Nanco Fraggle Dolls

[frogboy4]

I just wonder why even Nanco hasn't done a Mokey? She isn't harder to make. I think she has become the forgotten Fraggle.

 

[CoOKiE]

i put my share of false hope into Sababa for a mokey, twice... it aint gunna happen till after the movie.

Nancos Sprocket looks nice... n i liked their sweedish chef.. thats all tho lol.

As frogboy said... perception is a powerful thing when its in front of your face compared to online pics... its still tempting to have a fraggleish looking doll tho... i'd go with Sababa's dolls.

If you live near a KBs, check them out because they have em for $2-$4

 

[Drtooth]

Honestly, I think nanco does a so-so job. Sometimes their products are pretty good. I think most of their Muppets (including Sesame Street) looked pretty good. I really liked their Heathcliff line, even though I was NEVER able to win one.

And some of the Fraggles look alright. But the only Wembly and Boober look good. I give them credit for the Doozers and Uncle Matt


I will say, their Family Guy ones look better than Kelltoys (I hated Peter's gold rimmed glasses).

Too bad you have to spend hundreds of dollars worth of Tokens to get them, though.

EDIT:

And seriously, about Sababa plush? They clearly lost the license years ago. Mokey wasn't made do to lack of retailer interest. I've seen Target sell out of everyone but Red.

 

[justairbagit]

Does any one know where I could pick up sprocket and traveling matt from nanco or was this another prototype that was never made?

 

[justairbagit]

I called nanco and was told this item was made around 2003 and made for carnivals and was no longer available

 

[frogboy4]

Honestly, I think nanco does a so-so job. Sometimes their products are pretty good. I think most of their Muppets (including Sesame Street) looked pretty good. I really liked their Heathcliff line, even though I was NEVER able to win one.

And some of the Fraggles look alright. But the only Wembly and Boober look good. I give them credit for the Doozers and Uncle Matt


I will say, their Family Guy ones look better than Kelltoys (I hated Peter's gold rimmed glasses).

Too bad you have to spend hundreds of dollars worth of Tokens to get them, though.

EDIT:

And seriously, about Sababa plush? They clearly lost the license years ago. Mokey wasn't made do to lack of retailer interest. I've seen Target sell out of everyone but Red.

Oh, that Wembley was not only a poor representation it was ugly. I had two of their Fraggle items in my hand and - UGLY! Maybe other characters were good, but certainly not the Wembley. Ugh.

I will admit their Swedish Chef is cute and some of the dressed up smaller versions of Kermit are fun. In the past they made a nice Bunsen and Beaker ripped off from Igel's design. And were the company I remember ever releasing a Pepe. I will give them that credit, but their Fozzie, Miss Piggy and Gonzo are absolutely hideous. Their Statler and Waldorf repeat similar mistakes of other companies. Their Kermit and Animal are passable for carnival toys.

As far Sababa. I guess we were spoiled by Palisades in getting swift straight answers from a company. They were a smaller company with limited resources picked up the Fraggle license because nobody else was doing it. Why won't companies understand that leaving out a crucial member of a set is a bad idea? The Mayhem needs Floyd as the Fraggles need Mokey. As fans we are not "entitled" to have them make these items, but when these guys are the only ones with a particular license it is possible for them to incorrectly sour the market due to a discrepancy such as an omission and have other companies believe a product line didn't shine due to lack of interest. That incorrect idea is already attached to the Fraggle brand.

I'll tell you why there's no Mokey. 2 to 4 slots make up a series and she was the odd Fraggle out. I think there was an assortment from another company in the 80s where Boober got the shaft. Also female characters can be slightly harder to market, but I don't think that would be so in this case. I can see Sababa favoring a Matt before Mokey, but I heard both prototypes were made.

I would have gone for a second wave of Fraggle plushes that included Matt, Sprocket, Mokey and possibly a little (out of proportion) Jr Gorg to fill out the fourth slot. I'm sure Junior would have been enough of a hit with Fraggle fans no matter what the size. I hope the future holds more comprehensive solid Fraggle product. The initial small Sababa Fraggles are the best plush representations I have ever seen on the market.

Those are just my ideas on the Fraggle merchandise. Every time I see Wembley on my partner's shelf (he's a bit of a wembler) I just have to pick him up. I'm amazed at the likeness - as a designer and a fan.

 

[Drtooth]

That's the problem with plush toys. Someone once said, I don't know if it was here or the palisades board, but they're basically pillows stuffed to look like stuff, where as figures are sculpted out of clay. You have a lot more control with clay.

But maybe it's just the photograph they have that makes the Wembly look passable. usually when you see these things in person, they are a total mess.

 

[frogboy4]

That's the problem with plush toys. Someone once said, I don't know if it was here or the palisades board, but they're basically pillows stuffed to look like stuff, where as figures are sculpted out of clay. You have a lot more control with clay.

But maybe it's just the photograph they have that makes the Wembly look passable. usually when you see these things in person, they are a total mess.

You're right. Plushes do have that pillow effect. They also tend to have better likenesses on the smaller versions than the larger ones.

Even in a web image search for Nanco Fraggles the better Sababa ones usually pop up instead (mislabeled). The Nanco Fraggles have those really wide open mouths that can't be finessed into a more natural position. The materials are rougher and scratchier. Troll-doll-like unkempt mohair is used in place of the fine silky threads of the Sababa ones. That hair can be posed quite nicely.

Here's a picture of the Sababa Fraggle assortment.

Here are links one and two of Nanco's Wembley. Note that even as inferior as it appears it is still not an accurate image. The mouth is open wider and the stitches are much sloppier in person.

 

[Drtooth]

Of course, Sababa did an excellent job. I mean, you can actually BUY them. You need an insane ammount of luck to win one of those dumb things anyway... or an insane ammount of Tickets.

Did like thier ALF and some of their Sesame assortments (though, frankly, their SS stuff looked like copies of much better stuff. Gund does a great job, though). Some of their Muppets are okay. But hardly the quality of something you can actually buy.

Even their Kung Fu Panda stuff wasn't as good as Kohl's 5 dollar charity plushes. And I was at an arcade yesterday, and they went for 700 ticks. It would take (if you're lucky) at least 7 bucks to win one of those (provided you play a game that awards you 25 tickets per quarter). And they were much tinier.

The only thing I can say is good about the Nanco stuff is they made certain characters that weren't made by Sababa.... Uncle Matt and Sprocket for Fraggles, Pepe for Muppet Show... they're terrible, but unfortunately they're the only ones we got so far.

 

[Redsonga]

I like their Sprocket better than the older one I've seen