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Why Do We Need the Kids Anyway?
by Perceptor II
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What's Your Outlet? by Coyotek
Toys to Toon by Dark Star
What Do These Symbols Represent? by Henrius Prime
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Anyone who frequents the various Transformers discussion groups eventually hears it.
"They should just make the toys for the fans."
"If only they didn't try to make it a kids' show."
"If it weren't for Hasbro/Fox Kids trying to attract kids…"
"The kids ruin everything!"
Let's face it. The tastes of children today are a bit different than when most hard-core Transfans--now typically late teens through twenties--were their age. Instead of cartoons about battles between giant robots or military campaigns or the struggle between good and evil in a galaxy far, far away, today we have cutesy creatures that evolve into tougher fighters and young adults in bright colorful suits making a mockery of our shows that featured giant robots. And don't get me started on Los Luchadores! Into this environment steps the more recent incarnations of the Transformers, Beast Wars and Beast Machines, both of which try to attract viewers and toy buyers from the same age group. Now the hard-core fans complain about dumbed-down plots and toys with simplistic transformations. They decry Hasbro for trying to attract today's kids, and wish that Hasbro would make toys for the fans, "just like Takara."
First of all--news flash--Takara is a corporation that is out to make money just like Hasbro. They could care less about pleasing the fans as long as they make money. Second, until very recently Takara was trying to get kids to buy their toys (more on this later). Most importantly, when we older fans really stop to look at the facts, we'll find that it is in our best interests for the kids to be attracted to Transformers and beg Mom and Dad to buy them for Christmas.
This point has been made on the various discussion groups, but usually it revolves around bringing in a new generation of fans. That is a concern important to the hard-core Transfans, as they do have some pride in the fact the Transformers has survived for 17 years and is still going very strong. They would like to see Transformers continue strong indefinitely. However, there is some benefit that Transfans see in the here-and-now that they would not see if modern Transformers incarnations were not at least moderately successful among children.
One way is by allowing us to watch new Transformers shows. A cold hard look at the reality of television will reveal that networks and even independent stations do not simply show programs because they're "cool", but because the network believes that they will attract an audience, which will in turn attract advertisers, which will in turn attract money into their wallets. The advertisers are the key ingredient here. Because they are the source of the network's revenue, and because advertisers are more sophisticated than they used to be, the programs not only have to attract an audience, but they also have to attract the right kind of audience. If your talking about cartoons--and with Transformers we are--the "right kind" of audience is between the ages of 2 and 11. An advertiser who might want to pursue an older demographic will stay away from a Transformers program because he will see a cartoon and will see grade school kids watching it while eating their Froot Loops, precisely the demographic he does not want. If a cartoon is pulling in decent sized older audience but is failing among that crucial 2-11 demographic, it will be cancelled because no advertiser will touch it and it will not make money. In short, no kids, no television shows.
But some of us could get by without the shows as long as we have toys. However, the kids help us here, too. Big time. This has become abundantly clear recently thanks to Takara. Around the time of Beast Wars Neo, Takara made a mistake that drove the kids away: they made the toys too complicated for them. They were wonderfully constructed and adult collectors loved them, but the average person of single-digit age found the transformation too difficult. Suddenly, over in Japan Transformers stopped being cool among the kids. Takara tried to lure them back with Beast Wars Metals and Car Robots, but the damage had already been done. Virtually the only people buying Takara's Transformers were the die-hard older fans.
So Takara reworked their Transformers line to satisfy the hard-core fan. Now it's just a few re-releases of classic toys and some PVCs of classic characters, stuff that the average kid could care less about. Now while this is all fine and good, many of the older fans are now complaining that Takara doesn't have any new Transformers anymore. While a few are quite happy with just the re-releases, most want to see new toys using the modern technology with the posability and features we've seen in the most recent toys. Why isn't Takara making them? Takara has had money troubles lately, but Konami bailed them out and they are still producing original toys, such as the Web Divers. Obviously, Takara could produce new-mold Transformers toys if they wanted to. They would want to if they thought new Transformers would bring in a profit. They would bring in a profit if they could sell enough of them, but unfortunately there aren't enough older hard-core fans out there to make it profitable.
One of the most basic principles in business is that the more items you produce the less each item costs to make. Thus the more you make, the less you can charge per item and still make a profit. Unfortunately, without the kids buying toys, Takara cannot sell very many. They can keep prices down by only sticking with molds they already own. With a new-mold Transformer, they would have to pay for development costs, and without a large volume of sales the price would go up considerably, which would turn some of the hard-core fans away, which would drive future prices still higher. This is why the BotCon exclusive toys are so expensive: there are so few made. Imagine paying $40 U.S. for a measly deluxe.
Those of us who live in countries where Hasbro operates have it good. Hasbro has been fairly successful marketing to children. As a result, we can watch new cartoons on broadcast television. We can collect new toys with some great features. The kids make it possible. They are not just recruits to keep the heart of Transfandom beating down through the generations. They are vital to our interests in the here-and-now.
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