Can an all Female Action Figure Wave Sell at Mass Retail. No. And here is why.

[@onepouchman]

I have a girl and a boy. I can 100% attest to the fact that even by the way my daughter plays with my Marvel Legends action figures is as if she was playing Barbies. She rounds up the girls and has lots of conversations about what they are going to do for the day, what to eat, etc. My son ignores the females and plays mostly flying around. Two completely different patterns and a microcosm that validates Spector's analysis.

[@Mark_Knight]

I am a teacher and almost always, the girls play differently than boys. Girls LOVE to ahem, make things in the kitchen, and talk, and everything that you can stereotype, is true. Boys tend to be more destructive more out of control....but because it's the current year, I have to avoid saying the glaring differences.

[@julioalbertoherrera1339]

Girls and boys behave differently. God's work 🤭

[@kaleomariz1000]

Thank you so much for you Information. It really helped Scott Neilich make his point.

[@BuckarooBanzai84]

At least they still play together! (I assume.) =)

[@infamousprime694]

What every boy wants , Melissa McCarthy and Leslie Jones action figures!

[@CoraBuhlert]

As a kid, I definitely preferred female to male figures, though I usually had the important male characters, too. However, I was also something of an oddity, a girl who liked adventure oriented stories and characters more than - say - Barbie and thus was annoyed at the fact that there were comparatively few female characters in most action figure lines and that they were harder to find. However, when I played with the figures, I not only had them go on adventures and fight bad guys, but I also had them fall in love and get married and even have babies (luckily, toy stores sold small rubber babies which were in scale with various action figures). I also was really into sewing clothes for my Barbies, which is not really something you can do with He-Man. She-Ra was exactly what I wanted, though I would have wished that she had fit in better with the He-Man toys, since I wanted to pair up MOTU and She-Ra characters However, toy manufacturers clearly don't make toys just for me and that's okay. Never mind that there are a lot more female figures now than there were in the 1980s. BTW, I just acquired a MOTU Origins Sorceress figure and promptly got a rubber baby (you can still get those) for her, so the Sorceress and Man-at-Arms can pose with Baby Teela, so some things never change.

[@puffinman1138]

That's great. My female figures were key to my collection in the 90s, you really needed Ripley, Leia and Catwoman for more fun play patterns. (Wish there was a Sarah Connor!) As a kid, I'd play "G.I.- -Barbies" with my female cousin. Was always pretty funny. My 10" solider and her 12"inch Barbie would hang out.

[@kaleomariz1000]

Telling your life story is so cool! Thank you for sharing. Interesting how you as a female played with your figures. I loved to understand how females played with them. Anyway… those were the days eh! As for me, the way I played was “role play”. It was as if I was directing a movie and each figure was a character; and I was the director and voice-dub for all of them. I wish I had the same excitement i had as a kid when playing with figures. Even if I try to play with action figures the excitement just doesn’t come as it did when I was an 8 year old.

[@misterformerlyknownascolad2859]

It is what it is, A girl is more likely to buy a Barbie over Ken and a boy is more likely to be He-Man over Teela. The only time where I really see a dude buying a female character is when they're collectors. And there are exceptions like you said. I recall buying GI Joes and buying a Scarlet figure when I was a kid. I'm pretty sure people would buy a Samus figure from Metroid as well.

[@brettwood1351]

Friend of mine told me they got the classic big joes with clothes when they brought them back in the 90's his sisters stole them to play with, since they preferred them to Ken.

[@HappyBirthdayRoboto]

I know right, I buy Princess Leia and Teela and Arcee because they're each part of a cast of characters.

[@Tim85-y2q]

That's probably true in a general sense, but for licensed properties it always bugged me (yes, even as a kid) when the major female characters I needed to reenact whatever the play scenario was, were the notable absences.

[@brademerick9181]

I remember the time i asked my mom to buy me a G.I.Joe and she brought me a Ken doll . Sucked to be me .

[@Benjamin0119]

@@brettwood1351 Maybe because Joes are more manly than Ken. ;) :P

[@LuxuryNightmare]

Great video. I love how you compare Ken being the accessory to Barbie, no one wants to give attention to that.

[@brettwood1351]

I know some girls that Got GI Joe's instead of Ken.

[@PhantomHarlock78]

Those people who dont like what Todd said are free to start your own toy company and sell all the female action figures thay want.

[@mikeyjhilli]

Agree.

[@bladestar2322]

Hey, Todd is a genius, a Legend, I personally don't like his Action Figure line, but he's very damn good at his job and extremely successful. I would buy All Female Waves, but I know I'm an exception.

[@josiahalcorne]

I don't want to be snippy especially since I didn't hear Mcfarlane's direct quote in context. There's a difference between saying I'm a toymaker with thirty years of experience and a team of marketing directors interpreting sales data and trends going back to the 60s and this is how I want to run my business and I'm a toymaker with thirty years of experience and a team of marketing directors interpreting sales data and trends going back to the 60s and this is my opinion on the psychological effects of playing with certain types of toys. I love Spector Creative from a business perspective in the action figure hobby because he has a ton of insider knowledge. His partner has a background in child psychology focused on play patterns so he has a good deal of credibility on the topic. I don't always love what Spector says because it contradicts how I want the world to work but I except the reality. I'm perfectly willing to buy into the types of toys we're exposed to contributing to our development but if Mcfarlane is going to say the effects are that negative he should cite some peer-reviewed research that supports that claim.

[@GuyVonDudestein]

@@josiahalcorne People have been exaggerating his comments about what boys with girl toys grow up to be, it really came off more like a dumb joke about kids being disappointed about what their parents got them for being good.

[@josiahalcorne]

@@GuyVonDudestein Like I said I didn't hear his comments in context to judge.

[@turnstyle518]

Thank you for creating a video on this topic as well as attempting to have a conversation. If we have a more open discussion, I think the hobby will benefit, McFarlane toys caters to the adult market for almost 25 years, and just recently started competing with billion-dollar toy corporations in both sales and box stores. Todd is attacked as if he is a major brand, right or wrong, he has been putting his foot in his mouth his entire career. Outraged people don't realize he is outperforming giant toy companies. If there's anyone who listens to the collector, it's Todd! You want things to be different? Explain your reason instead of attacking people.

[@The_Sage_of_Stormwall]

A tough conversation to have, but you handled it as well as it can be handled.

[@SlashManEXE]

This is one of those topics where the loudest people complaining aren’t the ones buying. It’s a very entitled view to have on things. I remember the Rey controversy, and how social media was suddenly guilting toy companies. Flash forward to when Rey became a peg warmer and then everyone was silent

[@tehtonym]

Man what a loaded topic. I imagine making this video took some guts so bravo !

[@mannyperez4126]

Check pegs daily or weekly, you'll notice female /minority figures tend to pegwarm on the heroes front. Wrestling is bit different since females/ minorities tend to be more championed in comparison, but they still peg warm. I'm a collector and seller and I definitely see/ feel the difference in sales .

[@CreamCheeseAlchemist]

And I do think that’s got negative implications. I got pushback as a girl who collected tmnt but as much as I gravitated towards April once I finally found her, the line also primed me to also identify or at least empathize with characters different from my race and gender too. I did find it sad that the 2000s had a robust tmnt line but no company would pick up Static despite its ratings being comparable. To parents, I would ask why a ninja turtle is different than a human with different skin.

[@mikeyjhilli]

It was very obvious to me that the serial killer comment was a sarcastic, tongue in cheek comment. I agree with him. I also tried to read the article that was shown. I couldn't. If there is one thing that I learned about female characters is what Scott said to me in a response. It only takes one to tell a story.

[@JurassicRod]

I agree. Todd was blatantly joking with the serial killer remark. People just like to get on their high horse now and act offended and virtuous to stroke their egos.

[@mace2741]

Whoa, someone who can actually define a woman/girl.

[@TheBigBigSean]

"I'm not a biologist"

[@SwimKam]

Mace. Whoa! Someone who’s Not ashamed enough to hide their Stupid! Ignorant heathen. Read a book and put down your toys.

[@jamorrispatterson5339]

I was waiting for you to make this video!

[@cetialphav3214]

I feel like this applies only to children. As adults we definitely want all the characters male or female. But even then I always wanted Teela, Evil-Lyn, April O'Neil and the other female characters when I was a child. I'm sure there are parents who won't buy female action figures for boys or have ingrained sexist ideas in their kids heads but I'd like to think we've grown somewhat over the decades.

[@TJ52359]

There's still 'something' afoot... Back in 2020 I got pulled into Collecting with the New MOTU Lines (my inner child totally had to twist my arm to do it too :/) and with my Store tours looking for the figures that I wanted (which still aren't well stocked) I'd check the clearance aisles for anything, just so I didn't leave the store empty handed and drive ~100 Miles round trip for "Nothing" -- In just Marvel alone I've since acquired Domino (deadpool 2) , Mystique, Squirrel Girl (with Scooter) Black Widow, Songbird, Katy (from Shang Chi) America Chavez, Rogue and 7/9 Eternals * my local wal mart still has Eternals Figures in the clearance aisle and it's 60/40 Ajak and Ikaris (I'd wager part of This problem is that it was a BAF Line with 9 Figures but you only needed 6 of them to get the Parts for the Figure being Built

[@joemartin5669]

When you did the classics line who would you say we're the best selling girls from the He-man and she ra lines

[@Junketsuadidas]

Check out the after market prices on the Sorceress & Teela

[@ShrtRndKid]

I'm positive the data shows exactly what you are saying here: female figures tend to sell less in the action figure aisle. I'm not sure that the data necessarily tells us why that is though. Is it because the boys didn't want the female figures, or is it because the parents thought the boys didn't want the female figures so they didn't buy them? It might not even be a conscious decision on the parents part to ignore the figure, but the parents themselves are conditioned to assume that boys want to play with "boy toys" and girls want to play with "girl toys." We assume that boys play aggressively because they are aggressive, but maybe a toy that comes with guns and knives invites aggressive play, while a toy that comes with additional sets of clothes lends itself to playing "house." I have 3 children, 2 boys and a girl. My oldest is an 11 year old boy. Growing up he loved Hot Wheels and Thomas the train, but he also loved playing with baby dolls and Shopkins. He loved role playing with his Fisher Price kitchen and also his Imaginext Batcave. And he would play aggressively with his trucks and Batman figures, but he would also roleplay taking care of a baby and making food. My daughter is 6. She loves playing with dolls and dressing up like Disney Princesses. She also loves playing with her older brother's Batman figures and catching the Joker. Perhaps it's more about the aim of the toyline, and less about the gender of the child.

[@Matt-fs1yy]

I love Rey's post-duel "mountain" look. Damn that girl's fine.

[@mainman804]

The Bleeding Cool article about this proposes that McFarlane do a wave of Catwoman, Zatanna, Poison Ivy, Supergirl, and Power Girl and that they would absolutely sell. Well this is anecdotal, but as a (mostly) completionist of DCUC, which is a comparable line, I can recall the Walmart exclusive Powergirl and Zatanna pegwarming despite only being sold at one retailer. Power Girl peg warmed even harder when she was released as part of an All-Star wave not long after. Supergirl, during the initial S3 period, was also easily available where as I can remember Lex Luthor, Steel, and Cyborg Superman being a pain to find at the time. Silver Age Catwoman pegwarmed and though the S3 version was admittedly hard to find, other than camo Bane, that whole purple card wave was difficult to find at the time. Poison Ivy didn’t even see release until Matty Collecter. Bleeding Cool’s proposed all female wave would peg warm like crazy.

[@TJ52359]

Not wholly disagreeing but I think Sculpt, 'source'*, and accessories would tip a few scales... some of them having been released before, the new one would need more than just a fresh coat of paint... * Expressly invoking a specific adventure, and being as accurate as the medium allows will also go a long way in drawing Eyes... One of the issues I have with the McFarlane/Multiverse Line is they're putting out so much so fast (or the supply chain is extra congested) that unless you study you don't know what to look for and there are 3-4 sub-lines releasing at the same time, but staggered -- Case in point they have a 4 piece Starro BAF that started with Crime Syndicate Superman /Ultraman that officially hit shelves back in the Spring IIRC with the other 3 pieces in shadow with unlisted dates August he goes on 70%clearance and Superwoman and Owlman show up with Starro parts... as of Labor Day Superwoman was already Half price.. and the 4th Figure is still a mystery but based on the missing piece of Starro and there being Only 1 piece left I'm guessing the 4th is either a Female or a very Lithe Johnny Quick

[@paulfrench7222]

You're right. Whether or not we WANT the statement to be true does not affect whether or not it IS true. MOTU Origins: my sons play with the Sorceress and their six male figures. I didn't pick up Teela. My oldest son says he doesn't want She-Ra... she's hiding in a box while I wait to find out if my second-born wants her for his birthday. Otherwise, I guess she's mine. Great figure, but lower demand even in my household.

[@brendanorourke4727]

I'm curious about the methodology they use to track who is buying these figures and for whom they are purchasing. I can believe that we adult collectors are not the majority of toy customers (by far), but when it comes to the DC Multiverse/Marvel Legends type lines is it possible the toy companies are underestimating our share of the market? Do they separate the basic lines from the higher price point figures when compiling that data? How do they know which adults are purchasing gifts and which are collectors? Since this hobby is driven by nostalgia from our own childhoods, isn't it likely that we also purchase more male figures based on what we wanted long ago?

[@DetectiveBarricade]

It's possible, but I don't think it'd still be enough to warrant an entire wave of just female action figures at retail. Certainly not in a spot that's expected to have a turnaround of 1 unit per peg per week.

[@paluxyl.8682]

I collect female action figures and dolls , and must say that the design of many female action figures (I talk about the buck) is often very bad compare to the male figures . It's almost like the companies wants the female figures or "action dolls" lines to fail . Here are some examples of mediocre or bad design : - the Star Wars Forces of Destiny action dolls , they are a catastrophy ... everything is wrong - the She-ra and the Princessess of Power Netflix dolls , the design and quality is low - the WWE action dolls , they looks cool on pictures ... but they got many flaws , it makes not much fun to pose them - the Mattel Wonder Woman movie playline dolls ... just mediocre quality and some got bad articulation - the Masters of the Universe Origins female figures , the arm sockets are diagonal (the arm pops easy out) and why the ugly knees... it's almost like a sabotage - most of the female Star Wars Black Series figures are too thin ... holding them in hand feels almost like an other toyline compare to the male figures My main question is always : Why is a Barbie with a "Made to Move" body better than most of the action doll lines ?

[@NerdRahtio]

Sadly the very fact that boys and girls are different is under attack. It’s just reality. Of course their exceptions and outliers. I was a stay at home Dad for several years, so my son wanted a baby to hold like I held his sister, but most of the time? He wanted tanks and monsters and to smash them into each other. My daughter has marvel legends now, but she plays like they are having a social event, not fighting.

[@Roadpigjohn]

Very insightful video Scott... 💡😀 I don't think anybody should get offended by your comments unless is some kind of person that criticize everybody else but doesn't like people to comment on him/his toyline... I'm not trying to imply anybody but you know who is the most sensible toy maker in the business today...😁✌️

[@brandonandcharlene9527]

Facts are facts. There should be no shame in the truth. Original MOTU in 6 years had 3 female characters. I had them all, but it was because I wanted to " collect them all" as a kid. Not because they are my favorites. As an adult collector, Hasbro tried to release an all female combining Teansformer team between 2018-2019. It was a nightmare as 3 members were sold at standard retailer, although one of those came at the end of the line and was hard to get. One was an Amazon exclusive, and the last one was a Hasbro Pulse exclusive, but Entertainment Earth had first shot at SDCC. I'm glad I got them all, but it was so frustrating, but I get why they felt they had to release them in such a way

[@OzzieAstaroth]

Sometimes it works though, like with the She-Ra line which was a cross between doll and action figure. As a boy during that time, I can attest to preferring male action figures over female ones, I still wanted a She-Ra figure to go with He-Man. But then you get the parents who are like "No, that's for girls." and the playground talk about it all. These days I have noticed that even when a company releases a female action figure, it has less articulation than a male one would, and I figure that's to cut costs because male or female, your arms and legs still function the same. Another issue separate from this one that I wonder if you could comment on is companies wanting figures to not come with guns. Todd talked about that too and I find it strange.

[@ZeroAnalogy]

12:30 "You shall not pass!"

[@_Kimberlin]

Bobby Vala is doing an all female wave with wave 3 of Valaverse lets see how that goes. I personally am hyped to get some Female Steel Brigade along with some of the others from that wave :)

[@machineman6498]

Looking to see how that does as well. Not a big box line, but will still show buying patterns with collectors.

[@brettwood1351]

@@machineman6498 Being a collector line, it'll do fine I think. It's when you've got to factor in kids that you have a problem.

[@iampoch01]

Won't be a valid assessment. Action Force is a non-retail toy line whose main target audience are collectors. McFarlane and Spector are talking about toys sold at retail and whose target audience are kids, or more specifically, adults buying toys for kids. The Action Force Wave 3 will undoubtedly do well due to this.

[@SwimKam]

Valaverse is an online adult collector line, not a mass retail line. As has been pointed out repeatedly, mass retail caters to the lowest common denominator, Not to niche adult fans

[@Tim85-y2q]

The irony is that McFarlane toys had some of the few available female figures on the pegs back in the day. Further it's kind of laughable that Todd would be concerned how toys impact children given the sheer number of gory, grotesque or otherwise adult themed action figures his company has pushed out to mass retail over the years.

[@TitularHeroine]

Was gonna say this.

[@Sci-Fi-Mike]

Great video, Scott! Word of warning, though, some internet trolls might take you up on your offer for the bridge in Middle Earth. Many trolls tend to like living under bridges...

[@jimgillespie6109]

I collect action figures -- when I have money, that is -- with a focus on female characters, so whenever I find female figures in the aisle, I'm always pleased. In recent months Ive seen the Marvel Legends "What If...?" series and the MOTU "Revelation" and Origins series, and the female characters all sold fairly quickly (with one noteworthy exception). The Revelation Evil-Lyn disappeared in no time, as did the Origins Sorceress and ML's Captain Carter. Unfortunately, ML's What If Nebula figure ended up as a peg warmer here. Walmart had to move her to the Clearance aisle and cut her price in half to sell her. What a shame.

[@greenvash]

Great video Scott, keep them coming!

[@3Storms]

When I was a kid I thought that having nothing but dudes in a line was .....well.......you know that word. The 1984 Baroness was and still is my all-time favorite female action figure. Takara Cool Girl/BBI Cy-Girls was also a successful line with only one male in the whole series. There was something about Barbie coming with a Gatling gun instead of a hair brush that both male and female collectors found attractive. Plus Lara Croft. She helped make female figures attractive to male collectors in the 1990s just as she made it ok for males to play as the girl in the games.

[@BatFan1]

Certain female characters are going to sell, but once you get beyond the A-B list it's going to become tougher to move those characters, even to adult collectors. I'm sure if Todd released a wave of only Wonder Woman, Harley Quinn, Catwoman and Batgirl it would sell well. It wouldnt disprove his theory, it just means he's putting the A-list female characters he has available to him all out at once. And for the most part these have been the only female characters he has made available (honestly cant think of another...oh, Batwoman Beyond). And again, who is doing the whining? Adult collectors. Who make up a certain % of the total customers buying the product. It's like they forget they are only a small part of the target. Like comic book movies, people think they may be doing movies for the comic book audience but in reality it's the general audience they want to go see the movies because they make up the majority.

[@JurassicRod]

I LOVED Captain Simian and the Space Monkeys! No one ever talks about it. I'd love to hear what you know of the behind the scenes stuff with that line. I'm still frustrated I could never find the female character. She's pretty rare and expensive in the UK at least.

[@grrrraffe]

Hmm. Your explanation at 00:03:37 makes sense. I'll need to rewatch the movie now because i left the theater hating it. I thought Stallone was doing THE WORST Jabberjaw impression ever. :) My friend's father had a Savage Sword Conan collection, and when He-Man came out, i was so happy that there was a "Conan" for me. I was constantly hoping for more Red Sonja-esque characters. Teela was alright, but a bit of a let down when compared to how cool she was drawn in the earlier mini-comics and golden activity/coloring books. Once the filmation show came out and the minicomics were becoming more cheesy like the show, i knew i was never going to get a "Red Sonja". However, I do remember wanting She-Ra as a kid real bad but Mattel released an odd version that, in my mind, didn't mesh well with my motu collection. That being said, i didn't care for the rest of the great rebellion. They would have needed to drop that floofy hair, cloth armor, and brushes. Replace all that nonsense with an evil-lyn buck, chain and plate mail, and pointy weapons. I however, was probably playing MotU differently in my head than most were. >< All that rambling aside, awesome video, Spector Creative!

[@MatticusPrime1]

How well did the female Classics figures sell?

[@josiahalcorne]

This also applies to the ratio of good guys to bad guys in a toy line as well. Kids want to be the Hero or a Hero when they play so you need a couple of well-developed heroes to choose from but a generic army builder and bad guy leader and kids can play for years.

[@RarebitFiends]

Even as an adult collector I am by and large far more focused on completing hero teams/sets. Villians are still secondary for me.

[@josiahalcorne]

@@RarebitFiends yeah me too. I only ever get multiples of any figure if they are boxed with something I want or it comes in a lot. But I really remember always wanting the heroes in every toyline and Never having enough bad guys for them to fight. We really had to resort to the bad guys having rancor monsters and dinosaurs for the heroes to fight.

[@joemartin5669]

It is better to have girls in a line sporadically.g.I.Joe in the 80's did it best with one lady per year.I do feel any line which had a female figure did seem to do a bit better then those which didn't.if one does a very girl focussed line of figures it would probably be best to make it online.

[@averagejoeoftheundead3903]

I tried to make this point to somone earlier in the week online who kept insisting "but people would buy the female figs if they made them". I tried to explain the data does not reflect that and todds obviously not going to put his money into an idea without a data backed return. It boiled down to once again this person was an adult collector and it seems those collectors think everyone else who buys toys is also a adult collector as well which just isn't true. Unfortunetly this isn't a matter of how we feel as much as a matter of a company putting their wallet where the money is.

[@Mark_Knight]

I believe 50% people are so brain washed 100's of years of reality can be ignored, pretend it's not true, because of current year feelings. There is a reason Communists called Libs useful idi0ts.

[@bladestar2322]

Exactly! I'm an Adult Collector and I love Female Figures, but I know in general that Todd, and Scott are right and that they don't sell as well as the Male heroes. While I personally seek out Female Figures, I'm an exception, not the rule. Same reason Male Heroes in Comics generally outsell Female!

[@Mark_Knight]

@@bladestar2322 That is a very fair comment. The only time I recall seeking female figures was for sailor moon figuarts.

[@Mark_Knight]

@kirb vibin Even board games, boys are better because of their mathematical and logical skills. I played something similar to tetris and there are differences in my students. Girls tend to like more artistic things and things involving service and hospitality.

[@scottdoesntmatter4409]

I beg to differ, as a little boy I used my toys to explore, not fight.

[@3faltigeralexandro]

There is also a social factor to consider. Dolls and Action Figures are a kind of prestige objects among kids, so they are not wishing for the ones that they want the most, but the ones they most want to show to their peers. When TMNT was big, my favorite Turtle was Donatello (because he was the smart/nerdy one, the one I kind of identified with). Yet, when it came to getting the figures, I actually started with Leonardo, holding off on getting Donnie until way later (I think I got supporting characters like April and minor villains like Muckman, before completing my quartett of Turtles). Why was that? Well, Donnie wasn't exactly seen as a "cool" character back then, and even though I liked that (not being cool myself), I still craved the acceptance of other kids, so I got the figures that were considered "cool", just to be in the in-group. Could be something similar with female figures.

[@Dergenheinkel]

Yo. Did u see the listing for the “Spector” origins figure? Maybe its mighty spector

[@TLC21]

Love ur videos, please keep them coming

[@silverbullet1620]

Only thing I know about Spawn comes from Mortal Kombat.

[@bladestar2322]

In fact, I even did an entire All Female Earth. I have 10 Different Earth's, one of which is Earth Created Equal; All Female, based on a DC Graphic Novel. This happened because a few years ago there was a Great nation wide store Hastings! Well, they were going out of business and selling everything on clearance! I'm a sucker for Female Figures, even though I already had figures on most of these characters, there were a lot of variants, including Arrowverse! So, I snatched up Melissa Supergirl, Hawkgirl, Felicity Smoke, Black Canary, White Canary, Vixen, then movie Wonder Woman, Batgirl of Burnside, new 52 Zatanna etc. all for around $5 each. Before I knew it I had around 30 Female Figures that didn't have a place in my established Earth's. DC was always terrible about giving us Villains and Villainesses were even rarer, but I got what they had, and I have fudged a few in since.

[@Omegavision79]

Another great video. It's true, female characters just don't sell to boys unless they want to complete a set.

[@JayWoods483]

Since the interview I have been doing some research on my own, and I have to confirm what you have stated Spector. However there are some other factors when mentioning a brand like Marvel or DC who have female characters EVERYONE wants yet are not made/available/updated - that they simply refuse to make. Personally, I have rules that are strictly enforced when collecting, so I am extremely selective with what I buy. I am assisted by both MacFarlane and Hasbro's character selection process. Considering Hasbro's recent track record with female face portraits, I am even more selective. If that could be overcome and Hasbro decides to make a five-pack or wave either/or: Wasp, Gamora, Moondragon, Mantis, Harpy, Umar, Crystal, Titania, Black Mamba, Princess Python, Typhoid Mary, Moonstone, I believe the market is there to make it a success, and if proven would affirm my point "are not made/available/updated - that they simply refuse to make".

[@tawdryhepburn4686]

When I was 11, I remember that I was ecstatic to find a Transmetal 2 Blackarachnia, and I snapped her right up. Definitely never saw her in stores again. Meanwhile, Transmetal 1 AirRazor was the only figure in that line I never owned. She’s a sort of holy grail to this day for me. I never took issue with female figures, I was just annoyed by how difficult they were to find. Weirdly, I think that annoyance predisposed me towards the feminist political leanings I would later develop.

[@GundamWarrior1]

The amount of Mary Rey Sues at places like Ollie's Bargain Outlet and 5 Below........prove Todd's point.

[@Mark_Knight]

Ken is an accessory or a male purse, who simply carries his wallet for Barbie.

[@Evantainment]

This is interesting to me, especially regarding the female Ghostbusters. When this line hit the shelves at the two local Walmarts, the "Classic" figures in black packaing were immediately put out on clearance for half price and quickly disappeared. The "Answer the Call" figures in green packaging were on the shelf for regular price for quite some time. And I couldn't even find Jillian until a year or more later when I stumbled across her figure at a toy show. The Answer The Call figures did eventually go on clearance at Walmart after the movie had come and gone. I think it was just Abby and Patti left at that point. Then the Classic figures, and the Answer the Call ghost figures (including Stay Puft) began showing up at dollar stores for $4 each. But not once did I ever find full waves of the female Ghostbusters on sale. The exception to the rule? 🤷‍♂️

[@sneakyskunk1]

This was a tough one Scott. Hope you do not draw too much flack for telling the truth.

[@steve9021oh]

I do pick up female figs but it’s like 9-1 male to female. Maybe even 9.5-1. Also depends on teams. If they are needed to fill up a team, I get them. If they are “bad guys” or stand alone figs, I don’t. What I want to know is how is Todd able to keep a 19.99 price point while marvel legends and Neca figs are going up? (Yes, I know there are more companies raising prices these days. But not Todd.)

[@Mark_Knight]

I think TODD says he is essentially the owner/independent and does NOT have to answer to investors. They keep upping the prices because of their stocks essentially. Todd for NOW, can keep it at 20 dollars. Eventually he will have to increase, but he's not nickle and diming the fans, like Hasbro and NECA.

[@brettwood1351]

@@Mark_Knight Yeah. Investors like to see "Yes you are getting more back on your investments" and really don't know or care too much about what it means for the customers.

[@KingRandor82]

@@brettwood1351 not to mention who they work for, higher up ;)

[@jerrybeckettdd]

If data mattered then why do producers of shows like Halo, on Paramount+, completely miss the mark? The show is a flop. Same with shows like MOTU Revelations on Netflix. The entertainment industry (which is tied to directly to the toy industry) is choosing to ignore the data and adhere to an overall agenda that bypasses what the majority want. Kudos for your show here, walking on egg shells is never easy.

[@KingRandor82]

because they don't care what people want, they want to *tell* them what they "should" want ;)

[@emasabates]

Don’t know what you are talking about. They are still packing more male characters in both of those toy lines, as per the data suggests.

[@rickytoddbotelho9555]

Years before I heard of Toddy Mcfartlane I tried taking a comic strip I came up with to the Seattle times , never one to start small, I was turned down. There was no one in the industry at the time with the name Todd. I discovered toddy's work on the cover of Batman, the cover with the flowing blue cape. This was after the dark knight returns and before the movie came out. At the time I had no intention of trying something for DC but it occurred to me, that I was just about to start art school this was a good idea. Thanks Toddy 😝👍

[@perceivedvelocity9914]

The people who complain that there are no female action figures, never support the female action figures that are produced. They do not put their money where their mouth is.

[@3.75istheway7]

I was 13 in 92 and I remember buying the first 50ish comics

[@adamn.4615]

Hasbro seemed to get the balance right during the prequels. Episode I had not one, but two Natalie Portman figures in the first wave. Both were easy to find, but I don't recall if either warmed the shelves as badly as some of the male figures in that collection.

[@willku9000]

So is that why we never got a Chedra Bodzak in the Extreme Dinosaurs Toyline?

[@jasonking3182]

I am a big believer in one great female figure a wave. At that pace you should get most of the major characters in whatever the universe you are doing without leaving major holes in the line like Kenner did with Super Powers.(we got made up heroes before Supergirl or Black Cannery)

[@ShatteredTrousers]

Agreed. One per wave, or even every other wave, is typically enough to cover all the key characters. Above all else I value having the option to buy female characters, rather than asking for female characters and the reply being "no, nobody wants female characters."

[@benfromthebunker9621]

This bridge in Middle earth...do you have a price in mind?

[@RetroActionUK]

It’s 100% true in the Toy Industry. At Hasbro, Transformers infamously left out Arcee and many female action figures were part of cancelled waves or appeared in the final series such as with Kenner in MASK when Gloria Baker was finally released with Stiletto.

[@ShatteredTrousers]

This used to be true of Hasbro's Transformers, however we are getting quite a lot of female-styled characters in the retail lines in recent years. The most recent installment of the War for Cybertron Trilogy, Kingdom, included Blackarachnia, Airrazor, Arcee (a repack of the same figure from the Earthrise instalment) and Vertebreak. Also, Ractonite may or may not be female, their bio doesn't say one way or the other. I suppose Ractonite might not identify as any gender, who knows? Other reoccurring female characters who have gotten toys recently, and may have upcoming toys in the near future include Windblade, Elita-One, Chromia and Minerva. It's actually possible to have quite a large collection of just female Transformers characters, towered over by the all-female combiner Victorion.

[@ShatteredTrousers]

Also, Gloria Baker drove a vehicle code-named "Shark." Sly Rax's mask was code-named "Stiletto."

[@RetroActionUK]

@@ShatteredTrousers in G1 and G2 that was the case, but Hasbro’s definitely been changing that since Kenner did Beast Wars.

[@RetroActionUK]

@@ShatteredTrousers Shark was never produced though.

[@ShatteredTrousers]

@@RetroActionUK Even though the past few years have been incredibly frustrating for Transformers fans to actually get the toys, the assortments of characters and variety have been top-notch! Truly the best of times and the worst of times. I apologise about MASK, I always forget about how the Split Seconds vehicles sometimes (confusingly) also shared names with masks worn in the series. You were right about Gloria being packed with a vehicle named "Stiletto."

[@mannyperez4126]

Honestly , if companies focused more time on building female characters and allowing them time to shine, they would sell better on all mediums.

[@Benjamin0119]

I mentioned before in the other video about what figures boys and girls more gravitate to. For me and my brother, I don't really recall that we self-inserted into any of the figures. It was more creating adventures and stories for the figures. And we had to have the female characters to complete the casts of whatever toy line it was. I remember being pretty annoyed with the monkey-faced Leia because how terrible that figure looked haha. Probably the only time we would "self-insert" would be full imaginary play, where little or no toys were involved. Also, once at a certain age, boys may find themselves drawn to female figures for reasons they can't quite figure out yet haha.

[@EngineerOfChaos]

My own random thoughts. I remember distinctly wanting the Pink Power Rangers action figure over the others because as a 7 year old I had a crush on Kimberly. So there's another reason boys might go for girl action figures.

[@Mark_Knight]

YES! Having a crush make you buy things, but no one wants ugly girl figures often, unless it's like Amanda Waller.

[@EngineerOfChaos]

@@Mark_Knight Even then Amanda Waller is just the bureaucrat villain of the DC Universe. Very memorable for toy collectors but I doubt many kids would want her even if she was a man.

[@mrjones5025]

Dude, the Baroness is responsible for my Russian accent infatuation to this day.

[@Mark_Knight]

@@mrjones5025 I have a thing for brunet's because of the same.

[@Mark_Knight]

@@EngineerOfChaos Exactly the point.

[@holonet1]

The only female characters I had as a kid was ANH Leia & ARAH Jinx. I got Leia in a lot & Jinx from a pharmacy store, cause she was a ninja, so, that automatically made her cool. Although, I never used her character as me when playing, she was my side kick.

[@lilformersmatt]

Boys like toys of boys best. Girls like toys of girls best. It's not rocket science.

[@tikvision]

Science

[@kevingallagher188]

I am patiently waiting for some of the classic female g.i.joe female figures to be released. I am still pissed about how many female figures from DC universe classics have become super expensive on the after market. No Classic Earth 2 Huntress, no golden age Harlequin, no Fury, no Jade, no Lilith, over half of the legion of superheroes left out. You can't buy what you won't make.

[@BainesMkII]

While there is some truth to it, it also feels a bit self-fulfilling, and that there also may be some confirmation bias involved. I wouldn't expect a supporting female character to outsell a lead male character, but how are the sales compared to the third-string male characters that fill out the rest of a wave? How many poorly selling female figures also suffered poor production quality? I know I've on multiple occasions avoided buying a female figure entirely because none on the peg looked acceptable, with derpy eyes or dubious molding or whatever. How often are female figures blamed for larger external issues, like the entire mess that was Ghostbusters 2016 or even to a degree Star Wars 7-9?

[@TitularHeroine]

Thank! You! This is part of it that I think many people haven't considered -- or perhaps won't.

[@adamn.4615]

Wasn't Hasbro's excuse for short-packing Rey in the Episode 7 wave that she came with Luke's lightsaber, and they didn't want to spoil a rather large plot point? My first thought is why on Earth would they include a lightsaber with the Rey that was released before the movie? They should have saved the lightsaber Rey for a later wave to be released a few months after everyone had seen the movie.

[@adamn.4615]

@kirb vibin the thing is, Luke's lightsaber making a comeback in E7 was supposed to be a surprise. I don't think it was even known beforehand that Rey would be force-sensitive. Anyone lucky enough to have found the Rey figure and seen a familiar lightsaber hilt would have wondered what was going on. That being said, the lightsaber claim does sound like a weak excuse to quell the social media backlash from Rey being so hard to find.

[@emasabates]

Rey was released with all the figures on the first night of release. She actually sold out after the movie premiered. She was later rereleased with Luke’s lightsaber in the black series.

[@adamn.4615]

@@emasabates My impression was Rey was one per case. I never saw her--either before or after the movie came out--though I'll admit I wasn't really paying attention to E7 figures. If I recall, I didn't start seeing the WheresRey hashtag until after the movie came out.

[@InsideOutInkDemon]

Poor state of affairs when you need so many caveats just to discuss sales data

[@rzone6192]

Generally, no. Isn't that what the problem was with Star Wars? It was franchise more geared toward little boys for decades, but then Disney made a huge push to try and bring in female fans, hoping little girls would buy into it. They did that "The Force is Female," marketing, and had that "Where's Rey," campaign on social media. So, then Disney kept forcing a number of new female characters on fans and collectors that they didn't know or care about. There was also an official book they published where the author tears down Luke Skywalker, calling him a nobody and saying how Jyn Erso is the real hero of the franchise. And fans didn't care about Jyn Erso, because she shows up only 1 time in any major media and dies on her first adventure. The end was result was that Star Wars ruined it's credibility at retail, with line after line of unsold toys. So Hasbro actually ended the main toyline, while continuing Black Series and TVC, but all the while trying to invent a new kids line, and failing multiple times. Some people even credit Star Wars failing for what pushed Toys R Us over the edge into finally collapsing, with those large Black Series Tie Fighters not selling, and those Power Wheels style Landspeeders being massively clearanced.

[@emasabates]

None of that was Disney marketing. The force is female was a nike promo, and Kathleen Kennedy just happened to be wearing a shirt from that campaign. “Wheres Rey,” was trending after a little girl was disappointed that hasbro’s monopoly didn’t feature the Rey’s character. Disgruntled star wars fans just used all that to complain about the new movies.

[@3.75istheway7]

Is that a good spot figure? I know you have wanted one?

[@johna4371]

Kinda wild that "boys and girls are different" is a statement that causes potential controversy these days. We can't state obvious truths without twisting ourselves into knots.

[@behindthescenesphotos5133]

Agree, though some of it depends on the character. Scarlet, April O'Neil, Princess Leia, Teela, Pink Ranger, Yellow Ranger, and Catwoman (not twelve Batman repaints) were more essential to a kid's collection than say, Janine Melnitz, Maid Marian, Jean Grey, or Rose Tico. Leia might not have been one of the first ten SW figures a boy would pick out, but she was always going to wind up in the collection. If you were into Batman after Batman Returns came out, you needed a Catwoman. I did know plenty of kids who collected a line and owned none of the female characters, even if they had the playsets and vehicles. After GI Joe, Ghostbusters, TMNT, and Batman my first female action figure was Annie from the 1991 Land of the Lost series. I didn't have the Christa, but she wasn't in every episode, so she wasn't as important.

[@KingRandor82]

I didn't need April O'Neil that much, honestly ;)

[@behindthescenesphotos5133]

@@KingRandor82 I never had one, but wanted it. The Turtles didn't need her to fight Shredder, but she could have been used as someone for them to rescue. Splinter was easily able to fill that role when it came up.

[@acem7749]

Nice we can define boys and girls :) not woke. Soo happy...

[@machineman6498]

Thank you for making this (with a well thought out delivery). Now off to read what McFarland said....

[@whozyourdaddy]

Fun fact: Todd McFarlane lives in McFarland.

[@machineman6498]

@@whozyourdaddy auto not-so-correct. My bad

[@dippy_1999]

I 100% agree with Todd, makes me want to actually check out some McFarlane toys.

[@spectorcreative1872]

Nice

[@RarebitFiends]

They are gonna come for you next Scott. 😰 McFarlane said the same thing with a few coarse jokes peppered in. It was the bitter pill, not the jokes that people lost their shit about.

[@KingRandor82]

my former room-mate's girlfriend was borderline-in-tears over more female action figures (even in prominent media) not being produced, or easy to get. All I have to respond with now is "look at how well the vintage She-Ra figures did; Mommy wanted her daughter playing with Barbie, not a warrior".

[@n_explosion8199]

I had 2 female figures as a kid, Chun Li from the gijoe sf2 line and Jinx, also gijoe. I remember wanting a lady Jay figure, but never found one. Didn't have any girls in my motu, Thundercats or tmnt collection as a kid. As a adult collector I have about 8 female figures in a small collection of about 60 figures in total. Mostly because I like to get key-teammembers or because I like the character.

[@55pepetube]

One issue with female figure is they keep using the same model figure and just change the paint. Recycling the same mold time and time. It gets old really fast.

[@thegillmanedits]

My collection nowadays is largely composed of female action figures (around 90%) but it is really something I came into as an adult. Kid me was all about the male action figures that I could project my imagination into. Even when I grew into collecting over playing and WANTED female action figures, the sculpts weren't exactly very flattering. Now that they look fantastic I'm very content with my choice to collect them because not only to they look great but, because they move slower on the market, I can always find what I'm looking for! Really, fans should consider themselves lucky that female action figures are getting the attention they do. We've gotten some amazing additions in numbers and varieties that we probably would of have to of waited for much longer in the past.

[@thetshawkeye1035]

I loved my Scarlett figure from Gijoe! I was stolen 4 times. Dame with Lady Jaye.

[@3.75istheway7]

That is a dope Wonder Woman figure! And Todd is 110% right, it is so sad that you can’t say the obvious anymore!

[@BadAssXerx3]

I like the McFarlane Toys Figures, have most of the Batmen from Hell and want more( Joker Dragon, Knight Batman etc.), especially the new Spawn Line f.e. Overtkill, Gunslinger Spawn, Shespawn( Looks amazing), Haunt. Yes he is right about that, but I think the psychological stuff is a bit far fetched. Interesting Video as always

[@shawnkarg3794]

As a kid, I didn't mind there being female characters in the shows supporting the toys I liked. Lady Jay was pretty bad ass, but I preferred the male characters that I could identify with, or project myself into as part of the play. And I grew up to respect women as human beings like myself, not as somehow less than, just different.

[@ProfessorHurt]

But the funny thing is Todd has yet to give us a comic Wonder Woman, Catwoman, and Harley (the only Diana's he gave are her costume in Death Metal, the alternate universe Batman story, and Endless Winter besides the movie versions). Quite peculiar for sure. Of note, the only female character at DC who's gotten two comic figures from McFarlane has been Barbara Gordon (the Sean Murphy costume in wave 1 and the 3 Jokers costume in the 3 Jokers wave). Really, Batwoman Beyond is the most curious choice of a female figure. Other than that maybe McFarlane will use parts of that mold for a future Cassandra Cain Batgirl or even an Inque figure (with retooling, though probably slight in the former).

[@NotSoAmazing]

When I was 5, 6, 7 years old and buying G.I. Joe, Masters, Transformers, SilverHawks, etc etc, I didn't have - and didn't want - a single female action figure. I had every male figure. Even then I was a completist, but didn't feel like I was missing anything by not having the girls. No Baroness, no Arcee, no Teela. I was a little boy. I didn't want to play with a girl figure. And I'd guess that most little boys are still the same way.

[@Toygains]

The “serial killer” line I’m sure was in jest

[@jones7299]

Nice tap dance. Human nature. Am I right? Thanks for your work.

[@jorijoestar4998]

It's interesting how much the figure markets change in adulthood. Companies like Good Smile make bank selling female figures to men and women.

[@BackoftheCerealBox]

What about states like CA mandating by law that toys can no longer be segregated by boys vs girls?

[@spectorcreative1872]

Regardless of how a local government forces private companies to sell things in a certain way will have very little effect on what toy a particular child wants

[@qwertystania]

The serial killer comment was a hyperbolic joke. Maybe it was in bad taste but I saw it as a pretty obvious joke

[@luiszuniga2859]

But Phicen TBLeague sell very well... hehe

[@gerrysabron]

even among my non collector male buddies, the first figures they want to check out in my collection, are the male superheroes..rarely they touch or look at the females, & thats even free...

[@knightwolfpro4494]

Let's be honest, the trailer for the 2016 Ghostbusters movie was so bad that no one wanted to get the toys even before the movie tanked. This is coming from someone who actively goes after the female figures in a line.

[@BrothersWebOfficial]

It's the truth no one should be mad. -Luke

[@prototypebodyhammer]

Kinda funny to see this after my weekend classics purchase... She-ra, flutterina, peekablue, perfuma and sea hawk... Oh and the origins sdcc She-Ra lol As a kid... 100% thought the male and creatures were better... Wanted a female as a plot point in play.