Mattel DC Figures

jayjonah said:
If I'm not the first then I will be the first I'm not buying anything Absolute from Mattel and especially not the big ridiculous shaped looking Batman as an action figure.
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Just the opposite for me. I tend to love the alt versions of DC’s populace. Marvel too for that matter. Parallel universes, divergent timelines, alternate futures, and even other dimensional realms like Skartaris or Gemworld. And this most certainly includes the Absolutes. I’d love to see Mattel devote significant resources to the Multiverse. Kingdom Come, Gotham by Gaslight, Doom Came to Gotham, New Frontier, DKR, Flashpoint, etc…and the Absolutes. It’s all good to me.

I realize that this is highly unlikely. I understand that not a lot of people will agree with me. I’m only speaking for myself. But if someone from Mattel is scraping message boards to feed the AI, I just want my opinion in the algorithm. For whatever it’s worth. After 25 years of collecting DC figures and the usual suspects redone using 50 year old templates, I think I wanna see something new.
 
Gothneo said:
Give me an updated Kamandi! and Give him some pals.. Dr. Canius, Flower, and A great Caesar. I should have a whole shelf full of Tiger people, Dog people and more!
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Old fart that I am, Kamandi was the first comic I actively collected. The first book I actually looked for on the spinner rack at 7-11. I’d give a kidney for someone to go down that particular rabbit hole. Tuftan, Ben Boxer, Sultan, Sacker, Misfit, etc.
 
AU material for DC is something I don't mind in a line, but I will not particularly care when the scope of what gets made from the AUs is fairly limited. Dark Knight Metals or whatever, oh 30 variants of various characters Batman-ified? Don't care. If we get Kingdom Come Superman and Batman, or DKR, etc and none of the standout characters or more unique designs of those stories, I could not care less. I want Iris West II, Carrie Kelley, King Marvel, the weirdo mutant guy, etc. Not just the variants of the trinity.

And I'd only truly be upset if the DC line isn't full trail mix with its roster. If we get basically just Absolute designs for a year to kick off the line, that's when it becomes a problem of "Hey, too much of the AUs!!"

Skartaris, Gemworld, Earth-AD, Earth-2, etc should all be just lumped in with main DC. Though I doubt we'd ever get much more than their #1 heroes and villains.
 
Niko (protozoalord) said:
AU material for DC is something I don't mind in a line, but I will not particularly care when the scope of what gets made from the AUs is fairly limited. Dark Knight Metals or whatever, oh 30 variants of various characters Batman-ified? Don't care. If we get Kingdom Come Superman and Batman, or DKR, etc and none of the standout characters or more unique designs of those stories, I could not care less. I want Iris West II, Carrie Kelley, King Marvel, the weirdo mutant guy, etc. Not just the variants of the trinity.
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Yeah. This.

My working theory is that you could probably do between 20 and 40 Kingdom Come figures without much collector fatigue/attrition. DKR has a significant number of characters that can be used for figures. DCeased is a fantastic story with some interesting character versions such as Dinah Lance/Green Lantern and a great Cassie/Wonder Woman. Superman/Jon Kent has a really cool costume, as does Damian/Batman. Dark Knights of Steel is brilliant. Gotham by Gaslight: League of Justice is insanely fun. With two equally compelling looks for Superman.

If Mattel is truly going to play the long game with this license and hopefully parallel Marvel Legends, they should be mining the entire published DCU as well as any media representations. If we’re looking at two or three separate but overlapping tiers, you’re going to need a lot of source material.
 
I am thrilled the Absolute line exists, because I think it's drummed up a level of engagement enthusiasm for DC among comic readers (even just anecdotally with my comic book nerd friends) that I haven't seen in ages. I'd be shocked if Mattel doesn't trade off of that enthusiasm for their line: it's the easiest way to make variants of A and B-listers that also quells any bitching about "but we already have these characters."

That said, it's something I can't imagine buying myself. But I know that my taste in DC comics is silly, and I'd be delusional to expect half the shit I truly, deeply want figures of (the Forgotten Heroes are easily, no questions asked, my most-wanted team).

Put me in the Kamandi kamp too. The DCUC one lived on my desk for years. It just makes me so happy he exists.
 
Not to go off into the weeds too much, but something very subtle has shifted in the comic industry. And it seems to be happening spontaneously from multiple sources almost simultaneously. It’s something that really should’ve been happening anyway. Essentially, it’s the philosophy of “story first”. This is why the Absolute titles have been so successful. It’s a great story. All of them are good, but Wonder Woman and Batman stand out as incredible. Next Level seems to be following up. Batwoman and Deathstroke were fantastic.

But it’s also coming from Ghost Machine. It’s coming from the Energon Universe. Marvel is even rebooting their Ultimate Universe. It’s what I’ve been saying for decades, tell me a good, long form story. Leave the writers alone and let them do their jobs. Skip the events. Skip the crossovers. And if you do them, make sure they’re better than the regular titles.

This is why I believe modern comics have a place in active action figure lines.
 
Xavion2025 said:
Dolphin!
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Yes! If I could only get one of them, it'd be her. I mean, her first appearance has got to be one of DC's most underrated covers & issues:

Showcase_Vol_1_79.jpg


It has an almost Barbarella feeling to it.
 
Said it a bunch of times but gonna say it again: Absolute Wonder Woman is *the* best book I've read from DC in a very, very long time. A heady mix of Hellenic myth, DC staples, and deliriously metal anime-kaiju bullshit with Diana at the centre of it as just a very sweet person with a heart as big as her sword. It made a believer out of me after literally never, ever giving a flying toss about any Wonder Woman comic ever.

I don't particularly care for the Bats (goes overboard on the grotesque) and Supes books but will defend AWW to my last breath, and will buy an Absolute Diana the second somebody makes one. Preferably with skeletal Pegasus included.

Getting back to Mattel, I'm looking forward to them hopefully showing something soon on the premium line, so I can get an idea of what to expect. I'm good for various Batman and pals, Superman, Steel et al but would really like decent 6" versions of Firestorm, Mary Marvel, J'onn, Guy, Tora & Bea, Scott & Barda, Booster & Beetle, etc.
 
RexMason said:
I know it's an unpopular opinion, but Shadowpact was a real chore for me to get through, and I was reading it when it came out. I bought them because of Ragman, but man, was he wasted in that series. Never thought Willingham had a grasp on the majority of DC characters he touched (Tim Drake Robin and Leslie Thompkins being his two biggest sins), but I love minor DC characters and really wanted to like that book.

Now Suicide Squad, on the other hand, was a book I absolutely loved. Really enjoyed that title and how the threat of death was very real for the characters. Waller's backstory in that book has never been beaten, and they really gave Barbara Gordon her power back.
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Here for the Suicide Squad love. I think about Waller's backstory every time some multimedia adaptation tries to make her a pure sociopath or whatever. Also that conversation between her and Father Craemer where he's like, "You surround yourself with people who keep you honest and rein in your worst instincts. But most of them are gone now, and you've come this close to crashing this entire program because of the calls you've made without them around. So are you going to keep doing this, or are you going to learn how to put the brakes on yourself?" And it's like, you really don't get that kind of character insight in most comics.
 
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