[Snowflakian]

Quote:

Originally Posted by TheBlueMarvel

@Snowflakian

I wasn’t aware of those story elements of X-23, Arsenal, or Harley. However, I read Identity Crisis and I’m quite familiar with the rape that Dr. Light committed and the resulting transgressions of the JLA members involved in the story arc. To this date, I still feel that Identity Crisis was one of the most powerful DC story-lines I have ever read (DC or Marvel for that matter). I should state that all of the adult themes I mentioned, and the additions you added, have an important place within comics and should not be challenged as artistic expressions. I simply acknowledge that, were I a parent, I would want some control over the presentation of said material to my children.

As you suggest, maybe an isle is in order. Such an effort might highlight how many adult collectors actually exist in the wild. I’m certain that most clerks believe me to be purchasing figures for my children, when in fact; I’m actually buying for myself. It could even reduce some of the stigma that some collectors experience when buying toys as adults. Any such isle shouldn’t be cordoned off like the porno section of a mom & pop video store. Rather, it should simply be labeled as a “mature toys” section so parents (with kids in tow) know what’s up and steer clear. Maybe stores could go the route of age restrictions on purchase for certain figures/toys (although that hasn’t worked so well with video games).

The crux of my objection to a counter petition is that it feels too much like drawing battle lines in the sand. Pitting two sides against one another, when as adults, we should easily be capable of creating a compromise. I see the issue of the “opposition” (so to speak): if we normalize meth use/abuse for children by adding drug accessories to toy action figures, or extend our societal celebration of characters like Walter White to kids without the intellectual wherewithal to understand the complex scenarios involved, then we can only expect a future generation of adults desensitized to the potential pit falls of hardcore drug addiction. For me, this is not so much an issue of censorship as it is one of common sense. I reserve the right to buy the things I want, but I also respect a parent’s concern that those “things” stay out of the hands of their children.

Overall I agree entirely. Though nearly all the stories do have merit as talking points for deeper society issues(except for maybe sabertooth's sexual assaults), I think Identity Crisis from DC is one of those rare comic mini-events that the tastelessness outweighs the artistic expression. But then this discussion starts going more about comics and less about toys to debate that one. It is definitely one of the most tasteless and darkest things DC has done when you put it in perspective of where all that character is presented.

Quote:

Originally Posted by snake5289

Remember when adult movies like Terminator, Predator, Aliens, Robocop, and Rambo had toylines specifically geared towards kids? I may have been too young to hear about it but were people bitching back then? I know I wasn't because I was too busy playing with all of them. I LOVED my Predator and Alien toys.

There's a bit of a difference with those though.
Predator for example, was an alien hunter and in most of his appearances had a form of honor to his displays. In predator 2, he spared a pregnant woman. And there are other instances where it highlights more of an awareness to his actions with a code. Even so, he is also an alien hunter, and alien creatures have a slight sidestep to many of the same complications other licensing does.

Rambo was a hero. Yes it was a war scenario, as is GI Joe, but for the most part it was a story of a veteran and his dealing with those issues as well as being pulled back into the fight.

Terminator is about machines. There are no drug connotations or sexual crimes to be considered. The non-human aspects to them side steps many of the issues.

The Alien franchise Xenomorphs are animalistic and instinctual mostly, but also display other cognitive aspects. Alien creatures though also have a slight pass in rating acceptance because of outlandishness.

Robocop originally was R-rated too, and it does carry some sub-themes of drug usage but only in the villains(Robocop 2).

Most of these were also brightly colored, did not entail gore(except for an alien figure that had an exploding feature but things are also more relaxed when it comes to alien creatures as bad guys), and many of which also had their own cartoons. At least Rambo and Robocop did.

Beetlejuice also had his own toyline, movie based. Entailed gore. Has questionable subtext. But his apparition status of being a ghost side steps many of the ratings issues that'd be considered.

There was a thin line to what was offered in the 80s about where they tread, but they danced carefully over certain aspects. The collector focused figures of Dexter and Breaking Bad do not share those same connotations and do not compare. They do not share the same reasoning at all. In many instances they completely overstep those same cautions put in place for the kid oriented 80s lines, but they were also never aimed at children whereas the 80s ones were.

This is a very complicated area to dive into per each property and is not best served by a broad sweeping statements pertaining to them as a whole.

From a modern stand point. GI Joe: ROC could actually be an issue. If you really analyze the details of Baroness' interactions with Destro and take into account she was controlled against her will in an induced state by her brother and his machinations, there is a layer of sexual crimes that can be argued about Destro towards her entirely that could be considered rape.