#I need a figure of her bro come on hasBRO my bro I am NOT paying resale prices

[hercarisntyours]

what do I need to do to get a legacy tfa blackarachnia

[bwprowl]

So I’ve been seeing stuff going around recently re: GI Joe and its continued failure to catch on, and it expectedly got me thinking. As a huge Transformers fan, Joe has always been somewhat on my radar (I even dabbled in collecting it for a bit during the 25A line), and the subject of its ongoing struggles to recreate its past success have consistently interested me. Meditating on this subject again this time got me thinking about the series and what works for it, along with other ideas as far as franchises, toys, and their marketing.

So the conventional wisdom on GI Joe failing to catch on in the modern era has always gone back to its military theme rendering it unpopular in our current cultural climate. Especially as an ostensible Real American Hero, it’s easy to believe that toys glorifying US Military offensives might not go over well in today’s polarized America, and definitely not in the increasingly-valuable overseas market (it ain’t exactly easy to sell toys of American soldiers to the same international customers that love the more culturally-universal Transformers).

But while I definitely understand Joe’s limited-to-local appeal, I’ve personally never fully bought into the idea that being military-themed inherently meant it was doomed to be unpopular in today’s America. The reason for that is a big one: Call of Duty. The CoD franchise (and by extension the entire subgenre of modern military shooters) have been HUGE in the hemisphere’s video game markets, and for years dominated the charts in popularity and appeal, especially (the games’ actual age-rating apparently notwithstanding) with children. True, “twelve-year-olds on Call of Duty” is something of a jocular situation blown up past its true scope by detractors, but it still stands that these games, necessarily rooted in glorifying American military operations, are very popular with kids.

So the very existence of that situation has always brought me back to GI Joe and the question of how Hasbro could be so incompetent as to not be able to sell toys of soldiers to the audience that gobbles up CoD. The marketing would definitely play a part in it, and there is the admission that the kid audiences of CoD and GI Joe aren’t exactly the same; the kids Hasbro wants buying Joe toys are younger than the bunch that pesters their parents to buy them CoD, but the through-line I’m getting at here is that military-themed content shouldn’t be an inherent deal-breaker; if Little Timmy wouldn’t want a toy that reminds him that Daddy isn’t coming home from Iraq, why would he want a video game that did the same thing?

Granted, there are obvious tonal differences. The hyped-up modern military shooters subsist on a projection of perceived gritty realism, catering to the mature gamers who only play mature games. In this respect, of course even the actual kids, the 10-12-year-olds in the audience are going to see themselves as ‘too grown-up’ for the toyetic fantasy bent GI Joe’s action figures spin on the military.

But you know what does look pretty darn close to GI Joe’s style of squad-based superheroics?

Overwatch, as wholeheartedly as I’ve thrown myself into it since last Summer, has been an utter blast to follow simply on its own and as an excellent game, but as a marketing vehicle, it’s an absolute revelation. Being an online-multiplayer-only affair with all of its story elements only available as supplementary content, I’ve always compared Overwatch to a big digital toybox, but the comparison becomes more spot-on the more you look into it.

Just the design of Overwatch’s story perfectly mirrors the toy-advert cartoons of the 80’s on: A team of varied heroes with different distinctive special abilities, engaging in regular battle with a group of recurring obviously-villainous villains. The current Talon trio of the game especially feels straight out of the nefarious retro-bad-guy playbook; Reaper, Widowmaker, and Sombra would not feel out of place compared to Skeletor, Evil-Lyn, and Beast Man. The backstory elements of Overwatch’s fiction do lend it a lot more weight and detail than its cheesier cartoon progenitors, of course, but the base elements are all still there, making it feel like a natural evolution of those old tropes. In the end, you still have details like the almost annoyingly generic military-man leader Soldier: 76, turbo-revvin’ young punk Tracer (who probably gets into trouble and Learns a Lesson once an episode) and her brains-and-brawn best friend Winston (who incidentally, is also a loveable talking animal mascot).

Not straying too far from my original point, Overwatch basically makes the case for an updated GI Joe series as a virtual line rather than a physical one on toy shelves. Many of the characters in Overwatch mirror character archetypes that worked so well for Joe in it’s heyday, whether it’s the aforementioned Soldier: 76 as the Duke-type, Roadhog and Junkrat as new takes on the Aussie punks the Dreadnoks, or even Hanzo and Genji filling in for Joe’s famous feuding ninja bros! Overwatch didn’t invent these tropes, and neither did GI Joe, they both just figured out the best way to present and market them for their time period.

If you doubt that Overwatch is basically taking a toy-marketing approach to selling their game here, I urge you to check out the ancillary material they put out to promote it. Watch the animated shorts; hell go watch the newest one, Infiltration, right now, I’ll wait here.

That short came out at the same time new hero Sombra was launched in the game, and if you’ve ever seen one of those ol’ toy-promoting cartoons before, what it’s doing should be obvious. It’s almost hilarious how blatantly the short goes through all of Sombra’s abilities and gimmicks, showing them off to convince you to [strike]buy her toy[/strike] play her in the game. It’s the equivalent of when the Power Rangers get a new robot to add to their Megazord and spend a whole ten minutes in the episode showing all the cool shit it can do. And basically all the shorts are like this, whether it’s the otherwise-artsy Bastion one that still works in displays of his turret mode and self-repair gimmicks, or the Tracer vs. Widowmaker one that only needs two kids screaming narration over it and an ‘each sold separately’ at the end to complete the toy-commercial style.

And I’m not trying to be derogatory with this comparison, because I am of the firm belief that this approach does work gangbusters! The toys that the Overwatch media is selling are very fun toys, after all. Each character/action figure is fun to play with in their own right, using all their gimmicks and smashing them into each other on the Watchpoint Gibralter Playset ™ with your friends.

Anyway, my point with all this really is just going back to How Could This Fix G.I. Joe. I always proposed a CoD-style shooter tie-in as a marketing option for it, but as I detailed above, the style there never really jibed. But an Overwatch-style multiplayer superpower shooter? That very well could be the ticket. Look at how hard people clamor for toys of Overwatch’s cast after getting to play with their digital equivalents. Granted, Hasbro would need to pour a decent amount of resources into making a game that people actually wanted to play that could generate interest in their plastic products, but even that Paladins thing seems to be doing decently, so even the most frivolous free-to-play knockoff has a chance at success so long as it does some things right.

Or maybe in the long run we shouldn’t worry about G.I. Joe getting revived at all, since as I’ve outlined all up there, Overwatch is already a pretty dang close successor to the spirit and style of that one.

[marvelandponder]

Seems Like a Silly Question, huh?

It’s not hard to argue that Spike is somewhat effeminate. He’s not a walking stereotype, and he’s got his fair share of more traditionally masculine traits, but the dude’s kinda dainty. 

And that’s cool, so why am I asking about it? It’s not like it’s unusual, and if you start thinking about it, you get to some obvious answers: the target demographic are little girls, Spike is surrounded by lots of female role models constantly, he was raised mostly by Twilight (or Princess Celestia, although that still hasn’t been confirmed), high society like Canterlot tends to produce more prim and proper ilk, etc. Easy answers.

So... why ask?

Well, for starters, the same reason you might ask similar questions about Steven Universe. Stick with me here.

Spike Universe

Someone anonymously sent me an ask comparing Spike to Steven Universe, and the more I thought about it, the more apt that comparison became (thank you whoever you are, all credit for this section goes to you).

At first, it took me a second to see it, because the differences seem so substantial that I thought the similarities might only be superficial. Like I said in the ask, Steven’s had to deal with darker, more complex subjects, and, more importantly, for longer periods of time. 

Spike’s come to terms with the loss of his home in a fire, for example, but we only see him grieving briefly. Essentially, if something hurts Steven, and/or changes his perspective on someone, it tends to have lasting effects because, well, Steven Universe is a story-arc and character-arc driven show. 

But, aside from that, Spike and Steven have a lot in common.

Young boy growing up surrounded by powerful female figures

Doesn’t quite fit into either of the species/races they’re supposed to, but instead exists as a mix of both

Makes allies out of perceived enemies

Complex characters with a mix of feminine and masculine traits that tend to lean towards their more traditionally feminine side

All this, and the question still remains: why?

Again, stick with me.

The F Word

I couldn’t really talk about this subject without bringing up something that everybody’s got opinions on: feminism.

First off, because I know what the internet’s like, I should say I’m not about to argue you should change those opinions of yours---whether they’re positive or negative. For the purpose of the point I’m getting to it doesn’t particularly matter where I stand on it, so yeah, I encourage you to make your own decisions on whatever movements you want to investigate, and support or not support. You do you.

But, with that out of the way, back to Pony.

There is a legitimate reason to bring this up without taking a stance myself. Someone one else has.

Jim “Big Jim” Miller is a storyboard artist/supervisor and co-director of the show. He’s also done a few incidental voices, the most significant roles being King Sombra and Trouble Shoes. Plus, he joins the ‘cartoonists who are known for primarily wearing plaid’ club. 

More relevantly, he’s gone on record backing up Lauren Faust, who considers herself a feminist, in saying Friendship is Magic is a feminist show, while talking about what it’s like the make a show for little girls:

"My Little Pony is fundamentally a feminist show. It's about girls. It stars girls. Girls are awesome. Get used to it. If you feel, as a man, that your gender is underrepresented in this program, welcome to what it must feel like every girl watching the millions of other shows about and starring boys.

Ideally, we wouldn't have to have conversations about the gender identity of shows. And to their credit, Hasbro has recognized the gender neutral appeal of FiM and started branding and marketing that way. But there is nothing wrong with watching and enjoying a show made for girls.

... And until the day comes where it doesn't matter who shows are made for, I'm proud to say I make a show for little girls."

Source (x)

So, maybe that’s our answer. Come to think of it, Discord’s foppish, Big Mac plays with dolls and dreams of being a princess, and Shining Armour, while mostly pretty manly, gets emotional at weddings. Really emotional.

Maybe it’s just because there’s not a lot of masculinity period in this show. 

But hey, for the record, Rebecca Sugar, the creator of Steven Universe, wrote something similar (although not quite about any feminist aspect of the show) on the subject of whether Steven Universe is a boys’ show or not:

“My goal with the show was to really tear down and play with the semiotics of gender in cartoons for children because I think that’s a really absurd idea that there would be something radically different about a show for little girls versus a show for little boys.

It’s exciting to me to play with a lot of that language [”boys’” show or “girls’” show], because everyone’s very familiar with it but it really doesn’t make much sense. I used to really enjoy shows that were aggressively targeted to boys when I was a little girl and I know the same can be true the other way around, so why not have something that everybody can watch?”

Source (x)

And since I’m trying to stay neutral, I’ll say again we don’t need to get in arguments over different kinds of feminism, but we can at least acknowledge there’s some kind of feminism around here (or at least in Pony), that tries to build girls up without necessarily tearing anyone else down.

Why is Spike So Not Girly?

In general, yeah, he’s got some traditionally feminine qualities like his supportive, emotionally open nature, but for a while there, before Discord joined the Mane Cast (if a character gets their own episodes, their a member of the main cast, so CMC’s and Starlight included), Spike was our token little bro.

And despite being the butt of a few slapstick jokes, he’s not typically looked down on for being a dude or having manly qualities. He’s allowed to have his guys’ night and burp up scrolls when necessary, as stereotypical guy stuff goes.

The closest we come is in the comparison between fierce, warlike dragons and friendship-loving, sing-songy ponies. Spike’s initially told he isn’t like those other brutish dragons, but when he goes to hang out with them, he greatly enjoys himself up until they start getting into some morally wrong territory. He wanted a dragon role-model in his life, and just couldn’t find one. At which point, he starts to consider himself a pony.

Although, he does try to think of himself a “noble dragon,” he’s still far removed from relating to anyone of his kind. 

Later on in the fandom-darling episode Gauntlet of Fire, however, it’s working with Princess/Dragon Lord Ember that ends up winning the day---Spike’s expertise in girly pony-like friendship-making ultimately make the difference, but Ember’s brute force and fighting ability helps, too.

What’s exciting is that Spike finally has a dragon friend he can relate to. That he can learn what it means to be a dragon without sacrificing the pony ideals he grew up on.

And in the dragons = dudes, ponies = chicks metaphor, it means the “brutish” ways he just had to abandon to stay morally upstanding in previous seasons can be embraced and better balanced with the feminine relationship-valuing (yeah, that’s totally a phrase people use: relationship-valuing). 

I like this a lot because that’s how the show generally treats masculine qualities. Even when he was one, I don’t think Spike ever felt like the token guy---and not just because he can be effeminate, but---because in-universe there’s an acceptance and embracing of feminine traits without denying masculine ones.

For one, take a look at Spike’s heroes---or at least, who we can guess are his heroes. We know he’s had visions of being a strong, noble knight able to save a damsel in distress, but also loves to role-play as an absurdly powerful magician. You could argue I’m seeing things, but you know who those look like to me? His older brother and sister.

If Garbuckle there wasn’t Twi enough for you, what about “Princess” Spike? You might say ‘oh, calling himself a princess was just a gag for the audience’---and sure, objectively, that might be true, but in-universe, I mean, Spike knows what a prince is. Prince Blueblood exists. Instead, he chose to be a princess.

You can’t deny that he admires his older siblings, and this is perfect example of what I’m talking about: one the one hand, you’ve got the knight in shining armour, who rose up the ranks of the royal military guard. On the other, you’ve got the Princess of Friendship, who rose to that position not just because of her academic merit, but her love and compassion. As traditionally masculine and feminine role-models go, that’s pretty clear cut.

And, we get to focus primarily on Twi and stereotypically girly stuff like, I dunno, friendship or something---but that doesn’t stop Spike from looking up to Shining Armour, too. Embracing and, hell, championing the feminine side while also enjoying the masculine. 

The coolest thing about that is, well, we never have to question it. I know that’s what I’m doing in this post, but only to really highlight how great it is to have this caring little guy look up to who he wants to, and be who he wants to be. No questions asked.

If you want more MLP editorials, I’ve got them here, and the last few right here (you can also check out the other Spike editorial I did that goes over more of his accomplishments):

*Spike, Twilight, and Top 10 Things to Look for in S7 Editorials

Year of the Pony

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Canterlot Castle Background by Zapheroc

Guilty Spike Vector by MasemJ

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Let’s Hear it for the Boy!