. The Legends line has been and continues to be more diverse in terms of character selection. I've already said why that is in defense of the overexposure of Batman in the line. We were on the same side on this, lol.

I just saw a bunch of X-Men on clearance, too.

https://i.postimg.cc/xj7SsFNw/IMG-20...-151354362.jpg

We're still on the same side, but companies like Hasbro and Mattel do business differently from smaller competitors like McFarlane. Hasbro and Mattel saturate the market with a "let's try everything and see whatever sticks" approach, which frankly creates a lot of waste from both a business and environmental standpoint. As funny as it may be seeing products deeply discounted on store shelves, I'd prefer knowing that companies were making products that people actually wanted. Market research is not difficult to conduct in today's world.

I can't really act like the character selection in Multiverse is a win, tbh. Like I said, I understand why Mcfarlane doesn't have the freedom to do what Hasbro does with the Marvel license, but I can't pretend I wouldn't prefer a more expansive character selection. They're very slowly getting there, which I appreciate, but there are tons of characters I'd like to see before the umpteenth Batman costume variant, even if I can understand why that might be necessary from a fiscal standpoint.

In today's world, "deep dive" characters should be sold as limited edition online exclusives by either the manufacturers or the IP owners' (Marvel, Lucasfilm, DC, Harry Potter, etc.). For example, that new unmasked Robin that's only available from McF.com is the way to go. Hardcore fans can expand their collections, while manufacturers wouldn't be making tons of unwanted future garbage.

That's another DC Character I am surprised Funko hasn't done yet either I love me some Jonah Hex. Id buy a Jonah figure too

I sunno….thees a lotta very interesting b+ characters that is made proper may sell quite well. Theonly things that should be exclusives is non essential figs….like certain outfits etc. anything else should see a regular retail release.

Sorry, like I said, can’t agree to that. Hopefully the line continues to do well and McFarlane can do some riskier choices in future waves.

If an exclusive sells well, they can always make more of it.

That usually doesnt happen.

Yet I see people complaining about Hasbro and Mattel re-releasing the same figures over and over again.

Anyone that complains about a figure getting a rerelease is an idiot. Rereleasing a figure means scalpers don't get the luxury of profitting off of people. No one should have to pay more than retail for something they want, period.

I'd probably buy those if I saw them cheap on a shelf here in the UK. I loved me some 90s AoA by Joe Mad and all that. lol. You lot in the States sometimes don't know how good you have it over there with availabilty and price and clearance sales lol


Nah, unmasked heads should be included with the main figure as an alternate head like many other companies often do. I hate having to buy a whole separate figure just for the head lol. I only want the one figure of a type on my shelf and switch the heads and hands and accessories about when I want to refresh the display a bit.

Agreed, but that hasn't been Todd's approach to action figures for years now. The DC line has had only one release with swappable heads, the White Knight Joker. And oddly, Todd included swappable heads with the Fortnite red and black Wild Card figures when arguably that was one instance when people actually wanted to buy individual figures for each head. If you buy four Wild Cards, you end up with four extra heads, lol.

https://i.postimg.cc/Z5t9syvs/IMG-20...-234803525.jpg

Bottom line with all this - whatever is being done sells. If not, tactics would change. And maybe they are/will, we just haven't seen it yet.

Another factor to consider - McFarlane Toys is not Hasbro. Hasbro can eat a couple dud waves, Target is not going to stop carrying stuff because of it. Hasbro, and the lines like Marvel Legends or Black Series, etc - have a track record. Plus Hasbro has muscle with the purchasers to be like "sorry about Eternals, we promise no more of that" and move on. Maybe toss them a credit, who knows how that works.

McFarlane as of right now, is basically only 3 years old. They were out of mass retail for a long while. And they don't have all the other lines and brands (board games, kiddie stuff, "girls isle" stuff, etc) which may perform when others don't, to balance out. If DC Multiverse gets several dud waves, it's gone, and McFarlane's presence for Spawn and other things - gone. Company in trouble.

Not saying it's an excuse for our collector concerns, I want deeper dive non-Batman stuff too. I'm just aware there may be other real world factors in play. Beyond Todd's personal taste or DC's forced direction (if they exist).

I think we'd all like more of other characters including non Batman but Batman supporting characters.

To me it's a feedback loop. Put out just Batman and that's all you're ever going to sell. Then see business fall when you oversaturate.

I think it would help if Batman got spread out at least. Release some classic Precrisis and Post crisis looking non Batman figures a bit more.

But none of that really matters if distribution isn't addressed.

If this line is going to be Batman heavy all I really want is more of his villains for him to interact with. The rogues gallery/freaks and weirdos. Hopefully in looks that don't steer too far from the general look of the character. I think the upcoming Clayface is a good example of that. Imagine how good Killer Croc or Manbat could be.

But ARE they actually selling?

Video review of Not Batman

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mF9C...ature=youtu.be

Couldn't say either way, but they keep making them and the retailers keep buying them. It's possible we are in a build up to a forced stop but that's speculation. Only data we have is - being made, retailers keep buying.

I'm pretty flush these days, having saved hard and stayed frugal during "Covid," and I'm a long time Batman fan. I could go for lots more Batman stuff, IF IT WAS ANY DAMNED GOOD.

I don't understand the market at all anymore. Toymakers all seem to be targeting a niche that I call the Lowest Common Denominator, i.e., cheapest-possible crap for highest-possible price. HOW IS THAT A LONG TERM RECIPE FOR SUCCESS?