Forum - View topicINTEREST: New Optimus Prime Toy Transforms into Bearbrick
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the-antihero
 Posts: 726 |
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This is just....odd. Then again, Optimus Prime has transformed into odder things like a shoe -_-'
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Primus
 Posts: 2793 Location: Toronto |
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They said I could be anything, so I became everything.
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Redbeard 101
Oscar the Grouch
Forums Superstar  Posts: 16948 |
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Dear God I can see the Optimus Prime Pedobear spoofs already.
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GATSU
Posts: 15429 |
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It's kind of weird to see the anime industry suddenly embrace Transformers [You can even see ciphers for it with those toys in Tonari no Seki-kun!], when even in the 80s, the Japanese copped to it being one of the few mech shows specifically meant to sell toys, and make some nice moonlighting money on the side through outsourcing. I don't think it even took off over there that much like Gundam and Macross. It sells, but nowhere as much as here. From what I understand, though, those live-action films seem to have been popular in Japan. So maybe the old shows have sort of (?) found an audience that way?
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Emerje
 Posts: 7385 Location: Maine |
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No way, Transformers has always been huge in Japan and they've always had a bigger collector's market than the west. While Hasbro ended the cartoon series in '87 and did the final original G1 toy line in '90, Takara kept doing new cartoon series through '90 and the toy line through 1992. They didn't even do G2 until '95 like we did in '93 because it was too close to the end of G1 for them and in the end ended up cramming a bunch of the G2 figures into their Beast Wars sequels. It is true that mecha fans initially gave it a cold shoulder because they weren't keen on sentient giant robots (the show was called Super Robot Life: Transformers over there), but kids took to it immediately. The reason it seems that the Japanese are doing more with the franchise now is because Takara Tomy has finally loosened their reins on the franchise. Over the years they've slowly given other companies more freedom to make Transformers toys. It started with mini figures and gashapon, then non-transforming figures and statues, and now for the first time we're seeing actual Transforming action figures from companies that aren't Takara Tomy or Hasbro. Of course these are done through partnerships and a watchful eye and they aren't allowed to do anything that would compete directly with Takara Tomy's stuff (no Optimus Prime that turns into a semi truck), but the results have been interesting. If you want my impressions on the Be@rbrick Optimus Prime you can read them on Tomopop. Emerje |
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GATSU
Posts: 15429 |
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Emerje: Well, that's what I mean. Unlike in Japan, Transformers was immediately popular here with kids, teens, and adults. In Japan, it had a fanbase, but it clearly did not cross over with those of the other mech series. And the collector's market for that kind of toy has always been bigger there than here, 'cus of the 80s mecha boom. What I'm saying is that the Japanese are now openly embracing that show as one of their own, when I think they initially considered it a dumbed-down export for Americans who couldn't handle on-screen deaths and risque content on their teevees. And I just find that weird, considering that the whole appeal of the other 80s mech shows was that they generally weren't specifically produced for child viewers, even though they did court them for toy sales, too.
So, basically, my argument is that the Bay movies might have actually encouraged older Japanese anime fans to check out the original animated shows for the first time, to find out why Americans have such a fond attachment to TF, and what the JP viewers missed out on. And I think it's created a sense of neo-nostalgia for an era of programming that wasn't as 'deep', but was more embraced for its simplicity in execution-which is the real reason why there's been a push for more cross-over stuff lately. |
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Emerje
Posts: 7385 Location: Maine |
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No. Pretty much no to everything you said. Transformers didn't have some magical appeal that crossed generations in the 80s, it was a kids show made for kids and watched by kids. It didn't become popular with adults until the late 90s/early 00s when those kids grew up and we began to see the start of the 80s nostalgia wave that things like G.I. Joe and He-Man also rode. There's a reason why Hasbro started taking collectors seriously during this time. Sure, there probably were a few teens and adults that would watch Transformers cartoons in the 80s, but it wasn't a measurable fanbase worthy of Hasbro's notice.
Just because Japan's traditional mecha fans didn't jump on Transformers from the start doesn't mean they never did. They soon did and long before adults in the USA did. Don't forget we're talking about Japan here, the world capital of adults watching cartoons. Once they realized their favorite mecha designers, directors, voice actors and studios were involved they were onboard. Takara started offering adults collectables, limited editions, store exclusives, and reissues long before Hasbro did and more consistently and in greater numbers than Hasbro ever has. The movies have nothing to do with it, in fact I'd even go as far as to say it was the American market that got the biggest boost from the movies. What Takara Tomy is allowing now is only an extension of things they've done from the beginning. Hasbro has always been extra conservative about the license, they really don't like other companies doing more than statues. Takara has basically been letting other Japanese companies use the license to make whatever toys they want (within reason). The Japanese have always considered the series one of value to them and gave it twice the lifespan we did. It certainly wasn't an American movie that convinced the Japanese it was something worthwhile. Emerje |
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