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The Alien™ Franchise


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And if we'd put out a set with the Alien OR Ripley, not both, and we'd been unsure about a second set, you would have been far more upset.

If you put out a set with the Alien OR Ripley, there'd be no reason to be unsure about a second set. Demand would be guaranteed.

I guess I'm having trouble understanding why there's so little faith in this film.

Because the only things I remember from Alien are the Xeno, Ripley and the dude with the chest buster. I know other people may like it, but I didn't care for Alien. Aliens is a MUCH better film in my eyes, and much more memorable, with actual characters. I'm glad it's your favorite, but I'd rather have DST air on the side of caution. I don't need 2 Alien box sets. One will suite me just fine.

You see, you are exactly the audience we're talking about and are inadvertently illustrating our point. You're getting all you need from one, single $19.99 set and have no need, desire, what-have-you for another. But you'd likely buy the second (if you knew it was being released shortly after) to get the other key character that you remember were they split-up, correct? I'm no business major, but I think two sales are generally better than one. I understand that sales need to be strong on the first to allow for a second, but with this particular theme and small cast, I don't whole-heartedly agree that it was necessary. This, and the remaining cast on their own would not have much sales appeal to someone such as yourself.

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I'm a fan of the entire franchise (yes, even Prometheus).

Man PL, I so wanted to read your post, but after this, in good conscience, I just couldn't sad.png

Prometheus? Why's everybody so down on Prometheus?!? It accomplished what it set out to do (provide a little background for the mystery of the "space jockey" and give a general idea of the Xeno origin) while leaving enough open for one's imagination (or possible, though unlikely sequel!). It's only what came between Aliens 3 and Prometheus (I can't even bring myself to say the name) that I'm in personal denial about (it's a trilogy and a prequel as far as I'm concerned)!

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Didn't the ReAction line just go over really well? I thought the big response to those Alien figs was what inspired Funko to jump in as a distributor and co-opt that whole idea? If we get more sets they'll probably be anchored with an Alien/Ripley too, although some alternate "meltdown" Ash parts could make a set stand out enough to leave one out. I was pretty surprised to see one of the Kill Bill sets without a Kiddo, but I guess that's only because army-building will make up the sales.

Just to counterpoint Dino, I'm much more of an Alien fan, the only Aliens mates I'll be looking to get are Burke, Bishop and a power loader Ripley if they make one. The marines just never stuck with me that much. I'd love the whole Nostromo crew, but if we don't get Lambert it's not the end of the world, even that actress was like "all I do is scream".

I enjoyed Prometheus, the design of the movie was great so they'd make for nice mates. Every character in that movie is an idiot though.

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I prefer AvP (both) to Alien 3 and except for the end with the silly pink alien hybrid I like Alien Res.

I will now sit back and await the bricks that will be tossed my way.

I would like to have the entire Alien cast but I do understand if there is just Riply and an Alien that came out.

I could guess that if you asked a cross section of just the general public on what they can pull from memory about alien the movie it would be something along the lines of. Alien itself, Riply, chest burster, face hugger, space jockey, cat. I'd be quite surprised if the other crew got much of a mention.

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Until DST acquires the Predator rights, it's a moot point in terms of Minimates. Since it's pretty clear they got rights to the first two films, I think it's safe to say they could easily get the rights for the latter two (if they don't already) although I suspect there's even less interest in characters from those flicks.

Personally I think Aliens is just the loud, obnoxious kid in the room and that's why it's getting all the attention. I recall the addition of the Queen being pretty controversial among fans and criticisms that the sequel only succeeded in dumbing the franchise down for mass consumption with its 80s-style, shoot-'em-up take on the original source material.

But I guess if you're talking about toys, then Dropships and APCs and Load Lifters are far more exciting than escape shuttles and space jockeys. And it's far cheaper more cost-effective to leverage sculpts as many times as possible, so the more xenos and Marines you can offer, the better.

Honestly, though. Who doesn't want Jones? A Kittymate? Wook at dat puddin'!

JonestheCatAlien_4.jpg

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I'm a fan of the entire franchise (yes, even Prometheus).

Man PL, I so wanted to read your post, but after this, in good conscience, I just couldn't sad.png
Prometheus? Why's everybody so down on Prometheus?!? It accomplished what it set out to do (provide a little background for the mystery of the "space jockey" and give a general idea of the Xeno origin) while leaving enough open for one's imagination (or possible, though unlikely sequel!). It's only what came between Aliens 3 and Prometheus (I can't even bring myself to say the name) that I'm in personal denial about (it's a trilogy and a prequel as far as I'm concerned)!
Yeah, I quite liked Prometheus. It was the sequel to Alien that I'd wanted but had never gotten. Anyway, I have no complaints about DST is handling this license. I'll be buying it all and hoping plenty of others do the same. I figure the only way we'll set the rest of the Nostromo crew is if there are strong sales, so I'll be doing my part to make that happen.
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DST can start Aliens with more confidence because they can always throw in more Xenos to balance out the less popular characters. It's like having a Spider-Man/army builder hybrid to work with. You can cover a lot of risk with your most popular character.

Making an Alien set without the Xeno and Ripley would be suicidal. Sabotaging the popularity of the first boxset isn't going to help you get to a second. It might work for the hardcore collectors, but the general audience is going to want the most important characters from the film. Better to include them and try to come up with an appealing mix of minor characters and worthwhile variants for a second set.

Prometheus is one of the dumbest movies I've ever seen.

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Nobody said Aliens was a secret, I said the figures weren't approved. Showing unapproved figures is not cool with every licensor. We showed some a couple of years ago and the licensor was not happy. I'm not saying they pulled the license that day, but the line was ultimately canceled.

And anyone who says Aliens dumbs down the franchise, either today or in 1986, is out of their mind. Aliens CREATED the franchise. Alien was a great horror movie, but Aliens made it what it is today.

Again, sorry people think we're sabotaging our toys based on a 35-year-old movie. I think we're trying to ensure success.

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And anyone who says Aliens dumbs down the franchise, either today or in 1986, is out of their mind. Aliens CREATED the franchise. Alien was a great horror movie, but Aliens made it what it is today.

I totally get and agree where you are coming from. Alien and Aliens (including 3 through AvP:R) are two entirely different creatures. Alien has more in common with Event Horizon or the Sphere than it does the rest of the continuity.

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I'll concede that because Aliens was a big hit, they decided that Alien was now a series to keep producing films for. But Aliens wouldn't be anything without all the groundwork laid by Alien in creating Ripley, the Xenomorph, and the world they live in. I enjoy Aliens, but it doesn't hold a candle to Alien in terms of quality for me.

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Can't we all just get along? I mean, come on guys, we shouldn't be fighting over which of the first two is better. We should be agreeing on the fact that there were two movies, and only two movies. The rest are just some kind of a rumor.

The fact of the matter is that Aliens couldn't have happened without Alien, but Alien on it's own wouldn't get a lot of the recognition that Aliens helped bring it. They're two different , but complimentary films, both of which are really great movies. Aliens is one of my all time favorite movies, but I won't knock those who prefer the original, because the differing nature makes the whole "which one is better" thing completely subjective.

The thing is, Aliens is a much easier sell that Alien. It's got more monster designs, more memorable/distinctive character looks, and you can rerelease the basic Xeno out the wazoo. I can't say I'm totally shocked that Diamond is jumping all the way in there, but is hedging their bets on Alien for the time being. As far as the character choices for the Alien set, releasing only one out of the Ripley/Xeno pair would undoubtedly cause some kind of uproar, and I could see people holding off buying the first set until the other character is confirmed, hurting the initial set's sales. Plus, there's easy variants of both should Diamond choose to release the rest of the crew down the line. And I really hope the first set sells well, because I definitely want the rest of the crew. For the time being, however, I'm happy to be getting anything at all. I've gone a very long time without any significant product from either film, so I'm glad the franchise as a whole is getting some love.

As an aside, I get that people are getting all heated up about this and stuff, but I don't think it helps that the title of this thread is now effectively egging on the debate by referring to Aliens as "that James Cameron Sequel." Maybe we could find some sort of happy medium so that nobody's favorite is being insulted?

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How about just The Alien Franchise? I'd like to see 'mates from all four films, regardless of what you think of the film itself. And even Prometheus, I think some of the designs would be cool.

"The Alien Franchise" would work for me. All joking aside, I know some of the later movies have their fans, and some of the designs are pretty cool. I for one loathe Alien 3 to its very core, but I wouldn't say no to a dog alien, because its not a bad design.

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I totally get and agree where you are coming from. Alien and Aliens (including 3 through AvP:R) are two entirely different creatures. Alien has more in common with Event Horizon or the Sphere than it does the rest of the continuity.

Don't drink and post, TM2. You might regret it later.
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I'll concede that because Aliens was a big hit, they decided that Alien was now a series to keep producing films for.

I was surprised to see that the box office for Alien was pretty much the same as for Aliens. I assumed Cameron had "popularized" the franchise, but it looks like the original was just as big a hit.

I definitely don't want any Event Horizon or Sphere Minimates.

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