So, there's a bunch of nonsense going on about this report:
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/ ... r-ik8jsx1q

Like any sane individual, I know this would no doubt result in a worsening of the 18th status quo and am therefore against it. Mattel doesn't bring a single solitary thing to improve Hasbro's Boys Toys division except MegaBloks; which, as much as I adore the li'l bastards, aren't worth the rest of the calamitous effects just to get what Joe Kreons should've been from the start.

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If it happens (and I doubt it will) it would likely result in the spin off of some brands (Fisher Price and Playskool come to mind.) in order to appease regulators. Really, though, the linchpin in all of this is Lego. If Lego is seen as a major competitor based on market share, the deal might get approval. But, if Lego is viewed as a powerhouse, but only in a specific segment and other segments (like dolls, action figures, baby toys, etc.) would be dominated by the new venture to such an extent they could monopolistically harm consumers, then they might have a rougher anti trust threshold.

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GI Joe, Star Wars, and Marvel Imaginext all think this is a great idea.

I think if you stop talking just toys and start talking zabout kids' entertainment in which toys are just part of the overall picture, then this isn't too big of a deal from a monopoly standpoint. Video games, bikes, learning toys, movies, outdoor sports, board games, etc are all competing for time these days.

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Who would be buying whom?

That's a buy-out, not a merger.

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THese things are hardly ever mergers...one company is making a "friendly" play on the other....

AOL and Time Warner were a "merger." We got absorbed and destroyed by TW and many of lost jobs, so we knew it was that AOL was bought by TW>

TOY WARS INDEED

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No bad idea!
We can kiss 1:18th scale goodbye then.
Heck Hasbro seems to not want to make any vehicles for them anymore either. The most recent Star Wars vehicles suck badly compared to what came before.

Maybe it's Mattel's way to get back into the Disney dolls business...

As for 1/18 figures, Mattel wouldn't stop the production of Star Wars or Marvel figures just because they never had success with the format in the past. If they sell and the numbers are good, it would be an awfully stupid move to cancel them.
Hasbro isn't producing as many vehicles probably because the sale numbers aren't what they used to be. Parents have limited income and they probably don't see the worth of buying a $50 space ship that will barely get a week of playtime.

Does this mean we'll get back to his 12" roots through Barbie or get a rebirth through Mega Bloks mini figures? Maybe an Imaginext Adventure Team serie.

In the end, if they indeed merge into Hastel or Matbro, maybe the folks from Mattel could be in charge of the girl toys as they excel in it while the folks from Hasbro could be responsible for action figures.
Maybe it would open a subscription line for some of Hasbro's line that are popular with collectors, but haven't managed to sparkle the kids' imagination.

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If it resulted in the Hasbro 1:18 teams taking on the DC licenses, I'd be a little interested, but that doesn't mean I think it would be handled well. I don't even feel that way about Hasbro's current 1:18 properties.

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Not sure that Disney would be happy to have DC figures being made by the same people who handle their own properties.
Then again, Lego does it and everybody seems happy...

Does this mean we'll get Max Steel to join the Joes? What about Big Jim?

No matter who ends up doing what, the days of well articulated 3 3/4" figures at retail seem to be gone in favor of cheaper to produce figures with 5 poa.
"Super articulation" is now something for collector thus justifying a higher price point.

Will GI Joe suffer from the same thing if/when they come back? I guess we'll have to wait for the upcoming Toy Fair to know. We know that Joe figures won't be 5 poa since Hasbro told us that they learned from the Cheap unarticulated driver figures crisis of Retaliation. They said that they realized that it was a mistake and the new dude in charge said in his intro that he learned from that or something similar in marketing terms. We'll soon see how motivated he truly is.

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I think this would be a horrible idea for the simple reason that it would put too many properties under one roof -- G.I. Joe, Transformers, Barbie, Star Wars, Masters of the Universe, Hot Wheels, Monster High, My Little Pony, DC, Marvel (!!), Fisher-Price, Playskool, Disney, WWE, and that's just off the top of my head.

I am quite convinced that quality would suffer across the board, and we'd be looking at wholesale and needless overhauls of many of these concepts.

Remember when Hasbro bought out Kenner? We got stuck with G.I. Joe Extreme and those overmuscled Star Wars figures for a couple of years. Nobody wants that sort of rubbish back.

I would think that not only would there be horrendous anti-trust issues that would keep this from happening (I HOPE!), but I don't think that Disney, who has dealings with both companies (Disney Princesses, Star Wars, Marvel) would be elated over this, either.

I can't see a scenario where this isn't a disaster product-wise, and I'm speaking as someone who enjoys products from both companies. I seriously hope it doesn't happen.

Hot Wheels is kind of popular I hear.


There was no Star Wars line prior to the merger. Those were the figures that were going to be made regardless. And I liked those figures.

I'd prefer that there is no merger. Competition is good. If they merge, there nothing else that comes close to their size.

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We got stuck with G.I. Joe Extreme because that what the honchos at Hasbro wanted from G.I. Joe at that time. I read Toy Wars recently, and got the decided impression that the enormous success of G.I. Joe in the 80s was more due to the designers and catching lightning in the bottle than any executive expertise.

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When is any business success realy solely about executive expertise? Their role in the whole endeavor amounts to recognizing good product and greenlighting it, imho.

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