MOTUC Q&A's From Around the Net (9/15/2011)

[Count Marzo]

Exactly, it's Teela. Leading lady of the motu franchise and the Teela that a lot of us started out with in the beginning (blonde). And she was one of the fastest sellouts of the year (3rd, I think?). Nobody knows who Illumina is. That's not to say she shouldn't be made, but personally I'm not interested.

I don't think it's very accurate to judge that Teela based on the first sale date as she was right back on sale during that "All Star Sale" and lasted weeks. Who knows how many were produced and how long they really lasted for in comparison to the other figures which are most likely more popular than ANY variant, Teela, Skeletor, Hordak, or otherwise.

[Darkspecter]

Characters that appear in a panel or 2 of a comic that I don't own aren't really as important as say...characters that appeared in a cartoon episode. That's just my opinion. Some people that are more fans of comics may feel different.

She was to be the COVER of the next comic and have a very big, detailed story line and part of the MVC comic. The Mattel at the time nixed it at the 11th hour saying it was "too complex."

She's not "random villager 7 that was standing by the stables."

Luckily, a lot of her backstory has been exposed over the years. She's one of the protectors of the secrets of Grayskull and trained Man-At-Arms (along with Dekker).

I'm just going to write this one off as another case of Mattel not wanting to make something fans want. Like...Keldor's half swords... We're still waiting on those, by the way.

Re: Gygor. Illumina has a lot more history than Gygor. The only difference is that he's older. Illumina is much more well known. Illumina is like Brad Pitt and Gygor would be like Ryan Kelley. Don't know who Ryan Kelley is? Exactly. Fans first learned of Gygor from Roger Sweet's book, which had a couple sentences about him. Then we saw a picture a year before the Gygor figure came out, I think. That's all.

Illumina also has a LOT more parts re-use than Gygor did.

[Prahvus]

I support Illumina with all my heart ! If the Star Sisters made it in MOTUC (and I want to add here that I have nothing against them at all), then Illumina should get her chance too...

I'll be honest : I'd prefer to see more vintage MOTU, POP, 200x and Filmation in 2012 and beginning of 2013, but I think Illumina should get her chance in the second half of 2013. Personally, I find her more interesting and attractive than, say, Sweet Bee or Perfuma (even though I have nothing against Sweet Bee or Perfuma, who deserve a MOTUC figure too).

[Darkspecter]

Re: Toyguru saying Illumina needs THOUSANDS of supporters to be made.

Mattel made Man-E-Faces half and half coloured based on 525 votes in their official poll:

http://forums.mattycollector.com/eve...wpollresults/Y

That's not thousands.

Also, if you REALLY want to see how much support Illumina has, make an official Mattel poll and put it in your MattyCollector news, Twitter and Facebook (the Man-E-Faces poll also had the advertisement from places like He-Man.org, Poe Ghostal, TheFwoosh, AFI, etc.). You will probably have the same votes as the Man-E-Faces poll and it will tell you fans want Illumina and her cat.

Also, going on what Toyguru said a month or two ago...technically speaking, a figure doesn't even really need any support since it's put in the subscription. TG said any figures they sell day-of are "just gravy." Subscription sales are guaranteed Illumina sales. Mattel should be ecstatic that Illumina has a following. For a so-called "non popular character" a hell of a lot of people like to draw her, make customs of her since she has no figure, etc.

[RockinHard]

She makes more sense to make than Vikor, Gygor, and Demo-Man. Who knew about those figures compared to Illumina?

Makes no sense.

[heavy-eternium]

anyone can tell me 2 or 3 reasons why this character is cool or why she rules?

[Darkspecter]

anyone can tell me 2 or 3 reasons why this character is cool or why she rules?

1 - she has her own "steed" like all the main characters.
2 - she was basically evil, but changed her ways
3 - she gets trapped on the dark hemisphere of Eternia when the Mystic Wall went up (good guy stuck on a world full of evil)

extras just for fun:

4 - trained Man-At-Arms (stronger/better fighter than a young MAA)
5 - she's a secret agent
6 - has the same powers of Dazzler from X-Men, can blind people
7 - she looks awesome
8 - another Gar figure/character that could tell us more about why the Gars became so hated by Eternians

[Dark Sorceress]

anyone can tell me 2 or 3 reasons why this character is cool or why she rules?

she's got a big white cat/she's blue/she's hot

[Hosed Ovor]

I am not particularly drawn to the character. What I don't understand is why out of all the characters that are available to Mattel they only seem to be vehemently opposed to this one. Their steadfast refusal to seriously consider producing the character reeks of pettiness and personal grudges.

[JonWes]

So, here's the thing...

I want Illumina. I'm posting all over about Illumina right now. I think the best thing to do is just keep posting about her and keep asking for her. I don't need her tomorrow. Or even next year. I just don't want her off the table, and my fear was that the last answer felt a bit like that.

So I'm assuaged by TG's answer. As long as she's still possible then I think it's just up to us to keep her support going strong. I posted a thread on TheFwoosh and so far the response has been good. So everyone just needs to keep spreading the word and keep the support up and I believe that eventually she'll get made.

Maybe he-man.org can start a more official poll on the front page? That might get enough attention and traffic. My current posts elsewhere have tried to funnel votes to the matty boards, but most people don't want to sign up for a new message board just to vote and the matty boards themselves are relatively small.

[HordakQuack]

she's got a big white cat/she's blue/she's hot

But why would people want her before we get other classic characters yet to be released?

[Darkspecter]

I think the best thing to do is just keep posting about her and keep asking for her. I don't need her tomorrow. Or even next year. I just don't want her off the table, and my fear was that the last answer felt a bit like that.

I agree, but I would prefer her sooner than later. Power Con would also be an excellent place for people to voice their Illumina support with Mattel being there and listening.

My current posts elsewhere have tried to funnel votes to the matty boards, but most people don't want to sign up for a new message board just to vote and the matty boards themselves are relatively small.

Cool! I linked the Matty poll on 3 different places on Facebook (one being Matty's Facebook). It helped get 4 more votes so far!

I really think the best way to do her would to make her and her cat a two-pack and take up a $40 beast slot. I PROMISE I will buy two of her. She'd make an EXCELLENT item to commemorate the 200X line's 10th Anniversary next year...

But why would people want her before we get other classic characters yet to be released?

She's cool and interesting and, like Mattel has said many times, they need to spread the A-listers and such apart so the line lasts longer. So, she could help keep the line alive! Also, some people enjoy new MOTU stuff because this will be the third to fourth time collecting the SAME figures (80's, 200X, Staction and MOTUC for Battle Armour He-Man, for example).

[Emiliano]

*

Maybe he-man.org can start a more official poll on the front page? That might get enough attention and traffic.

As much as I'd love to have an Illumina figure, I don't think we'd do that any time soon. Me being one of the site administrator would make the pool look too biased.
I'll be always the last one campaigning for my own characters. If I create something that people like, I'm sure Mattel will notice that, but I won't be out there trying too hard to leave my mark on MOTU by having my own created characters in the line even if that would be sweet

[JonWes]

Ah, that's a good point.

Well then, I guess it's just up to the rest of us to keep posting our support and spreading the word.

[Dark Sorceress]

Ah, that's a good point.

Well then, I guess it's just up to the rest of us to keep posting our support and spreading the word.

we need to to sigs and icons for her

[bcrduke]

Illumina and her cat would be the perfect $60 Power Con exclusive next year.

Toyguru and Mattel would look like heroes if they made that happen! They already look amazing because of their support and involvement in/with Power Con! Hopefully that involvement will continue for years to come!

I mean that kind of exclusive makes total sense!! It would make Scott look great in the eyes of the fans

[DJ Force]

What is this nonsense about Evilseed possibly having two heads? How is that gonna work? The artichoke head on the 200x body is not going to look right. They could put a robe on the 200x body but that wouldn't work because the 200x version is too muscular.

Given that the Filmation Evilseed would share the exact same buck as every other figure (it´s MOTUC, after all), the muscularity wouldn´t prevent a robe, but actually support the idea.

Maybe separating the Current into 2 subs could help a bit...
Basic 12 figs Sub
Variant and Large Scale items Sub

To those who want "All-in" they just combine the subs.
Sadly the large scale items and variants would suffer a reduction, and a possible scale-back in the amount sold per year. IMHO a reduction in the amount of variants and large scale items is a better solution than increasing prices too much and causing a dip in the customer base like the one Netflix is going through.

Doing 12-figures-subs instead of the all-in subs will not do any good for Mattel, so they won´t offer it. They need folks to buy the quarterly variants and the beasts, too, without the risk of cherry pickers not wanting what they offer, because especially for those large scale things the costs are too high to take this risk.
Pretty easy to calculate. They divide the costs for a whole year into 12 regular, 4 additional and 4 large scale items and they need a baseline of buyers for all these items to justify the expenses.
Now think about Swift Wind. An entire new sculpt, but not everyones favorite toy (I still hear the moaning "it´s a girly horse"). If Mattel would offer 2 different subs and cherry pickers - or regular 12 figure subscribers - would pass on Swifty, the loss would be quite high. The all-in-subscribers would be much less than the 12-figure subscribers. And trying to compensate this loss with issuing a pink Swifty or basically any other horse wouldn´t rescue anything. Swift Wind already is the most important horse and if fans would pass on him, they would even more pass on any other horse, making the loss even bigger.

It just further makes me question why someone like Geoff Johns is designing a 30th Anniversary figure... and people like Lou Scheimer, Larry Ditillio, Emiliano Santalucia, Val Staples, or Rudy Obrero aren't.

Geoff is great, but what does he have to do with MOTU? I mean, he might be a fan, but in my opinion, the 30th Anniversary figures should all have been designed by significant contributors to the property.

I have to agree with this point. To be perfectly honest, I don´t even know who Geoff Johns is. I´m a MOTU collector, not a comic book collector (or reader, for that matter).
On the other hand, Lou Scheimer and the Filmation artists designed a plethora of characters and they all are available now since the Filmation rights are there, with good chances to being made into figure form. I would have loved for Emiliano or Val having the chance to design a new figure. BUT! If the 30th anniversary figures kick ass and are appreciated by fans and collectors, maybe there will be new characters in future years, too, with chances for "official" artists and contributors to the brand (like e.g. Emiliano is/was) to create some brand new characters.

Illumina already IS part of the more or less official group of characters, so it would be "wasting" one of only 6 available spots for brand new characters on her. That´s most propably why she won´t be a 30th anniversary line figure. Mattel can make her any time they want and feel apropriate.

Mattel made Man-E-Faces half and half coloured based on 525 votes in their official poll:

http://forums.mattycollector.com/eve...wpollresults/Y

That's not thousands.

True. BUT they announced the poll and needed ANY result for the upcoming figure, so even if only 6 people participated in that poll, they would have had a result to work with.
You are comparing apples and oranges here.

The "testing" can be done by everyone attending SDCC, NYTF or Wizard World.... Just walk around and ask folks "Do you know Man-At-Arms?" - I´m sure most folks will AT LEAST say "Oh, that guy from the He-Man show", if they didn´t even go into full detail. Ask the same person "What about... I don´t know. Ninjor?" a percentage of folks would need to pass, some remember him and some will again go into full detail. Now ask the exact same person about Illumina. The result will be devastating.

With characters like Vikor, Battle Ground Teela or even Gygor, those are Mattel property for almost 30 years, known by the public or not. I see Mattel wanting to publish their "long-lost sons and daughters" first, before tackling anything else.
And now ask yourself: Would you REALLY act any different? Just because <250 people bug you every day with the same question "When will we see character XYZ?"

[Darkspecter]

The "testing" can be done by everyone attending SDCC, NYTF or Wizard World.... Just walk around and ask folks "Do you know Man-At-Arms?" - I´m sure most folks will AT LEAST say "Oh, that guy from the He-Man show", if they didn´t even go into full detail. Ask the same person "What about... I don´t know. Ninjor?" a percentage of folks would need to pass, some remember him and some will again go into full detail. Now ask the exact same person about Illumina. The result will be devastating.

With characters like Vikor, Battle Ground Teela or even Gygor, those are Mattel property for almost 30 years, known by the public or not. I see Mattel wanting to publish their "long-lost sons and daughters" first, before tackling anything else.
And now ask yourself: Would you REALLY act any different? Just because <250 people bug you every day with the same question "When will we see character XYZ?"

To be fair, Vikor, Demo-Man and Gygor were scrapped concepts that never made it into any form of media. They only hit the concept stage. At least Illumina made it into official media that people actually had access to and she had characterization besides "barbarian" or "re-used Big Jim figure for He-Man to ride"! Being around longer, doesn't necessarily mean it's better.

About asking people who knows who such and such character is, the same can be said about a lot of NA figures and the later figures from 80's MOTU. How many people know who Rotar and Twistoid are? I love them to death, but come on. Scareglow was also thought to be bootleg MOTU in the 80's by people.

[DJ Force]

To be fair, Vikor, Demo-Man and Gygor were scrapped concepts that never made it into any form of media.

If I understood that one right from various sources (including Emiliano), Gygor was always meant to happen in vintage MOTU, proven by lots of original drawings, prototypes and so forth. It just didn´t happen for whatever reason. And Vikor and Demo-Man weren´t really scrapped, but they originated He-Man and Skeletor. While we´re at it, I would think the military He-Man and the science fiction He-Man that Roger Sweet came up with have the same "birthright" to be made into MOTUC figure form as Vikor and Demo-Man.

They only hit the concept stage. At least Illumina made it into official media that people actually had access to and she had characterization besides "barbarian" or "re-used Big Jim figure for He-Man to ride"! Being around longer, doesn't necessarily mean it's better.

I see where you are coming from. I hope you see vice versa. I never argued that Vikor, Gygor etc. were the better toys. I love the Illumina design, I even made a 200x custom of her AND her cat, and her weapon as a lifesize replica, which all of them I consider to be among my masterpieces. What I said was they are around longer and therefore "deserve" it more to being made, from Mattels point of view.
And, Mattel still needs some obscure fan-favorites to keep the line going for some more years ;-)

About asking people who knows who such and such character is, the same can be said about a lot of NA figures and the later figures from 80's MOTU.

Again, apples and oranges. MOTUC was always about exactly this. Including all the toylines from all eras.

How many people know who Rotar and Twistoid are?

The same bunch of people that know "I don´t know... Ninjor".

I love them to death, but come on. Scareglow was also thought to be bootleg MOTU in the 80's by people.

This is news to me.

[gbagok]

117 people and or about 250 people who hang out on this board is not enough to justify a figures based on one concept cover (as awesome as it is!!) and I think the background of a few panels in that Faceless One issue. She is cool, but we don't see more widespread interest.

First, I'm now worried you don't realize that Illuimina and the gar woman who appeared in those background panels of the Faceless One issue in the 200x comics are two different women (and potentially two different figures). By panels, I expect you're talking about in-story panels and not the back covers/previews where the Illumina image was seen. The Gar woman on the inside panels was a contemporary of Preternia, part of the same council as Eldor and Faceless One. You've said you're a 200X fan, Scott, so you need to go back and re-read that stuff! I'm sure you don't have time to track it all down, but you know you have a resource here with this site too, right?

Second, you may think the special anniversary figures are a different ball of wax, but they're really not to your customers. They're all new characters we didn't know about that you are asking us to buy. The difference is Illumina has some demand before appearing as a toy.

Third, You say it's really just a loud minority, but what's your reason for thinking that the silent majority is going to pass on HER but didn't on Gygor or won't on Demo-Man or the 30th Anniversary figures? Once people see these figures, the majority is usually won over, even with characters who did not exist as toys before and had no pre-existing demand like Draego-Man. Why do you think Illumina will be different and will remain only appealing to that small 117-250 you say are the only ones interested? Again, 30th Anniversary is NOT different to us. It's all new characters we're accepting into the line. Vikor and Demo-Man are hardly different since they never even appeared to the public until the net. It sounds like a double-standard now that you've done several figures that are so much like Illumina in terms of demand and obscurity.

[Super He-Man]

First, I'm now worried you don't realize that Illuimina and the gar woman who appeared in those background panels of the Faceless One issue in the 200x comics are two different women

Pointing out that Illuimina is even more obscure than he thought is probably not going to help convince Toyguru much.

[MegaGearMax]

Just make Illumina and her cat a Power-Con exclusive. The End.

[DJ Force]

Second, you may think the special anniversary figures are a different ball of wax, but they're really not to your customers.

I hate to repeat myself, but I don´t think I´m too far off with my thought, that those 6 slots for the 30th anniversary figures are so limited that they don´t want to "waste" any of those with a potential regular figure down the line. As Illumina is exactly that - a regular character.

Third, (...) It sounds like a double-standard now that you've done several figures that are so much like Illumina in terms of demand and obscurity.

Here are some reasons:

Vikor - Conan! Robert E. Howard would have approved!
Battleground Teela - bare skin and boobs! Always works for fanboys
Demo-Man - Alcala Skeletor head! Need I say more?
Gygor - opportunity to reuse a 100% new tool with the Shadow Beast, thus generating $$$

[Darkspecter]

Just make Illumina and her cat a Power-Con exclusive. The End.

That might be okay depending on how many of them they make. I'm worried about them making too few if they are also not available on MattyCollector. as long as they make an amount similar to the MattyCollector SDCC exclusive and put it online after the con, I'd be down for it.

Gygor - opportunity to reuse a 100% new tool with the Shadow Beast, thus generating $$$

Illumina and her cat as a two pack is a great chance to re-use the Cat buck. Besides Panthor and Battle Cat, it doesn't have a whole lot of re-use outside of Clawdeen (possibly, she's smaller in toy form). Also...if Mattel decides to make that set, they could be REALLY awesome and include Magicat's saddle as an extra! Magicat is basically identical to Illumina's cat, just with a modified Panthor saddle. Jewels instead of spikes. I always loved Magicat more than Clawdeen!

That would make me REALLY happy with my guaranteed purchase of two Illumina and cat sets.

[DJ Force]

Illumina and her cat as a two pack is a great chance to re-use the Cat buck.

True, but that totally wasn´t my point.
Gygor was 100% new tool. The cat buck has been used twice, with another two being Clawdeen and King Grayskulls Battle Lion still possible down the road. If they wanted to make Gygor a 100% new tool, they HAD to find possibilities to reuse the buck. And they did with the Shadow Beasts. That´s why they took the opportunity to make Gygor - additional funds rather than "just" reusing the cat-buck. And who knows what else could be made of the Gygor buck? As Toy Guru said in various interviews: As soon as they have the molds, they can use them. They have the horse tool now, which is awesome. And they have the wind raider tool, so they could even make "a stealth Wind Raider" ;-)

Besides Panthor and Battle Cat, it doesn't have a whole lot of re-use outside of Clawdeen (possibly, she's smaller in toy form).

Oh come on. You aren´t on this forum for just some weeks now. You pretty well know what MOTUC is about, and that the smaller Clawdeen as well as the impressivly larger Battle Lion will share the same buck as Battle-Cat and Panthor.

Also...if Mattel decides to make that set, they could be REALLY awesome and include Magicat's saddle as an extra! Magicat is basically identical to Illumina's cat, just with a modified Panthor saddle. Jewels instead of spikes. I always loved Magicat more than Clawdeen!

Oh, Magicat is new to me, never heard of her before. Is she of the same race as Panthor, too? Illuminas Cat is an Albino "Panthor". If Magicat wasn´t, Mattel could potentially make this one a proper new figure with bejeweled saddle, rather than just including it with Illuminas Cat, because she would propably need a unique headsculpt.