51 thoughts on “Toy Guru’s 2014 DC Classics
State of the Union”

1. They “Should” have Final samples for Toyfair? I have Ice and Aquaman on the shelf and Superboy will be here this week. If I can show these figures and Matty can’t then thats just sad.

2. Somebody get Dayraven on the horn, he might want to know about this.

   Why do we even need to hear a speech about every freaking line in the first place? Just follow NECA’s lead. Improve on your work without fanfare and cut all this corporate BS. If Guru pats his back any harder, he’s gonna end up with a broken spine.

   Seriously, I wish Mattel would just quit the action figure business if only to stop hearing Neitlich’s diatribes. He makes you feel like a turd who is part of some bizarre cult or something.

   1. he’s the barry horowitz of toys, isn’t he? it’s gets so thick sometimes, i wonder if he needs time alone with his ego…

      as for all this total heroes thing… they’re less intriguing than the total justice figs from the 90s, with approximate articulation but far fewer pack-ins… and TJ was one of young Noisy’s favorite lines. they have a damned hard mountain to climb to sell these to the guy most likely to cheerlead anything DC. if that’s doesn’t tell you everything you need to know about how mattel is handling this property, well… you really should have your head cracked open for science.

      i’ve said it before, and i’ll say it again… and not maliciously, i want that noted… dc fans get screwed on the merch. they just do. since the early 90s, really just prior to the rift that formed Image, marvel really put itself out there in a smart, continuous way to have product that people would want to buy available pretty much all the time. one huge facet of that was action figures, and under toy biz, they really innovated and took the market over. they have yet to surrender that stranglehold on the toy aisle (though by god, NECA is giving them a damned good run for their money these days) and poor DC has kind of limped along like a fat kid in phys ed, he’s wheezing now, and he’s sweating like a pedophile at a wiggles concert, but he’s not ready to give up till he gets shin splints. that said, he’s not even in the race really, he’ so far back the fast kids are already shaving and having sex. that doesn’t for a second imply there is anything wrong with DC fans or the DC properties, it’s their management who should collectively go db cooper themselves with what ill gotten gains they’re already scammed us out of. they just have never even tried to be competitive, and that’s sad as balls, there are a ton of DC characters i’d buy if they were given good figures (hell, i own a dozen or so dcu’s and a dcsh batman cuz there are characters i love enough to buy even when i know the figs won’t totally blow me away… and i’m a marvel guy. DC makes stuff so good, the lovers of the other comic universe still are enamored with their characters and stories.) these total things (seriously, what’s with DC and the “total” lines?) are total garbage, they’re a huge step backwards for the industry, and when they fail (and holy shit, will they fail) the fanbase will get blamed cuz we didn’t buy the figures… that sucked.

      and to pull this shit (sorry, i’ve edited language like a dozen times during this post, and this time, she stays as she lays) while DCC is stepping UP their game and trying to give DC fans products they’ve been clamoring for for a decade, stuff that is industry standard (if it were still 2005) and reasonably priced… mattel is, i think, throwing in their towels. TH is just a scam to wring the last few quarters from the last kid at the arcade. that’s my 2 cents at least.

      were i a DC fan though, and i kind of am, i’d really consider taking a chance on a DCC fig or two in the next several months… that crime syndicate set look well done, good characters, excellent sculpts, nice paints, and standard articulation… if the finished figs come out anything like the proto pics (and they might not, i concede that), i think the DC people need to jump hard and furious and vote with their dollars. i will say, over the course of the arkham releases, they’ve shown remarkable growth already. i think they’re really trying over there, and not every step is a success, but they’re trying… that’s FAR better than what you’re getting from mattel these days.

      1. Looking at the Pre Orders on bbts.com is really tempting. Those figures look pretty great sculpting wise. I could easily see myself getting lost down that rabbit hole but Ive been burned before by DCC which scale and style changes. Plus they’re all New 52…

      2. In my experience, DCC figures look great, until you take them out of the package. Yes, they’ve made great strides towards giving their figures enough articulation to legitimately be called action figures, but the range of motion and durability of said articulation leaves a bit to be desired. There also tend to be paint problems if you try to move the figure out of the pose they had in the package. If DCC could get its quality control in check, and engineer better joints, I think they’d be a real contender.

   2. if he does break his spine, somebody PLEASE give him a freaking DICTIONARY to read! “tool’d” was bad enough, but now he’s making up more words that DO NOT need apostrophes!

      also, he mourns the end of the DC 6″ line, then turns around and pimps the new one. >_>

      How long until either the DR contract runs out, which is likely the reason DC sub failed due to their mishandling paying customers like me, or until the DC contract ends so they can shop the license somewhere else?

      Hell, I gave up on DC “Collectibles” when they changed over from DC Direct, but this months solicits, I’m looking at PG, Huntress, and Starfire, and my only real complaint is Kory needs bigger hair!

      1. I hope Digital River burns. They gave me hell.

      2. Kori’s costume is also not accurate. It covers more than her New 52 costume does in the books. Is DC being prudish about how she’s portrayed in action figure form, but is okay with it in the book? That’s kind of a weird double standard.

3. Hello, first time poster, long time reader. First of all, this news sucks hardcore. So many heroes and villains still to be made and their only resolve is a disappointing offering of Total Heroes? Give me a break man. The only one I plan to pick up is that Manta for a head swap on a young justice custom, but that’s pretty much it. Other than that, I’m not touching that line.

   On a good note, the new DC Collectibles line has fantastic figures to keep me temporarily distracted. However, as you all know, most of them are too out of scale to display with my DCUCs. I do have Supes, Manhunter, Shazam, Black Adam, Cyborg, and the irresistible and handsome Uxas, as I feel they pass for scale. Though it is still aggravating not to have the other figures I want on par with my Classics.

   Sadly, our only chance of getting the line to start back up again heavily relies on the upcoming Justice League movie, which is still light years away. So it seems like I may be stuck modding, kit bashing, and customizing for a good few years to feed my DC fix til they come out with something… hopefully.

   RIP to all my heroes and villains that will never to see the light of day.

   Heroes (at least): Vixen & Grifter

   Villains (at least): Vandal Savage, Killer Frost, Circe, Granny Goodness, Heatwave, Talia, Atomic Skull, Count Vertigo, & a BAF Monarch.

   Last but not least. Freakin’ at least one of the DC magic user Villains (you suck Matty):
   Kadabra, Faust, Wizard, Wotan, Blackbriar, Mordru, or at least the more recent version of Klarion.

   Sorry but I usually keep to myself, but I really needed to vent that out and where better than the awesome site that is IAT.

   1. OO! you might have hit it there TP, vandal savage! he could be the last DCU fig, he wouldn’t require a ton of tooling, yet he’s been requested on and off for some time now… you might have hit the nail on the head there sir.

      but yeah, the entire rest of your wish list is cocked. 🙂 i hope at least that DCC gets to some of them for you, cuz “out of scale” is better than “not in existence.”

      1. My money is on Vixen or a suit-and-tie buck Lex. This figure is going to take “mailing it in” to and art form. There is just no way it’s Granny.
         And while I want to agree with your “‘out of scale’ is better than ‘not in existence'” sentiment, DR, I look over at Rocket Red towering over…everyone, and I have to wonder… 🙂

      2. Noisy is probably on right the money with Damien being the last figure but other than that, Hood would be a close second.

         I have to agree with you though DR. Out of the ones I listed, I would take Savage over anything else.

4. Toy Guru definitely came off as kind of ass in the first part of this. One of the key things DCUC lacked that Legends didn’t, is variety in appearance, to the casual observer, all the DCUC figures looked the exact same, and the cost just didn’t mesh with product quality The The Legends on the other hand, while using their own buck system succeeds, because of the variety of visual differences in their releases. The characters all look radically different in build, whereas the DCUC all look alike, just shrunk down forms. To succeed on the toy aisle, you need for your figures to look different than each other, to give casual buyers a chance to notices them.

5. So, it’s basically saying it’s our fault, but hey! New shiny toys over here!
   Wait… These will have EARLY ACCESS!? Hoo boy! I smell scalpers trying to take advantage of EA…

   1. Mattel really should allow anyone who signed up for a DC sub early access. I know life is not always fair, but it would be the right thing to do for those who supported this incredible yet Matty forsaken toy line.

   2. I don’t see these getting scalped that hard at all. Look at DC figures in general on Matty they have never really been that big of sellers outside of maybe Poison Ivy.

6. I know the world’s most bloated, I mean largest toy company would never do this, but it seems like they are witholding Doomsday unleashed out of spite. And I agree with you, if they cannot keep the line running in some fashion it is because Mattel buggered it up real good.

   When will Mattel learn that cost cutting and collectors are like oil and water. At least make an honest effort at perceived bang for our buck and we’ll buy near anything. Oh, and Business 101, never, never, ever point the blame finger at your customers. It just makes you look unprofessional, childish, foolish and wholly incompetent. Man-up, suck it up, and take the blame for blowing it. Mattel has more tools at their disposal than any of their customers. If it didn’t go through, it’s because they did not make the product exceptional enough for the price we were willing to pay. IMHO, bottom-line, Mattel killed DCUC with their incompetence and apathy.

7. Honestly, this ‘address’ was nothing more really than another ‘Shame on you for not subbing for another year of figures you don’t even get to see all of what you get in the year because of BS, BS, BS….’

   If Mattel handled their subscriptions better in terms of presentation as well as better costumer service, things would be different. The DCUC line would have probably gone through, and the MOTUC line wouldn’t be on a ‘Will it…?’ for another year.

   The G.I.Joe collectors club shows all but ONE figure in their yearly subs. Mattel’s excuses are always BS, and how they seemed to treat the DCUC line or even the MOTUC line in general.

   If they hadn’t been putting out waves like the Rainbow Lantern or Super Friends ones, and giving us more of characters fans wanted before the sub even was a thing I think the line might have survived longer in stores rather than clogging pegs.

   Marvel Legends would do variants of characters, but put them in sparingly, not an entire wave of variants. >_O

8. I think what he’s also not saying is “shame on YOU for not buying Green Lantern and Superman movie toys because when those lines completely dogged out the few retailers that sell toys got pissy about it”

   I didn’t go to see ‘Man of Steel’, did Superman have stretching powers and have handcuffs and a sword on his belt? 🙂

   So let’s see…Mattel has to make 12 ‘partial tooled’ figures and sell them via the sub in order to afford a complete new tooled figure like ‘Doomsday Unleashed’. So I assume that means the budget is determined by the PROJECTED income from sales based on a. Number of subscriptions (assuming each sub only buys the one) and b. A mysterious ‘fudge factor’ number based on ‘day of sale for both subscribers who want extras and non-subscribers who just want to buy toys.

   In other words, based on every other ‘niche, boutique’ made in the past 20 years, they need to figure if they can sell around 5000 units. They need SOMEONE to say “Yeah, OK, I’ll buy 5k of that to sell”. Diamond couldn’t sell 5000 Doomsday Unleashed to the comic shop community? SDCC (that is, Mattel attending) couldn’t sell 5000? Wouldn’t a two-pack of Doomsday sell there?

   Pfagh. As much as I’ll miss the POTENTIAL of DCU, I’m not sorry this sad cycle of disappointment is over.

9. I think the “State of the Union” is pointless given that the line is essentially dead. Why bring it up anymore and leave yourself open to criticism for something Mattel’s leadership and shareholders consider to be so unimportant?

   I’m not convinced we’ll never see quality 6.5 inch DC figures from Mattel again. I hope it comes back the way Marvel Legends did. On the other hand maybe it will always be more profitable for Mattel to sell cheap low quality Batman and Superman figures.

10. Noisy, you should’ve closed the post and opened up the Comments with “NOW UNLEASH HELL!” This could get out of hand REAL quick. And with the weekend here combined with folks being stuck at home due to weather issues across the country? Good Lord, talk about “idle hands.”
    You nailed it with the comment about if nothing else, keep the Superman and Batman variants alive. There is absolutely no excuse for those figures not to be in constant supply and available forever on Mattycollector.com. Same with Wonder Woman. That figure gets, like, $60 on Ebay. You’re telling me Matty couldn’t ask $30 for it? Guess they don’t like money over there. But we knew that, right?
    Another thing that’s ridiculous is that folks that gave their credit card numbers and committed to the sub (with many figures sight-unseen) are not given an opportunity for Early Access. That, as my dad would say, is some happy horse$hit. I got on board with the sub two years running, plus the Black Freighter club, plus the LOSH 12 pack, but I can’t pick up your crappy Superboy figure before the scalpers? that’s just plain wrong. Limit quantities to 1 or 2 per, if you have to, but we should get first crack.
    I don’t know man, I almost wish I wouldn’t have read this first thing in the morning.

    1. WOW. I expected waaaaay more comments by now. Maybe the DC folks just quit coming to certain sites once teh lien died? I remember a few DC articles over the past couple years that garnered a couple hundred comments on IAT. Guess the halcyon days of DC collecting only exists in Scott’s imagination.

       1. There’s nothing we can really comment on TC. Matty is telling us everything is great, while we all know we are being shafted all over again.
          I’m really pissed that there is a chance that I might not get the final 5/6 figures because others are able to get early access, even after I subbed for the last two years and tried for a third.
          Oh happy day!

11. I don’t know what to make of this either. If Mattel is going to release the final four or five anyway, why they canceled our pledges is ridiculous. We could still have been on order for the final four (with all the conveniences that come with it–including guaranteed sales for Mattel). Instead, I’m only going to shell out for Ice and likely through an alternate vendor (who would have ordered her anyway).

    Nothing that Mattycollector does makes sense to me.

    On the brightside, DC Collectibles is amping up their output and gradually introducing the same level of articulation as Mattel did. Don’t some of the new figs have the ball-joint thighs yet? (That’s the one frustration I have with DC–those hinge joint legs and stiff ankles amount to zero articulation).

    And yes, I can’t see how Hasbro is more successful than Mattel with the hero figs. Maybe Mattel just gave us too many shelf-warming wonky figures, like Golden Pharoah.

12. dude, be serious for a minute. NOTHING sells well on mattycollector, nothing. not even mighty castle grayskull. i wager mattycollector alone accounts for at least 10% attrition per year. easily. it’s likely slightly lower than that for motuc, but i suspect it’s because we’re dumber. (not a dig, i’m in there with the other he-fans, but let’s face it, if we had sense or self-esteem, we wouldn’t be willing to put up with their shenanigans)

    if i had to make a guess, i’d say you’re finally getting granny, as i can’t think of another character as demanded as she for as long… but there’s no way it’s her if he’s going out of his way to explain why unleashed doomsday isn’t logistically feasible, granny would need more new parts than he would. so who’s left? batman beyond? parallax hal? if they’ve been listening to me, it’d be a yuga khan/sleez two pack, but they’re clearly not listening to me or there’d still be a line to sell to you DC guys.

    and seriously, as an aside… he’s at least what 20% kilowog? why he’s beyond the scope of what they could do as an SDCC exclusive is truly beyond me. he’s less development that skin-covered swamp thing. and only made less believable by the excuses he’s spouting… we can clearly see that unleashed doomsday is at least partially developed, and i don’t think any reasoning person could explain why, a full 6 months out, they didn’t have both tiers’ bonus figs developed equally so that both could be dangled to entice customers to sub-up. were they anticipating imminent failure? or determining it in-house?

13. What an insult.
    How is this an “awesome” year for DC fans when they’re getting their @$$ handed to them in the toy isles, the theater, and the comic racks?
    What a disgrace.

14. “In order to run a collector line, specifically 6” highly detailed and articulated figures…” Wait, I thought we were talking about DCUC?

15. The sad state of DCUC. As much as I would love for this last figure to be Granny, it would be bittersweet to get her and know we will never get anymore figures in that scale.

16. Toyguru IS A INEPT

17. I hope the surprise last figure is a repaint of Batzarro.

18. I would love to never hear the term “tier 1” and “tier 2” for the rest of my life. And for some corporate d-bag telling me it’s my fault they can’t make an Unleashed Doomsday that fans have wanted since forever because I didn’t buy into their 30.00 a repaint figure line that never even got shipped to the right address, (also, sorry it didn’t arrive not our fault we sent it to the wrong state).

    1. Scott really is good at coming up with divisive terms, isn’t he? That and pointing the blame finger at us collectors. Momma always told me if you point the blame finger at someone, you got three fingers pointed back at you.

19. Yes, Vixen would be a well-deserved, appropriate send-off for the line. That said, we are sure to get the previously shelved FLASHPOINT Plastic Man as the last fig. -_-

20. I’m sick to death of Mattel trying to sound like they’re broke,when the truth is even in death this line can’t give the customers what they want.”Hey you want Doomsday?? Well you have to commit to a full year of crap you don’t want to get him.”Glad to see their extortion scheme go the way of the dinosaurs.Good riddance,and long live Marvel Legends!!

    1. To quote Justice League Unlimited, “Boomer, must you always plead poverty?”
       One could almost forget Mattel is the world’s largest toy company.

    2. I ran into Toy Guru at the Soup Kitchen last night.

       I didn’t buy his story there, either.

21. Two lines down, one more to go unntil we don’t ever have to read anything from this goober ever again.

22. The mystery 6th figure is going to be that bright blue Superman that everyone claims they really want but will bitch about to the ends of the internet when it actually comes out. Because that’s just the way Mattel works. As little as possible.

23. I have a question for the assembled gestalt. So the DC sub didn’t go through, right?

    Did you guys get a refund? Boy, I can hardly imagine how Digital River could screw THAT up.

    Or do you get a weak sauce apology figure for your sub money?

24. The introduction to Scott’s post on how 2014 is a great time for us DCUC fans is like a huge slap in the face. The line is ending, how is it great?

    There’s so much misinformation and confusion to his information. Retailers have moved away from the six inch form, but a new Total Heroes six inch line is replacing it. Huh? There’s no way of keeping the beloved Four Horseman buck form continuing? Well, if they love the line so much, why doesn’t Matty offer highly demanded figures as a pre-order. I’m sure Unleashed Doomsday would surpass the needed number to make the newly tool’d figure. I’m willing to bet another Legion 12 pack would do as well too.

    Matty has to stop putting all the blame on the fans. They mishandled the line in certain aspects and refuse to admit to it. And it continues as we learn that the MOTU fans have early access to the figures we want. When people can’t get the figures after they have sold out it will only drive the knife in even further. All he did was try to pimp out the new Total Heroes line. I’ve sen if, the packaging is nice but the figures are horrible.

    I’m going to try to get the last six figures for this year and am trying to custom make the ones I can to fill out my needs. I doubt I will buy anything else from Mattel anymore. I’m tired of being used.

    It is NOT a great time for DCUC fans, Scott!

25. I said it in the Batzero review and I’ll say it again, Thanks for the wonderful toys Mattel, but goodbye and good riddance!

26. Anthony’s Customs has a video review of Ice:

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BAhNcetkZvw&list=UUM6VhEljBIVyg9eCEFBuYFw&feature=c4-overview

    I don’t know how he obtained it so early. He has some kind of arrangement with Mattel and the Halo toy manufacturer to do early reviews.

    But, yeah, I digress–considering I’m of the party glad that we no longer have to follow Toy Guru now that the line is dead.

    1. Ah, my bad. Anthony got Ice off Ebay. Presumably from Hong Kong. The paint job looks it.

27. Wow the Facebook page has a lot of salty comments. PR genius’ at work. Good job Matty!

28. Scott tells it like it is, and people get offended. Why am I not surprised? Oh well, I loved the line for what it gave us and not everything can last forever. I am sure kids will really enjoy the new Total Heroes lines, parents too, given the $10 price point.

29. Well Lovabill (yes, you can use that), I think what has folks “offended” is everything that has happened with this line through the years that got us to this point. These are some of the most recognized characters in the world being made into action figures by one of the biggest toy companies in the world, with designs by one of the best teams in the industry. You’re right – nothing lasts forever. But there is no way this line should be dead right now. Scott shouldn’t be making this “farewell” speech yet. If you don’t know how this line was mismanaged, I can’t help you. Scott seems like a nice enough guy, and I know his last name’s not “Mattel”, but he’s the face of the line. So you don’t get to do a job poorly, and then “tell it like it is” and expect everyone to just happily eat their turd sandwich. If you think that’s good business, then I want to work where you work (Mattel, maybe?).
    And I wouldn’t be so sure about Total Heroes. Kids can smell $hit, too.

    1. That. And, those of us who did plunk down for the subscription get no first dibs or guaranteed way to buy the figures that would have been reserved for us.

       1. Exactly, Tim. It’s like one last good-bye kick to the nuts.

          1. Oh my poor nuts. lol!

    2. Here! Here!

30. I still need those all star squadron fig.
    Johnny Quick. heck, why they never made the johny quick fig. from Super Power to DC Direct to Mattel, never made Johnny Quick. WHYYYYYY????

    Liberty Belle.

    Robotman ( u can use old mold right? so it will cheaper then to produce Robotman)

    Shinning Knight with horse. they can use one of those horse from she-ra right?

    there, only four figure to made peace of my mind

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