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Post by TKO Propagandist on Feb 12, 2021 3:19:02 GMT -5
With Valentines Day on the horizon, I can't help but be reminded about my love for Jakks. I have decided the best way for me to continue to express it is by keeping this board alive. To do this, I will be posting 1 new thread weekly, remembering the good times and paying tribute to the legacy of the greatest wrestling figure creators of all time.
Someone mentioned this on here a few years ago and I have never forgotten it. Jakks is like your high school or college sweetheart, you date them but never marry them. As you get older you meet someone else and their suppose to be 'the one'. Marriage material, the type you spend the rest of your days with and have children to follow in your figure collecting path. You're older and wiser and you know better now. You have truly found your spouse. That is something I always think about. But for me it rings different, because I never married Mattel....And I long to get back with my first love, because it was with them, that I created the memories. It was with them I experienced it all for the first time and it was never the same the second time around. Back then I was wild and young, I made mistakes, I broke things, I sold things. And now I just want them all back. I'd trade every Mattel thing I own just to get that magic back. To get that feeling again, to get that passion again. But hey, things have moved on, it's 20 years since I first went into a store and bought a Jakks figure for the first time. And it was for the next 7 of those, I loved every single minute of it. But that was then....Maybe I should leave the memories alone. I've got Mattel now. Maybe I should put down them roses tinted glasses that don't even fit on my face. Or maybe, I should tell you how I really feel....In less metaphoric terms...
Even though I buy their figs. I'll never fly the Mattel flag like I did with JP, because Jakks will always be king. They are the Sammartino of figs and we shouldn't compare them to John Cena. It doesn't matter if the modern day is better than them. They will never capture their charm in my opinion. Jakks paved the way and laid the groundwork for all the WWE lines that continue to be made to this very day. They changed the game, took the ball and passed it to Mattel to continue to take us to new heights. If anyone wants to mention scale, to that I say, where were you in the 2000s, because people just didn't complain about that anywhere near as much as they do now looking back. If it means I could just go back to them golden years, I'd take every single: jacked, oversized, out of scale, detail missing, loose jointed, cloth stained, wrong parts, Chinese new year TTL arms, inaccurate Jakks figure there ever was.
Because even after all that, guess what? Jakks still rulez. They'll always rule. Because what they made stands the test of time. You wanna look back at the botches and mistakes? Go ahead, but I look at their best. What they made, is the stuff we look back on today and say this is what why I do what I do. This is why I chase the figure dragon. And for that, we cannot thank Jakks enough. And for many of us, no matter how masterclass a figure Mattel ever make. We know what came first, what we loved, what made us fans forever. We will never forget the name......Jakks Pacific.
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Post by hbkjason on Feb 12, 2021 4:18:36 GMT -5
That was a great read buddy.
I had so much fun collecting back in the Jakks day, while it may not have ended on the best note, it was some of my most fun times as a collector, especially tracking down the Classic Superstars figures.
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Post by shanieomaniac on Feb 12, 2021 4:53:51 GMT -5
This is an awesome read, bro.
And in many ways, very true to this day.
There is something to be said for rose tinted glasses and nostalgia. 10 years later, you often remember the good things, while the sting of the bad has faded. My first wrestling figure was in the BCA line (Summerslam '99 Shane) and I can still remember pleading with the KB Toys clerk to tell me what happened to "All the Stephanie figures". (The figure was never released.) When I made my Linda McMahon figure, I did it to best replicate the unreleased TTL Prototype (The attire anyway). The unreleased Steph is also on my list of To-Make Customs. I'm still adding Jakks figures to my collection when I can and one of my biggest thrills is going on secondary and buying one of the figures from yesteryear that I always wanted but never had money for as a broke teenager. Tori and Ivory are two big examples, but GAB Torrie and CS Luna and Sunny are later-era figs that I adore.
Actually, the Classic Superstars line as a whole is something that I doubt will ever be replicated or topped. The madness of having all those wonderful figures and diverse characters that Mattel couldn't make in their wildest dreams. I still remember going to a toy aisle, seeing a Moolah figure and thinking "WOW! They made MOOLAH!?!" (Still on the fence about adding her to my collection now though.) And, speaking of Moolah, I'm glad we got a Mattel Mae, but IMHO, the CS one had a better headsculpt, although her head was huge. I have the Mattel, and painted her hair blonde, but I really wish i could afford the CS one.
This is turning into a ramble. I'm tired, it's late, and I have no idea where I'm going with this. Basically, Jakks figures were awesome when they were done right and many of the Mattel figures from before 2016 or so couldn't hold a candle to Jakks when they made a winner. Reused parts, out of scale, bad heads, spamming the same 8 guys... it's still happening to this day. But when you look at a Mattel figure, any Mattel figure that isn't a UE, you look at it and you can SEE the "Toy" in it.
Look at some of the limited edition Jakks figures. Hell, great example. Look at the "Main Event" Jakks Melina, then look at either of Mattel's efforts for her.
One of them is very clearly a collectible. And it isn't the Mattel one.
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Post by TKO Propagandist on Feb 12, 2021 6:29:21 GMT -5
Thanks for sharing, it's true we should always remember the good times. Jakks gave us so much, so why dwell on what they didn't.
It's interesting, because as much as you could collect, you could play. The playsets that were pumped out were amazing. The endless customization you could do to make your perfect arena and backstage area based on what was available. If you bought the Hardcore Ring, the possiblities were endless. Grapple gear, ring gear, it didn't just stop at the figures, the experience was so much more than that and it's something the modern day just hasn't captured. Of course, times are different, budgets are different. But it was just so all encompassing back then. Year on year they just kept outdoing themselves.
From the tron stage to the Smackdown one, Backstage mayhem to the Hardcore ring, Hall of Pain, Rage in the Cage, Metal Vengeance Arena, Stage of Rage, Backlash ring, the Elmination Chamber, blue cage, real scale ring, RAW arena, Hell in a Cell and later to scale same with the Chamber. So much awesome stuff.
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Post by wolfpac on Feb 12, 2021 10:59:45 GMT -5
Great read, really makes me think back to those days
Jakks/WWF was such an important part of my childhood, they do hand in hand. I never had toys for any other brand but wrestling outside odds and ends, but once I started buying Jakks i was hooked.
Memories of watching RAW/SD then going to recreate it later that night, starting a "Fed" and keeping track of results and champions/Story lines and angles, getting to do my own little company. Sometimes I would sneak out of bed to do one more PPV match or show before I got caught.
The figures remind me of those days, and will always be the best to me. Seeing the old packages make me remember PPV sundays going to Zellers(Canada here) or Toys R Us and trying to find some new figure, then having someone new while watching a PPV I can still relate certain shows to certain figures.
And don't even get me started on Xmas, since I would be an easy to buy for kid, I would have a list of sets I wanted and usually would get some rare ones.
I still remember the best one was getting a TTL7 Kurt Angle for Xmas 2000, he was my favorite and being so crushed I could never find his figure, but opening it Xmas eve is stil a memory I'll cherish.
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Post by LA Times on Feb 12, 2021 12:52:30 GMT -5
Dear Jakks,
Your Classic Superstars line revolutionized wrestling figures. I love you.
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Post by TKO Propagandist on Feb 13, 2021 7:09:36 GMT -5
Great read, really makes me think back to those days Jakks/WWF was such an important part of my childhood, they do hand in hand. I never had toys for any other brand but wrestling outside odds and ends, but once I started buying Jakks i was hooked. Memories of watching RAW/SD then going to recreate it later that night, starting a "Fed" and keeping track of results and champions/Story lines and angles, getting to do my own little company. Sometimes I would sneak out of bed to do one more PPV match or show before I got caught. So true about the fig feds. I relate to that so much. I remember being super excited in school during the week of a PPV. One because of the real life event but also the figure version I would do on the Saturday. Every Friday I would go shopping with my parents at the mall. It was just for groceries but I would always get some McDonalds and a figure too. That made the fig fed PPVs even more exciting since I usually had the chance to use a new fig straight away. Every so often I find some of my old notebooks with all the matches and posters written down. Floods back so many great memories like the posts in this thread have. |
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Post by stc13 on Feb 13, 2021 9:08:28 GMT -5
I really enjoy seeing all the fond memories of Jakks. I loved the BCA figures, but never collected the CS and RA figures that everyone most associates with Jakks. By that point I had stopped watching wrestling completely, but was stopping at Toys R Us weekly collecting McFarlane figures. I'd always walk by the wrestling aisle and take in how much figures had changed. I came really close to buying figures a few times - I had the Rockers in my hand and almost to the checkout before I decided it was "silly" to be buying wrestling figures in high school. And I came pretty close to buying the Tatanka RA figure and a Michaels LJN style later on.
In the end, I'm perfect fine with when I jumped into collecting. From a financial perspective, it's a probably a lot more fun as an adult with a healthy figure budget than as a high school kid. But I get a little bummed out over what I missed out on when I stare at empty pegs at Target and think of walking past an entire aisle of wrestling figures with every peg full so many times.
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JOEJOEJOEJOE
Superstar
Joined on: Jul 31, 2018 22:20:22 GMT -5
Posts: 874
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Post by JOEJOEJOEJOE on Feb 18, 2021 12:54:55 GMT -5
One thing Jakks will always be better than Mattel is the accessories. Some of my favorite memories were enjoying the Hell in a cell, Money in the bank and elimination chambers
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WFigureManiac
Mid-Carder
Collector since 1996
Joined on: Jun 4, 2020 4:44:09 GMT -5
Posts: 182
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Post by WFigureManiac on Feb 21, 2021 9:15:53 GMT -5
One thing Jakks will always be better than Mattel is the accessories. Some of my favorite memories were enjoying the Hell in a cell, Money in the bank and elimination chambers Yes accessories and playlets were much better. I'm bored with Mattels lot of extra hands. |
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Post by shanieomaniac on Feb 22, 2021 7:27:12 GMT -5
One thing Jakks will always be better than Mattel is the accessories. Some of my favorite memories were enjoying the Hell in a cell, Money in the bank and elimination chambers Yes accessories and playlets were much better. I'm bored with Mattels lot of extra hands. The extra hands are nice for customization, but very boring. I miss going to the store, finding a figure I want and going "Wait. Why does this guy come with a mop and bucket???" followed by half an hour later rejoicing because it was such an awesome mop and bucket that it didn't matter. Who cares why, now I can have Triple H literally mop the floor with someone! |
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Post by TKO Propagandist on Feb 22, 2021 15:44:52 GMT -5
Yes accessories and playlets were much better. I'm bored with Mattels lot of extra hands. The extra hands are nice for customization, but very boring. I miss going to the store, finding a figure I want and going "Wait. Why does this guy come with a mop and bucket???" followed by half an hour later rejoicing because it was such an awesome mop and bucket that it didn't matter. Who cares why, now I can have Triple H literally mop the floor with someone! Backstage areas were a thing of beauty back then. Even if you didn't have the various playsets. Grab some cardboard, shoe boxes and a bottomless pit of random figure accessories and take your fig fed hardcore division to new heights! |
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Mclovin
Superstar
This Forum's Resident Future WWE Champion, Not Changing This Until It Happens.
Joined on: Nov 12, 2018 4:12:19 GMT -5
Posts: 826
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Post by Mclovin on Feb 22, 2021 15:52:06 GMT -5
Jakks was the figure company of my childhood. TTL's, R3's, RA's, & DA's. The Classic Superstars line paved the way for wrestlers from bygone eras to get representation in modern figure lines. The figures were great for their time but when Mattel came around they got blown out of the water instantly. With Jakks Rey Mysterio and Undertaker are damn near the same height. With Mattel most figures are properly scaled. Skin tones are better. Tattoos aren't just green or grey anymore. head scans are wayyy better (except for Edge I guess). But we can't compare the two because as with Sammartino and Cena you couldn't have the later without the former. Jakks progressed the figure game as a whole, but above all they formed our childhoods and beyond.
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