Mattel is really going all out for this wave of 1966 Batman TV show action figures.
Tag: Mattel
Batusi Batman SCC Exclusive
This Batman Batusi figure is one of Mattel’s SDCC 2013 exclusives.
The diorama package features vintage-look art from Shag, and a sound feature plays music with a ‘60s vibe to perfectly capture the scene where Batman™ shows off his unique Batusi moves. The package is designed so the Batusi dance moves can be activated without removing the figure.
DC Classic TV: 1966 Batman Action Figures
Beginning in June 2013, Mattel will be releasing a series of 6-inch action figures based on the 1966 live-action Batman television show. Part of the reason this is being released now is that all of the legal issues between Warner Bros. and 20th Century Fox surrounding the 1966 series have been resolved. That means we may finally see that series on DVD and/or streaming media.
Mattel’s Shogun Warriors Toy Line
In the late 1970s, Mattel licensed toys from various giant robot anime series popular in Japan and released the toys here as Shogun Warriors. The best of the series were a line of 24″ tall plastic that were straight-up awesome, like this classic Dragun:
These toys were released before the U.S. crack down on spring-loaded weapons in toys, so that huge contraption on Dragun’s right hand is a shuriken disc shooter.
The toy line inspired a Shogun Warriors comic book from Marvel that ended once declining sales led to the cancellation of the toys.
There’s a Shogun Warriors fan page that discusses the various lines of toys and variants, while Wikipedia has a nice summary of the toy line’s rise and fall.
Mattel’s Ghostbusters Ghost Trap Replica
Ghostbuster Fans has posted a Youtube video giving a detailed demonstration of Mattel’s upcoming Ghostbusters Ghost Trap replica. This thing looks awesome. It should be out in October for $135 (ouch!)
Mattel’s “Much Higher Safety Standards”
Interesting discussion here with Mattel in which the company offers this explanation for its relatively high prices compared to other toy companies (Mattel answer to question is in bold),
5.) As many fans have noticed, smaller companies such as NECA offer licensed action figures with extremely detailed & unique (i.e., no re-used) sculpting and equivalent or greater articulation than DC Universe Classics for the same price or, sometimes, even less. Many collectors don’t understand why this should be the case, as economies of scale would suggest the higher production numbers of DCUC figures, plus the tool re-use and generally less detailed sculpting, should make them cost less than the figures from these smaller companies. What’s the reason for the high retail cost of DCUC?
Mattel has much different price structures compared to other consumer good companies and much higher safety standards compared to other toy companies. Both of these contribute to our suggested retail prices.
Higher safety standards? Okay, this is the same Mattel that had to recall millions of toys in 2007 due to high lead content and was subsequently fined $2.3 million by the Consumer Product Safety Commission for violating the Federal lead paint ban.
This is the same Mattel that turned around and successfully lobbied to be exempt from third party lead testing (essentially, the CPSC ruled that Mattel’s internal testing labs were good enough and sufficiently independent to earn the company an exemption).
I can understand a lot of reasons for Mattel’s “different price structures”, but I’m not buying high safety standards at all.