Sofubi in the 2020s

Discussion in 'Whatever' started by badteethcomics, Nov 1, 2019.

  1. badteethcomics

    badteethcomics Post Pimp

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    Sofubi in the 2020s
    Trust me I know that feeling all too well... I'm starting to think I'm severely dyslexic or just speaking in a completely foreign language that I interpret as being english ;)

    Anyway I understand that some of the issues brought up in this thread may touch a nerve with some makers - but in no way is anything directed at individuals/brands with any malice or trolling intended (disclaimer as per the strict stipulations given when my infamous ban was lifted - thanks mods). I didn't intend for this thread to be centered around pricing - and yes similar discussions have taken place before, however I think we have some fresh points brought up here. We got some real long, thick, girthy posts happening in this thread - just the kind of Skullbrain I like to see!

    Sure flipping and being priced out of certain makers is a known issue that we have talked about before - but have we really considered what the future holds for makers who have been a bit bold with their retail pricing?? If you make a bad out of $400 price points, you gotta be prepared to sleep in it. And if your fans spent $800 on two $400 toys last year because that's all they could afford - and suddenly the scene crashes and you sell the same sculpt at $200 because the paying customers dried up - that's a slap in the face to fans. Also, it cheapens your own product because pricing should be a sincere reflection of the value you see in the piece. If you price it at $400 - it's because there's $400 worth of work in there.. not because that's what you think you can sell it for because the hype is there. If you're able to just mark things down because nobody is buying anymore than what did fans just pay $400 for previously? ***this is all hypothetical and I pulled these numbers out of my ass***

    Anyway hopefully that explains my concerns about the issue with pricing going into the 2020s a bit better? It's not an attack on anything priced over $100. I want to see cool sofubi toys coming out for decades ahead - but if the customers get bored/get priced out/get insulted by having a maker discount their pricing - the customer base will dry up, makers will drop orders from factories, and factories could struggle to make ends meet... probably not as I'm sure these vinyl factories take care of producing other shit besides monster toys.

    I was hoping for other people to voice other predictions/concerns going into the new decade as well - I don't really want this just to boil down to pricing (but please keep it going as I think it's an important issue going ahead). Are we going to see innovations in vinyl materials?? I saw Awesome Toy are messing around with adding scents to their vinyl.. the Aurora vinyl from a few years back was something new for the 2010s, will we see anything cool like that pop out of the factories?

    Let's get this thread pumping baby - a few more wacky ideas above to discuss, shoot down, stew over in silence etc etc
     
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  2. Russblue11

    Russblue11 S7 Royalty

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    Sofubi in the 2020s
    I want more things like magnets, lights, spring-loaded missles, detailed guts, etc. Makers like Cojica Toys and PK are already implementing features like these and Gargamel and Hirota (as well as Ilu Ilu and Uzumark I think) have put some crazy detailed guts out. That special attention to detail in design and packaging is what sets certain makers apart.

    I also want more GID colors used. Does GID purple exist?
     
  3. Anti Social Andy

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    ^^^ all costly extras adding to the final price-point and likely to make the end product more desirable and harder to get hold of. Be careful what you wish for. :?
     
  4. Russblue11

    Russblue11 S7 Royalty

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    That may be true but I’d rather have the variety. I just don’t see how vintage toys have these features like the magnetic cars and sparklers and even my Takatoku Cyborg 009 toys have detailed guts inside a clear with glitter torso when what’s released today looks like a rotten piece of meat with dicks and skulls slapped onto it

    Another example: Astro Myu 5 nodders where they even had the pulley system. I’m glad Medicom was able to repro them since so much of the vintage plastic cracked
     
    Last edited: Nov 3, 2019
  5. xSuicide Squadx

    xSuicide Squadx Super Deformed

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    I’d be more than happy to pay reasonable extra for the extra effort, as opposed to a 200+% price increase for the same ol’ shit just ‘cause it’s in demand.

    Personally, for 2020 I don’t see the hype dyin’ or high prices bottoming out, though I’d admittedly love to see both. With regards of what I’d like to see, I’m already eager for new sculpts and releases from my favorite artists that have been previewed or talked about. Creature Bazaar, I think, has a lot of exciting potential to look forward to, and I’m stoked that it’s relatively early into the new year. Echoing a bit of Kevin’s sentiment it would be rad to see some vinyl innovations as far as GID color variations. I’d also love for someone out there with creative integrity in the roots of fight figures to bring life back to the genre. It’s a pipe dream, but I wouldn’t at all mind some type of resurgence of new street figures, a la the likes of 360 Toy Group, Cro - Magnon, H8 Graphix and the Medicom Pre - Assembled line.
     
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  6. bryce_r

    bryce_r Die-Cast

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    Sofubi in the 2020s
    I'm uncertain what the point of this thread is...still seriously. Adding scents to vinyls? Dumb as fuck.. My thoughts...
    Bemon: will continue to do limited releases and sell on yja
    Hxs/izumark/etc etc: does their own thing
    PK/sciencepatrol/splurt/mvh/jimrampse/draculazer/etc -appeal to their fan bases and churn out good stuff at reasonable prices.
    Sunguts: Festivals and still underpaid.
    Gargamel continues to do lucky bags/and limited one offs that look like every other year
    Butanohana: same focus
    Goccodo/skulltoys: Same focus/very friendly on instagram
    Secretbase: continues to evolve and be accessible

    I guess I don't understand what your point is...at all. You aren't cutting edge in your thoughts and you don't touch a nerve. At times Glenn you come across as someone who is trying way to hard to have a dialogue.
    MY Ultimate PREDICTION(I guess)
    1) More Chinese vinyl makers
    2) More "mysterious" instagram posts because that is the new norm
    3) Less reliance on skullbrain...if anything sb might be irrelevant in 3 years as it is no longer needed.
    4) KtoKto continues to sculpt really well for others.


    At the end of the day...if I see something I like and want..I buy it. I'm well beyond hoarding and trying to collect every version. There is no "Win" in this hobby.
     
  7. zindabad

    zindabad Line of Credit

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    Sofubi in the 2020s
    I'd like to add: more Chinese makers with really solid design sense. Toysbian and Trash Talk are good examples today, and there are a good few others. Much of the stuff grabbing my attention, the little vehicle pieces and playsets and such, are actually pretty derivative and pull from existing vintage and neo ideas. But they're meaningfully iterating while they riff off others' basic concepts and aesthetics, and I dig that.
     
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  8. badteethcomics

    badteethcomics Post Pimp

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    Sofubi in the 2020s
    Better than just regurgitating what's currently happening in our hobby as you just did in your post... why bother just saying things will remain the same? You're right though, trying to have a straight-up dialogue on this forum without people being too cool/lethargic (like yourself) or acting like they are being attacked is a real challenge around this place. I never said I was cutting edge, just trying to bring up some interesting thoughts to get some activity happening on the board.. it's been pretty quiet recently.

    Maybe my point is to bring up some issues because a lot of makers read these threads. Right now it seems like the scene (for the most part) is driven by hype and high prices rather than creativity and fun. Maybe that's my point? Sure there are a bunch of makers that are releasing toys at reasonable prices, they are easy to order, etc. however they are being overshadowed by this hype bullshit. Maybe I'm just venting my own frustrations (and what's wrong with that?) - but from a few posts here it seems that some of my concerns are shared with other collectors.
     
  9. The Moog

    The Moog Die-Cast

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    hoo baby, ain't that the truth!
     
  10. Anti Social Andy

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    Sofubi in the 2020s
    Attempted dialogue > fanboy cheerleading and 'artist' hype mongering!

    Skullbrain might not be the 'sofubi voice' it once was but it's opinions are still valid and relevant.
     
  11. The Moog

    The Moog Die-Cast

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    I never understand when people say this. SB is a goldmine of knowledge for the sofubi collector, i cant see that changing at all. Or do they mean using SB to promote their toys Vs Instagram?
     
  12. bunnyboy

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    Well you're Australian so...
     
  13. Vombie

    Vombie Vintage

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    Sofubi in the 2020s
    Sofubi in 2020? More of the same. I feel like it's a bit oversaturated at times. The prices are going up and I don't know why...I haven't seen much of anything from the new blood that has really fueled the fire I had for this hobby--but there are some great toy makers still turning out solid work at the beat of their own drum.

    At the same time, I'll pay for a design I really like--but won't get hung up on collecting the line. Especially when that means relying on a string of lotto luck, or deep pockets to pick it up in the aftermarket.

    My attention has turned to non-sofubi toys lately; for 300 I can get some quality toys with great paint and tons of gimmicks at retail or even on sale. I'll still collect sofubi I like, but with the prices climbing (I remember when $150 for a zag was on the high-end in the aftermarket) , the slew of new toy makers doing the same flavors, I just feel like I'm looking elsewhere for toy joy--to get more bang for my buck when it seems that sofubi toy pricing is getting higher than other high-end toys; the work, passion, and craft is there in any high-end toy--sofubi or not. I think about Goto-san and how talented he is, and how affordable his work is. The new trend of superprices is getting harder for me to rationalize as a buyer when I think about just a few years ago, and when I think of sofubi makers as talented as they come without the crazy prices.

    So, 2020...i don't know what'll happen, but I do know that i may be part of a shrinking base that's getting priced out, hyped out, and looking for easier ways to enjoy what I like about toys from Japan. Maybe I'm just burnt out.

    Booska all day though.
     
  14. smurph

    smurph Comment King

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    Sofubi in the 2020s
    Seriously. Part of the joy of collecting is the smell of the vinyl itself. Nothing beats getting blasted by it when opening a bag or cabinet door...
    Why anyone would want to taint that with some synthetic scratch-n-sniff strawberry smelling bullshit funking up their display cases (and surrounding toys in it) makes zero sense.

    Worst Idea Ever.
     
  15. The Moog

    The Moog Die-Cast

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    Tell that to Strawberry Shortcake ;)

    [​IMG]
     
  16. smurph

    smurph Comment King

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    Sofubi in the 2020s
    @The Moog I'm sure she's a very sweet girl and all... but ol' shortstacks needs to step the hell away from my sofubeez :lol:
     
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  17. IronPaw

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    Good thread Glenn, I’ve been thinking a lot about this before you brought it up.

    Simply put, with the way things seem to be going in the world, I think in a few years a lot of change is going to come due to all the global issues tendrils reaching into everything. Shipping prices will soar and most plastic products will be deemed too much of a luxury. All future sofubi will be made out of recycled particle wood?
    I’m always pessimistic.
     
  18. ungawa222

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    Plastic bag bits extruded into a mold through a heated tube. No joke, this would be a good production direction for the future of our adult monsters & heros dollies hobby.
     
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  19. GoldenArmKid

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    Was just a passing comment. It's an option for some though as it is easy to get caught up in the instant gratification of this hobby.
     
  20. CopASquatToys

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    I literally have this exact toy in my case at home. Long, embarrassing story that goes along with it.

    Also fuck 2020 where's 2045?
     
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  21. ungawa222

    ungawa222 Mini Boss

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    [​IMG]
     
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    Sofubi in the 2020s
    I Hope that competition will stabilize certain pricing practices.

    The secondary market will always be speculative.
    I hope that expensive toys hold value and are looked at as investments in art. And at the same time, I hope collectors aren’t betting the farm on plastic.

    I hope that people throw away Their xenophobic toy rhetoric and see artists are doing cool shit everywhere.

    I hope that more toys shows happen where I live and in the mid west.
     
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  23. xSuicide Squadx

    xSuicide Squadx Super Deformed

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    What’s xenophobic toy rhetoric?
     
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  24. Mr. Humphreys

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    [​IMG]
     
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  25. patrickvaz

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    Pretty sure he’s talking about the monsters from those Ridley Scott films
     
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