Post by jayworld on Jul 10, 2014 8:35:13 GMT -5
Just from a purely observational viewpoint, I feel that 12" figures just don't have the appeal to kids in general that they had for kids of the 1960s/70s. I love 1/6 scale figures, GI Joe, Johnny West, etc., but part of that is because I grew up on figures of that size as a kid. Because of the Kenner Star Wars "revolution" of 1978 in which action figures began appearing in 3 3/4" size, to me it re-invented the toy action figure model. After that, one would see almost all releases from different companies (Mattel, Mego, etc.) in the 3 3/4" size. Mego, who popularized the 8" action figure (and did a fine job at that) was producing the 3 3/4" size by the late 1970s/early 1980s, too, such as Star Trek, Buck Rogers, and the Black Hole. Mattel, who had the past history of 1/6 scale Barbie line, had released the smaller Matt Mason line of the late 1960s and migrated also to the 3 3/4" size by the late 1970s with Battlestar Galactica.
My point? Even with my kids, they migrate more towards the smaller figures. Sure, I've given them a few new CXR figures as gifts and we get out "Dad's" Johnny West figures, but playtime is very brief compared to Star Wars, Clone Wars, etc., and all of these figures are 3 3/4" in scale (albeit with much more articulation that the Star Wars figures of the 1970s/80s). Even my old GI Joes don't get the attention of the newer figures. I had out some of the CXR and Marx figures two weeks ago, and they were played with for about 20 minutes, then set aside, or put on display to "watch" the multiple hours of playing with Star Wars figures in the same room.
Are 12" figures mostly for collectors, those that had the toys when they were kids and now relive those days but have relegated the figures to shelves and display cases? Is there not a huge market for 12" figures for the under 12 cro
Concerning costs, I am appalled at the price of the "general" 3 3/4" Star Wars figure, which runs at $9.99. Sure, there is a lot of articulation, and I know we need to just for things such as inflation, the cost of petroleum (major ingredient of plastics), but 8" Mego figures cost $1.99 back in the day, and GI Joe cost less than $5 in the mid-1970s for a fully articulated figure…..
Is this mostly due to the subject matter (the popularity of Star Wars vs. other subjects), or the size of the figures, which allows for easier storage and much easier to purchase/acquire scale vehicles/accessories? Granted, with Johnny West, we have the horses (quite large) and some of you all lucky to have the original Circle X Ranch, Ft. Apache, or Medieval Knights Castles play sets can vouch for the huge size of each that is required for set-up, display, etc. Mego produced many of their play sets in the 1970s for the 8" line that were fold-out carrying cases (fine idea), but even these seem cumbersome with the portability of the 3 3/4" line of accessories across multiple themes.
Thoughts?
My point? Even with my kids, they migrate more towards the smaller figures. Sure, I've given them a few new CXR figures as gifts and we get out "Dad's" Johnny West figures, but playtime is very brief compared to Star Wars, Clone Wars, etc., and all of these figures are 3 3/4" in scale (albeit with much more articulation that the Star Wars figures of the 1970s/80s). Even my old GI Joes don't get the attention of the newer figures. I had out some of the CXR and Marx figures two weeks ago, and they were played with for about 20 minutes, then set aside, or put on display to "watch" the multiple hours of playing with Star Wars figures in the same room.
Are 12" figures mostly for collectors, those that had the toys when they were kids and now relive those days but have relegated the figures to shelves and display cases? Is there not a huge market for 12" figures for the under 12 cro
Concerning costs, I am appalled at the price of the "general" 3 3/4" Star Wars figure, which runs at $9.99. Sure, there is a lot of articulation, and I know we need to just for things such as inflation, the cost of petroleum (major ingredient of plastics), but 8" Mego figures cost $1.99 back in the day, and GI Joe cost less than $5 in the mid-1970s for a fully articulated figure…..
Is this mostly due to the subject matter (the popularity of Star Wars vs. other subjects), or the size of the figures, which allows for easier storage and much easier to purchase/acquire scale vehicles/accessories? Granted, with Johnny West, we have the horses (quite large) and some of you all lucky to have the original Circle X Ranch, Ft. Apache, or Medieval Knights Castles play sets can vouch for the huge size of each that is required for set-up, display, etc. Mego produced many of their play sets in the 1970s for the 8" line that were fold-out carrying cases (fine idea), but even these seem cumbersome with the portability of the 3 3/4" line of accessories across multiple themes.
Thoughts?
Or just get some Johnny Apollo stuff .
