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Action Figures
Action figures are made from plastic usually and have flexible joints so that they can be posed in various positions.They usually represent characters from comic books, movies, video games, or TV programs. Most action figures are marketed to the male collector audience. Commonly sold as children's toys, action figures are also adult collector items and are made for this market.The name "action figure" was first used in 1964 by Hasbro, to aim the G.I. Joe figure at boys. G.I. Joe was a US army figure. It had interchangeable uniforms for various purposes. Hasbro licensed GI Joe figures to a variety of licensees in foreign markets who used uniforms the same as the ones used for the US marke with some variations to suit the the local market.
As a result ofthe oil supply problems in the 1970s, Japanese based licensee Takara was finding problems with the cost of making the 11 ½ inch GI Joefigures, so a small version figure 3-3/4 inches high was produced, and was sold in 1974 as Microman. The Microman line started the use of interchangeable components. This was the start of the transformer toy. Takara produced Microman figures with robot-like features including Robotman, a large 12" robot which had a a Microman pilot, and also Mini-Robotman, a 3-3/4" variety of Robotman. These toys had interchangeable components emphasising transformation and combination of the various characters.
In 1971, Mego started making and licensing superhero figures from American Marvel and DC comic books. These sold very well and are very collectible adults. The Microman toy line was begun in the United States eventually and known as Micronauts. Mego lost the license to produce Star Wars toys in 1976. The Kenner company took over the license subsequently. Kenner's 3-3/4"Star Wars toys became the industry standard size. The new toy lines had teams of characters each with special functions. Collectible action figures soon became a multi-million dollar business for the big movie studios.
In the 1980s many popular action figure lines began, mostly based on cartoon characters which were a huge market for toy companies. Masters of the Universe, G.I. Joe, Thundercats, and Super Powers Collection were very successful, to name a few. Early in the 80's Japanese robot cartoons such as Gundam encouraged Takara to bring back the Microman figures as Micro Robots, moving to the idea of living robots. Thus began the Micro Change line of figures: objects which could transform to robots. Hasbro licensed Micro Change and Diaclone transforming cars, and brought them together in the US as the Transformers,beginning a series of animated cartoons which still continues.
Toward the end of the '80s many more collectors started buying up the toys and keeping them in their original packaging to display as collectibles. This led to a huge flood of action figures. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles action figures were produced in huge numbers which kept their collector value very low. In 1990s Spawn Star Wars figures were made in massive numbers and action figures were not just childrens toys anymore. ToyFare magazine became popular with mature collectors to record news and nostalgia. As the Internet got going in the late 90's, websites like Toy News International published information about collectible figures.
Popular action figures were found in specialized costumes. Batman for instance was produced as an array of figures including Arctic Batman,Neon Armor Batman and Piranha Blade Batman. Glow-in-the-dark figures and accessories became popular during the early '90s including Swamp Thing and Toxic Crusaders. The figures became much more muscular,far exceeding the muscular build of even the best humans.
At present, the collector market for many action figures is growing with companies like McFarlane Toys, NECA and Palisades producing popular lines. These are display pieces rather than toys but some child-oriented lines such as the revival Justice League Unlimited and Masters of the Universe are adult collectibles also. Comic book figures are produced by companies such as DC direct and Toy Biz.
Adult-oriented collectible figure lines are often sold exclusively by specific chain stores rather than other retail outlets. Popular lines of figures are often available only through mail-in offers and at comic conventions which raises their collectible values. Such unfortunate promotional ideas as packaging "errors" and "short-packed" figures are used by certain toy companies purely for the purpose of creating collectible value.
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For more information about collectible toys see our blog.
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