Mattel Reasons
 

Just wanted to see what everyone thinks Mattel's reason for no 4 inch highly articulated DC Universe action figures.

Laziness would be my guess.

But aren't they losing potential profit? Just look at us, we all want it (for the most part). They are leaving a lot of money on the table.

Not losing potential profit. They're making a boat load of profit. Most of these toys are bought by or for children who want to play with them & couldn't care less about how many points of artic they have. The collectors are a fraction of their sales. Less work involved in making something = more profit to be had.

yet the 6 inch figures that cost more to produce and get less shelf space in stores ship they do focus on the collector and make profitable. as i posted in another thread earlier :

DCIH had four problems

1. At the time they were released they were more expensive than Gi Joe and Star Wars the big ones at the time.
2. The first wave was Captain Marvel , Guy Gardner, Adam Strange, and Professor Zoom. Revision one added The Atom and the Black Hand. Case Revision 2 added the Qwardian Weaponer and Manhuinter robot. How many A and B list charecters did thye skip over to make this list? (by the way these waves are still available at TRU.com)
3. Like Rodimus said they should be 1/18th not 3.75 inch.
4. Bad design. The proportions on the early figures was way off as was the limited articulation.

the is true of the dkr line as well. Even less selection detail and articulation than even the gl line. at least the got the price right.

Obviously not, considering the six inch line has been floundering for the last couple years, and the last several attempts Mattel has made to rescue it from impending cancellation have all been catastrophic failiers.

It seems like they sell better precisely because they get less shelf space.

I'm mainly referring to Mattels own statements where in the latest q&a they said the movie master were where collectors should look.
No better way than to encourage your customers than to openly mock them repeatedly.

That's just not true anymore. The market has shifted dramatically over the last decade. There are more adult collectors and children have less and less interest in action figures. Most retail lines need to capture both markets at once to succeed these days. Hasbro has done a pretty good job of finding the balance. Mattel has not.

I'd be willing to bet it's about 75% kids, 25% collectors. Which is why they put out just enough to keep collectors happy while flooding the shelves with pure garbage. They know collectors are more likely to buy the higher priced figs than the crap that fills the shelves. Either way, these are billion dollar corporations. Want them to do better? Tell everyone to quit buying garbage. It gets bought, so they don't change. If it doesn't get bought, why sink more $ into a line to improve it when the initial line didn't do well? Bottom line is if everyone on Toyark never bought another item from them again, they wouldn't even notice. If it were profitable, they would be doing it.

I have always wanted to collect dcu figs but articulation is the biggie for me. I can't buy from this line what so ever at this current rate. I mean come on, what's the point of making a flash that can't bend at the knee? Is he power walking everywhere he goes??

3.75 inch figures are not profitble? Explain Star Wars. The king of 3.75. The movies made 4.2 billion the toys 33 bil

It's not profitable for Mattel but is for Hasbro steadily since 1995?
it doesn't seem like the problem is theres no profit in the scale, its with Mattel.

I think they gear their smaller scale lines towards kids, whereas Hasbto does the opposite. Hasbro makes gimmick laden, less articulated larger figures for kids.

Now this is just my opinion, but when I was a kid articulation was a non factor (in as much as it was non existant for the most part).

When I was a kid, articulation varies from figures with "the big five" (legs,shoulders,head), to figures like the Micronauts with articulation that rivals today.

As a teen, I loved my G1 Transformers, and there's a reason their referred to as "bricks". But since they were such an amazing concept, all was easily forgiven.

Today, even younger collectors are more savvy, looking for more bang for their toy buck.

I think if Mattel could muster up a Justice League/Legion of Doom 1/18th scale that employed Avengers Movie figure articulation at minimum they could easily get back.into the game. First waves just A list heroes and villains.

I collect mainly Marvel, but I'd be on board for some quality 1/18 JL/LoD figures.

I think Mattel probably pays a boatload to keep the Four Horsemen busy. So they want to milk them for all they are worth, working on as many projects as they can. I'd bet they're waiting till that marriage dissolves and can't produce the high-quality collector figures. After that, they'll go back to 4".

And/or, they're chicken to go up against Marvel Universe. Maybe they are waiting for it to wind down. Then the market will be wide open for DC figs to come in.

And, obviously, the skill set isn't there. They just don't know how to do it. Once the Horsemen are out, they can bring in a crew that can do 4".

I never said 3 3/4 lines aren't profitable. I'm saying to cancel the line they have now & retool just to add more articulation isn't. They should have done it from the jump. I agree with ToyAddict's thought of them being scared to go up against MU. Marvel > DC x 100000000000. IMO, DC has the lamest, most boring characters with the exception of Batman. They definitely do not have a roster as solid and as deep as Marvel.

Because they're jerk faces.

as a fan of both i'm offended, you are entitled to your opinion but to make a statement like this in a thread where most would like to see this line come to fruition is asking for trouble

Based off the latest Q&A response I think they look at it as their line geared toward kids.

Well if people's opinions offend you, the internet must be hell for you lol.. I never said people who like DC are idiots. Cuz I do love me some Batman. Just saying Marvel has many more quality characters than DC which is one reason their toy lines & movies do so well.

I collect Marvel Universe, but can appreciate a lot of DC's characters and would live to get good figures of them. But the offering has been so bad I don't even bother. But everyone who thinks their figure lines are aimed right at kids seem to be spot on. All their 3.75" figures are very basic, but their 6' line is pretty decent. But I only collect 3.75", so I choose to pass. Too bad, too.

look all i'm saying is your opinion could incite certain people to go back and forth in a heated manner. also while were on the subject you did call them lame and boring which if true would say a lot about the folks that love the characters wouldn't it? i'm not upset just asking that you consider your words and that is all

Again, it's my opinion. It says nothing about the folks who collect them. If we all liked the same shit, this world would be pretty damn boring. If people's feelings really get hurt over some strangers opinion, they need to toughen up. Much like the rest of this country lol. I'm not looking for an argument with anyone. Simply offered my view on why things might be the way they are.

I get what ur saying. In terms of overall character marvel does seem to have better character development and in these days that's what most important. That's simply why batman is so great! But dc and marvel are different and both focus on different aspects. DC superheroes are 'superheros' in their truest forms. They are best at what they do and have full command at global threats. Marvel is more modern and their heroes are more human vigilantes each with specific powers. None of which may be the best at what they do but fight no matter how great the threat.

I for one prefer marvel over dc but its all on your flavor of heroes. DC is mor old fashioned and people prefer that as well

this

^^ u know it lol

It seems that the Green Lantern movie toys were popular enough for them to move forward with the DKR line. That, or Mattel was too far into the development cycle to stop now.

I think a better indication of where Mattel's corporate head is at will be how they handle a toy line for Man of Steel. If it is done in the same fashion as GL and DKR, then I think it would be safe to assume Mattel thinks toy lines like that are profitable enough with kids and collectors to keep the status quo.

If they attempt to do a MoS line that is similar to MU, then we might see a change for the better (as far as collectors of that scale are concerned).

Not necessarily. There are legions of fans who find Bella Swan (Twilight) to be an interesting and intriguing character. There are others who find her annoying and selfish. It does not immediately tag one group or the other as "bad" or "good". That's the difficulty when it comes to opinion. Some characters appeal to certain individuals, while others do not. And, of course, the opposite effect is also true.

I prefer Marvel characters in general, but there are some DC characters for which I am also a fan. It all boils down to one's personal taste. Just because I can't stand Guy Gardner doesn't mean that those who like him are annoying dicks (which is what I think of Guy).

The Marvel vs. DC debate will never go away as long as there are fans of both. And that's fine, as long as everyone respect's each others' opinions and considers them equally valid even in disagreement.