Jump to content

DCDirects screwed up scale!


thanos0341

Recommended Posts

Ah yes, another person who believes that sculpts just magically happen, and that adding extra POA's is "no problem at all".

 

Sorry, man, but you are very much over-looking or ignorant of how these figures get made.

 

They are done on the cheap, hence the articulation scheme they have. They are done in low runs--probably no more than 1/3 of the runs of any similar character in the Mattel line. That means the profit margin on these figures is pretty darn low.

They are a specialty item, aimed at specialty stores-I'm pretty sure they are not ending up on Target, TRU and Walmart in your neighbourhood.

So, having a extending design/sculpt process would cost money that DCdirect just doesn't want to spend, unless the sculpt is just so horribly off in appearance.

Also long as the buck comes in more or less at their "standard" height of around 6 inches, they more than likely approve it and send it along.

Going back for endless changes means handling the original sculpture, or images there of, and that can take time.

Someone will have to physically lay hands on the thing to change it, and knocking out a 1/2 inch of so of material can pretty much mean a complete re-do--to adjust for proportions etc. And then there's the shipping times, and costs involved with all that.

Its not as easy as you think.

 

Mattel can manage this because their pockets are far deeper.

 

For POAs, adding a additional POA to a figure means taking one part and creating a MINIMUM of two parts, often more to accomodate the hinges etc. The more parts, the larger and more complex the molds to cast the parts, the larger the molds, the more material they need to use to make the molds and the higher the costs go.

Add a POA to a wrist or ankle and the cost effectively doubles, because you do one wrist, you should do the other.

That affects the costs again and starts impacting on the decisions to make that figure.

The basic articulation that DCdirect offers gives them a pretty stable cost-out--they can chart what their expenses will be to make a given figure, because they know what the previous sample cost out at.

That means they know if they sell 20K units--or whatever the amount is---they'll get back X amount of dollars.

 

A lot of fans thinks its just no effort to add tons of articulation, but its not an easy thing at all either. The logistics of increasing the POA's invites quality control issues, paint apps, even packaging considerations. You will very likely NOT see anything change because there's little actual need for it.

 

 

Thanks for taking the time to explain this to me Arrow, appreciate it.

 

But......when I talk about the prototype figure, I mean it's just in the sculpted statue stage with no POA whatsover. Can't they have a figure of let's say JL Superman as a size comparison & put the prototype next to Supes & say, "OK, this Atom prototype sculpt is the same hgt as the Supes figure, knock off a half inch"! What is so hard about that?

 

A professional sculpter can knock out a complete sculpt in way less than a week if not a few days depending on the experience, speed & skill they have.

 

Mr Brewer just needs to have his handy dandy ruler in hand & measure the sculpt, if it's anywhere near the same hgt as Supes or bigger, it's out of scale!

 

Is this really not something they can do?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Ah yes, another person who believes that sculpts just magically happen, and that adding extra POA's is "no problem at all".

 

Sorry, man, but you are very much over-looking or ignorant of how these figures get made.

 

They are done on the cheap, hence the articulation scheme they have. They are done in low runs--probably no more than 1/3 of the runs of any similar character in the Mattel line. That means the profit margin on these figures is pretty darn low.

They are a specialty item, aimed at specialty stores-I'm pretty sure they are not ending up on Target, TRU and Walmart in your neighbourhood.

So, having a extending design/sculpt process would cost money that DCdirect just doesn't want to spend, unless the sculpt is just so horribly off in appearance.

Also long as the buck comes in more or less at their "standard" height of around 6 inches, they more than likely approve it and send it along.

Going back for endless changes means handling the original sculpture, or images there of, and that can take time.

Someone will have to physically lay hands on the thing to change it, and knocking out a 1/2 inch of so of material can pretty much mean a complete re-do--to adjust for proportions etc. And then there's the shipping times, and costs involved with all that.

Its not as easy as you think.

 

Mattel can manage this because their pockets are far deeper.

 

For POAs, adding a additional POA to a figure means taking one part and creating a MINIMUM of two parts, often more to accomodate the hinges etc. The more parts, the larger and more complex the molds to cast the parts, the larger the molds, the more material they need to use to make the molds and the higher the costs go.

Add a POA to a wrist or ankle and the cost effectively doubles, because you do one wrist, you should do the other.

That affects the costs again and starts impacting on the decisions to make that figure.

The basic articulation that DCdirect offers gives them a pretty stable cost-out--they can chart what their expenses will be to make a given figure, because they know what the previous sample cost out at.

That means they know if they sell 20K units--or whatever the amount is---they'll get back X amount of dollars.

 

A lot of fans thinks its just no effort to add tons of articulation, but its not an easy thing at all either. The logistics of increasing the POA's invites quality control issues, paint apps, even packaging considerations. You will very likely NOT see anything change because there's little actual need for it.

 

 

Thanks for taking the time to explain this to me Arrow, appreciate it.

 

But......when I talk about the prototype figure, I mean it's just in the sculpted statue stage with no POA whatsover. Can't they have a figure of let's say JL Superman as a size comparison & put the prototype next to Supes & say, "OK, this Atom prototype sculpt is the same hgt as the Supes figure, knock off a half inch"! What is so hard about that?

 

A professional sculpter can knock out a complete sculpt in way less than a week if not a few days depending on the experience, speed & skill they have.

 

Mr Brewer just needs to have his handy dandy ruler in hand & measure the sculpt, if it's anywhere near the same hgt as Supes or bigger, it's out of scale!

 

Is this really not something they can do?

 

 

Here's a more thorough article that further explains DCDirect's & Mr Brewer's obvious lack of effort in fixing the scale problem that a few of you continue to defend!

 

http://criticalmess.net/DCDScale.htm

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Actually, I'm not defending Dcdirect, I'm explaining the process, as I understand it.

 

That article on the link there doesn't explain anything though, its just another rant. Adding weight to your arguement would mean finding material that supports WHY they make the decisions they make, as opposed to WHAT they are doing.

The article doesn't explain any reasons why this happens, and its where you've grabbed your pics from in the first place.

 

For the record, I own only 2 Dcdirect figures, and both of those have been replaced by Mattel DC Superheroes figures of the same ( and "better) characters. Dcdirect is junk as far as I'm concerned.

The scale issues are meaningless to me because the product lacks the articulation I demand. They've got a nice list of characters, but because all they can do is stand upright, I'm just not interested in them.

My only reason for chiming into this thread is to share that there's more to what goes on behind the scenes in the manufacturing of toys than a lot of fans might understand.

The info on the process is out there and ready to be read.

 

 

A LOT of these kinds of rants are a complete waste of time, because of the processes and politics in how these toys see the light of day is so much more involved and complicated than the avergae joe might expect. You are automatically assuming indifference or incompetence, when the reality might be very different. What you call a "lack of effort" might well be a lack of time, or money, or resources.

Nope, most fans don't consider those kinds of things, because they only thing to the extent of their on reach and never beyond. Most fans are just lazy and find it easier to knee-jerk complain than to delve into the workings of the hobby they pursue.

 

 

Again, I could care less about defending Dcdirect, but I'll defend the idea that there's more going on here than you are considering.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

OK Arrow, you made your point concerning that there's more to this that we don't know & are ingorant of.

 

You keep mentioning cost & lack of time & resource? OK, let's discuss time.

 

Correct me if I'm wrong, but doesn't Mr Brewer himself state that alot of these figures & waves are picked at least a yr in advance! A yr isn't enough time to read up on how tall these characters are in the comics?

 

Cost? Warner freakin Brothers own this company! They have $$$!

 

 

Resources? Please explain this one to me Arrow.

 

Bottom line, to me, it seems like they just don't care if the figures are in the correct scale! They just care about the $$$$$$!

 

I and many others may be ignorant of the business side of making action figures, but it doesn't mean we're so stupid that we're not gonna notice or accept out of scale figures sprinkled in amongst the rest of the properly scaled figures!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

OK Arrow, you made your point concerning that there's more to this that we don't know & are ingorant of.

 

You keep mentioning cost & lack of time & resource? OK, let's discuss time.

 

Correct me if I'm wrong, but doesn't Mr Brewer himself state that alot of these figures & waves are picked at least a yr in advance! A yr isn't enough time to read up on how tall these characters are in the comics?

 

A year isn't a lot of lead time when you consider a few things. I'll give you some examples and comparisons to look at.

 

Let's start with the basics:

 

First the character listneeds to be nailed down, who is getting made and WHY they include them in the line. Are they marketable, are they eyecatching, what look might be best for them. All manner of ideas get tossed into the mix at this point. This process can take a couple of weeks.

 

Control art; this is the line drawings, usually turnarounds of the character have to be generated.

The physical artwork as to be ddrawn, inked etc, then sent in for approval. This could be dones as physical artwork or digital. If the former, you'll need to ask shipping times and expenses.

The drawing could take a few days or a week for one character. If the art is to be done by different artists, then all those various bodies and their schedules need to be addressed.

Sometimes someone falls behind, or......if its a single artist, they might be doing a reglar book or other work as well and have to fit the line art in.

Again, that can add a few weeks to the schedule.

 

Once the control art is drawn, then it needs to get approved. Decision making is a slow process in any organization, because once committed to, it means dollars are now assigned and back-tracking costs more. So they move cautiously. The decision makers are governed by all kinds of things. Personal and business schedules, other on-going lines that are in different/advanced stages of production and things as mundane has statutory and personal holidays.

The guy who makes the decision might be lfying back from Hong Kong that week, for example, and have to postpone looking at the control art for a couple of days.

 

The schedules account for this kind of thing.

 

Once you get into the sculpting stages, then the work usually goes out to several people( Dc Direct would'nt have many in-house sculptors and would more likely resort to mostly freelance talent) , often located in different parts of the country or the world. Progress is usually communicated via photos passed on-line. The physical sculpt often doesn't leave the sculptors hands until they've completed it.

Then it has to be physically shipped to the head office.

Any problems in shipping, any damage and the thing has to go right back to the sculptor for fixes. If not, it get's evaluated. Any changes to it means the sculpt has to go BACK to the sculptor, adding time and cost. The product manager cannot make the changes, usually they have no artistic skills at all--so its got to go back to the sculptor.

 

 

If there's time.

 

 

Now, you are looking at a easy month or two from the control art stage, likely 3-3.5 months into the process.

The sculptor will get paid either a set rate per piece, and things like fixes might be extras.

Little things like getting a belt buckle fixed, or a head resculpted might take more time and expense than its worth.

Fixing a neck that is too long, might mean re-doing the entire torso to account for proportions.

Shortening a leg can throw off the balance of a figure etc, etc, etc, etc

 

Fixing that takes time and extra money.

If both have been eaten up, then the call gets made to let the item go "as is".

 

 

 

Then they start dealing with the articulation. Sculpt changes decided before might be added in at this stage, and adding joints and POA can alter the proportions of a figure.

This can account for the scale differences.

 

Now, this is just ONE figure in the example. There's likely several DOZEN, over 2-3 lines being managed all at the same time, and the decision makers have to look at and keep track of all of them, AND keep them all on schedule.

This doesn't happen overnight and with different people and distances involved, takes a while

 

Like in my job, sometimes it gets done to the crunch-time and you have to let something that's "okay",but not "great", proceed down the pipeline.

 

You cite indifference or incompetence in the process, but the above can account for WHY it happens.

 

Have you considered those things?

 

 

The process continues going on into to molds being cut, test shots, and early samples, and the accordant checks at those stages.

 

 

Cost? Warner freakin Brothers own this company! They have $$$!

 

Ah, yes..........just ask Big Daddy Warner Bros for all the cash in the world?

 

Doesn't work that way.

 

 

Dcdirect is a attached company, but it either stands on its own two feet financially, or it closes shop. That's the same with any division of any company. If DcDirect couldn't turn a profit to continue making products on its own accord then it'd close its doors tomorrow.

If cost was no object, then why are the DcDirect figures not articulated like Marvel legends?

Its simple; because that much articulation requires more parts and thus more cost. Dc Direct figures are done on the cheap because the specialty market isn't that large. Smaller market means smaller profits, means corners have to be cut.

DcDirect figures look the way they do because of that.

 

 

 

Resources? Please explain this one to me Arrow.

 

People are resources.

 

Sculptors are in demand, those that work reliably are in demand, they charge more, have more work on their plate. Artists...are flakey. If all the good talent is socked up, you have to risk the work on newcomers--those that work out, get more work, those that don't can bugger up the whole process.

Because there's a shortage of talent, how does that talent work the deal? Do they play the companies for the best rates, leaving on a spur/whim for another gig somewhere else?

Deadlines in the toy industry can be oppressive. People burn out, they have to be replaced with sound talent, if they do. Those that can deliver sometimes need to take a break, and sometimes those that can deliver just don't deliver what a particular company likes or needs.

I'm not just talking sculptors here, its artists, management, all levels of the job have a great deal of demands on them.

You ( and I) are largely not privy to these kinds of internal situations, just as collectors/consumers

I know of them because they mirror my job in the animation biz.

 

At some point, the people making the decisons simply have to facilitate getting the thing along in the process because of comittments to retailers, printers, factories etc.

All those things need to be secured before the figure is completed.

 

Have a factory in China that can fit in the job between May and July? Great, but you have some changes to the figures that will take three weeks in June...........not enough time.

Asking the factories to hold off might close that opportunity, as they are not at the beck and call of DcDirect. If the figures are not ready to go on time, then the factories will put someone else's order in its place..........and the process to make your toys takes longer.

 

The year schedule above has to account for this, and because it does, stuff can literally sit on a desk until a slot opens with a part of the process. Once that slot opens, then the job can proceed, and if anything lags behind in that then the times either needs to be compressed or they have to wait. ( and why not send the thing back to someone to fix while they are waiting? Simple: the person at that step ( sculptor) might be on another job at that time and cannot take the time to make the fix)

 

 

Bottom line, to me, it seems like they just don't care if the figures are in the correct scale! They just care about the $$$$$$!

 

I and many others may be ignorant of the business side of making action figures, but it doesn't mean we're so stupid that we're not gonna notice or accept out of scale figures sprinkled in amongst the rest of the properly scaled figures!

 

Of course they care about the $$$$$, that's why they are in business , silly. That's waht pretty much all businesses care about. I mean, if they made a ton of characters, all at precisely the correct scale, but lost their shirts doing it...........how long do you think they'd be making toys for?

 

The task is to create a product and get it out to market. They desire that people buy it, and they do.

The customers buy the stuff because of who the characters are.

DcDirect has accomplished its goal at that point.

 

What you complain about AFTER having bought the figures is meaningless to them because they've made the sale. That they have sold enough of those items says to them that your complaints are likely less of a consideration than collectors just wanting this line or that character and the "scale" is close enough to please them.

They are very much probably aware of your complaints, but the means by which they can create these figures, the time and resources they have on hand means they have to compromise in order to sate collectors wants.

 

That collectors keep on wanting more and more means they have to forgo some things in order to supply the overall demand.

 

Now, if you want a more detailed explanation of this process, I'll have to direct you to about the last 17 years worth of various toy/collector trade magazines and likely a couple hundred articles on the design, marketing and manufacturing processes of toys and action figures.

 

Years ago, after I first started collecting, I asked the same questions: "why is this like this, why is that like that" and so on. I guess I had the wherewithall to dig beneath the surface a bit, and read all that I could. That jounrey not only answered those questions, but helped me enjoy the hobby more because I understood the "why's".

 

If I know about this stuff, and can appreciate the whole thing, then there's no reason why you cannot as well.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Wow! Thanks for taking the time to answer my questions Arrow. I really appreciate it.

 

I wish DC Direct would make a DVD of how the whole action figure bizness works & show the process from initial conception up to the figure being put on the pegs!

 

That would be cool to see.

 

 

I want to address this comment you made....

 

Then they start dealing with the articulation. Sculpt changes decided before might be added in at this stage, and adding joints and POA can alter the proportions of a figure.

This can account for the scale differences.

 

 

You say adding joints & POA can alter the proportions of the figure & may alter the scale & this may account for scale difference?

 

So if they know that adding extra joints/POA might or will increase the hgt of the figure, why can't they just sculpt it a bit smaller so that when the joints/POA are added, it comes out at the correct 6' scale & not the oversized 7' scale?

 

 

Once again, thanks for explaining all this to me.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Wow! Thanks for taking the time to answer my questions Arrow. I really appreciate it.

 

I wish DC Direct would make a DVD of how the whole action figure bizness works & show the process from initial conception up to the figure being put on the pegs!

 

That would be cool to see.

 

Y'know this is a really good idea, but probably more for something like Wizard/Toyfare to produce, than Dc Direct because its the same process all across the industry.

The other thing is that this kind of process shows some of the warts of the biz and that's not always the kind of thing they want to present to the public.

Still, it could go a LONG way towards addressing the chronic complaints

 

 

I want to address this comment you made....

 

Then they start dealing with the articulation. Sculpt changes decided before might be added in at this stage, and adding joints and POA can alter the proportions of a figure.

This can account for the scale differences.

 

 

You say adding joints & POA can alter the proportions of the figure & may alter the scale & this may account for scale difference?

 

So if they know that adding extra joints/POA might or will increase the hgt of the figure, why can't they just sculpt it a bit smaller so that when the joints/POA are added, it comes out at the correct 6' scale & not the oversized 7' scale?

 

 

Once again, thanks for explaining all this to me.

 

Well, from what I understand, this is where the physics and chemistry of plastics comes into play.

If I remember the process--the clay sculpts go to wax castings, with in turn to go castings specific for plastic.

Because plastic ( or some of the other stuff like clay) shrinks a bit after heating, there's bound to be some shrinkage involved in the figures during the process--no figure comes out exactly as originally sculpted--so they are all sculpted a bit over-sized.

This shrinkage is dependant on the chemical make-up of the materials involved, and there's no sure way to calculate the ratio precisely.

 

So they guess.

 

It IS POSSIBLE that figures can all be sculpted at the same size, then once POA's are added and the thing set up for mold, different rates of shrinkage occur.

Or not at all.

You can have a line that starts out all the same scale, but ends up being different heights/scales once the figures are produced. This can also account for why some figures have bigger/smaller heads, hands or other body parts.

 

If you add a hinge to a knee, there can be a small gap of space in the joint, sometimes its increased to facilitate easier movement. That new increment is added to the overal height of the figure. Add a joint to the neck, of the ankles with the same thing happening, and you can go from a 6" figure to a 6 1/4" figure, or taller.

It can be hit and miss.

 

Once the molds for a particular figure are cut, the size of that figure is set, so that all the component parts of that figure will be the same size. Its the samples that are created PRIOR to the molds being cut that can shrink and change the scale.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

WELL I HOPE SOME DIRECTIVES AT DC DIRECT ARE LISTENING TO THIS, YOU NEED SUPERVISION AT YOUR PRODUCTION DEPARTMANT BECAUSE THIS POST IS COMPLETELY AND ABSOLUTELY A REASON TO BE!

 

I'M LIKE ALMOST ALL THE TOY COLLECTORS OUT THERE THAT COMPLY ABOUT THOSE "PURPOSEDLY" SCALED VERSION OF CHARACTERS, AND I MEAN FROM TAKE MY NOTE THE CURRENT G.I.JOE, STAR WARS, MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE, MARVEL LEGENDS, DC DIRECT, DC SUPERHEROES, AND EVEN TRANSFORMERS, (SORRY I'M NO TREKKIE). THEY ALL DIFFER IN A CONSISTENT SCALE.

 

BACK IN THE MID 80'S WHEN THE COLLECTIVE CRAZE BEGAN, ALL THE TOY COMPANIES (HASBRO, KENNER AND MATTEL) CARED A LOT ABOUT THEIR TOY LINES, BY EXAMPLE: ALL THE GI.JOES HAD A SINGLE SCALE IN ORDER TO FIT THEIR VEHICLES, HE-MAN AND MARVEL'S SECRET WARS USED ALMOST THE SAME MOLD, STAR WARS TOY ARE THE BACKBONE FOR MODERN COLLECTIONS AND THEY USED AN UNIQUE SCALE FOR THEIR COLLECTION, AGAIN IN ORDER TO FIT THE VEHICLES.

TRANSFORMERS ARE UNIQUE IN THEIR KIND, THEY ARE THE BEST TOY LINE EVER, EVEN TODAY.

 

ANY OF YOU REMEMBER M.A.S.K.? EVEN THEN THEY SCALED THEIR FIGURES TO LOOK AS THE CARTOON. THUNDERCATS OR SILVERHAWKS? THE SAME HAPPENED THEN.

 

AND I'LL TELL YOU WHAT, THOSE JEWELS OF OUR CHILDHOOD ARE WORTH EVERY CENT NOW, BECAUSE THEY LOOK COOL, FIT IN AS A UNIFIED LINE, KEEP A REASONABLE SCALE TO PLAY OR IN OUR COLLECTORS CASE, TO DISPLAY, AND ARE UNIKE IN THEIR OWN KIND.

 

I WAS SAVING THE BEST FOR MY REPLY.... DO YOU REMEMBER THE DC SUPERPOWERS COLLECTION?.

 

THE FIRST AND AT THAT TIME THE BEST RENDITION TO OUR BELOVED DC CHARACTERS, AND DO YOU REMEMBER WHAT MADE THEM SO SPECIAL, BECAUSE THEY ALL LOOKED LIKE TO THEIR COMIC BOOK COUNTERPARTS, FROM COLORS TO SCULPTURE TO SIZE TO SCALE BETWEEN THEM! . HECK!, EVEN THE VEHICLES WERE COOL BACK THEN.

 

NOW 22 YEARS LATER, WE ARE HAVING THE CHARACTERS WE GREW TO LOVE FROM ANT-MAN THROUGH WOLVIE, AND FROM ATOM THROUGH ZATANNA, AND GUESS WHAT ? THEY ARE EVEN UNCOMPATIBLE!

 

A FEW YEARS BACK A DEBATE LIKE THIS ONE HAPPENED, AND THE SUBJECT BACK THEN WAS ... HOW MANY POINTS OF ARTICULATION DOES AN ACTION FIGURE SHOULD HAVE? NOW A FEW YEARS LATER INDUSTRIAL DESIGN AND ENGINEERING VAVE DEVELOPED AS FAR AS 42 POINTS OF ARTICULATION IN A 6INCHES ACTION FIGURE.

 

'NUFF SAID

 

BY THE WAY, WHY SINCE MATTEL OWNS THE RIGHTS TO PRODUCE THE DC CHARACTERS, WHY DON'T THEY RE-ISSUE THOSE OUT OF PRODUCTION DC DIRECTS? I BELIEVE THAT WOULD BE COOL.

 

DOES ANYONE HAVE A PHANTOGRAPH THAT COULD BE DELIVERED AS A PRESENT TO THE PRODUCTION DEPARTMENT IN THE DC DIRECT OFFICE?

 

ANYONE?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Everyone forgets the one major factor and that is... THEY'RE F@CKING TOYS, PEOPLE! I can understand wanting them to be properly scaled but is it anything worth bitching and moaning about? It's not like this is a new issue, here. Did they REALLY care about scale in the 80s? Or was it conviently the same size because they just happened to use the same molds over and over? Look at Thundercats, people. No way is Lion-o THAT tall.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Everyone forgets the one major factor and that is... THEY'RE F@CKING TOYS, PEOPLE! I can understand wanting them to be properly scaled but is it anything worth bitching and moaning about? It's not like this is a new issue, here. Did they REALLY care about scale in the 80s? Or was it conviently the same size because they just happened to use the same molds over and over? Look at Thundercats, people. No way is Lion-o THAT tall.

 

exactly

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Everyone forgets the one major factor and that is... THEY'RE F@CKING TOYS, PEOPLE! I can understand wanting them to be properly scaled but is it anything worth bitching and moaning about? It's not like this is a new issue, here. Did they REALLY care about scale in the 80s? Or was it conviently the same size because they just happened to use the same molds over and over? Look at Thundercats, people. No way is Lion-o THAT tall.

 

True. Ironic is that if DCD goes back in using bulk or a standard size for all their figures, ppl are going to complain that smaller characters like Supergirl is the same height as Wonder Woman.

 

I mean look at ml, ppl complained at ml3 Wolverine is too tall. Even though the figure is really tall, he was always made tall in figure form prior to ml3. From the secret wars line to the pre ML era, he was dipicted as a tall character in toy format. No one complained back then. I for one is the same height as wolverine, so lprefer the smaller ml figs oof him.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

i think the people that are making excuses for DCD's scale issues are really doing just that...it can't be as hard as they think to fix the scale...look at mattel...the 4HM sculpt figures at the rioght scale to eachother and then...after their part of the process is over...mattel shrinks the joker so he's shorter than batman...or shrinks darksied and doomsday so they fit better on the card...it's not impossible to adjust the height of a figure when it goes from the two-up phase to production mold...saying that DCD can't get their designers to all make the figures compatible is no excuse...they used to do it back when the line was vertigo and other obscure characters that wouldn't make it in regular retail (which it never should have stopped being...let mattel make the mainstream characters...DCD should be where i get my jonah hex and ambush bug)....skott

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Everyone forgets the one major factor and that is... THEY'RE F@CKING TOYS, PEOPLE! I can understand wanting them to be properly scaled but is it anything worth bitching and moaning about? It's not like this is a new issue, here. Did they REALLY care about scale in the 80s? Or was it conviently the same size because they just happened to use the same molds over and over? Look at Thundercats, people. No way is Lion-o THAT tall.

 

True. Ironic is that if DCD goes back in using bulk or a standard size for all their figures, ppl are going to complain that smaller characters like Supergirl is the same height as Wonder Woman.

 

I mean look at ml, ppl complained at ml3 Wolverine is too tall. Even though the figure is really tall, he was always made tall in figure form prior to ml3. From the secret wars line to the pre ML era, he was dipicted as a tall character in toy format. No one complained back then. I for one is the same height as wolverine, so lprefer the smaller ml figs oof him.

Just goes to show that you just can't please comic book fans. @hmmm@

Link to comment
Share on other sites

i think the people that are making excuses for DCD's scale issues are really doing just that...it can't be as hard as they think to fix the scale...look at mattel...the 4HM sculpt figures at the rioght scale to eachother and then...after their part of the process is over...mattel shrinks the joker so he's shorter than batman...or shrinks darksied and doomsday so they fit better on the card...it's not impossible to adjust the height of a figure when it goes from the two-up phase to production mold...

 

You make it sound like Mattel does this on purpose. pfft. In the end its all the same thing. Those exampkes you mentioned is a perfect example of why this entire point is moot. There are scale isues in EVERY line...

 

Mattel DCSH; Doomsday, Darksied, Joker etc way too small...

 

Marvel Legends: Cable way too small, Mojo, Onslaught way too small, etc.

 

When it comes down to it. I don't give a freakin crap what the scale is. I can understand some people do, and just like some people like MORE arrticulation in a figure where i prefer LESS .

 

I can't fathom why anyone would want a figure with all sorts of ugly unproportonate joints all over it nor can i comprehend why people flip out so much if the scale is not accurate to a tee.

 

But what it comes down to is this... they do for whatever reason and thats their deal... not mine.

 

I buy and love my DCD figures for THESE reasons... scale isn't one of them...

 

Sculpts, almost all the sculpts are spot on (i like a lot of the 4HM sculpts too but mattell buggar them up in production with their cheap plastic and bad paint) Plastic quality... I like the way these fiures FEEL... you can tell they use good plaatic, they are solid and have a nice finish to them, Mattel and Marvel Legend figures for the most part are hollow and brittle. Paint is (usually) crisp and clean with no sloppy washes and un-intentionally glossy finishes

 

There you have it. Thats why i buy my DCD figures. Thats why I love my Knightfall Catwoman regardless of how tall she is ad why if Mattel ever made one I'd like it a lot less even if it was right in scale.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

DCSH Darksied is an interesting toy since he is in scale with the old art, but not with the new.

 

So you going to have ppl who grew up reading the recent superman books, complain that he is too small, while the readers of the older superman books will say he is just right.

 

Then again, the four horsemen appears to based his appearance from the older art, so yeah, he is probably in scale and not too freaking huge like how ML Hulk is now depicted.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

"You make it sound like Mattel does this on purpose. pfft."

 

um...they did...the 4HM said as much...they said that mattel thought batman should be taller than the joker so they shrunk the sculpt (i don't remember where i read it so i can't give a link...sorry)...

 

"In the end its all the same thing. Those exampkes you mentioned is a perfect example of why this entire point is moot. There are scale isues in EVERY line..."

 

yes there are scale issues in every line...but not the extent of DCD...so the mattel joker works out to be 6' tall when he should be like 6'4"...at least he's still a human-sized height..as opposed to DCD's COIE batman who easily scales out to be over 7' tall (yes i know there are real people over 7' tall...but batman has never been portrayed as NBA height)...

 

"I buy and love my DCD figures for THESE reasons... scale isn't one of them..."

 

if scale being wrong doesn't matter to you then it shouldn't matter if it's right either...so why argue that we're being ridiculous for wanting our toys to look right next to eachother?...i really don't think it's so unreasonable to complain that now that we're finally getting a booster gold figure putting him with blue beetle will just make ted look like a child...

 

...skott

Link to comment
Share on other sites

 

 

if scale being wrong doesn't matter to you then it shouldn't matter if it's right either...so why argue that we're being ridiculous for wanting our toys to look right next to eachother?...i really don't think it's so unreasonable to complain that now that we're finally getting a booster gold figure putting him with blue beetle will just make ted look like a child...

 

...skott

 

Yeah man thats exactly the point I was trying to get accross during the whole post, if you read it a bit more carefully.

 

I simply said, I don't get people who like more articulation and flip out about scale, just like the same people don't get guys like me, who don't care about perfect scale and like less articulation.

 

In the end, its all moot you will never be able to please everyone and as long as these companies still, bottom line, make money, why would they or should they give a crap about trying to please everyone?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
  • Find Action Figures on Ebay

×
×
  • Create New...
Sign Up For The TNI Newsletter And Have The News Delivered To You!


Entertainment News International (ENI) is the #1 popular culture network for adult fans all around the world.
Get the scoop on all the popular comics, games, movies, toys, and more every day!

Contact and Support

Advertising | Submit News | Contact ENI | Privacy Policy

©Entertainment News International - All images, trademarks, logos, video, brands and images used on this website are registered trademarks of their respective companies and owners. All Rights Reserved. Data has been shared for news reporting purposes only. All content sourced by fans, online websites, and or other fan community sources. Entertainment News International is not responsible for reporting errors, inaccuracies, omissions, and or other liablities related to news shared here. We do our best to keep tabs on infringements. If some of your content was shared by accident. Contact us about any infringements right away - CLICK HERE