Vivek B.
It’s the 30th anniversary of ThunderCats in 2015, and besides the 80s toy line there hasn’t been a proper new classic line of figures based on ThunderCats. The minimates from DST and Icon Heroes were very cool. Now that Bandai don’t have the license anymore, any chance DST will consider doing 6 inch figures of ThunderCats?
DSTChuck: That’s a cool idea, but I don’t think its something we’re looking at at this time. Interesting note: DST pitched WB on making a classic and reimagined line of Thundercats before even the new animation happened – around 10 years ago!
So there we go, they are not considering it right now. But they pitched the idea about 10 years ago and no surprise..WB passed on it :x.
I am an avid minimates collector and know a lot about that world. So…DST didn’t actually hold the license, that was Icon Heroe’s. DST simply manufactured them. SO yeah, unfortunately DST cant and wont do anything with the Thundercats license, it would have to be Icon Heroe’s.
Trust me, we bugged Chuck and Zach to death about making more thundercats minimates, but they always came back with the same answer. “they don’t hold the license, Icon Heroes does”
So unfortunately, there are not going to be anymore Thundercats Minimates.
Thanks Kyle, yeah I found out about Icon Heroes holding the license when DST addressed this in their Q & A earlier this year.
But just cause Icon Heroes has/had the minimates license, doesn’t mean DST can’t still pursue it. The fact they went after the license 10 years ago, means they had plans to revive the toy line.
Of course like they said, currently they have no active plans to go for the ThunderCats toy license. So now it depends on Mezco or some other toy company.
If DST had the licence and made toys about 10 years ago it would have been pretty cool and would maybe have helped get more interest for the franchise. But on the plus side the figures DST were making back then in their select line were pretty good but some were still very statuesque. Their is a drastic difference to the figures they have been making the last couple years that aside from having great sculpts now have great articulation.
What about ‘Bif Bang Pow’? After the failed mid 90’s Flash Gordon cartoon they released a line of movie figures a few years ago and are set to be releasing a 3.75" line based on the movie.
They are even making Battlestar Galactica, Venture Bros and Big Bang Theory figures. Surely Thundercats toys would sell to Thundercats fans a lot better than the toys to fans of those shows.
The future for Thundercats is looking rather bleak.
WB won’t give out any information to fans and seem very reluctant to let companies produce items most fans actually want and no because of WB none of the best current toy companies want to touch the licence.
I doubt that WB even remembers they hold the TC license. All they care about is their DC IPs. Batman, Batman, Batman and maybe Superman.
WB is a “play-safe for pure profit” corporation for the biggest part, unlike the Walt Disney Company who have a strategy of experimenting while milking their franchises.
For that, I like Disney more. They never ignored a single email I sent them (e.g. regarding the Gargoyles DVD releases), replying with honest and analytical information.
I think the biggest problem is that WB a film and TV company holds the rights to Thundercats instead of a toy company like Mattel, Playmates or Hasbro. If they owned it they would be cranking out merchandise and trying new things with it.
