Is Sideshow still a toy company?

The Star Wars 12" licence is looking more and more like 'The Last Licence' for Sideshow toys - something they just couldn't turn down purely because it was Lucasfilm, but which seems out of place with everything else they're doing. But from their point of view, why produce 12" figures anyway, if you have to sell 22 of them for every $899 Legend bust? Is Sideshow just becoming a big ticket item company?

I hate statues and busts, they're dead items with no fun in them whatsoever - okay, that's just my point of view, but I'm sad to see Sideshow going exclusively in this direction. It used to be a lot of fun to watch as a company, because it was so quirky, now it's narrowing its focus to boring expensive things like Darth Maul busts that only get bought by obsessive completists. To anyone who buys this thing I say - how much pleasure will it really give you to have this ugly, vulgar memento of an atrocious movie in your house?

I know Sideshow have got a business to run, but it would be nice to see them stay young, witty and quirky in their outlook instead of catering for the Stephen-Sansweet-wannabe market.

And BTW has anyone ever counted up the number of times visitors to this forum have made jokes about their credit cards taking a hit? I bet a lot of those jokes mask some serious debt problems.

Debt problems aside, I think the Highlander License is waiting to be explored more at the 12 inch scale, and I myself can not wait to have them in hand....more 12 inch not to worry, that is sideshow's roots...

Azog,
SS's roots are the Uni Monsters and there isn't a single one at the Con. Bad news for Monster fans. :cry

I guess I mean more like their bread and butter before 1/4 scale!

Sideshow dropped "Toy" from their corporate moniker quite a while ago.

Mat Falls stated during SDCC chat that, while the company is definitely moving into producing more high-end collectibles, they are not abandoning their 1:6 products. The announcement of 12" inch Star Wars figures more than validates his claim, as does the introduction of their first 1:6 proprietary line, The Dead.

I have beaucoup nostalgia for the days when the Universal Monsters ruled the roost: action figures, bobble heads, Little Big Heads, Thrashers, Shot Glasses, Monster Mountain, etc., but in business, as in life, there is evolution and change.

It's really not fair to impugn a product line or someone's reasons for wanting an item simply because it doesn't fit in with your particular definition of what is a fun collectible. After all, one man's meat is another main's poison. Today, a plethora of product is being produced by an unprecedented number of manufacturers. There is something for everyone, no matter where your tastes may lie. If you don't find what you want here, move on to the next guy.

But don't poo in my Easter Basket!

They just announced the biggest "toy" license that they've ever had. Yes, they are diversifying, but the 12" will be there. The Dead is a new line of 12" that they created themselves - if they wanted out of the category that wouldn't have happened.

Companies change and evolve, that's a fact of business. But considering how lucrative SW will be - I think they'll be making the 12" for a long time to come.

It is obvious that we will get a 1/6 Ygor. That is the only Monster that has not made a transition to 12 inch. The Con is not the Toy Fair or Spooktacular. Not just an event to reveal all and sundry. It has a specific purpose. It never occurred to me that a Uni Monster would be announced at this event. The release of Ygor will be saved, I think, for an announcement between events, though it would easily be assimilated in the Spooktacular, but I don't think so. I expect it to be announced before Christmas at the latest and after the Con. This sort of strategy keep the Sideshow buzz alive. Something as awaited as a 1/6 scale Uni Monster deserves this kind of special treatment. After that, as we have discussed previously, all hope is that the line continues.

Not to worry about the action figures. We're still making them!
Lots of them actually!
But you have to remember Sideshow is not just a toy company, they're a collectible company. It's taking them 10 or 12 years to get where they are. And they're trying to make something for everybody. Expand, think outside of the box. Have faith and patients. Whatever it is we'll eventually get to it.
As for Ygor Creecher...we'll see.
Dooley

Hahahaha We better.

ah well...

Thanks for all the comments, especially from Crackzilla, and apologies if I went a bit far in '@#%$ in someone else's easter basket.' I just hope they put as much energy and creativity into moving their figure lines forward as they're putting into producing big ticket items.

Re: ah well...

I'm curious how well Star Wars will actually sell.I know its the holy grail line for many,but now that the series is over,has it past its prime?The original film is almost as old as Planet of the Apes, wich sad to say probably didn't live up to Sideshow's expectations in sales.
It's tempting to have more authentic/ better sculpted and articulated figures,but if I dip into the line I'm going to be extra selective.I'm not attached to any of the characters outside of the original three films.

Re: ah well...

I'm curious how well Star Wars will actually sell.I know its the holy grail line for many,but now that the series is over,has it past its prime?The original film is almost as old as Planet of the Apes, wich sad to say probably didn't live up to Sideshow's expectations in sales.

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The Star Wars line will unquestionably sell better than any other 1/6 license that Sideshow has ever had. I'm shocked that you think this is in doubt. Comparing their current 1/6 figures like Buffy, Universal Monsters, etc. vs. Star Wars seems silly. The fan base is MUCH larger, and I expect significantly larger ES's for the new line.

Re: ah well...

We think it is,but do we really know?The Hasbro line didn't sell nearly as well as they had planned.Kids today are more fickle than ever,quickly forgetting a film once it is out of the theater...and lets face it,the 3 new films are mostly forgettable while the originals are "old".I think with this line Sideshow is walking a tightrope between fan and collector,and the collector base for Star Wars isn't nearly as big as the fan base/hype for the films.

Re: ah well...

if you'll check out forums like the one sixth warrior and rebel scum, you'll see this new line is gonna sell really well(unless padme or leia looks like willow or wai lin)

people are really excited for quality 12 inch star wars figures........from all 6 movies.

Re: ah well...

It will be interesting to see how big the production runs are.I still think that with so much Star Wars product out there now,only "hardcore" 1/6th scale fanatics will pursue the line.Even though it's STAR WARS,it's still a niche market.I would think the majority of fandom at large are content with thier props,statues,video games,3/4 scale X-Wings and Farlinesque diorama's.

Re: ah well...

Yeah Star Wars is a niche market with 10,000s or 1000s of collectors worldwide and growing...a bigger group then any other collectibles group could ever be, and the 1/6th will be easy on the pocket for several who would love to have the 1/4's

Re: ah well...

There are 900 of the most avid 1/6th scale collectors on the planet right here,but not all of us will collect the Star Wars line.It's probably true that this is the biggest property imaginable outside of say quality 1/6th Marvel/DC characters,but it still remains to be seen how much better the 1/6th scale figures will sell.

Re: ah well...

To answer your SW question if Medicom(spelling?) can sale a 1/6 figure $200 area and sell out then they must be wanted.

Re: ah well...

Hell, yeah this will SELL! Just think of all the 1/6 custom Hasblow Clone Troopers on ebay and on other 1/6 collectors websites! of the 20-30 I've seen, the number one and two complaints are the inaccuracy of the costume, and the enormous disproportionate head. Sideshow won't make that mistake. And, the Buffy, Universal Monsters, and Modern Horror figures don't really lend them selves to customization like Star Wars does!

I would think that all the Star Wars collectors out there are also interested in the definitive version of their favorite characters, which is what the appeal of the Buffy, Uni. Monsters, and Modern Horror.
We really haven't seen the definitive versions of Star Wars in 1/6. the Marmet figures were nice, but expensive and lacked good paint operations. The Boba Fett Marmet made is considered the best, but even then the armor plates are not attached to a cloth vest, they are molded into a vinyl vest. I would hope Sideshow wouldn't make the same type of stupid mistake (I hope you're listening Sideshow).
The Medicom figures, with the exception of being incredibly overpriced, also don't foot the bill. Their Darth Vader measures at 12.65" tall. Vader should be closer to 13" tall.
I think the Sideshow Star Wars figures will sellout faster then the LOTR statues did.

Re: ah well...

There are 900 of the most avid 1/6th scale collectors on the planet right here,but not all of us will collect the Star Wars line.It's probably true that this is the biggest property imaginable outside of say quality 1/6th Marvel/DC characters,but it still remains to be seen how much better the 1/6th scale figures will sell.

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I would bet you ANY amount of money that Star Wars 1/6 figures will sell better than ANY other license Sideshow has ever had. Basing the opinion on this board is pretty myopic. Go to RebelScum or the Star Wars sub-forum here, and tell me that people aren't interested in them.

Don't base your opinion of the line on what you would buy for yourself. I would never buy any 1/6 figures from any line, but I know that there are TONS of people out there that are craving these.

To answer your SW question if Medicom(spelling?) can sale a 1/6 figure $200 area and sell out then they must be wanted

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Yeah, look at the Ebay sales of the Medicom Vader. People are falling all over themselves to shell out $200 for one. Granted it's fantastic, but still pretty pricey for 1/6. Can you imagine how fast the Sideshow Exclusive Darth Vader 1/6 at $50 would sell? The mind boggles.