DC Collectibles in 2019

In late January, AT&T and WarnerMedia re-organized DC Comics.  This involved a re-structuring of the business unit and a reduction in workforce personnel.  Furthermore, DC Collectibles was moved out of DC Comics and re-assigned to Warner Bros. Consumer Products, the division that handles merchandise (such as toys, apparel, etc.) for all of Warner's intellectual properties.

This is big news, but I think another change that had a bigger impact on DC Collectibles happened back in late 2016.  Basically, VP Kevin Kiniry left the company at the end of the year.  Kiniry often appeared at trade fairs/conventions and in Facebook live videos.  After Kiniry's departure, Creative Director Jim Fletcher has taken a bigger role in representing the company.

Jim Fletcher as "Mera"

The above screenshot is from the Facebook Live Unboxing Video for the movie Aquaman, Mera, and Black Manta statues.  Fletcher wore a long red wig as "Mera" for the occasion.  He's obviously a free-spirited artistic personality, and more power to him.  However, I wonder if his "creative" impulses have gone too far?

Last year, DC Collectibles announced these additions to the Artists Alley line of PVC statues:

(Joe Ledbetter)

(James Groman)

New York Toy Fair 2019 takes place this weekend (02-16 through 02-18).  Here's a sampling of what DC Collectibles has announced:

DC characters as Mexican wrestlers (action figures)

Engines of Chaos Batman and Poison Ivy statues

I enjoy whimsical takes on fan-favorites as much as the next person, but DC Collectibles is a business.  At the end of the day, a business has to make money to justify its existence.  Is there really a market for these styles?

Furthermore, it seems like DC has gone bonkers with making Batman statues.  Batman already had his own B&W line.  The same sculpts are getting re-released as smaller PVC figures.  Then DC decided to make a whole bunch of Dark Nights: Metal statues featuring...Batman.

Ahead of NY Toy Fair 2019, DC also announced a Designer Series Frank Miller Batman statue.

This is the fifth 1/6-scale Batman in the line, not counting the smaller Brian Bolland and Jim Lee statues.  I know there are people who collect only Batman memorabilia, but there's no shortage of Batman statues.  Meanwhile, many others characters remain neglected.

It's gotta be concerning to someone at the company that the only statue a die-hard fan such as myself will probably get is the Cover Girls Huntress by Joelle Jones statue (which was previewed as a sketch, not even an un-painted proto).

DC Artists Alley Sho Murase Batgirl Pink Sparkle Foot Locker Exclusive Figure (2018)

Well, this one required a bit of a quest to find, so it deserves its own post, lol.

My 007 of 700 reminds me of the 0001 of 1000 Gold Batgirl.  ^_^

Mattel DC Multiverse Spoiler (Stephanie Brown) Action Figure (2018)

I don't really collect action figures because I'm usually frustrated by their lack of articulation.  Many have poor QC as well.  Not too long ago, I bought the Star Ace Hermione Granger 1/6-scale figure, which was very nice.  However, I didn't feel like posing and re-posing it, which kinda defeats the purpose of getting a poseable figure in the first place.  After a trip to the Wizarding World in Universal Studios Orlando, I decided that I had outgrown my Harry Potter phase and sold the Star Ace Hermione figure.  So, I now collect static statues, which I try to display in ways that convey stories or at least humor.

Stephanie Brown, usually best-known as "Spoiler", is the one "major" Batfamily member without a statue.  Mattel released a DC Multiverse Spoiler Action Figure last year, but I waited to see if maybe Joelle Jones would get to design one for her Cover Girls statue wave.  In December, I noticed people posting Instagram pictures of Spoiler being discounted at Walmart, so I began checking the toy section at my nearest store to see if I could get a deal.  It finally happened today, Monday, 2019-02-04.  Yup, $5!!!

These figures come with additional "build-a-figure" parts to entice fans to buy characters they might not otherwise consider.  Spoiler comes with Lex Luthor's head, lol.

I cheated a little by using glamour shots from Walmart.com.  However, they're much better than the pictures that I took with my phone.  The cape, hair, chest strap, and belt are made from a kind of pliable but sturdy plastic.  Indeed, the cape helps the figure stand on its own when you try to create an action pose.  The amount of articulation really surprised me.  There are many, many joints and/or rotating parts, and many of them can be turned a full 360 degrees.

There were four of these at my Walmart, so I picked the best-looking one.  QC seems very good in terms of molding, paint, and ease of movement.  This action figure is probably too small to look good next to my statues, though for $5, it's an acceptable short-term substitute for the lack of a Spoiler statue from DC Collectibles.