super spider piggy Posted April 19, 2008 Share Posted April 19, 2008 The only non-Minimate dc line I would trade for DC Mates would be the unreleased 4th series of the Super Powers Collection.It would have to be made by Kenner, though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matt kennedy Posted June 2, 2008 Share Posted June 2, 2008 i'd probably buy 'em. but i really wish dc direct would continue with the minimates line. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
-Minimator- Posted June 3, 2008 Share Posted June 3, 2008 My loyalty lies with brand, not license. So, if DC made their own not-quite-Minimates, they'd sit on a shelf next to all the other crap they put out that I don't buy. what he said. What they said. But, also I don't really follow/like any other block figure line, because none of them have the depth of both character and detail, and actual figure to be equivalent to our mates! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MisterPL Posted February 13, 2009 Author Share Posted February 13, 2009 Suppose DC Direct decided the only way they could continue to offer DC block figures was to do it all themselves. They'd start from scratch, develop a block figure body in the same scale as 2-inch Minimates, and have a style all their own. This way they wouldn't have to farm out design chores to DST/AA and put that cost savings into more comfortable margins or even right into the product. My question is: How brand loyal are you? If these aren't Minimates™, would you still be interested? According to someone over on the DC Direct board, this is happening. extinctpink had this to say about the future of DC Minimates and DC block figures in general: this isn't going to happen, as much as we all want it. DC never gave minimates any rights to produce them in the first place, and at NYCC DC announced their own block type figure that will continue the hero shrink down. I'm taking this info with a grain of salt since the poster in question is close to the Shockini camp and may even BE the head of that company. Has anyone else heard anything along these lines? Is he confusing block figures with the pre-school figures? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jatta Pake Posted February 13, 2009 Share Posted February 13, 2009 So he is saying DC Direct made DC Minimates without DC approval? Sounds counter-intuitive and false. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
karamazov80 Posted February 13, 2009 Share Posted February 13, 2009 (edited) Is he confusing block figures with the pre-school figures? This would be my guess. However, the Brave and the Bold figures are being produced by Mattel I believe. It is possible that DC Direct has something else up its sleeve, but I doubt it. Ultimately, I think we would have heard from someone else if DC "block" figures were actually discussed at NYCC. Edited February 13, 2009 by karamazov80 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IndieMate Posted February 13, 2009 Share Posted February 13, 2009 Here's a question I'd like to ask DCD: If DC Minimates, a line with many fans and hundreds of characters, aren't selling, why would you think your block figures would sell? DCD, you really got quite a big ego if you think you can even compete with DST and AA. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
groundhog7s Posted February 13, 2009 Share Posted February 13, 2009 Ditto. If Pocket Superheroes, C3 and Minimates never met their expectations, then nothing will. DCD just continues to make odd business choices in everything they do. Sometimes it works, but sometimes it doesn't (usually because of the way they handle it). And no, I won't buy DCD mini-figures if they aren't Minimates. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IndieMate Posted February 13, 2009 Share Posted February 13, 2009 DCD just continues to make odd business choices in everything they do. Sometimes it works, but sometimes it doesn't (usually because of the way they handle it). Yeah. World of Warcraft and Looney Tunes come to mind... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MisterPL Posted February 13, 2009 Author Share Posted February 13, 2009 So he is saying DC Direct made DC Minimates without DC approval? Sounds counter-intuitive and false. I think he means "DC never gave [DST/AA] any rights to produce them," meaning it wasn't a licensed deal like Marvel or BSG. Art Asylum was a vendor that simply developed and manufactured the figures under the Minimates brand using the Minimates bodies. There was never a license agreement probably because it would have stepped on Mattel's contract, one that apparently allows DCD to manufacture similar product but does not allow DC to license other manufacturers to do the same. This is probably why DST can't get the license, which pisses me off because Mattel has no interest in the block figure category even though they technically have the rights to manufacture them. Here's a question I'd like to ask DCD: If DC Minimates, a line with many fans and hundreds of characters, aren't selling, why would you think your block figures would sell? DCD, you really got quite a big ego if you think you can even compete with DST and AA. I don't think it was a matter of sales, it was a matter of margin. The profit simply wasn't there for DCD. That's why the MSRP was so much higher than Marvel's. If DCD could make their own Minimates – just like action figures – they could do it in house and not have to pay DST/AA for design and manufacturing fees. But DST/AA holds the patent for Minimates so that's not an option. Nor can DC license the property to anyone else because of their agreement with Mattel. Something tells me we're barking up the wrong tree... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jatta Pake Posted February 13, 2009 Share Posted February 13, 2009 If all of this is correct, we should turn our attention to Mattel to get DC Minimates. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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