If HT won't do a line based off of television characters, who else can?

[BrooklynWolf X]

Again, I find it funny that I am told to relax and I'm talking down, in a post where I perceive the same thing from you. first, I do know the market. I've explained this, and though people may not like it, I've also demonstrated it. Its my family business. My father owns a production/development studio. My brother works in game programming and art direction. So does one of my sisters. I've worked in the field since I was a kid. Left becuase I got bored, joined the marines, got out and now am (and have been for over ten years) back working in the industry. Currently it's mostly prop and cine stuff. But I've sculpted and painted and even tried talent mangment for a bit. So sorry, I do know the market. Lots of the people that work in it. So let's move on from that.

That's great you and your family are involved in that...your point being? None of that is in TOY PRODUCTION. Does Howard chan go to nintendos doorstep and give them advice on what to do? Their business involves R&D, production, and market research. They have similarities, but they're two different beasts. You may have an idea on how things are done with HT or have an idea with the market, but no...you DON'T know the market. Just like my family is running a private business and are involved with real estate back in the states. Pretty damn successful. Does that mean we can head straight to China and start doing business? Does that mean we know property value in China? No. Because, aside from me being here in guang Zhou, my family is not physically here, thusly, they don't truly know how things are run here.

This little tidbit is neither here nor there, but I thinks it's relevant due to your claims...weren't you called out for false information regarding MOS' costume material?

So I dunno man. This IS the Internet after all. I've met plenty of people making $#!t up to try and back up their claims. If your family's and your background are true, great, and thanks for serving. But if it's all fake...well...

As for me talking down, or condescending..you may take it that way. Not much I can do about that. People take issue with me becuase I disagree. It doesn't matter how i say it. Go back and look, I can point out a few cases in the last two weeks. Where I said sorry I disagree. And got the same attitude you are giving. Most the time I don't even bother with the dress up. Crap I write is long enough as is. I don't do the cute little gifs or memes or emoticons. If I did it changes nothing. It's text on a screen. How you take it is a reflection of you not me. Not being smart or funny. But if you read tone or thinking I'm doing or speaking in anyway that's you making that choice. There's no body language or inflections for you to base any of that off. Same as with anyone on here. We don't know anyone else(for the most part). So whatever tone or attitude you feel is there is one of your own making.

But I have noticed your posting behaviour. Dude, you really do need to chill out. And don't take this as a "I'm rubber and you're glue" kinda thing...maybe it's not us that's misunderstanding you or taking what you said offensively; perhaps it's the way you're wording your arguments? So instead of shrugging your shoulders and thinking we're overreacting and *possibly* wondering why people get nasty with you, you should consider taking it down a notch with your "I know all, you don't" attitude. It's simple bro, you (knowingly or unknowingly) treat people nasty, you get it right back.

And yes, I do end up defending hot toys a LOT. But someone should. they get called all kinds of disrespectful things, accused of all kinds of things, and all with very little information about the reality behind why things go the way they do. And since most people don't know or don't care why things work like they do and have a hard time seeing past their own life experience and job experience and collecting experience misinformation and erroneous information and opinion based on bad information gets tossed around. And if you are one of the people who is actually looking for information or understanding or sees that everyone basically says the same thing so it's got to be true..I think a counter point should be made. And since I have a little more info and experience (it's not something I'm doing to get popular(that should be obvious) or impress people or its not some special ability or whatever..i just happen to have born into a family that does this that's all) I feel I should speak up. So I do. I stand out becuase I'm often the only one saying what I do

Do I think hot toys is perfect? Not at all. Do I think each figure can use improvements..probably. But that stuff gets pointed out every other post for hundreds of pages. And often with pretty crappy wording. Calling Howard Chan every name in the book, and accusing hot toys of scamming and ripping people off and being lazy and more. Complaining about how the design sucks. Even though that's a marvel issue. And so much more. How would you feel if it where your friend or your family or your business that was talked about like that?

I've collected HT for a damn...DAMN long time. You bet I will talk $#!t about them when they make stupid decisions. I have EVERY RIGHT to complain and call them thieves when they're doing things that are downright effed up. Hall of armor?? What was it? Like $150 for a glorified display stand? MADE OUT OF STYROFOAM??? Are you effin kidding me?? That is just one example of HT being greedy. Are they the only company guilty of such greedy practices? Absolutely not. But they've done it and fans that PUT THEM WHERE THEY ARE TODAY will for sure be pissed off...RIGHTFULLY SO.

Do you own shares in HT? Is HC your godfather? Who cares if a bunch of people are hating on the man and his company? That $#!t happens when a company gets so huge and well known. So is it your lifes mission to track down Every Post that speaks ill of them? If you wanna drop knowledge on someone and educate them, do it tastefully and in a way that's not insulting their intelligence. It's real simple man. Yeah, some posts are just irrational and belligerent. IGNORE THEM. I've had my share of disagreements with a few board members here, but We're still cool to this day because we were mindful with our words and never felt we were above anyone and that reflected in the way we responded to one another. Things never escalated.

You think it's annoying when you read hate filled posts about a guy you have no relation to, venomous posts about a company you have no shares in...well, look at it from this angle; it's equally annoying when someone does nothing else but always reply with animosity when its uncalled for. Especially if it's not even personal.

 

[HeubertMichael]

Agreed with some of you gents regarding Art Figures. I hope soon enough they would also dabble in producing licensed products (and still be quite more affordable) like ASMUS with their LOTR. AF's Daedd is great -- that tailoring is superb, sturdy body, and the multimedia boots is fantastic. He's in my HT shelf and he's not outclassed by the other figures at all. If AF would make licensed Flash and Arrow figures, I'm in.

 

[BrooklynWolf X]

Also...you said hot toys doesn't take risks and they play it safe and they changed. I've pointed out before, and even showed or listed nearly every non marvel figure they did from 2000-2010(up till then they had only a few im1 figures) and then every figure from 2010-2015. Not only has hot toys not stopped taking risks, they have been taking more. I don't recall the exact numbers off the top of my head..it's in the aliens ripley thread if u want to see all the data..but essential the first 10 years they made around 130 non marvel figures. Since 2010 (half the time) they have made 130. So they doubled non marvel production. Took risks on 66 batman and ichobod crane and lots of others.

But they have never been a large player in the TV market. Ever. As I said, it's a market that has never been a big producer in collectible figures. Is it possible they will take a shot and try it out..maybe. But live action TV shows have an evening complicated licensing situation then movies. I'd say probably two or three times as complicated. Fsctor that with the extremely low numbers (there may be a larger number watching on bootleg and illegal copies, but there's no way to know that and you can't base a multimillion dollar product on that) in relation to theatrical. Hot toys doesn't have to look at box office, you can find the actual number of tickets used.

And this does not happen in a vacuum. What I mean is they have to choose between a TV show that has 1-2 million viewers versus a movie that may have 40-100 million. Even if you go by the 2% number you brought up(which isn't a realistic number) why would you go for the added hassle, and risk of doing the TV when you can do the movie? Hot toys has established relationships and deals with a majority of the movie studios they make product from. That makes a huge difference as well.

Edit-and to give you an idea how many people see these movies, or at least the official estimates...Avengers had 72 million tickets used/sold...PotC had 62 million. The average weekly viewing for flash is 2 million people with iTunes and other digital and 7 day dvr factored in. The difference is huge.

The risks you're referring to, all franchises are well known in the states (and other English speaking countries). That's where most of the sales come from. Aliens, robocop, predator, 66 batman, ichabod crane, that barbershop movie with Depp. These figures/franchises are virtually unknown here in China. They're a risk to HT in the sense that they ONLY appeal to English speaking folk, therefore excluding their BIGGEST market, China. To my understanding, the figures are still successful in their own right...but successful like iron man, TDK, avengers? Nope. Which is why the aforementioned titles that are only recognized in the states take SO long to get produced. They've been back seated not only because they're old and appeal to a certain demographic in the collecting field, but the newer stuff like PoTC, IM, TDK, AVENGERS will see sales from ALL parts of the world, especially in China...well because they're our future overlords. Anyway...

Take this into consideration; Decades old franchises (remember, franchise unknown to China) being trickled out to the western side of the community and are getting moderate to great sales. new franchises, recognized EVERYWHERE, are getting great to amazing sales on all corners of the world.

Factor in China opening up their doors with millions that have access to a computer, along with the ever growing exposure to American pop culture...on top of that, throw in the built in fanbase in America...IN MY OPINION, I think figures from arrow, flash, Supergirl can at least get the sales numbers the classic franchises are seeing.

Failed risks come in the form of sucker punch, the spirit and a few others where they failed on ALL sides of the planet. Thus, equaling poor poor sales. Those are the perfect examples of HT "knowing" the market. Those were cases that shook HT up and because of that, they're no longer taking risks again. Prison break was a special case, because at that time, the Internet in China wasnt what it is today. Yeah, the show was popular in the states, so why didn't the figures set the world on fire? Hey, guess what? HT wasn't all that well known back then. IM, TDK came out and those fans put HT on the map. People that didnt normally collect began to notice the quality of their work...and because of that? Their fanbase grew.

HT brand awareness isn't slowing down anytime soon. Nor is China's exposure to American pop culture. Because of China's insatiable appetite for big, explosive and pretty blockbusters, they're actively seeking out all things superhero. Comics, movies, TV shows. Due to the rise of the superhero and the Internet, It's no pure coincidence shows like flash and arrow are gaining popularity here.

You're right that these don't automatically equate to big sales numbers. If it did, then thor, war machine, all the recently released Iron men would be sold out by now. So why haven't they sold out? Well, brand fatigue? Sequelitis?

Ultimately, in my opinion, the comic based TV shows are an untapped, albeit unknown, market. HT are so big right now that they can afford to dip their toes into that pool. I dunno, try the flash first? Then take it from there?

 

[BrooklynWolf X]

Agreed with some of you gents regarding Art Figures. I hope soon enough they would also dabble in producing licensed products (and still be quite more affordable) like ASMUS with their LOTR. AF's Daedd is great -- that tailoring is superb, sturdy body, and the multimedia boots is fantastic. He's in my HT shelf and he's not outclassed by the other figures at all. If AF would make licensed Flash and Arrow figures, I'm in.

Dude, give me a decent headsculpt, a couple of accessories and a decent outfit, I'll take the figure from anyone.

 

[Kebron]

But they have never been a large player in the TV market. Ever. As I said, it's a market that has never been a big producer in collectible figures.

Don't know if you missed it or ignored it but I and some others posted examples of TV shows that are or were big producers of collectible figures. Probably the biggest being Star Trek. Also several TV cartoons produce a large variety of popular figures such as Transformers.

So you point of TV not being a successful line for collectible figures is not true.

Avengers may have had 72 million tickets sold (how many of those are multiple screening I wonder) but there is a end to those sales eventually , usually about a month after its release. TV shows such as Flash (which has a average viewership of 3.8 million not the 2 million you claim. The Flash TV show on CW: latest ratings (cancel or renew?) | canceled + renewed TV shows | TV Series Finale) they get those viewers weekly for about 23 weeks over the course of 5-7 years. My point, movie audiences come and go, TV audiences are a dedicated group more likely to spend money of collectibles of their favortie shows. It's why fans create conventions based on those shows. Shows like Twin Peaks, Castle, The Office, etc all spawned their own cons because enough of the fans were dedicated to do it and those arent hsows people usually associate with Cons. Heck the modern Cons we see now can most likely thank those early fans of Star Trek who loved that show enough to make it a huge successful event.

TV shows are a steady stream instead of a huge spike, and try as you might to belittle it, fact is it has as big or bigger fan base then many movies.

 

[franpincho]

Has HT ever done Anime figures at all?

 

[BrooklynWolf X]

Has HT ever done Anime figures at all?

They did city hunter. Golgo 13. Captain harlock. Appleseed.

Quality figures, but the sales weren't (Appleseed being the exception). No doubt they were trying to get into the Japanese market...but it makes me scratch my head why they pursued those They're like the aliens, 66 batman, robocop of Japan where they're only recognized by a particular group within the collecting community, but in that scenario, ITS ONLY IN JAPAN. Furthermore, they're not quite as memorable as other classic anime. There was hardly anything toy related based on them released. If they wanted the anime equivalent of their marvel line, they should've went with naruto or dragon ball.

I applaud HT for taking that risk...unfortunately it didn't meet their expectations. however, there's risk, and then there's calculated risk. Considering how HC is calling all the shots, it probably wasn't so much a risk as it was a guilty pleasure. I'll bet the anime figures HT produced thus far were his favorites. I don't blame him for wanting them made. I was a fan of city hunter as well.

 

[franpincho]

They did city hunter. Golgo 13. Captain harlock. Appleseed.

Quality figures, but the sales weren't (Appleseed being the exception). No doubt they were trying to get into the Japanese market...but it makes me scratch my head why they pursued those They're like the aliens, 66 batman, robocop of Japan where they're only recognized by a particular group within the collecting community, but in that scenario, ITS ONLY IN JAPAN. Furthermore, they're not quite as memorable as other classic anime. There was hardly anything toy related based on them released. If they wanted the anime equivalent of their marvel line, they should've went with naruto or dragon ball.

I applaud HT for taking that risk...unfortunately it didn't meet their expectations. however, there's risk, and then there's calculated risk. Considering how HC is calling all the shots, it probably wasn't so much a risk as it was a guilty pleasure. I'll bet the anime figures HT produced thus far were his favorites. I don't blame him for wanting them made. I was a fan of city hunter as well.

Thanks.

I wonder why they haven't tackled Dragon Ball Z. It's a shame, really.

Imagine quality, 1/6 figures of those characters. And no, Medicom doesn't count.

 

[King Kobra]

Thanks.

I wonder why they haven't tackled Dragon Ball Z. It's a shame, really.

Imagine quality, 1/6 figures of those characters. And no, Medicom doesn't count.

Agreed, since I'm not too fond of Medicom's offerings, I would love if Hot Toys did anime lines for DBZ, Naruto, Bleach, and Cowboy Bebop. Maybe Akira since it would probably end up looking better than Medicom's version.

 

[BrooklynWolf X]

Thanks.

I wonder why they haven't tackled Dragon Ball Z. It's a shame, really.

Imagine quality, 1/6 figures of those characters. And no, Medicom doesn't count.

HC is of the age where DB and DBZ were HUGE. I can't even emphasize just how popular it was back in the day. It's popular now of course, but back then? Pfft...crazy. So I'm with you, I don't know why HC and HT haven't tackled the license. Perhaps Medicom has/had exclusivity rights for release in Asia? I really don't know. Medicom's releases...well, what can I say? I have goku...but it's soooo...lackluster. I mean, I like it and all, but it could've been so much more.

 

[BrooklynWolf X]

Agreed, since I'm not too fond of Medicom's offerings, I would love if Hot Toys did anime lines for DBZ, Naruto, Bleach, and Cowboy Bebop. Maybe Akira since it would probably end up looking better than Medicom's version.

Precisely man *high five*

Outside of bebop, the ones you mentioned are popular ALL OVER THE WORLD. Anime, that's another untapped, sure fire market for HT to dip their hands into. No, city hunter, golgo 13, herlock don't count.

 

[megawarrior]

They did city hunter. Golgo 13. Captain harlock. Appleseed.

Quality figures, but the sales weren't (Appleseed being the exception). No doubt they were trying to get into the Japanese market...but it makes me scratch my head why they pursued those They're like the aliens, 66 batman, robocop of Japan where they're only recognized by a particular group within the collecting community, but in that scenario, ITS ONLY IN JAPAN. Furthermore, they're not quite as memorable as other classic anime. There was hardly anything toy related based on them released. If they wanted the anime equivalent of their marvel line, they should've went with naruto or dragon ball.

I applaud HT for taking that risk...unfortunately it didn't meet their expectations. however, there's risk, and then there's calculated risk. Considering how HC is calling all the shots, it probably wasn't so much a risk as it was a guilty pleasure. I'll bet the anime figures HT produced thus far were his favorites. I don't blame him for wanting them made. I was a fan of city hunter as well.

Harlock seems to sell when discounted below 20000 yen based off most of the stores instantly selling him out when they do at least. Lol

 

[BrooklynWolf X]

Harlock seems to sell when discounted below 20000 yen based off most of the stores instantly selling him out when they do at least. Lol

Well it IS a nice figure after all. I'd pick it up if it were cheaper as well. But it ain't quite cheap enough.

 

[megawarrior]

Well it IS a nice figure after all. I'd pick it up if it were cheaper as well. But it ain't quite cheap enough.

I got it for 118 dollars a couple weeks ago from hobby link japan (and I had store credit from the store making it 99$) It sold out within 2 minutes.

 

[BrooklynWolf X]

I got it for 118 dollars a couple weeks ago from hobby link japan (and I had store credit from the store making it 99$) It sold out within 2 minutes.

Great Odins beard!! That's a friggin steal bud!! Wow, really jealous here haha.

 

[dario2739]

I keep hearing this, but does anybody have any sales figures... and how many HT made?

What I mean is HTs may have thought Batman '66 would be a massive seller and so made a 100,000 figures of which they sold half!
They may then have made 50,000 versions of Iron Man XXIV (or whatever) - which sold out.
Now both have sold the same amount, but Batman hasn't sold out - but the figures don't show the full picture.

As for TV shows with adult audiences... well over here in the UK, Dr Who was always an adult collector show, only in recent years have kids got into it.

 

[BrooklynWolf X]

I keep hearing this, but does anybody have any sales figures... and how many HT made?

What I mean is HTs may have thought Batman '66 would be a massive seller and so made a 100,000 figures of which they sold half!
They may then have made 50,000 versions of Iron Man XXIV (or whatever) - which sold out.
Now both have sold the same amount, but Batman hasn't sold out - but the figures don't show the full picture.

As for TV shows with adult audiences... well over here in the UK, Dr Who was always an adult collector show, only in recent years have kids got into it.

I don't think anyone outside of HT know the sales figures. All we can do is make educated guesses from observing the interest levels on all corners of the community. We all gotta keep in mind: China is HT biggest market. Lines that predate 2008 won't see the same sales numbers more recent lines have. I think if you reversed the numbers, it'd be more accurate...but instead of IM selling half of their stock, it's more like 95%.

And that was my point in regards to them taking on the TV line. If they can still make profit from selling 50,000 of 66 batman, surely they can do the same with the shows i wanna see product from. But this time, sales will come from China as well because shows like Flash and arrow are newer and are watched by many here.

 

[yodasan]

Star Ace? QMX? This would have been a nice niche Enterbay could have filled, but they don't seem interested in even being in the same ballpark as Hot Toys with their releases now.

Please not QMX - what have they released so far?