Marvel Legends close 1 by Carls Life
At their Marvel SDCC panel, Hasbro said that 6″ Marvel Legends would be returning “in full force” in 2012. I started to wonder why that would be, given how strongly they’ve been pushing Marvel Universe, and I’m wondering if it’s the success of DCUC that has them reconsidering.
Since the mid-1990s, there’s always been an “it” line or two in our hobby, a line whose notoriety isn’t necessarily just the sales, but also the influence and general reputation among collectors. In the mid-1990s it was Spawn and Star Wars POTF, and then in the late 1990s, Movie Maniacs. Spider-Man Classics/Marvel Legends took over in the early 2000s and, aside from brief appearances by Millennium MOTU and Lord of the Rings, Marvel reigned alone as the “it” line until the arrival of the 25th Anniversary G.I. Joes. Shortly thereafter, DCUC and MOTUC made their debut, and I think right now those lines have the strongest buzz and most rabid fandom.¹
A large portion of the Marvel collectors today got hooked on the 6″ Marvel Legends originally, so I’m wondering if Hasbro was unable to get quite the same traction with Marvel Universe that they (or rather, Toy Biz) were able to with ML. Fans had to start over with their collections, and while MU did get a big push, I haven’t noticed as much interest and buzz around the line from casual fans as I did with ML. Perhaps I’m just not paying enough attention, so correct me if I’m wrong on that. But I think a lot of ML fans (including me) migrated to DCUC for the 6″ superhero fix. Now I’m wondering if the popularity of DCUC is what’s behind Hasbro’s promise to bring back 6″ Marvel Legends.
Of course, I’m just speculating here. The Marvel Legends 2-packs I’ve seen at TRU don’t seem to be flying off the shelves, though as I said, I haven’t been paying very close attention. The somewhat lesser quality of Hasbro’s ML figures relative to Toy Biz’s efforts could be part of that too, though. And there’s another issue: ML had enough waves to get through quite a few of the major Marvel characters, so perhaps there’s some of your basic line fatigue there. Nonetheless, Hasbro apparently believes they can make another go at it in a couple years.
What do you think? Will Marvel Legends successfully rise again, or should they put the whole line on hold for a decade or so and let the ML nostalgia build?
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¹ Transformers has always been extremely popular, but there have been so many different lines I’m not sure any of them have quite gotten the cross-fandom respect and popularity that, say, 25th Anniversary Joe has. Maybe the movie line, but I’m not sure about that. I can’t count the Masterpiece line because the figures are too few and far between, and too expensive, to generate the kind of buzz an “it” line has.
Mose
Everything Hasbro is guilty of, Mattel is just as guilty. I've seen decent to blatant atrocious QC on both sides.
Mattel, IMHO, can sometimes make it downright impossible to find and buy some of their lines (namely DCUC and MOTUC).
silfer surver
I hope ML does return. Seems we're getting a hulk (red hulk repaint) and a Hasblow deadpool. That's good for those that can't find or pay 100+ for ML Deadpool, but now they are going to have to JUSTIFY their collection…got this puny 2pack deadpool, to go with my puny banshee,fury,2pack ironman,yellowjacket…see? Now you are hooked… ML for 2011/2012…puny remakes=Dollars in their pockets guys. Somewhere between ML/DCUC scale and 3 3/4 MU is Your new wallet eater=continued hasblow. They control it, but , you get figures so no whining about it. I collected TB,ML and stopped at the piss poor Hasblow Scarlet Witch. Sold about all of my collection…then I missed em'…so I bought em' all back..and still looking for some of em'-fearsome foes and sinister six? 150+…sheesh. Anyway, scale was th ML/Hasblow main issue. I saw the suckiness of it all, but beared with it to complete teams I wanted. Customs are hard to get right..(paint), I leave that to the companies…and buy what I like /can afford.
NipTuckJohnny
Marvel Legends for LIFE!
Jackson
I see a lot of people asking "what's the point" as they've moved on to MU figures. But I haven't. I'm excited for Marvel Legends as I loathe MU scale figures, no matter how "well made" they are. Sorry, but 3 3/4 Marvel figures don't blend well with my 6 inch DCUC figures. I didn't appreciate the way Hasbro seemed to abandon the line with so many characters left to produce, teams that have yet to be completed, etc. They started Alpha Flight, 90's X-Force, X-Factor and so on but never finished them which, I admit, had me feeling a bit butt hurt. I doubt it's a matter of them listening to collectors, because if that were the case they never would have started MU/dropped ML in the first place. I'm betting it the fact that many of us said "okay, drop ML but I'm not buying MU… I'll just focus on DCUC now ya' jerks". Sales, I'm betting, is the reason for this. And for those who are saying they should just "let ML go"… I'm flipping you the bird right now.
Mario
@Poe: I couldn't agree with you more, & with Hasbro's solid & proven track record of flooding the market come movie time, I definitely see them once again not learning from their own historical blunders.
I truly believe that, as a fellow Poester mentioned… unless Hasbro makes Marvel Legends into a line that is made with the same type of care & inventiveness that the Japanese grant their products, the line will be doomed from inception. Hasbro just can't focus properly on one thing & stick to it. They always fold at the moment they start hitting some kind of stride. They'll just take the opportunity to flood us with movie figs & inappropriate variants, & then throw in kit-bashes of what Toy Biz has already made.
Seriously, I'm really starting to dislike how Hasbro's just straight gunning for cash, & nothing else. I don't see care in their work, I don't see innovation & I certainly don't see longevity. Fuck, they did not even utter a goddamn word about the Micronauts or Sectaurs at San Diego. All they fucking showed was shit we've all already seen a million fucking times over… AAARGH!
Ok, I'm cool now.
Poe
@RM:
That's their plan, for sure. Whether they'll pull it off is another question. I'm wondering if overexposure/oversaturation will become an issue for all these Marvel movies.