[Steevy Maximus]

Quote:

Originally Posted by snake5289

Only reason I can come up with is they weren't selling enough. Hell I never saw anything movie related in stores after The Flash. Stuff from Blue Beetle and Aquaman I had to order online. Everybody else already switched to 6 inch so I guess Spin Master followed the trend.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Autobot_Goldbug

even more inexplicable because they had Aquaman, Blue Beetle, Black Adam,new Batman, Batman starring Flash movie lines all at 3.75 inch

3 inch?! WHY?! I can't believe 3/4 of an inch costs any more to make

!

From side hand comments I’ve heard over the years…it really doesn’t . From what I’ve gathered, the actual plastic and tooling are pretty consistent across scales, at least when going from 4 to 6” products. The real cost is in the level of deco detail and complexity of the figures themselves. That’s why the 6” line and 12” Titan lines are the same price: their production costs are nearly identical given their level of detail and complexity.

The big “gotcha” is in value perception. A company (be it Spin Master or Hasbro) will probably charge around $8 for a 4” action figure. A 6” figure they can charge $10-11. Those figures probably cost about the same to make, but because the 6” figure is bigger, it has a higher “perceived value” and companies can charge a little more, making everyone a bit more than the 4” figure.
Last I saw numbers (probably a good decade ago, but I don’t think the proportions have changed much in the interim), a Vintage Collection 4” Star Wars figures was whole sale a couple dollars less than a Black Series 6” Star Wars figure. But because they could charge a higher amount for the 6” figure (perceived value), the margins were actually better and it was more cost effective to stock the 6” figure relative to the 4” figure of comparative design and complexity. That’s why, even with the improved articulation of 2025, Hasbro’s Epic World of Action offerings are DRAMATICALLY less detail with less articulation than the relative collector offerings.

Quote:

Originally Posted by suprdave71

I gotta say… if Spin Master or any other licensee thinks that there’s no audience for 1/18 DC Comics figures, maybe take a look at this thread? It’s not exactly a scientific reckoning of the market, but it looks to be the second most popular thread on this toy collector forum. I’m only taking into account views in the “general discussion” category, but you get the point.

I thinks SM got bit by making too many The Batman figures (for a very adult-targeted film) and possibly over-estimating how much Batman merch would be supported by The Flash movie. SM tends to put all their eggs in a very few baskets. Whereas McFarlane diversifies and puts out a ton of product hitting the comics, the movies, and even deep dives into elseworlds and specific storylines.

Such missed opportunities. Sigh…

Forums, even this, are NOT viable “water checks” for the collector market of any flavor. Most collectors, especially younger ones, have migrated to social media, and forums have largely fallen out of favor. Even in Toyark’s heyday, it was NEVER a premiere destination for fans of comic book action figures, regardless of scale.

Just in my corner of the world, Spin Master’s ability to get product out has been falling behind for a couple years, even before the non-events that the last few DC films ended up being. I haven’t been able to reliably find Batman stuff locally since the 2022 film. Flash and Black Adam just did “okay”.

It would not surprise me if Mattel got the license back because they HAVE managed to turn themselves around in the years since they lost the license. As a company, they seem to have a better handle on large pushes across wider markets than Spin Master’s. It could simply be an issue where, with uncertainty looming for the toy market, it was safer to transition back to established player like Mattel.