This is based only on my opinion.
Fans, especially women, have always been a thing. To say Star Wars and Star Trek never had female fans is disingenuous. Star Trek, need I remind you, is actually loved by women first and the diehard scifi fans denigrated Star Trek as scifi for women until they started to realize the good stories in there.
For nearly a decade now, geek culture had been largely accepted.
Even if people who don't understand fandom - Rian Johnson, Kathleen Kennedy, Paul Feig, and the woke media to name a few -, geek culture is large and expansive. People are fans of something, be it casual or diehard. People don't have to be passionate. Let it be understood that only a small portion of the fanbase will be loud and/or SJW. People who have a realistic understanding of the flaws and problematic materials in the work they love won't be quite as outspoken and attacking.
Now that's out of the way, let's go into geek culture.
Geeks were commonly bullied and often outcasts in the past and now accepted to the point it seemed attractive now. Seriously, I never thought the day geeks would be attractive for their mere knowledge of geek-related stuff.
Shuffled into subscription boxes in almost all shapes and sizes, Pops for almost every single IP you can think of in every goddamn store, and god who knows where else Funko Pop is available because Funkos are damn everywhere. You will find a Funko pop somewhere geek-related by the power of the company.
For the last decade, geeks have now been one of the primary audiences of something. Be it attacked by the media for just having a small base of people instead of acknowledging that the rest of the fandom is not like this or simply having a toy out there for a particular series, geeks are in the public eye. Just to be clear, no geeks want to be called 'bad guys'; I already have enough trouble that liking something that has just the inkling of problematic deemed you a supporter when that's not how it works. Because of course, my cousin is problematic for liking Code Geass when all she did is that she just likes the damn thing.
If there's an IP without a figure that isn't a Funko Pop in some shape or form, Funko is going to get it, damn the increasing debt.
Funko is getting every IP so they can keep up with the popular trends. That's gotta be difficult, especially for a company who built their entire company in pop culture.
Figures/toys have existed long before Funko. Kidrobot, Bearbrick, prize figures, gacha, statues, posable figures, Sofubi, etc still have a large fanbase although Kidrobot doesn't have the same height as it once did. I can discuss the art vinyl scene in America before Funko arrived in the scene but I will give it to someone passionate about it. Now, the art vinyl scene in America is still living albeit shrinking but Kidrobot is still living. The Japanese art vinyl scene is alive and well; while Funko Pops still exist and sold in Japan (Amiami sold them including in their website store), it's not popular. If there's Funko Pops, it's in a small section as seen in that Amiami tour.
Geek spaces are niched. Just for an example, just look at Nakano Broadway and Akihabara.
There is no doubt it is. Seriously, there is a reason why Akihabara and Nakano are called the mecca for anime/manga fans. Even with the large cost that locals called either ripping off or scam, people point out people who are vacationing there will find the prices are worth it, especially in mint condition. On vacations, people want to spend lots of money. While they would try to find somewhat lower costs in what they could find, they want to spend money. I'm pretty sure I'm gonna spend lots of money on my Japan trips.
Before Funko Pops, there is merchandise for a particular game or none at all. However, it's very limited or costly. However, for the fans in the niched geek space, it's enough. It also doesn't help that some merchandise might not be of high quality.
I'm not saying Funko Pop is high quality because it really isn't... Well, depending on the sculpt and/or design that might make it worth it, but that's all on the detail.
For most people who love the art vinyl scene and/or figurines that are unique and created with passion, Funko Pops is an endemic of the geek space.
For them, Funko Pops repeats the same template (just the humans, just look at the humans and see what makes it different besides the name plastered on the box and whatever the figure is holding on its face or its hands) and doesn't do much of creativity.
What these people have a large problem with is devoid of creativity in Funko Pops. They aren't hating on people who collect them though I'm pretty sure a small group is hating on them. From what I heard, the couple who collected roomfuls of Funko Pop when word got out of the contract his wife made him sign was bullied and he was a loud and proud Funko Pop fan and he's proud of his collection. I am not and will not hurt him for doing what he loves: collecting Funko Pops.
While I'm sure some anime figure collectors had been lambasted by a small group before, those people never stopped their love of collecting figures.
And I'm sure, even if these people lost thousands of dollars, the experience they got from the Funko Pop fandom is enough.
And no, I'm not calling for the death of Funko Pops. If people like them, especially for the appeals I mentioned in the last post, then people who seemed to embolden themselves in hate should not really bother for something as trivial as a toy.
And yes, Funko Pop is a toy.
Not even anime fans would not dispute their figures are toys, especially in the posable and the model kit building departments.
For Funko, it's called a collectible. Even though anime figurines are also called collectibles, it's still placed in the toy department for many. Come on, it's a plastic toy that you can pose and simulate moments. Hell, even in the most static of poses, they are frozen in time of amazing dynamic poses.
That is not to say, Funko Pops can't be uncreative. If it's an animal or alien, they have to change the body design. While keeping the damn blocky head and beady black soulless eyes. Not that it has to be black, sometimes it's other colors depending on the color.
I just have problems with the level of creativity in Funko Pop.
And this level of creativity is just fine for people who just want a figure of their own favorite series.
Again, I won't hurt people who collect the figures of a series they love.
Even if it's in my opinion, it's not as good as many gachapon and prize figures.
I'm going to go off in a tangent.
Geek spaces are niched. There is no question about that. Regardless of whatever spectrum you are, geeks are geeks. There is quality merchandise out there made with a fine hand.
However, Funko invaded the space of geek spaces and made relatively low-quality figures for the cheap. Because it's cheap. And I'm not talking cheap as in price, cheap as in mass-produced cheap with mistakes all over the place. Because of this, people can casually stuff it in subscription boxes and sell it en-masse.
I am not against the low and middle class. That is not the point of people's arguments against Funko Pops. Anybody who tries to say that these people are against those classes is not seeing why people don't like it. I never saw people who hate Funko argue against the price. My cousin and I are middle class and while I don't hate Funko Pops, I do have my annoyances and my cousin hates them with a passion of a thousand suns. And she will never argue that it's understandable that people would want a cheap toy costing ten bucks. What she had against it is the beady eyes and feeble representation of the chibi design.
I will not say that there shouldn't be cheap prices for figures. I know this pain because I wish the figures I want are not over a hundred or so bucks. I wanted to cry whenever I see a figure I truly wanted but cost more than what I am willing to shell out. I always love seeing the Pokeani G.E.M figures and the Thanatos figures and you think I am willing to shell the money for that! I adore them and would love to display them because they give me a sense of joy just looking at them but they cost too much! I understand why people want cheap prices for the figures they want. Even my cousin who vehemently hates Funko pops won't deny that the price is generally an appeal for those who want figures of their faves. All she complains about is the eyes and just how poorly designed the chibi style doesn't work for the pops. Not once she mentioned the price in our discussions about figures.
I'm pretty sure people who hate Funko pops won't argue about the price either. Not once had I seen the price discussion came up unless fans themselves complain about the eBay prices or so forth.
Just why this argument? When the people who hate Funko pops made it clear they had other reasons to hate the pops, not the goddamn price! I fucking mentioned it in the previous post as an allure!
What I am against is the quality, not the price. Get it out of your head that I am so kind of elitist when all I just want is quality. I got a quality Usopp figure for nine bucks and a great deal! I always made it a point to tell my cousin who collects Fire Emblem Amiibo figures and wanted a goddamn Lucina figma! A figma cost more than she was willing to shell out currently! And the reason why prices came up about figures we want and it's inevitable we'll get to prices. Why the hell would I want to make people pay more than a hundred bucks for a figure they might not want?! All I want out of Funko is quality instead of pumping out the same figure.
There is a reason why people complain about Funko's sameness. If they all see is its same human pops, the unique pops or the ones who don't look like pops apart from the eyes and/or head would be lost in the clutter.
For them, it's low quality, shitty, poorly designed and stylized, and soulless inferior toys. It's not the price they're arguing against. For them, it's lazy and shoddy in terms of quality and all they want is quality and soul in a handmade toy.
That's the major problem that people who love Sofubi, Nendoroids, Figmas, Kidrobot, Kenkeshi, etc have with Funko. Even with the few Funko that managed to look good or managed to have the design appropriate for it, it's small in numbers so of course, people who seen Funko regularly in trips to geeky or toy spots are annoyed at the same Funko pops they see.
I'm pretty sure I'm not talking about geek commodification yet...
Let's just say it.
The geeks originally had the choice of not well made or well-made merch, depending on the price and location. In America, where merch is hard to come by, it's much more difficult to find one.
Funko Pop is everywhere. The only reason I never subscribe to an anime subscription box is that there's a Funko Pop added to it. Again, while I never had an interest in it, I dislike the beady eyes and the soullessness of the overall quality. You can find Funko Pops in the malls, game stores, and so forth. There's no escaping them. I'm pretty some stores are surviving off these pops until maybe Funko goes broke? I don't want to think of it but if Funko fails, the stores that managed to get their shops up and running just because of Pops alone fail too. Gamespot is an example.
Now, Funko pops' various IPs are targeted to geeks, casual or not.
At least, anime figures are niched. Even though they are everywhere, they are still reserved in geek spots and don't bother people because they are separated from the rest of the pack. Not every anime fan will buy an anime figure. Again, I bought mine because I fell in love with it and don't care what people have to say about it. And nobody would dispute because I took great care of it.
Funko Pops are everywhere. No matter what IP you love, it's there and burrowed into your soul with the vacuous nightmarish eyes.
They are targetted and became a commodity no matter the cost and price. If Funko released a poorly made Funko that is only made for the box or made more than what is necessary, then the geeks are commodified. Instead of giving geeks the worth of their money, they became a commodity because they'll buy anything. Unlike the collectors of Japanese products who know they have to be careful and cry every time because they could go broke the moment they walk out of the store.
Everywhere a franchise has so many merch. While I am glad that fans have their choice of merch, it's much different here in America. In Japan, you can support the people you like by buying the merch because that's how Japan works. There, the merch is different and varying prices. Even from the freaking gachapon machines, you can get unique figures and toys! From Chopper clinging on the Skytree to a small Pikachu dressed as a ghost, there are so many figures and toys you can choose from basically less than a dollar-yen. At least people are getting their money's worth with the quality and variety in selection.
Here, it's the same thing from pop keychains to the actual pops. I could not find the difference between a Deku pop keychain and the actual pop itself. It doesn't help that Funko Pops are included in subscription boxes or anything related to geekhood possibly. I don't subscribe to subscriptions for two reasons: I want to pick the merch I want and I don't want Funko Pops next to my figures and Gunpla!
For better or for worse, because it's everywhere, people get exposed to them often and by people, I mean normal people. Yes, they will probably get some pops but there will always be people, for a variety of reasons, will hate the figure after being exposed to it often. I mean I have seen enough of the pops to last a lifetime and I don't like the feeling that it's not reserved in geeky spots.
While I am glad it's accessible for people who like stuff casually, Funko pops' everywhere-ness doesn't help that the business expects their hardcore collectors will continuously buying and people who just don't like seeing Funko pop as the figure of choice and the nightmarish eyes. Since Top Pops and Box Attack eventually bought their own offices - although I'm pretty sure they were planning it anyway - the hardcore ones would not buy one. While it wouldn't hurt business to the point they'll go bankrupt, Funko had to be up-to-date with the latest trends.
Funko had been the forefront of geek figures in America. While figures are higher quality elsewhere, Funko's cheapness and accessibility to many various IPs, old and new, made them the broader and appealing choice.
Even though many argue that it's a poor choice due to its quality and just want other fans' to have better quality is worth putting on the shelf rather than the same figure over and over with the beady black eyes and teeny body that is only slightly adjusted. Seriously, chrome figures are the exact figure as the normal one and why the hell should you do that? At least, the gold Luffy looks different from other Luffy in similar poses.
Funko is cheaply made and mass-produced to the point that it can't be called a figure or something like a Sofubi. At least Lego has endless possibilities! It's everywhere from dollar stores to subscription boxes. You can't escape them.
No matter what people say about them, they aren't collectible. A collectible has to be a rarity in numbers (for example, Nendoroids are this to the point they will only re-release a figure only by surveys), historically significant, unique, and not mass-produced to the extent a normal person can pick it up.
As a collectible, it must not be pushed with such falseness. Having a sticker placed on a box on a near-identical figure is not the way the go. It's not a collectible if everybody has it or has the potential to have it and produced en-masse to be placed in every store imaginable and people can pick it up easily. There is no such thing as a common Luffy anime figure unless you count the Funko.
Yes, it's cheap both in the good and bad kind of cheap. Yes, there might be good sculpts and/or design where the Funko pop style might work but those numbers are low that people might not find them. If they're exposed to the same figure over and over again, it's not going to be good.
Especially the dead soulless eyes that people complain about.
While it is great to see affordable figures, it's not the best choice for figures or merch in general. It might be on the mediocre level.
I am glad people have the choice of affordable figures, but Funko pops shouldn't be the only and best choice. Seriously, if I put it near my beloved Usopp, I'll cry pitifully.
Funko, as a merch, represents a really low quality as that as long as it has the IP and pump it out daily that consumers who should have the best or what they can get. They don't have to necessarily spend more than they want to but should be priced reasonably. Funko priced it so affordably that people can easily make of and buy easily they could fill up a house if they choose to buy more.
What fans deserve is a good quality merch to choose from including figures. That they don't have to shell out a big expense for it. Only if they are willing to shell out that much for it. What they deserve is something quality but don't have to shell out constantly for a false collectible. YMMV about Funko's quality but most people will say it's not good quality. Even my brother's girlfriend who knows a little bit more of anime figures but collects only Star Wars and Marvel Funko pops says that Funko is not good quality, especially given how much they pump it out. Seriously, I'm surprised they will be releasing Baby Yoda pops in the spring but given that it's Disney whose supposed to give the go-ahead to produce them... I don't think Disney is hiding Baby Yoda toys from the crowd since the ones they pushed AKA the Porgs didn't do so well... If that was the case, we would've seen shelves stocked with Baby Yodas all ready for the holiday season. Because Disney would stop at nothing to squeeze out money from their customers, given their annual price increases at the parks.
This is my opinion only.
I don't want to hate on Funko when there's just so many things wrong with it being called a collectible when it's not.
I get it. Funko is the least expensive option when it comes to figures and that's why people choose it. It has more IPs that you know they'll be getting soon.
But it shouldn't be the only option in the market when there are more options out there that deserve recognition than a product that copies over and over again without stop.
