Word: toye
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Dates: during 1990-1999
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While Star Wars characters and logos now adorn nearly every type of product imaginable, one of the first and foremost products created for the original film was a series of action figures by a relatively small toy company called Kenner. Many stories surround the inception of the figures, but what is known for certain is that their small size (less than four inches) was a radical departure from the larger superhero figures of the late '70s. The figures' small size allowed Kenner to make vehicles and playsets that the figures could interact with easily but wouldn't take up half...
...culmination, of course, came on the night of May 2, as Kenner entered a new era of toy production with the Phantom Menace toys. But where once there were excited little kids, now there were 30-year-old collectors buying multiples of each figure, one to open and one or two (or more) to keep in the package...
Star Wars, in conjunction with a few other collector-driven lines, has managed to pull much of the focus away from the intended customers (children); collectors, with hundreds of dollars to spend on figures and a much more vocal presence on the Internet, determine the course of several toy lines. While I have nothing against collectors, I question whether they need to have four of each figure, when they could perhaps just buy two. If the kids get the other two and open them, then the collectors' figures will be that much more valuable. But most importantly, the kids...
Being an avid Star Wars fan, I found myself in good company. As we stood in line, customers debated how the toys would be set up, which action figures would be more rare than others and their excitement at the imminent release of the film itself. One fellow had just come off the plane from Colorado, where the Lucasfilm-sponsored Star Wars Celebration convention. Another fan strolled up and down the line dressed as Darth Vader, waving a toy light saber menacingly at the laughing crowd. Of course, this was a mere taste of the chaos that will surround ticket...
...When the doors opened, it seemed fairly organized. The line moved steadily inside, turned a corner and found the toys. Then it became a little more typical: some pushing, some shoving, some grabbing in bins and at racks. Having to catch the T, I grabbed the three figures I was looking for and beat it to the cashiers. Behind me, dozens of fans were scooping up every toy their arms, or carts, could hold. But why would toys be enough of a draw for dozens of people to wait for hours in line for their release? The fact...