Will the Movie toys make or brake G.I.Joe?

[Jmacq1]

Did the He-Man movie break that franchise?

 

Debatably, yes.

 

Though truth be told it was more like the line was already in its' dying stages by the time the movie came out. IIRC there were only one or two more years of MotU figures that came out post-movie.

 

Oddly enough it seems like the animated movie "Secret of the Sword" (anyone remember seeing that on the big screen?) was more like the breaking point for when the line started sliding downhill.

[Viper Hunter]

I thought this was a silly thread topic and am surprised to see so many moderately serious responses. From my point of view G.I. Joe was practically dead to me before the 25th stuff started to come out. The 25th line was a huge success to me in how I view the Joe brand. I have no intention of buying more than 4-8 of the movie figures but since they're based off of the 25th line's style I think these will be quality figures. This lemon is no where near being squeezed dry.

 

 

I would be one that would dispute the notion that any of this new life (that's been breathed into G.I.Joe toys) is due to the "style" but more due to the blatant nostalgia of the classic looks of the characters. Had Hasbro initiated this same concept of just redoing all the classic appearances of all the 80's classic characters, in any ONE of their previously attempted tries at upgrading the design, it would have received just the same amount of enthusiastic response from the fans and collectors.

 

It would seem that a simple expansion upon what came before, with new characters and new ideas for them, but in the SAME exact style wasn't what we wanted, so they FINALLY went with a 100% rehash of what they were before, but in this new style of added or changed articulation. I'm not of the group that would judge it positively and find it highly sub par in certain aspects.

[ARROW]

it is a sign of the Apocalypse. I agree with both ARROW AND Viper Hunter in the same thread. And I never agree with ARROW's perspective (even though we never got into debates)

 

 

I gotta call it as I see it, right?

I'm seeing product that is mostly akin to old product being re-coloured and some new packaging slapped on it.

I think the consumer base is smarter than that, and can see right through the recycling........but who knows?

If the product sells good......that's great--it'll open up doors for new and more interesting stuff.

But for me, as a consumer, I'm not feeling it.

[JohnnyRebelV2]

The movie stuff will kill the line. We're all praying for the 25th/Modern line to continue when the movie stuff dies down(end of the year) but I'm not feeling too hopefull. The movie figures are going to be rotting on the pegs Indiana Jones style come the fall.

[Jmacq1]

I gotta call it as I see it, right?

I'm seeing product that is mostly akin to old product being re-coloured and some new packaging slapped on it.

I think the consumer base is smarter than that, and can see right through the recycling........but who knows?

If the product sells good......that's great--it'll open up doors for new and more interesting stuff.

But for me, as a consumer, I'm not feeling it.

 

Hasbro's counting on new fans buying this stuff, not just "us." If you weren't a Joe collector five years ago (when VvV stuff was still on the shelves), most of the repainted stuff is still "new" to you. Most of the non-exclusive figures in the line are new sculpts, in many cases entirely new sculpts.

 

The only place we're really seeing heavy reuse of figures/parts is in exclusives, and that's nothing new for exclusives.

 

Either way, the repainted material is another go round for people that may have missed it the first time. If Hasbro attracts the new buyers they hope to with the film and tie-in toy line, this may as well be first-run stuff as far as they're concerned. Hasbro isn't trying to "fool" us. They're trying to attract new collectors.

[Viper Hunter]

The movie line won't attract NEW fans to collecting, and they'll be too expensive for any "kids" that might like the movie and want some toys to play with from it, and the fans that like the 25th line so much are only into retro Joes, which is why the 25th line is doing well.

 

If it doesn't look like 1980 G.I.Joe, most collectors won't pay any mind to it, and the movie line is far from 1980's looking. For all the praise expressed towards the Resolute cartoon, it doesn't even look EXACTLY like 1980 G.I.Joe, so it's popularity would fail with retro Joe collectors as well.

 

Hasbro's best bet to sell more expensive G.I.Joe collector toys, would be to just keep bangin' out the past from 1982-1994 and their sales will continue as they are currently, no more, no less.

[Jmacq1]

The movie line won't attract NEW fans to collecting, and they'll be too expensive for any "kids" that might like the movie and want some toys to play with from it, and the fans that like the 25th line so much are only into retro Joes, which is why the 25th line is doing well.

 

If it doesn't look like 1980 G.I.Joe, most collectors won't pay any mind to it, and the movie line is far from 1980's looking. For all the praise expressed towards the Resolute cartoon, it doesn't even look EXACTLY like 1980 G.I.Joe, so it's popularity would fail with retro Joe collectors as well.

 

Hasbro's best bet to sell more expensive G.I.Joe collector toys, would be to just keep bangin' out the past from 1982-1994 and their sales will continue as they are currently, no more, no less.

 

That is a blatant assumption on your part, hardly a fact. If the movie spurs toy sales even close to the sales that were spurred by the Transformers film, it will indeed attract new collectors. Just like Clone Wars had kids that weren't even old enough to remember seeing "Revenge of the Sith" in theaters ransacking the aisles this past Christmas.

 

All remains to be seen either way. The movie line may be a runaway hit, it may be an abject failure, and most likely will fall somewhere in-between the two extremes.

 

Good to know that you firmly believe G.I. Joe can never grow as a brand, though (since you clearly believe they shouldn't even try).

 

PS: Retro collectors drop off sharply after the 82-87 figures are done. I don't see too many people clamoring for 25A Battleforce 2000, Ninja Force, Eco-Warriors, and Star Brigade. After 87 it becomes about "cherry picking" characters.

[ARROW]

Good to know that you firmly believe G.I. Joe can never grow as a brand, though.

 

I don't think it can or will because of the cultural climate right now, and with sentiment unlikely to change for the foreseeable future, I think that the brand will remain with a niche audience and nothing more.

 

I mean........the movie product is going to be priced the same that the current 25th anniversary stuff, and that product sees only limited peg-space at the retailers.

There's been no "rush" on the product outside of mostly the collector crowd, and Hasbro admits that by saying openly that many kinds of future product depends upon the movie stuff selling.

 

GIJOE had its day, back in the 1908's-and despite the various swings at bat with stuff like Spytroops, Valor Vs Venom and Sigma Six, nothing has been hit out of the park.

 

There simply isn't enough interest in things GIJOE to grow the brand any further than the kind of stuff we have seen already. Nostalgia is nice, but even that wears thin after a while.

There's no glorious second coming for this toy line, I'm afraid.

[Viper Hunter]

The movie line won't attract NEW fans to collecting, and they'll be too expensive for any "kids" that might like the movie and want some toys to play with from it, and the fans that like the 25th line so much are only into retro Joes, which is why the 25th line is doing well.

 

If it doesn't look like 1980 G.I.Joe, most collectors won't pay any mind to it, and the movie line is far from 1980's looking. For all the praise expressed towards the Resolute cartoon, it doesn't even look EXACTLY like 1980 G.I.Joe, so it's popularity would fail with retro Joe collectors as well.

 

Hasbro's best bet to sell more expensive G.I.Joe collector toys, would be to just keep bangin' out the past from 1982-1994 and their sales will continue as they are currently, no more, no less.

 

That is a blatant assumption on your part, hardly a fact.

 

 

Actually..it's just a heartfelt opinion. I didn't realize this was my closing statement before the jury of TNI readers? If you want to jump to your feet and holler "I OBJECT" that's fine but kinda silly don't ya think? Besides, you're not allowed to interupt in my closing argument!

 

 

 

If the movie spurs toy sales even close to the sales that were spurred by the Transformers film, it will indeed attract new collectors. Just like Clone Wars had kids that weren't even old enough to remember seeing "Revenge of the Sith" in theaters ransacking the aisles this past Christmas.

 

All remains to be seen either way. The movie line may be a runaway hit, it may be an abject failure, and most likely will fall somewhere in-between the two extremes.

 

 

Could be? MAY be? MIGHT?

 

Are you arguing semantics?

 

 

Good to know that you firmly believe G.I. Joe can never grow as a brand, though (since you clearly believe they shouldn't even try).

 

What, did G.I.Joe just hit the shelves for the first time in 25 years yesterday? What part of JvC, Spy Troops, VvV and Sigma Six did I miss as attempts to "grow" the line but failed? I'm just absorbing all the info I read here on these pages about all the past failures and flubs.

 

 

PS: Retro collectors drop off sharply after the 82-87 figures are done. I don't see too many people clamoring for 25A Battleforce 2000, Ninja Force, Eco-Warriors, and Star Brigade.

 

Is that a "blatant assumption" on your part...or a "fact"?

[pesatyel]

it is a sign of the Apocalypse. I agree with both ARROW AND Viper Hunter in the same thread. And I never agree with ARROW's perspective (even though we never got into debates)

 

Did the He-Man movie break that franchise?

 

I thought this was a silly thread topic and am surprised to see so many moderately serious responses. From my point of view G.I. Joe was practically dead to me before the 25th stuff started to come out. The 25th line was a huge success to me in how I view the Joe brand. I have no intention of buying more than 4-8 of the movie figures but since they're based off of the 25th line's style I think these will be quality figures. This lemon is no where near being squeezed dry.

 

Dead to you how?

 

You didn't like the new looks of classic characters? You didn't like the new characters introduced? The "storyline"? The vehicles? The gimmicks?

 

What was it about the new sculpt era you disliked? I am surmising that your a RAH fan, based on the way you said it, so what was different about the new sculpt that wasn't different in RAH, to some extent?

 

Sure, the body styling was some what different. Less standardized, perhaps, but that's all I can thing of comparatively speaking between new sculpt and RAH.

[PhoenixSword]

if it breaks it- oh no i won't be able to buy awesome vehicles for my o-ring figures at the store after awhile

if it doesn't- yay vintage figure prices won't go up too much from people getting all nostalgic.. heck the only things people will recognize in the new joe movie (fom their childhood) is SE, SS, Destros metal head and baroness hot leather encased ass....

[PhoenixSword]

if it breaks it- oh no i won't be able to buy awesome vehicles for my o-ring figures at the store after awhile

if it doesn't- yay vintage figure prices won't go up too much from people getting all nostalgic.. heck the only things people will recognize in the new joe movie (fom their childhood) is SE, SS, Destros metal head and baroness hot leather encased ass....