WHY Wizard and ToyFare failded.

[Capt.S.G.Wiseman]

It was truly amazing that we had what we had. A Toyfare mag directed souly at toy collecting with funny skits to boot. I guess those days are gone. But to quote Mego Spidey, "Leave me the hell out of this. You guys fv<#ed it up enough" @firedevil@

 

Wizard? Well I never really gave Wizard much of a chance, so forget about it. I'll only miss Toyfare. #US1#

[Capt.S.G.Wiseman]

The reason why it failed was lack of subscriptions. We are too babied by the internet.

[jjlecaros]

theres only one simple reason it closed up shop.....the internet. any news that comes out hits the internet right away and doesnt have to wait a mnth till the next issue comes out.

[ARROW]

The Wizard rags had the longest legs because they had the deepest pockets behind them. All of the other toy mags are gone now, iirc.

Lee's Action Figure News and Toy Review, Tomarts.......they all went kaput and for the same reason: they became redundant when the Internet took hold.

The threshold of of collectors that get their info from the Internet versus the print mags hit critical mass a couple of years ago--and the 'Net just wins because its timely.

The mags were occasionally decent reading, and provided a bit more depth.....but there's the problem.

The "modern" fan isn't interested in depth--they just want cheap gratification.

We get faster news bites on-line now, faster area reports from fellow fans, Ebay provides a timely sense of current values, and.............well......Robot Chicken does Twisted Toyfare Theatre every night for us right on TV.

 

Wizard was good when it did articles about the biz, the talent and the behind-the-scenes stuff--as well as the how-to material they once did. But like above, the number of people actively seeking out that kind of material is less and less as time goes on. Their major efforts became redundant: the news articles, the price guides--we all were paying for info we all ready had access to via the 'Net.

They just didn't change with the times in time, and it killed them.

[Capt.S.G.Wiseman]

I just wish they keep up the Twisted Toyfare Theater for a bit longer. My heart is truly broken over this.

[Wheeljack35]

I just picked up the very last ToyFare today and I did post what would of been the next issue if it had survived in the Transformers forum

 

Boy am I going to miss Twisted Toyfare theater

[ARROW]

I just wish they keep up the Twisted Toyfare Theater for a bit longer. My heart is truly broken over this.

The spirit of TTT lives on..........in Robot Chicken.

[Capt.S.G.Wiseman]

I just wish they keep up the Twisted Toyfare Theater for a bit longer. My heart is truly broken over this.

The spirit of TTT lives on..........in Robot Chicken.

It's our last, best hope for the galaxy. @imissu@ TTT!!

[DarthJoe]

Wow. They're canceling ToyFare?

 

I used to buy/read that magazine all of the time, but like you guys already pointed out, the internet kind of killed my interest in it.

[Wheeljack35]

Not me they still had picture up in there magazines before they would ever hit online.The last I remember is Catra from MOTUC

[Viper Hunter]

Seems to me that they could just as easily take their business to the Internet as well? If you can't beat'em...join'em type stuff? Same articles, toy or comic updates that would go into their monthly rag, only now more instant via an Internet site. Have the message boards and the whole deal. Their advertisers would follow htem there and that would bring in the same revenue as before with the only thing they'd be out on, is the price of the magazine itself.

[Valdin]

Seems to me that they could just as easily take their business to the Internet as well? If you can't beat'em...join'em type stuff? Same articles, toy or comic updates that would go into their monthly rag, only now more instant via an Internet site. Have the message boards and the whole deal. Their advertisers would follow htem there and that would bring in the same revenue as before with the only thing they'd be out on, is the price of the magazine itself.

 

Hi guys

I personally was a toyfare addict, loved the articles pictures and humor. It will be missed. I was sad when I read the news. We do have the net, but toyfare had more too. If they did go online, trust me, I would follow even if it were pay. I had actually just gotten a new subscription for a christmas present.

[jjlecaros]

wizard is still continuing the stuff online just not in print anymore

[Wheeljack35]

Hi guys

I personally was a toyfare addict, loved the articles pictures and humor. It will be missed. I was sad when I read the news. We do have the net, but toyfare had more too. If they did go online, trust me, I would follow even if it were pay. I had actually just gotten a new subscription for a christmas present.

 

I'm sorry to hear that.It reminds me years ago of a big store chain up in the northeast called Bradlees .The filed for bankruptcy the day after christmas and people that had gift cards for christmas got screwed out because they weren't accepting them

[hamsterboy]

I think they were done long before the internet did they in. You can't tell people to read their comics and play with their toys in one breath and suppose to loathe the idea of a price guide in the next while printing one and going on about how great it is to have your stuff graded.

[Wheeljack35]

Heres my post from the transformers forum

 

Well some here say that they no longer read the Toy Fare magazine.Well did you realize we did get some of the pictures of exclusives from this magazine? Like this the very last issue of Toy Fare I picked up today have us the first look st MOTUC Catra and in the past other figures

 

Well guess what? The next issue was going to be about

 

[JayC]

Heres my post from the transformers forum

 

Well some here say that they no longer read the Toy Fare magazine.Well did you realize we did get some of the pictures of exclusives from this magazine? Like this the very last issue of Toy Fare I picked up today have us the first look st MOTUC Catra and in the past other figures

 

Well guess what? The next issue was going to be about

 

 

I have two perspectives on this. The first is, I have respect for Wizard/ToyFare and what they accomplished over the years. They helped bring comics and action figure collecting more to the mainstream than another other print publication. They got their magazines in places like bookstores, grocery stores and other places more than any other publication of it's type did. I still have the first issue of Wizard magazine (in a box someplace), and in some ways they probably served as some inspiration for me starting TNI. Also a lot of good people lost their jobs or their jobs hang on by a thread, and that is unfortunate.

 

The other perspective is more from a business side and that ToyFare magazine has often been a pain in the side. I can't tell you how many times we've been denied being able to report news about something only so ToyFare could have it as an exclusive, and its not like you had to worry about people buying the magazine and not going online, no what you had to deal with was people scanning and posting blurry images on the forums and stuff and that being the way people get their news ala Catra. So the fact that now news will likely be distributed online more freely, it will be nice to no longer have to deal with that, though lets be honest, even that was a rare thing these days.

 

Transformers 3 toys, really? you were going to pay $5 to see things that by the time that issue hit stands you will have already seen? Green Lantern movie stuff, already been online for months. I mean on one hand you get people who complain about the prices of toys, but then on the other you have them wasting money that could be spent on toys to see a picture of a Catra figure, which sooner or later would be made available online, just doesn't make much sense. Hell if you are so anxious to spend $5, why don't you pay me for your news here. If every TNI reader paid us $5 a month or hell even $1 a month for all the things we provide here, it would open up a decent revenue source that would allow us to do a whole hell of a lot more in regards to services, hiring additional writing staff, ect ect.

 

 

The truth is writing was on the wall for those print publications for sometime and anyone who was surprised about this weeks announcement of them shutting down is someone who just wasn't paying that close attention to this industry, the only surprise was they lasted this long, and fact is Wizard as a company shifted gears along time ago. Their primary business is now their conventions, and really just seemed to use the magazines and website to push those events more than anything else in recent years.

[cjflan32]

The "first annual"? Doesn't anyone proof-read this stuff?

 

And anyone who thinks Wizard/Toyfare died solely because of the Internet clearly wasn't reading the publication. Like JayC said this was a long time coming.

[synch]

Its funny the first thing I thought when I read that was ... jokingly "haha jayc helped kill toyfare" @loll@

[Wheeljack35]

Transformers 3 toys, really? you were going to pay $5 to see things that by the time that issue hit stands you will have already seen?

 

 

I sure the hell would of plus as I said before I loved Twisted Toyfare Theater

 

Damn Jay you went all out because I would of loved to had seen the next issue?I'm no fan of the movie figures but it was more then just that...I have my reasons believe it not I make scrapbooks I usually try to get picture of all kinds of different Transformmers in it.Oh well Lees Action Figure Guide still comes out I can buy that

[jjlecaros]

and you cant just print out pics from online for your scrapbook?

[Superpowers1980]

Well Toyfare is the only mag I subscribe to through the comic shop. It's good reading, very funny and just an overall good read. I noticed it has slimed down lately which most publications have. It's sad to see it go because it was a great mag. I stopped reading Wizard years ago. Dag shame because TTT was brilliant and funny.

 

Everything seems to be changing and not in a good way.

[Wheeljack35]

and you cant just print out pics from online for your scrapbook?

 

 

Not really I'm out of ink and when its not the first thing that I can pick up because of bills and the fact that color ink is kind of pricey

 

But I did think about that and hope that I can just get some things from the Lees Toy and Action Figure review the only mag left that still come out

[MikePrime]

Wizard lost any critical eye it had long ago. It was going to die anyway. I think ToyFare was killed by the internet, but also a lack of interest, at least on my part. I felt that the subscription was a waste of money. Like JayC said, the money is better spent on actual toys. Twisted ToyFare Theater was nice, but I just got tired of that comic. One can only take so much parody.

[cajunthief]

Had a subscription to Toyfare years ago, but it always came AFTER the new issue hit the stands. I believe they did fix that, but that was always a sore spot for me.

 

Hated the latest format of Wizard. Just wasn't fun anymore.

 

They should have merged the two back to one title. One magazine dedicated to comics, toys, video games, Sci-Fi entertainment and such.

 

Oh well. The end of an era. At least I still have my Wizard issues with Gambit on the cover.