DC Universe Classics and My Unlove for the Line
- Image by fengschwing via Flickr
I want to love the DC Universe Classics* series of toys, but too many times the frustration of finding a specific figure is just more than I’m willing to deal with so I basically just ignore the entire line. I’ve picked up several earlier figures in the series — I’ve even got a complete Gorilla Grodd action figure (see this review at Poe Ghostal’s site) — but after about Wave Six I just couldn’t get behind the line. I have a few assorted figures, but nowhere near a complete run.
So what can be done about this? At this point I don’t think there’s much that Mattel could do to get me into the series. The figures I want are too hard to find, the scale isn’t my favorite size for action figures, and the chances of a Batmobile for the series are pretty much zero. And time and again Mattel shows a complete lack of concern for the fans — kinda like the Masters of the Universe Classics line — and way too much love for retailers like Wal-Mart.
I respect those who continue to collect the entire line; these figures are expensive, tough to find, and collecting a set can be murder on the brain and wallet. But I’ve gotta say that unless something major changes with Mattel’s direction I’m going to continue to basically avoid the entire line. It’s sad, but in a way I’m happy since it means I’ve got more money for other toys.
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I couldn’t agree more with you. For almost a year, I’ve only seen the same 4 figures everywhere I go (mainly at Targets & TRUs). Plus, there’s no Walmart near me so I’ll never seen the Walmart exclusives.
But even with all those frustration, I could never hate the DCU Classics line because it’s given us such awesome random characters that I never thought in a million years would made into action figures available at big chain retailers.
Word. I gave up on the line a while back for all of the reasons you listed. I’d also like to add two more reasons:
1) The coolest figures are always the build-a-figures. So, in order to get the best figure in the wave, I have to buy 5 or 6 figures I probably don’t care about.
2) I know the Four Horsemen are the golden children of the toy world, but the sculpts of the DCUC figures are painfully uninspired. Reuse of parts is rampant, and the caricatures of the heroes are simplistic and boring. The similarly-scaled (and similarly-priced) DC Direct figures have much better sculpts that exude so much more interesting character and style.
Some of the figures from Toy Fair look pretty cool, especially the Sinestro War figures. But I’m not holding my breath.
@The Blot – I can’t argue that the line is giving us a massive variety of characters. And I love how the line seems to be falling all over itself in an attempt to replicate the eighties Super Powers line.
@Nate – I suspect the parts reuse is dictated by Mattel and not something the 4H would choose if money was no object. And yeah, the coolest characters are often the C&C pieces. And I really wish I could easily find a classic Batman. How is it Batman isn’t readily available at all times?
Yup. Same here. I made a pretty public “I quit the line” thing last year over at IH. When I never ound any of Wave 10, that was enough. They did finally get Wave 5 back out there for me, but that was after nearly a year of telling me that they wouldn’t see a re-release, so it was too little, too late.
I’ll still pick up a few odds and ends when I see them, but the line as a whole? Forget about it.
I’ve pretty much given up too. Hassle after hassle. I have an easier time finding vintage toys for dirt cheap, why waste my time on something that is supposed to be mass market?
I did pick up Superboy just to complete my “reign of Supermen” but only because I saw him at retail which was more than likely a fluke. Still haven’t even opened him though.
@Newt – Have you got a link to your “I quit” post? I’d love to see that.
@BubbaShelby – And besides, vintage toys are more fun!
Right on. I contemplated, and still occasionally contemplate, trying to recreate the Super Powers line up. It would be a finite number of figures and would look really cool next to my original figures. But, these things are too difficult to track down and too expensive. And after all the garbage they’re doing with the He-Man line, I honestly can’t bring myself to give Mattel any of my money.
Instead, I’ll buy more G.I. Joes from Hasbro’s. They have their faults, too, but I can at least usually find the figures I want.
You will never have a superhero line that contains more than one main character that is easy to find, for a number of reasons. The answer is actually pretty simple – if the retailers gave us what they wanted, it would be a case of 12 Batman figures. Or, if you like Marvel, 12 Wolverine figures. Because the characters we love are the characters that don’t sell.
There is much hatred for the Hasbro Marvel Legends, but if we jump into the wayback machine and check out some of those Toy Biz figures from the later waves…here is the lineup for series 14:
Series 14 (Mojo Series)
Mojo, an interdimensional villain (for the X-Men) marked another somewhat scaled-down size for the bonus figures.
* Baron Zemo (With Avengers vol. 1 #6 and Mojo’s head and upper torso)
* Baron Zemo (Unmasked, Chase)
* Falcon (With Falcon #1 and Mojo’s stomach/lower torso)
* Falcon (Modern costume, Chase)
* Iron Man (First Appearance) (With Tales Of Suspense #39 & 40 and Mojo’s back tentacles)
* Iron Man (First Appearance, gold variant, Chase)
* Longshot (With X-Men vol. 2 #10 and Mojo’s lower, right side mechanical legs)
* Luke Cage (With Luke Cage #1 and Mojo’s lower, left side mechanical legs)
* Luke Cage (Black and Silver variant, extremely rare, 10 or so are known to exist)[citation needed]
* Psylocke (With Uncanny X-Men #258 (cover art from #467) and Mojo’s back/lower torso)
A collectors dream! This assortment was on mega-clearance in the Philly area. Again, from Wiki, series 15:
M.O.D.O.K., an Avengers villain, was the focusing figure of the line. This figure was also another case of plastics’ rising cost.
* Beta Ray Bill (with Thor #337 and MODOK’s hover base)
* Captain Marvel (with Captain Marvel #25 and MODOK’s control panel)
* Genis-Vell (Captain Marvel variant, chase)
* Iron Man (Thor-Buster Armor) (with Iron Man vol. 2 #64 and MODOK’s right arm)
* Destroyer (Iron-Man variant, chase)
* Moon Knight (with Marvel Team-Up #7 and MODOK’s left arm)
* Moon Knight (silver costume variant, chase)
* Spider-Woman (with MODOK’s head and Spider-Woman #1)
* Spider-Woman (Julia Carpenter variant, chase)
* Wasp (Black costume) (with Avengers #195 and MODOK’s legs)
* Wasp (Shoulder length hair, red costume, variant, chase)
* Wasp (Shoulder length hair, blue costume (arrows on knees pointing up), variant, chase)
* Wasp (Shoulder length hair, blue costume (arrows on knees pointing down), variant, chase)
Another series that I could have completed for no money. Not that Hasbro had any further luck – some Walmarts in my area still have Hydra Soldiers on the pegs.
With this DC line, Mattel might actually have the ratios RIGHT. However, we will never know because of SCALPERS. I hate to invoke the terrible They Who are Usually Blamed for Everything – but in this case, they are to blame. I know this because of SDCC, and NYCC, and every other show. The dealers have endless stock of figures I have never seen in a store. By comparison, I have seen 98% of every modern Transformers release in a store. Figures like Captain Atom and Wonder Woman must have been massively overshipped to a point where even scalpers don’t want them.
In the end, I guess I can’t quit this line because I never really committed to getting into it. But I have been able to pick up a limited selection for retail prices by waiting a few months to find them on eBay, and only putting out the cash for figures I really want. I paid $40 for Atom Smasher, but I knew I really wanted the character in my MOTU display. Hordak, since his Horde will take over five years to complete, currently commands the evil New Gods. I’ll continue to pick up a character here and there as I choose to, and I won’t pay more than the figure is worth to me. If that requires waiting a year to find a loose Parademon for $15, then so be it.
@DoctorKent – Okay, that was a massive and well-written comment. I have gotta respond to that one, but this morning is not the time. I’ll get you, Kent!
I was a huge fan of DC Classics when I started getting into it in 2008. The last full wave I got was Wave 8 in mid-2009 when the first auctions hit E-Bay. Since then, they haven’t made any characters to pique my interest. I did get some of Wave 7 and a Wave 12 glow in the dark Spectre, but mostly for the gimmick.
It has been more fun monitoring the guessing game and manufacturing decisions of the line through news than actually collecting the figures. Some thing is seriously wrong with that picture.