Ask Ken at Palisades

[radionate]

I like the idea of a hairdryer too!

 

[GWGumby]

I want the Hot Tub.

But mainly I just want Pepe.

 

[Luke]

You can get a hot tub in pretty much most Dolls House catalogues !

I guess the other alternative would be for Travis and Mike to stand behind Ken with a fan when he's taking his afternoon nap and say 'Youuuu must build aaaaa jacuzzzi' !

 

[Super Scooter]

"Must build ja-cu-zzi."

I wanna see Pepe with a donkey!

No. I like the idea of the Seymour and Pepe two pack. That'd be, as Dr. Strangepork would say, "Pitchy neat!"

Pepe could always come with a contract from IAVMMCM. Or Miss Bitterman! Now, there's an idea!!!!!!!!

All in favor, say: "Unless you are a sexy banker lady, in which case it sucks, okay."

Hehehehehe!

Who's with me?????????????

Um, okay.

The Hensonville newspaper would be neat for a future Kermit. Maybe with a bath robe or something. Hey, maybe the TGMC Kermit! But that'd probably come with the Daily Chronicle.

I don't see the hairdryer thing working. It'd be neat though. Maybe a future Animal in PJ's with a leaf blower. That'd be cool!

 

[Zack the Dog]

Glad some of you guys like the hair driyer idea!

i don't know, i just figured it would be something for pepe to hold in one of his for hands, he can't really hold the door...and why would he, the jar maybe in some way, i think.

but the driyer could be placed in one hand pointed up at his head, it would be great if his head could lift up and down to look straight up at the sky, maybe a ball point could do that? i wonder if his mouth can open and close...it might be funny to do that bittermen part of the movie with your girl friend...;-)

Zack)Rowlf the, did i?, zack the dog? just type that?!!?Dog.

 

[petrieboy]

"If you just had one incarnation of the most famous characters and only ever did them once then the rest of the line would be fillled with characters nobody except 600 or so die hard Muppet fans and figure collectors would buy"

---I would like to know what evidence this is based on. Just because they make 100 different Bart Simpson action figures, doesn't mean that customers need or want 100. Or even 2. I find it way more appealing- and enticing to purchase- to see ONE main character each, and ONE new character, rather than TWO main characters in different costumes and poses. I felt that way when I was a kid buying Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles for fun, and I feel that way now as a collector. It actually becomes frustrating - and many people stop collecting an action figure line because they can't afford to keep up with variations; they just want a direct and clear cut assembly of characters and (sorry for sounding so severe) they lose hope. Customers let the toy companies lead them- until they feel cheated by the company. The demise of the ninja turtles did not come only from lack of interest- it came around the same time that toy stores were stocking "Space Walk Michaelangelo with Magician's Wardrobe and Cherry scented Bon Bons."

My guess is that a good figure will sell- an original character that catches the eye will sell. A Sweetums will sell. A "Perfectly Horrible Monster (name I dont know) will sell. That guy with the bubbles that come out of his head will sell. Digit from Jim Henson Hour will sell- and I'll even bet that they will sell a whole lot better than another Gonzo. If it says "Muppet Show" on the package, people know it's a Muppet character, even if they don't know which one it is. If they don't have Gonzo already, and they want to buy a Gonzo because they like that character, the 1st version will be just as appealing to them as a 2nd version that never existed. If the main characters are selling, then keep Series 1 nearby. Show the rest of the series' figures on the back of the packages. You aren't giving average customers much credit.

It seems ironic to me that the characters you say ordinary people don't know and won't buy are the ones that aren't on the shelves at the stores I go to. I can find Kermit and Piggy everywhere. I even have a better chance at finding Gonzo and Fozzie. But Dr. Teeth, Honeydew, and Floyd... I had to drive many miles and to many stores to find one of them. Once people buy one of these characters (Kermit), they will buy 2... then 3... even without different variations of Miss Piggy (who they aren't buying anyway.)

Good figures sell- creativity sells. Same figures, different looks, can screw up a figure line.

 

[The Count]

Yeah, I kind of know and feel what Petryboy is talking about myself as well. Basically, the reason why the whole Batman Beyond line died away is because they kept coming out with variations of Batman Beyond and almost no villains. Even some of the villains figures that were made weren't that great, like the Virtual Joker figure. These sentiments are echoed in the Mega Man X figure line. Seeing as how the line includes just the hero character with different boss weapons, I guess the line died before it even got off the ground. If the different Maverick Hunters or bosses from the Mega Man X series were made into figures with their varying weapons as accessories and one Mega Man X figure who could take that boss's weapon, the line would have done much better. At this point, I pretty much have faith in Palisades work and their future plans. After all, some figures need to be re-released in variations so that lesser known characters whose figures wouldn't sell well on their own can stand a chance in the market, like Reporter Kermit with the Koozbanian aliens in Series 4. Besides, who else would Camilla come with in figure form if not with Gonzo? And it's better to have a Gonzo figure in his classic tuxedo garb who could blend into the "Tuxedo" figures as well as fit nicely in anyone's collection sans the formal ware Muppet figures. Let's just see what the future holds and if Palisades can continue to breathe successful life into this great figure line.

 

[Super Scooter]

It's just common knowledge! If people don't recognize a character, they're not going to buy it. But, I'm just glad Palisaides is making those extras for us "die-hard" fans. They're just so cool! I kinda like the idea of different versions of each character. It makes it so we can truly have an ACTION figure of Kermit the Frog. I refer to, of course, Captain Smollet... With sword swining action! Can also slip from fingers and nock some poor ant guy over!!!

 

[Luke]

Originally posted by petrieboy
My guess is that a good figure will sell- an original character that catches the eye will sell

Well the simple answer is, then why aren't the Muppet figures and to a greater extent, the playsets selling ? At least not in the quantities that they should be for a really popular figure line. I'm not saying they're a complete failure, but looks can be a bit decieving - it may look like Muppet figures are selling out in stores and so they are the smash hit of the century but then some stores only order small amounts of the figures in, it's all about how many the stores order rather than how fast the customer buys because these action figures are only manufactured once, they don't do extra production runs although obviously good sales will lead to a store buying in more of the next wave. This is why the playsets and Mega's continuation is threatened, the stores see they aren't selling (or being pre-ordered) so they don't buy into the next wave.

Aside from Kermit & Piggy, who had a larger production run than any of the other figures in wave one and so were easy to find, once the figures sell out - thats it. This means you couldn't have just one version of each main character made because it would be impossible for him/her to be sitting on shelves a few waves on from his release date, and you'd be left with wave after wave of obscure characters. If you ask a member of the general public who they remember in the Muppets - chances are they'll say one of the main 5-10 characters who have been in every project over the years. Not everybody knows Digit from the Henson Hour or Clifford from Muppets Tonight. It's important that when people first get into the line (which isnt always at Wave One) they can pick up a character they recognise, rather than wonder which Muppet they are holding and then look on the back to find that all the characters they really know were done two waves back and they've sold out with no hope of coming back. Keeping recognisable main 5-10 characters on the pegs in different forms is more likely to get people into collecting the line and also picking up obscure characters who they might like the look of too - plus in my opinion, it's fun to be able to pick up characters in different fun outfits and poses.

You have to remember it's not just us hardcore Muppet fans and figure collectors being catered to here - it goes wider than that, it has to because these products cost tons to develop and manufacture - plus the Muppet fanbase (who are actually prepared to spend money) isn't as large as you might think. If the figures sell well to as many types of people as possible then the line continues, and as fans we end up getting more in the longterm. Besides are they really planning THAT many varients of the main characters in the regular line anyway - it's just Sam, Rowlf, Kermit, Gonzo and Miss Piggy from what i can see right now, the others have been exclusives, and that would be spread thinly over quite a few waves, there's plenty of new characters coming up to please the hardcore fans !

 

[redmans]

For what it's worth, I went into our local Sam Goody store here in Abilene, Tx yesterday and they had one Fozzie, one Vacation Fozzie, one Floyd (red shirt), and four or five Crazy Harrys. Oh yeah, they also had two Kermits in the 50% off bin. Earlier in the week I had bought a Crazy Harry (that for some reason was in the sales bin marked 25% off despite the fact that it looked no different from the ones hanging up that were full price) and a Vacation Fozzie. I went to our local Geoffrey store (which is a combination Toys/Kids/Babies R Us and now has about as many toys as an average Super WalMart) and I saw no Muppet figures there at all.

I don't know who this other store is that's supposed to start carrying Muppet stuff (mentioned on a different thread), but I hope they do a heckuva better job than the ones I got!

Tony