It looks like the only way we will be seeing a box set is if we become relevant to the actual retailers as opposed to their original demographic of little girls. That's going to be a tough one to break into, but knowing this fandom, I think we can pull it off!
I'll paste all of his direct responses after the break. (Thanks to wbwolf for digging these out)
"Guys, I understand the "Brony" movement, but one thing has to remain
clear. This show was not intended for the older audience as much as
it was intended for children. Retailers don't take into account the
size of the audience bigger than its target. The target for this
series, like it or not, is children. And young children's DVDs do not
sell well when in large disc-count sets. Parents don't want to shell
out $30-$40 for four discs, when they can spend less on a single disc.
So the retailers make it clear that they want single disc sets.
We can create both, if the retailers agree to take both. But we
cannot spend the necessary money to create complete season sets, if
they're only going to sell online or at Shout! Factory Select, because
retailers rejected them."
When asked why shows like Spongebob Squarepants and Clone Wars got
full season sets:
"Spongebob was turned into complete season sets, based on the sales of
the individual discs, which were usually themed for something like
Halloween or the "10 Best Tales." It should also be noted that the
seasonal sets began coming out at the paramount of DVD sales, when
people were shelling out for everything. A lot different than now.
Nothing that carries the brand "Star Wars" is made entirely for the
kids. In fact, while Lucas can claim it's for the kids all he wants,
he's really marketing to the Star Wars collectors that do insist on
spending their disposable income on things like complete season sets.
You'll also find that's why much of that series is geared toward a
more sophisticated level of writing and storytelling.
My Little Pony is a different case, altogether. While developed for
television by the wife of the borderline kids/adults series The
Powerpuff Girls, this is still a show that is based on a young kids
toy line and is aimed at young children who are learning the "magic of
friendship." That adults have become big fans of the show is an added
bonus. But the show is a children's show and children's shows sell A
LOT better on single-disc compilations that parents can simply throw
into the players and press 'play.'"
195 comments:
Makes sense. Ah well.
ReplyDeleteSo we just need to buy lots and lots of the single disc sets to make this happen, right?
ReplyDeletesecond
ReplyDeleteI can see their point, it kinda sucks that they won't do a box set at the moment...but I'll keep my fingers crossed and hope the retailers wise up :P
ReplyDeleteMaybe in 20 years they'll release it for the nostalgia crowd. >_<
ReplyDeleteOh boy....this is tough to chew
ReplyDeleteDang it. Guess I have to get some of those single DVD things if I ever want a box set.
ReplyDeleteNothing about bonus stuff?
ReplyDeleteSounds like sound logic to me.
ReplyDeleteOne way or another, still buying the things as I can get 'em.
I will give you a blank cheque with my name on it. You put down any amount you want and I will pay it for a MLP FIM box set.
ReplyDelete"When asked why shows like Spongebob Squarepants and Clone Wars got
ReplyDeletefull season sets:"
Wait, what? Someone needed to ask THIS question? It pretty much answers itself...
No blu-ray release....?
ReplyDeleteUltimately, however, if enough is thrown at them, money will talk a lot louder.
ReplyDeleteSo does this mean if enough people buy the single discs, or this upcoming 5 episode set, that they may release a full season box set in the future?
ReplyDelete*Challenge Accepted*
ReplyDeleteI guess I can understand the logic. My main concern then is getting the episodes in production order. While there isn't much of a overarching storyline, there are enough shout-outs throughout the episodes, not to mention that it just feels right to watch them in order, that I would like to be able to view them at home that way too.
ReplyDeleteI've collected many an anime one DVD at a time; I wouldn't be opposed to doing the same for MLP:FiM. I'd just would like to be able to watch episodes, say, 1-4 in a row without having to switch between discs in order to do so.
All very well-made points.
ReplyDeleteThat said, here's hoping we can find some way to make ourselves relevant enough as a demographic to warrant a full box set release! I know I'd be extremely happy to own them.
Makes sense. I know it’s sometimes hard for us Bronies to realize that we aren't the end-all be-all of the MLP franchise.
ReplyDeleteHowever, that said, if we can make the various businesspeople realize that we are a valuable market (and maybe, just maybe become part of the official 'target demographic') we might be able to shake of the shackles of our back-burner status.
My fellow Bronies, drop the cash and the recognition will flow.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=59_7-glni0A
ReplyDelete'Nuff said.
Anypony have access to equipment that would allow them to custom-make Dvds? I would pay for a boxset, and I don't care who makes it.
ReplyDeleteHey I like the new Clone Wars series. But maybe they'll have a box set released in about another year or so for the seasons
ReplyDeleteThis is tough to hear but I think it's for the best. I give him credit for communicating with the fanbase.
ReplyDeleteHim calling Lauren Faust "a wife" pisses me off though.
Ok, so it's not likely to get a boxed set...can we at least assume all episodes will eventually get released without too much overlap between the various discs? I'm fine with collecting my own box set, but I don't see much point in having only 10/26 episodes, or having to buy 10 DVDs to get the full 26 and ended up with duplicate episodes.
ReplyDeleteI was hoping for an answer to the question of whether the entire season is going to be released on single dvds. I can live with buying them all separately if there isn't going to be a full box set.
ReplyDeleteYeah, that does make sense.
ReplyDeleteBut one day, they'll recognize that Bronies are actually more than the initially aimed young female target. And we'll have shipping and violence in our pony show. And full season DVD set.
I don't think this man realizes that we, the abnormality, are the MAJORITY of the fans for Friendship is Magic.
ReplyDeleteIn the viewer counts for this show, there are more bronies than there are young girls.
...But his logic is sound. I would still like to see a box set, but *sigh* oh well... All episodes are for sale on iTunes anyway. =D
That's exactly what I've been telling people. And even though the Brony community is rather large, the younger audience that watches the show and buys the toys is still a lot larger. They simply outnumber the Bronies still by quite a lot. And that's one reason why merchandising is geared primarily for them. They still make more money off the kids and their parents.
ReplyDeleteAlso, take into account it's pretty much assumed a lot of kids are going to buy this stuff. Because they're obviously an established demographic for this with many buyers. For the Brony community however, they can't be -certain- they're going to make enough back for putting all the money and effort into making things only the Brony community would buy. Unless they happened to take pre-orders on something and could get thousands of Bronies to pay ahead of time. That's pretty much the only way they're going to consider doing it. It's a big risk for them and larger companies aren't typically willing to put a lot of money on the line for risk-taking.
@Nameless
ReplyDeleteI just hope that if they do the whole season in volume form, that all the episodes are in order, and not a jumbled mess. Which is why I'm a bit concerned that we have no episode list for the DVD yet.
If fucking SpongeBob can get a box set then so can MLP!!!! Man I hate Spongebob....I did laugh tho when one of the people who works on it was caught on To catch a Predator
ReplyDeleteDoesn't Hasbro make special custom ponies just for the collectors? Those are most certainly not targeted at little girls. We would be the same way. A special audience outside of their target demographic, but willing to buy from them anyway.
ReplyDeleteIf preproducing them is so expensive, then they should just do it like infomercial products are done - you pre-pay and then wait 6-8 weeks while they manufacture exactly enough to meet the number of orders that were received. It would probably cost more, but at least it would be an option for those who are serious about buying the show, especially on blu-ray.
Hopefully they'll consider something like that at some point, especially if 3.5 seasons really ends up being all we get.
Spongebob did take years before the Season 1 DVD came out. I remember that I had about 7 or 8 of the DVDs before it was even mentioned.
ReplyDeleteWe just need to suck it up and buy the DVDs they give us. Eventually they will take the hint.
I wonder how much trouble I'd get in for buying the single DVD's and then repackaging them into season sets and selling them again...
ReplyDeleteno blu ray box set sad face
ReplyDeleteI'd have to know what additional content is being put on these single disc sets before I'd be willing to part with money. If it's all geared towards the wee ones, I'm not sure I could buy them, even with the possibility of box sets in return. If it's decent stuff like commentary or making-of stuff, then my wallet might be persuaded to open up a little.
ReplyDeleteOr I could just point my parents/grandparents towards the DVDs and let them know that my daughter would probly love them.
Makes sense.
ReplyDeleteMan, I wanted a 26 episode box set...
ReplyDeleteHmm.....I wonder is they've noticed how much money we spend on unofficial stuff because they don't make things that we want to buy? Maybe if they see how much money we're shelling out to each other for things we like, then maybe they'll catch on and make the things that we like.
ReplyDeleteIn many ways this would be very nice.....
TL;DR version: If you want a complete season box set, go out and buy as many copies of the single disc releases as you can afford.
ReplyDeleteLet me toss an idea out there for everyone to chew on: Ye Olde Internet Petition.
ReplyDeleteI know, these things are a dime a dozen, but would it hurt to try one? Get one set up, put links to it in all of the major fan sites, and see how many people we get to sign on? If nothing else, it would give everyone an idea of just how many people do want a boxed set, and if we break some sort of magical number (say, 15 or 20k), who knows? That might be enough to have Shout Factory at least pause and take a second look.
I HATE LOGIC!!! Chaos rules all!!!
ReplyDelete@Fredward
ReplyDeleteThose tend to still follow the same molds as all the other pony toys, but with crazy tatoos and stuff.
@Laurence Brown
ReplyDeleteThis actually seems like a good idea. I'm sure some wonderful brony could whip something up. And with the promotion of the staff here, I'm sure it would take off. Certainly there have to be enough for a release.
I found his tone somewhat derisive.
ReplyDeleteI got mixed feelings about this. I mean while I'm glad that someone FINALLY answered the age-old question about the DVD sets, I'm disappointed to learn that in order to get what we want, we are gonna have to buy enough of the crappy single DVDs before they can even consider making a DVD or Blu-ray release of a box set. Sorry but if that's the case I'll be saving my money for something else worth buying (Like brony apparel) and stick to downloading free episodes from the internet.
ReplyDeletewell they have a good point there
ReplyDeletebut so we have to make them see we're a good market opportunnity and that would be by buying a lot of the merchandise.
maybe in the future we'll see some DVD box set
but i guess i'll be fine with this for now
@Nameless
ReplyDeleteI'm with you, I'm more then happy to buy single disks so long as we get the whole season.
A box set would be preferred, but I'm not against buying them separately either.
While what he says makes sense in one regard, it is actually missing the big picture. Why do you think some anime retailers are doing mail-order only? Because they don't want to deal with the expense of catering to brick-and-mortar stores. If they put in just a little bit of effort, which wouldn't amount to a lot of resources, they could come up with a mail order package that would easily make their money back. It's a market that will make money, so why not pursue it? Narrow minded business models, that's why. Learn to think outside the box. That's what made this series so popular to begin with.
ReplyDeleteBuy them for your nieces for reals! Buy them for your neighbor's girls. Buy them for the poor families in that neighborhood you don't go to, and give them away in the dollar store parking lot.
ReplyDeleteFrankly, I'm happy to hear that Shout Factory addressed the issue at all. At least they're listening and they're aware of the fact that WE WANT PONY DVDs. Let's just take a moment to calm down and realize that YES Hasbro and everyone involved with the show knows that we exist, and I'm sure they'll soon find a way to give us happiness while we give them money.
ReplyDelete...and of course, I speak on behalf of the ENTIRE Brony community when I say that we do not endorse pirating, or repackaging and selling any DVD collections containing copyrighted material for the purpose of personal monetary gain. Fo' realz.
O.O
@Laurence Brown
ReplyDeleteChewed and swallowed. I'd sign that in a heartbeat.
I doubt it would do much good, though - but there's no point in not trying.
Whatever. I'll just buy the single DVDs and hope it equals all of the episodes.
ReplyDeleteWell, that does make sense from a business standpoint, but that does us no good.
ReplyDeleteIf I had the means to buy/download the whole season from iTunes and manage to fit them all into 4-5 discs then I would make my own box set. But, when I tried to see how many HD episodes I could fit onto a DVD I think I managed 2 full episodes. Would be a nice luxury, but 13 discs would be too much. I think i'd be better off getting a cable to connect my Mac to my tv and watch them that way. Oh well
Sorry, but this is news...how exactly?
ReplyDeleteIf we haven't figured out yet that we aren't the target demographic, then we are just kidding ourselves.
If we really want them to release a box set for each season, then we will either have to:
1) Buy the DVDs that are out now that have only like 4 episodes on them, so that they know that we are serious buyers
or
2) Do a petition, as was mentioned above.
Either way, we will have to make our voices heard if we wanna get this done.
But make no mistake...Hasbro is going to cater to their target demographic first. It's just good business sense.
When I was 3 I had my dad record every single episode of Darkwing Duck on individual 30-minute VHS tapes (we had a large supply of these for some reason). Even when I was the target demographic age I wanted every episode of each season as opposed to the crappy 2-episode VHS tapes they would sell in stores. This is why this response saddens and angers me. There are several ways to please both fan bases and I feel like they're not looking at every possibility.
ReplyDeleteJust to refocus things a bit (I used to work in the toy industry) - Shout Factory! doesn't make money based on whether WE buy their DVDs...they make money based on whether Target, Walmart and Toys R Us buy their DVDs...and therein lies the problem. Convince the big three that we'll spend enough money with THEM and you'll see them ask for box sets from Shout.
ReplyDeleteAlso Seth is right about the custom ponies...those cost Hasbro a "little" bit more than a normal one, but only because of the elaborate artwork. They use the same molds, so the money's already been spent.
While I get that not having it in a full season box is not optimal (I would gladly shell out the typical 60-80 USD that season collections cost, rather than playing collect-the-episodes), I think we might be missing the essential question that no one has asked yet:
ReplyDeleteARE THERE BONUS FEATURES? - Especially commentaries/making of's - I'd take anything.
I kind of wonder if there really are enough Bronies to support a DVD set. Sometimes I think there aren't as many of us as we assume.
ReplyDeleteA piece of relevant information is missing from all this: It's something that I don't know if any of us know.
ReplyDeleteJust how popular IS this show among its target demographic anyway? I mean, I'm sure there are plenty of young girls watching this, but the brony community is getting really big.
Hasbro keeps conveniently leaving out precisely who is buying the merchandise and other details like that.
So what I'm saying is, are Bronies still the minority of MLP fans? Or have we overtaken the target demographic and Hasbro doesn't know what to do with us?
In fact, even Hasbro's more at the mercy of the big 3 than we'd like to think. Even if we did convince them it would make sense to cater to us...if they can't in turn convince the top 3 buyers of it, it wouldn't go anywhere.
ReplyDeleteWhat did lucas claim was marketed to kids? Clone wars? Oh yea that show has a LOT of stuff TOTALLY ok for kids to see and hear in it.. >.>
ReplyDeleteIf clone wars didn't have a rating of TV-13 or higher then the censor board needs to seriously get of of their lazy bums and actually review stuff.
ReplyDelete@Laurence Brown Lauren I would sign that in a heart, to be honest I haven't gone out and bought something like that ever. But there are at least three shows I would go out and do that for and MLP is one.
ReplyDeleteWell, I already have all of Season One on my HDD, so it's not the end of the world for me. Still, and official box set would have been lovely, but if the DVD releases become a regular thing - making it a process of "Gotta Catch Em All!" then I reckon I'll shell out for my own copies.
ReplyDeleteI don't think we should force ourselves into the 'target demographic' just for some DVDs, it could and probably would end very badly for the show and everything as a whole.
Did they take into account that the bigger (although unintended) demographic has more money to spend?
ReplyDeleteGot to admit, it makes sense. And it's for the best to not be making any complete box sets, you don't need a DVD (DVD? in an HD era? Sounds kind of a ripoff. Then again, I don't own a Blu-ray player) to throw in bonus content, iTunes or other digital content providers could do that.
ReplyDeleteCollectors, you're going to have to either skip this one or buy the standard quality individual box sets (which I think is stupid, considering you can watch and download the HD episodes for free* on the internet, you would be squandering money to support something that is likely not going to happen).
*Internet connection, electricity, internet accessing equipment, and other applicable costs are not included.
@mattwhite924
ReplyDeleteI'm thinking the same thing.
We're a devoted fanbase but we just don't have the raw numbers to influence entire companies yet.
I don't know the the fine tuned specifics of the marketing process but it seems like they should give a season 1 box set a try. You know, just don't produce too many, maybe only try and release them in a few countries and see how they fair. Who knows, might actually be successful cause it seems the 4 things that everyone can agree on are accurate plushies, accurate figurines, clothing, and DVD's. You could potentially be LOSING money by NOT doing it!
ReplyDeleteor you could just buy off itunes.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDelete@Laurence Brown
ReplyDeleteExcept the production order isn't necessarily the most logical order to watch the series, anyway. Lauren Faust stated that it makes more sense to place Winter Wrap Up after all the other episodes, for example; they just made it earlier in the show's run so they wouldn't have to interrupt Fall Weather Friends with an explanation about ponies helping along the changing of the seasons.
And I really hope the people in this thread saying that bronies now outnumber the target audience are just joking...
So... how do we convince the retailers to carry these suckers? I'm not accepting defeat on this one, you guys: I want my damn box set.
ReplyDeleteSo I'll buy the individuals for now and when I can upgrade to the boxset, because how could we not complete our collective goal get a five season blu-ray boxset with special features, interviews, commentary, easter eggs and games, I'll just donate the 20 or more DVD's to a daycare or something so more little kids can discover the magic of friendship.
ReplyDelete@Rocket
ReplyDeleteAnd how many years did it take before it was released?
Sadly, this means the, "Bonus Features" aren't going to be what everyone is thinking. Think games for kids to play, not commentaries.
ReplyDeleteSorry to say, but if you're the older demographic, look towards all the fan-made stuff to get your pony merchandise fix. Hasbro, is unable to answer your pleas.
Funny, someone should make a comic with a brony pointing at a little girl yelling, "Why must you keep me from show-accurate Luna and Celestia toys!?"
@GaruuSpike
ReplyDeleteRemember, we have more views on Youtube, but not necessarily on the Hub and defiantly not on the toy sales.
@Pegasus Rescue Brigade
ReplyDeleteThat is a terrifying notion: What if Hasbro has been keeping their specific information on who is buying the merchandise because the Bronies are the majority? I mean, that is something no toy company wants to be public. People out there can and will react with disgust if they knew people way outside of the target demographic were buying the majority of a toyline's merchandise. It would bring in a lot of tabloids looking for cheap shots, and thus a lot of bad PR.
This is why I'd rather we as a fandom remain more or less on the backburner. That's not to say that we shouldn't get things geared toward us sent our way, just that we should officially not be the target.
We have had some bones thrown in our direction; We Love Fine being officially licensed, EqD staff getting official Hasbro merch to test/review/promote, Hot Topic (ugh) getting merchandise in. I reckon that as time goes by the fandom shall be treated to new merchandise by Hasbro as they decide upon a new strategy to maintain the focus on children and factor in an unexpected, older market.
The obvious solution is to sell them out and deprive the target audience of the product and then give your extra copies to your friends as presents.
ReplyDeleteEh. Oh well.
ReplyDelete@jodyjm13
ReplyDeleteI second this, thank you for a competent answer.
"Did they take into account that the bigger (although unintended) demographic has more money to spend? "
ReplyDeletemakes me wonder, how bigger we are as demographic,
maybe we are just a very enthusiast bunch.
uhm, i don't get it.
ReplyDeletewhy is everyone so keen on getting boxed sets? i, uhm, already have all the episodes. i buy pony merchandise (what little i can afford) to help support the show that way. if Hasbro, through Shout! or any other company, offered a boxed set, i'd buy it - sure. support the show by supporting the great company that helps make the show. but since they don't offer one, uhm ... no big loss to me. i'll get the episodes as they come out, providing Hasbro keeps being the super-neato-cool company it has been so far and lets people upload them.
now if hasbro kept the same animation/writing companies on and had a direct-to-DVD/Blu-Ray movie or whatnot ... oh man, i would be all over that.
That cute-librarian Twilight looks almost exactly like my sister.
ReplyDeleteAnd as for buying in bulk, as it were, there's always itunes. (Though I hate itunes with a passion. PUT THEM UP ON AMAZON VIDEO OR NETFLIX!)
I think we may be the largest (or at least most-enthusiastic) gang of fans who are unable to buy a DVD set of their favorite show. :/
ReplyDeleteWhile I do understand and appreciate their position, this studio recently release almost the entire series of M.A.S.K. back in August. Which was marketed for young kids.
ReplyDeleteOh wait. Most of the bronies out there probably weren't even alive when M.A.S.K. was around. So, that release would be for those in the "disposable income" crowd. >.<
Unfortunately, I'm not sure there is any proof that bronies are bigger than little kids when it comes to watching the show, or buying merchandise and DVDs.
ReplyDeleteA huge problem is that there is no easy way to communicate to a retailer, "I am a brony! I'm buying this for myself." I've bought a few pony items, but for all the store knows, I'm buying them as a gift for a little girl. Even if I wear a brony t-shirt, the cashier may get it, but that data isn't going to make its way up to corporate.
Bronies are a fluke, so many retailers are likely to assume that the majority of the MLP merch sold is going to little girls. It probably IS true, too, honestly.
However, one thing we should DEMAND an explanation for is whether or not the youtube takedowns have anything to do with the DVD release.
ReplyDeleteI think another thing that Hasbro might be worried about is that the Bronies are fans of this particular show, and not the MLP franchise as a whole. I don't think they want to spend money catering to us, only to loose us as soon as the show ends.
ReplyDeleteSo show them we will put our money where our mouths are. How many of you would be willing to shell out X amount of dollars for a season box set? As in you tell them that if they release it, you will buy it RIGHT NOW?
ReplyDeleteIf they get the idea that there is a real market RIGHT NOW they might at least be willing to do pre-sales. That's probably the best we can hope for.
Shout Factory: "Make sense? Oh, what fun is there in making sense!"
ReplyDeletePersonally, my mother buys seasons sets of things like Spongebob and iCarly for my autistic kid brother all the time. SO, I'm gonna have to say that all that 'parents don't buy box sets for their little kids' stuff is only half true at best.
ReplyDeleteWhile I'm sure we don't outnumber the intended demographic, I think we are a sizable enough group that merchandise aimed at us would be profitable, particularly when it's things like toys and DVDs that kids will like too.
Also, why does it matter whether they sell online or in stores, as long as they SELL? I can see that the company probably gets the money faster when a store buys them and is responsible for selling them, but that doesn't mean selling online can't be profitable.
To be honest, I'm not even interested in the merchandise. I can make do without the toys or DVDs. However, I can imagine how some would be annoyed by not having the box set. They need to realise though that if Hasbro markets towards the target demographic, then it means more stocks for the company and, therefore, more reasons to continue the show.
ReplyDeleteIn related news, holy banner change, Batman!
So in other words, we have to buy the DVDs regardless of content. Well I certainly can do that!
ReplyDeleteI want a box set and be damned the notion that I ain't getting one. HASBRO, GIVE ME MY BOX SET!
ReplyDelete@DJB123
ReplyDeleteI'd call it more of a reality check from someone who knows what they're talking about, to a group of people who really don't get to see the big picture. We keep calling for it but the simple fact is that at the moment we're asking for something that is fiscally impossible for them to produce.
He's being very frank about the whole issue and I'm for one glad that he is instead of beating around the bush.
ok, not un-reasonable, but there are still two questions left unanswered that would placate pretty much all the bronies.
ReplyDelete1. Will every episode end up released on DVD with little to repeating ones.
2. Will the disks have bonus features, and if so, what kind.
Clearly, the merchandisers on either end just won't understand.
ReplyDeleteWe, the "periphery demography", have money, and we want to spend it — badly. Financially-strained moms of little girls, not so much.
Oh well. I guess I'll go spend my money on those pricey fan-made plushies off eBay, and a few more of those wonderful WeLoveFine tshirts instead...
There STILL aren't season-box-sets of series like Dexter's Lab, Powerpuff Girls (not all seasons), Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends (not all seasons). Spongebob I think is a few seasons behind. That's because kids "want it now", generally speaking. The majority see MLP DVD and say "I want it." and watch those out-of-order 4 episodes over and over until the disc melts in the drive. Blu-Ray is even less "important" to little kids. As long as they can make out a pony, it's all good.
ReplyDeleteNow, that's not everyone. I know quite a few youngsters (family, friend's family) that want full season blu-ray releases, but honestly that's because we, the Brony older relatives talk about them all the time.
I have never even considered the possibility of a Blu-Ray Season 1 collection simply for this fact. If it happens, "I'll take 5!" but considering the previous track record of "kids" animation home video releases, I'm making sure to save space on my HDD for the uploads. Same way I have to do Foster's, Dexter's Lab, Powerpuff Girls, Adventure Time, Regular Show, Teen Titans, Courage the Cowardly Dog, Sheep in the Big City, Invader Zim (although I think this is all out on DVD), Doug, Rocko's Modern Life, etc. etc. etc.
@Laurence Brown "I know, these things are a dime a dozen, but would it hurt to try one? "
ReplyDeleteYES, it would. It makes people feel like they're doing something when they're doing nothing. Without the lie of "I did all I could, I signed the petition!" some of those people might decide to do something and go out and buy the DVDs. More people buy DVDs and retailers make more money. The retailers realize there's more money to be had, so they order more and better DVDs.
Even then it's a slim chance, but Wal-Mart etc. don't order merchandise just because people post lists of names online. They order it because they can SELL IT.
Want a good example? Look up the Night Court DVD releases on Wikipedia or TV Tropes' "Keep Circulating the Tapes" page. They started releasing the DVDs for that series six years ago, but it got stalled for the longest time because there was no interest. Of course there was no interest, they were releasing DVDs of the episodes before the show hit its stride! But they don't care, they see low sales of Night Court Season 1 and they can't justify the financial risk of making more, even as fans clamor for Seasons 3-9 to be put in a box set. It took four years before they were willing to risk it again, and they're only halfway through the series, most of it sold via online-only poor-quality problem-ridden manufacture-on-demand disks rather than in stores. Lower risk but of course lower sales, so it's STILL taking forever and the bootlegs are better quality half the time.
Talk online all you want. When you want to try get something done, put your money where your mouth is.
@Unknown
ReplyDeleteOh gosh! M.A.S.K.? On DVD?? I need to go look this up right now! ... :D
I don't mind having to buy single disks, because I'm used to having to do that when buying anime.
But the most important question is... Will there be bluray?!!
Alright, so, uh.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.target.com/p/My-Little-Pony-The-Complete-First-Season-4-Discs/-/A-11345901
If -this- gets a box set, I'm pretty sure FiM will eventually get one.
Heck, even Sonic SatAM got a box set.
I'm down with single release DVDs. Maybe if we buy enough, they'll get the picture. Or, if we bug Shout! enough, maybe they'll crack and do a special run of Blu-Rays for us! Who knows? All I know is, if it's Pony, I'mma buy it!
ReplyDeletetoo bad that here in Argentina i will not be able to buy those dvds, unless some company starts making those with the local dub(that doesnt exist for now) amd since its a "kids" show i dont think that they will add the original dub to it :(
ReplyDelete@Minalkra I want to buy a box set for many reasons:
ReplyDelete1. For the box itself. Box sets usually have fancy cover art and sometimes extras, the Clone Wars set has a 3D cover and comes with a book of concept sketches. I also keep all my boxed DVDs on a shelf so a nice box helps with organization.
2. For the quality. I don't mind watching online but I don't trust anybody but the official DVD producer to give me the real sound and color accuracy.
3. To support the retailers and Hasbro.
4. The experience. Watching good movies like Star Wars or Lord of the Rings is a lot more fun when you can pull out a professionally produced DVD. It's the closest thing you can get to having the actual producers of the movie hand you a raw copy of their work.
But mostly it comes down to this: The show is good enough quality that it deserves a box set, and I'd like to buy it.
Yeah, maybe in 20 years when the nostalgia kicks in.
ReplyDeleteIt took the Powerpuff girls 10 years to get anything resembling a decent DVD release, and that had way more visible *mainstream* cross-over appeal than My Little Pony currently has. You gotta be realistic.
On the plus side, the production staff has been so generous and patient with fans that we're getting to see plenty of cool stuff anyway, and we've got watermark-less HD episodes available, so really, it's not like a DVD or Blu-Ray set's gonna bring that much to the table. But that's me.
Makes sense to me. Maybe we'll get a box set in a couple of years, Powerpuff Girls took 10 years, heck even the TF's and GIJoe's have taken decades, even when the show is recent-(TF Animated's final season never got a dvd and doesn't look like it's going to get one anytime soon).
ReplyDeleteI don't mind collecting single discs, had to do it for most of my anime and tv stuff anyway. They should consider the vol.1 starter box approach, gives you the disc, a box to store your collection in and maybe a goodie like a toy or t-shirt(scratch that, just make it a toy).
theres an expensive but surefire way to get a box set out of hasbro; acquire a minimum of 20% stock in the company and demand it. if anything they listen to shareholders
ReplyDelete@Pegasus Rescue Brigade
ReplyDeleteDream on. We're a drop in the bucket. We just type better on a computer than the target demographic.
@PHR16384 Just so you know, not every one of us has enough money to go around spending it carelessly (even if we had, we shouldn't be throwing it at everything that's shiny).
ReplyDeleteThe accumulated Bronies of all their Friendship and Magic will foam up about their waists and all the fans and consumers will look up and shout "Box Set!"... and I'll look down and whisper "No."
ReplyDeleteIt's nice to imagine voting with our wallets, but I just don't think it makes sense to hope that if we buy all the episodes now they'll ask us to buy them again later. If you ask me, the best sure-fire way to get a dvd box set is this:
ReplyDelete1. Torrent season 1 in 1080p, Hasbro hasn't filed a single cease and desist on those yet. If you don't like watermarks, somehow you'll have to survive with 720p instead.
2. Buy some blank DVD-Rs (they're incredibly cheap, you might be able to bum the requisite 4@ 6 episodes per disk).
3.If necessary, find someone who has a DVD-R burner drive. Many people don't even notice when their laptop comes with one.
3. Play your lyre while ROME BURNS. (Do make sure to set it up as a video DVD rather than just dumping the files on there).
4. Print off some nice vectors on DVD labels, or if you happen to have a lightscribe thingamijig laser 'em right on the (lightscribe specific) discs!
Also, take your pick of the nice
prospective dvd covers posted on this site a while back, print one out on some glossy paper, and stick all that jazz in a dvd case!
When someone asks where you got it, just say "the internet" and they'll be none the wiser. Alternately, brag about your do-it-yourselferness or tweet it to Hasbro or something.
@Fengor
ReplyDeleteI meant more along the lines of simply calling lauren faust a creator's "wife" as if she hasn't done anything wonderful or worthy or praise on her own. But ok.
I pre-ordered the first DVD last week. I hope that helps, but it is still aggravating that we pretty much have to spend money on a product, in order to spend more money on what will essentially be the same product.
ReplyDeleteThis is another reason why I think Hasbro should make a joint venture on their distribution with Bandai or some other anime distribution company. They tend to hire these random voice-over agents and editors to prep their shows for overseas distribuion, but with the potential for success FiM has they need someone with experience. If they botch the export to Japan, it could mean loosing potential millions. Besides that, Friendship is Magic has potential in niche markets that a corporation like Hasbro cannot efficiently react to or profit from. With help from a company that is used to marketing towards adults and people from diverse demographics and backgrounds, Hasbro could dig gold out of the Brony movement in the US, as well as the impending Japanese, European, and Mexican fandoms that are on the horizon. Paying attention to us IS worth it if you know how to go about it.
I wonder why Transformers have such accurate toys and up to date merchandising, but My Little Pony products are less faithful and take forever to appear on shelves. Perhaps they think boys notice this stuff, and that little girls aren't perceptive enough. I'm a supporter of Hasbro. They've done us a few solids. But still, food for thought.
Perhaps if there are enough pre-orders, they will get it. Otherwise, just like the pony fan-molds and customs, bronies will create their own box sets from the singles.
ReplyDeleteThat's what I plan to do, anyway.
First question: Do the current DVDs even have a 5.1 surround sound mix? If all they've got is a 2.0 stereo mix, then they not even worth considering.
ReplyDeleteSecondly: I like the ideas of setting up pre-order experiments and internet petitions. If a DVD release of all the episodes met my expectations, I would pre-order it in a flash. Likewise, I would sign such a petition (that was mentioned earlier in the comments) very quickly as well.
(@Fredward: PRESALES PRESALES PRESALES!)
In other news, Hasbro, The Hub, and Studio B/DHX Media have made it painfully obvious that they were in no way prepared for our demographic, and they're still being somewhat slow at recognizing us in certain regards. Case in point example: They didn't include CD soundtrack releases in the singers' initial contracts.
And, oh yeah -- Why isn't this show on Netflix? Tons of other kids' shows are on Netflix! Why not this one? Who do I write a letter to to get MLP:FiM on Netflix? Some obscure division of Hasbro, The Hub, or Netflix themselves?
Eh, so just buy the individual discs, I suppose. It's not THAT big a deal, is it? You can't fault the company for considering what retailers will and will not want to do. Maybe they can compromise and have a composite image on the spines of all the disc cases? It may not look as pretty sitting on your shelf, but it's the same product. If it's just about the art, hell, we've got great stuff pouring in for free from fans all the time.
ReplyDeleteHere's a thought, let's just do what we did with background ponies: take what the show gives us, and we can fill in the rest. Would it be at all possible for some 3rd party company to produce a collector's box that all the individual disc cases could fit into?
We must buy the single disks to get eventually season sets!
ReplyDeleteI can understand that all the companies involved with MLP are targeting the little girl market, and that is where their efforts are directed. And it is difficult for them to sort out if a purchase from a retailer is for/by a little girl or for/by a brony.
ReplyDeleteBut are the episodes purchased off iTunes really being bought for the little girl market? I'd have to think that iTunes episode purchases -- and especially season pass purchases -- would be a pretty good barometer of the brony section of the market.
I hope Hasbro, et al., are looking at those numbers and interpreting them that way. And I hope those numbers aren't small.
@GaruuSpike
ReplyDeleteThere are more of us online, but there are really only 50-100k of us on the entire global.
Meanwhile in the US alone there are around 5 million young girls that watch the show and/or buy the merch
Also, why are people that enthralled over DVDs?
ReplyDeleteThat's 480p resolution, it looks terrible on any new TV set. Shows that use vectored animation like MLP really do need to be watched on a TV's native resolution.
A Blu-Ray would work, but that's not going to realistically happen. Buy the episodes off iTunes or get them off a torrent and send Hasbro your money through some other method.
Shout Factory, the same company who put out a season set of Transformers and Reboot at the same time as the complete series sets, can't do something similar for MLP:FiM?
ReplyDeleteRelease a 1 disc first volume, and a full season set for the bigger fans?
So we basically have to buy a literal fuck ton of the single discs in order to get a full set? I can understand why they don't want to gamble but ugh, I don't have the money to be wasting on multiple DVDs that will likely have some repeated episodes. Looks like I'll be settling for the itunes passes.
ReplyDeleteiTunes + 1080p + external HDD. That's the way to go.
ReplyDeleteRemember, you can buy Season 2 iTunes now, and it'll upload as it's released, plus Hasbro might get us the second half of S3.
@Nämahs
ReplyDeleteYou're kidding, right? 50,000? This blog alone gets 1,000,000 views every 45 hours, and I doubt that on average every brony in the WORLD views this site 11 times a day.
Judging by the collated data of several bronies who put their YouTube Insight stats on Ponychan (myself included) there's at least 2.5 million bronies who watch the episodes and other stuff on YouTube.
@Fredward
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely, I would buy a Blu-Ray boxset if it were released. Day 1 purchase.
Count me as another person who doubts whether Hasbro's sales data can even distinguish between brony purchases and purchases for little girls,, or even the overlap (I imagine there are plenty of parents who have become bronies).
ReplyDeleteI say someone needs to collect a bunch of pictures and links to all the custom pony merch sales and send it to Hasbro/retailers/whoever to show them just how much cash they've been missing out on. Maybe then we'll at least get some plushies and show accurate toys.
Ah well, I bought season 1 and 2 on itunes, wish the quality there was better though..
ReplyDeleteI have almost every season of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (original series) on DVD.
ReplyDeleteThey came in Season box sets... Sooo.... Ya... Doesn't make much sense if you ask me.
25 year old Brony here!
@SlowMotionKarma You can actually go to amazon and buy the entire powerpuff girls series.
ReplyDeleteI DON'T mind having to buy single discs......... (as long as a box set eventually comes)
ReplyDeleteBut the single discs better well be in friggin order with no overlap ;P
How hard can it be to at least DO THAT?
Guess the only way you're ever going to get Season Sets is to wait a few years when Friendship is Magic goes of the Air.
ReplyDeleteJust look at most of the Nicktoon Shows like Angry Beavers and Ah Real Monsters.
Oh well there's still iTunes!
I wouldn't mind buying in single sets, as long s they include audio commentaries, behind the scenes, and maybe storyboard/deleted scenes on each disc.
ReplyDeleteThough it would seem that buying the single discs would be showing them that their current system works, so there's no need to put out box sets. After all, why take the additional risk of putting out a box set if we're going to buy it either way?
ReplyDeleteJust wanted to say here that I can see their notion here, but the very idea of targetting something purely to one demographic should of been dead by now. This show is a staple of that notion that a show with enough heart and hard work and love devoted to the production of it can reach all ages.
ReplyDeleteThey can still target the demographics that were normally for this, but they need to actually understand far more than just little girls care about this show and this franchise. This is not the 80's anymore! Hasbro, grow up and realise this, you're denying an audience of millions who'd pay ridiculous amounts of money directly to *you* for these DVD/Blu-ray sets, why deny a potential audience in favour of a demographic that, let's face it, is actually a bit more eh on this stuff than the other demographics are.
God, this year sucks.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteENTIRELY OFF-TOPIC: Although now that I notice it...heh, I just noticed the guy who gave this blog the quotes direct from the source is "wbwolf"...if that's the same "wbwolf" who uploaded certain Japanese commercial compilations from the 90's ages ago on YouTube...that is spooky. I remember seeing those years ago and watching them over and over, now that same user is contributing to Equestria Daily of all places. This is such a crazy fandom.
ReplyDeleteA few points:
ReplyDelete1. The Hub is a joint venture between Hasbro and Discovery. Hasbro gets paid from advertising on the Hub and toy sales generated by the shows. Discovery gets paid ONLY from advertising on the Hub. If the ratings are low, Discovery doesn't get paid. Discovery doesn't make a penny when you watch on YouTube. If you have the option to watch it on the Hub (stupid sweat-pants "jeans" commercials and all), do so. We don't want Discovery to take their ball and go home.
2. Hasbro DOES make money when you buy MLP on iTunes. Probably a lot more than if they were selling physical goods. The cost of goods is low, Apple's cut of the action is a LOT less than brick-and-mortar, and you get the episode 24 hours after first airing. Even if you don't use iTunes, and watch on YouTube instead, you really should buy a few episodes. Money needs to go from your pocket to Hasbro's so that money can go from Hasbro to DHX. iTunes is an excellent way to do so, and you get your episodes without the Hub logo in the corner or that "EI" crap or overcaffeinated guys yelling about whatever they're yelling about.
3. Standard DVD is 480p. iTunes is 720p. Higher resolution on iTunes than DVD.
4. BluRay sales are still completely dwarfed by DVD sales. If DVD sales are hard to generate, BluRay will be all but impossible. How many TV series of ANY sort are available on BluRay, compared to DVD?
5. Paying for stuff you're supposed to pay for is good karma.
@evil_prof_odor But if we bought all the single disks... would we still need to buy the boxed set?
ReplyDeleteReasonable, very reasonable. Don't get your manes in a tangle guys, everyone on the business end of things, Hasbro, Shout Factory, retailers, are still a little taken aback by this surprise demographic.
ReplyDeleteWhat we need to do is continue to show our undying support until they can be sure we're reliable enough to invest in. It's only been one season guys, considering Shout Factory's still releasing MST3K box sets don't expect a dvd for a while.
In the mean time, buying the episodes on iTunes may help show Hasbro our support.
Just put the episodes (and maybe some bonus content or soundtrack) on something else than iTunes please, please, PLEEEEAAASE!
ReplyDeleteBuy it on iTunes, then download the webrips or the 1080p youTubes. Once you own it, it's yours legally and morally.
ReplyDeleteSounds like the people in that DVD company are overusing the left hemisphere of their brain:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.ted.com/talks/iain_mcgilchrist_the_divided_brain.html
Anyway, if they need to know how many bronies there are before deciding to cater to the demand, we should do a brony census and show them... but how?
I'm not so sure this does make sense. We're an older demographic. We have disposable income but a lot of us still aren't interested in owning the toys. The one product 90% of us *would* pre-order in an instant is a DVD/BD box set. It's basically the one release guaranteed to generate sales from bronies. And I'm sorry, but I'm not buying single discs in the hope there'll be full series boxes down the line. I'm not going to buy a product I don't really want in order to encourage them to make one I do. That's not how the free market should work, IMO. If they make what I want, I'll buy it. Until then my wallet stays in my pocket.
ReplyDeleteIf I go to like best buy there so many box sets of classic 80's and 90's kids cartoons. They even have the G1 My Little Pony full season box set so I can't see why they can't do the same with Friendship Is Magic.
ReplyDeleteThat makes a lot of sense.
ReplyDeleteGuys, let's buy the single discs so they realize we deserve full box-sets of MLPFiM!!!
I... I kind of get it, but I kind of don't. It's always weird to see people going "we don't want your money". Maybe making a full-season set would be a massive cash loss if released in all the shops.
ReplyDeleteBut I can't imagine that there is no way they could make money off of us. Maybe collector toys wouldn't make back the cost of designing/making them, etc, maybe a full-release dvd wouldn't make money, but there's got to be something, surely?
If Shout Factory has the right to release the episodes on dvd however they like, then I don't see how having a full-season set they sold online would be a bad thing for them.
It seems like kid's stuff thinks in terms of bulk sales, so maybe they're just not that interested in making more niche products. But it seems so stupid. "This lump of plastic toy makes us $5m a year, but this deluxe show-accurate Fluttrshy would only make us a few hundred thousand dollars, so it's not really worth it to us."
And Hasbro's pretty efficient at rinsing Transformers fans with 80 dollar figurines, etc.
ReplyDeleteThat's why I think a petition would be a great idea. If it gets around and people actually sign it, it could at least show Hasbro/their suppliers that people are interested.
Also, I'm sure I remember some showrunners/Hasbro execs mentioning the possibility of a soundtrack, in a way which suggests it's almost a done deal. And that seems like a much more niche product.
Going back to Trandformers, I wonder if there was a time when Hasbro was really reluctant to make that fanbase nice things. So anything like a petition which would give them some idea that we might be worth money is a good idea, IMO.
It's frustrating because there doesn't seem to be an adequate way of communicating demand to them. If we do go out and buy the half-assed DVD releases, how do they interpret that as "there's a demand for box-sets" as opposed to "our current strategy is working"?
ReplyDeleteWithout bluray box sets apparently even on the horizon, it seems that the iTunes release is the best quality available for legitimate purchase... If you're in the US, and you want to support the show while not making them think that the dumb DVDs are a good idea, buy the iTunes seasons. Even if you don't have an AppleTV - if necessary then go and download the rips anyway to get it onto your media player, but then you're just format-shifting a legitimate purchase, and the show is still supported.
If you're not in the US and don't have the *option* of buying it on iTunes - my predicament - there isn't really an alternative to piracy at the moment. :-( Except I suppose to importune you US bronies to buy it! :-)
That is more of a mystery though: I mean, how much of an extra production cost would it be to push the iTunes product they already have internationally? That seems such a no-brainer.
Maybe it'll start happening when S1 finishes showing here, but that doesn't really make sense, it's not like season passes don't exist out here too... Still very very late, of course, if it tracks local tv broadcasts, but it's something and it is at least a way to support the show.
But... they need to meet us halfway and make it available to buy!
BTW the iTunesRip downloads are also transcodes - they're OK for what they are and very watchable but anyone judging the quality of the actual iTunes versions by the rips should be aware of that; it's a lossy conversion.
addendum. While the news wasn't good, it is still good that the Shout guy was prepared to engage with us. That should be encouraged. He's not the enemy. And I expect Shout don't have anything to do with the iTunes release; they're presumably all about the physical media.
ReplyDeleteI think if there's an 'enemy' it's the antiquated 20th century idea that the internet doesn't exist and there are separate geographical markets that can be successfully exploited hugely out of sync.
A lot of TV show makers seem to be getting this at last. These days more and more shows are shown almost simultaneously on both sides of the atlantic (just offset by timezone really) which basically ends the rush for youtube rips by fans on the wrong side of the atlantic (observed here with doctor who, which is now shown mostly on the same day in the US as it is in the UK - you couldn't prepare a HD encode of any decent quality and upload it before the earth spun around enough for the fans in the US to watch it on TV in HD themselves). Well you probably could, but for the hour or two of viewing window before broadcast, it's hardly worth the effort now.
Learn, hasbro, learn...
@sellyme
ReplyDeleteAnd just how many views of those are unique? Or none-bronies who just visit out of curiosity?
Face it, we are a very small minority of watchers.
@StrangeNoise
ReplyDeleteGreat point, I totally agree. The world's never been more interconnected than it is right now, but tomorrow's episode probably won't broadcast over here for another seven months.
We're watching it tomorrow, we could have been watching it on tv.
@Tears of a Valedictorian
ReplyDeleteYeah, and it's shown here on Boomerang so, let's see...
I don't have a satellite contract at the moment, so I'd need to get one; and to get one, with the minimum package to get boomerang is... £25 per MONTH.
To watch one US import show *months* after its original release.
In Standard Definition. Stereo if we're lucky.
And likely a crufty NTSC->PAL conversion. (one thing about blurays besides the resolution - they *could* do a region-free release and there's no standards conversion to worry about. If you have a bluray player and HD TV it'll play.
With adverts.
First thing saturday morning when I'm not really awake yet.
For 26 days a year.
That's not a value proposition. And even if I did it "to support the show" how the hell would it show up as such on *Hasbro's* bottom line?
If I could buy it from iTunes i'd do it like a shot even if there *was* a realistic chance of an imminent bluray boxset - One purchase for me, one to compensate them for one poor brony who honestly can't afford it but who makes great fan-art. :-)
ReplyDeleteI want to support the show; I want them to keep making it, and keep making it good, and to reward the creativity that goes into the show - as opposed to the singular lack of creativity that seems to go into the toy line - I'm standing here forlornly with my credit card hanging out... :-} Seriously I wasn't like this about any other show I've been a fan of before. Not least because I didn't need to be; the stuff was readily available for purchase.
@Nämahs
ReplyDeleteCan't be more wrong. An endless amount of bronies are not on Ponychan or Equestria Daily. I have twenty brony friends from a server and forum I run; none of them have ever entered Ponychan or Equestria Daily more than once or twice, if at all. There's a ridiculous amount of bronies whom have seen the entire show maybe twice, but are hardcore fans.
And did you see the ridiculous amount of traffic on this site? It gets a million views in less than two days! A day sometimes on the weekends! And I only began visiting EqD on August. Beforehand, I had only saw it and said meh, and checked it maybe once a week.
Thats a Bulls$^# answer!!
ReplyDeleteI demand and dream of Season Boxsets!
@StrangeNoise
ReplyDeleteTotally, I would buy the series in a heartbeat from iTunes if it was possible, but I feel like there's almost nothing we in the UK can do, right now. Boomerang's website doesn't even mention that it shows MLP.
It's a little embarrassing, really. "Hey, multinational corporation, could you not find some way to exploit me?"
I agreed to tag along with my friend to London ComicCon recently, and I acted like it was just because I was being a good friend, but in reality it was because I thought there might be decent pony merchandise. But England is a barren, ponyless land right now.
Ah yes, this is that point in the industry where the retailer gets to mandate the terms of a product's sale based on the demographic of a target, and not on the peripheral achievment of the whole. In truth, I'm not surprised by this, even if I am disquieted by the "Children's Show" label that seems to give rise to a certain stigma about potential revenue.
ReplyDeleteOn the one hand, having been in retail management for several years, I understand the sense of concern over product that simply sits in display cases waiting for a sale, that the retailers spend money on months in advance, and then have to take a loss on because the hundreds or thousands of units they purchased from the supplier didn't move within the monthly estimate.
I have no problem collecting the series a volume at a time, provided the volumes themselves do not follow after other shows, and release scrambled episodes and viewer's picks, and instead provide the series in chronological/broadcast order from start to finish.
Experience tells me to err on the side of caution, but fan-boy wishful thinking has me too giddy to calm my enthusiasm.
I don't care about this discussion, box-set or no, the series should be released in 1080p BD.
ReplyDeletePonyo, Japanese anime received a BD/DVD release in a single package, and the Ghibli studios aren't near recognized as MLP brand in america.
Hasbro should be taking the opportunity to market for this fandom and get their heads out of cloud 1999.
@Sheffield Makoto
ReplyDeleteThat's really comparing apples to oranges in this case. Ghibli was released on BD/DVD because it has the Disney logo slapped on the box, and because of that, the retailers would order and demand a soft-serve turd, because that alone equals sales.
Here, we have a show that was created and marketed for little children, and found footing in a side-show nerd fandom, which while we are passionate about, means little to the people that have millions to potentially lose.
If you want a BD, and you want a release of any kind, then support the product. Money returned, is money used to make more stuff. It's the base of economics. But if we sit back and cross our arms, and get obstinate about things, and mandate that "We won't buy till we get such-and-such made available" then we ourselves have just killed the thing we want more of.
Oh boy, I'm not gonna lie here. This is going to be a tough barrier to break. Can we REALLY prove to retailers that they would make more money than they would spend off of creating brony products? There's gotta be some way we can prove our worthiness as an acceptable target...
ReplyDeleteG1 got the first season in a box set. Thundercats and Jem are getting season volumes. Why not FiM?
ReplyDeleteGetting it to the top of the iTunes charts would probably help. The iTunes market is probably brony-heavy and littleGirlWithCluelessParent-lite.
ReplyDelete@David-ism™
ReplyDeleteThere's something in that, not being obstinate - but there's another viewpoint which is that I don't see how rewarding them for making crap products encourages them to do any more than continue with the decrapitude. How do they understand that good sales of rubbish DVDs priced like it's 1999 doesn't mean that's good enough?
That's why I'm pushing for as many people to buy the iTunes versions as possible - it's the best quality version that's actually obtainable *anywhere*, so bite down on quality niggles compared to a hypothetical bluray, and DRM-issues given you can get the rip anyway, and buy *that*. HD version obviously. At least hopefully pull them towards the higher end of the quality spectrum.
i meant, pull them towards paying more attention to higher quality products, by rewarding that, and not rewarding the low-rent low-creativity trash they think is all you need to do to be good enough for the kids. (I like to think if I was a parent I'd be insulted by that...)
ReplyDeleteIt makes me wonder who published the G1 first season box set. Surely, a FiM boxed set would sell at least 100 times faster right now.
ReplyDeleteWell....
ReplyDeleteWhy not play researchers and actually form our own statistics on how many bronies there are?
Why not take an internet-wide survey on who would be interested in buying, with what features, and at which realistic price levels and points in time?
If we can truly prove that a market for bronies exists, then it's not through Google or Youtube insights: it's through weeks of research into what bronies really want. You'd have to cover things like the average income and average budgeting towards pony-related media, but still! It'd all prove a point, and make them understand that we're not in the late 80's anymore.
But until that realistically can even happen, I say we should keep playing their game and buy those single DVD's and the full seasons on iTunes! If we all rule as much as we claim we do, we SHOULD purchase the show where applicable!
It looks like the only way we will be seeing a box set is if we become relevant to the actual retailers as opposed to their original demographic of little girls. That's going to be a tough one to break into, but knowing this fandom, I think we can pull it off!
ReplyDeleteAre you kidding me? The reason this series exists is because Lauren Faust saw a lack of quality programming for little girls and fought to produce something awesome for them. And now you want to take that away from them by . . . overtaking the "little girl" demographic? Turning "bronies" into the main demographic?
This series is awesome because it has the innocence and playfulness that comes from things targeted at LITTLE GIRLS. Because it emphasizes the importance of friendship and love that are present in things targeted at LITTLE GIRLS. Bronies, I am sorry if this hurts your feelings, but you are watching a show for LITTLE GIRLS. If you are bridling at this, please remember that these characters are all based on the personalities Lauren Faust gave her G1 My Little Ponies when she was a LITTLE GIRL.
I have nothing but respect for bronies, but LITTLE GIRLS made this show possible and awesome. They realized, an entire generation ago, that fantasy-colored horses who have epic adventures are cool. "Bronies" as the main audience? There are a thousand cartoons like that out there, with guns and internet memes and fart jokes. Doesn't it say something that THIS SHOW is gaining so many viewers?
For God's sake, just buy the individual DVDs and let the little girls have something awesome to enjoy.
@ladymoondancer
ReplyDeleteNothing you say is untrue, but
"Because it emphasizes the importance of friendship and love that are present in things targeted at LITTLE GIRLS"
It's a sad thing that such qualities are seen as only fit for LITTLE GIRLS; and the existence of the brony phenomenon shows it up for the lie it is.
I don't think there's any of us that wants them to twist the *show* towards trying to appeal to a 'brony demographic' (which they'd get wrong anyway); after all, we're here because we like the show the way it is. This is all about the ancillary stuff, the merchandising, etc., and giving us an opportunity to say "We like *this*! Take our money and do it more!"
G1 box set was done by Rhino. Does Shout Factory want to let Rhino win?
ReplyDeleteScrew it then. I'll make one myself.
ReplyDeleteThier loss really. Whether or not they release it we still get 720p episodes through itunes. Just makes it a little more difficult to support the show:P
ReplyDelete@DeathImminenti know i'm belabouring the point but if you're *buying* the 720p itunes episodes you *are* supporting the show. :-)
ReplyDelete@pmcollectorboy Shout Factory was made by people from Rhino.
ReplyDelete@ladymoondancer
ReplyDeleteI don't think anyone's outlook on this is "Forget about those little girls, the brony audience dominates the show and we need to show Hasbro so that EVERYTHING ABOUT THE SHOW CATERS TO TWENTYSOMETHINGS."*
But showing that we're a significant enough demographic that they can release a few things for us without losing their shirts on it.
The Adventure Time producers seem aware of the dual-appeal of their show, and their dvd seems to reflect that. No one's saying Hasbro shouldn't make individual dvds or brushable toys.
*well, there's probably a couple of people who think that. Because this is the internet.
StrangeNoise, I certainly agree it is sad that only things for little girls "can be" (according to television producers) innocent, light-hearted, and unironically about friendship. At the same time, I have seen a lot of comments in various threads about how "bronies are the REAL demographic now!" or "when is Hasbro going to realize we're the real audience?" (I saw this a lot after the "iPhone" ad--apparently some bronies do not realize that little girls also live in a world where iPhones exist, see adults using iPhones every day, and might think pony-based iPhone apps are funny.) I don't know, it just seems like some people want a takeover of the brand, instead of just enjoying what's there.
ReplyDeleteBahh. Like people have said: Regardless of the fact that we aren't the intended demographic if we get big enough our money/patronage will start to hold sway. We shouldn't dominate the marketing. MLP:FiM aught be like the Star Wars example, IE: "We'll market to kids but we'll keep our older audience happy too."
ReplyDeleteJust a thought: Amazon does print-on-demand DVDs for certain shows and movies (that's how Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog was originally released physically). I wonder how much of a shot we would have of getting them to produce a DVD?
ReplyDeleteHow about EqD throws up an unscientific poll? Could go like "What kind of MLP media would you buy? a) Single disc releases b) $40 Full season DVD sets c) $60 Full season BD sets d) Already own the iTunes release e) Probably won't buy any of it"
ReplyDeleteThe results would have to be visible as number of votes and not as percentages, but it could be a simple guessestimate of to what the sets could be worth. I bet that it actually WOULD be worthwhile for Shout to make the sets even if they could only sell them online.
d) needs to be "already own (US) or would if you could (elsewhere) iTunes release"
ReplyDelete*then* need to make it multi-selectable, as i for one would be choosing c) *and* d) (unless, admittedly, c) became available here at the same time as or before d))
Well, after taking some time to read the whole entire press release, I've come up with two main conclusions.
ReplyDelete1) It sucks for everyone that's expecting a super high quality release of the show on physical media, something that I was wishing for myself (I would've gone out and bought a Blu Ray Player for this show)
2) At the same time I can see where Shout Factory's hands are tied as far as getting this product out there. At the end of the day, they have to release something that'll be worth their return of investment, even if it could mean that we'll be taking a time warp back to 1998 quality wise.
Still, there is a way for this release to be salvaged. If these DVD's include special features like...
- Deleted Scenes
- Interviews from the Voice Actors, Writers and Artists
- Commentary tracks from those same people.
- Music sequences done Disney Sing-A-Long style
- Unreleased Official Art
- 5.1 Audio
- The Highest Picture Resolution Possible for a DVD
Among other things. If the DVDs include a good set of features, then I would say they would be worthy buying, despite the disappointing release format.
However, if these things come out being the same half-ass tripe that most "kids" shows endure on Home Video, then we as Bronies should leave these things to rot and just support the ITunes Releases. That way, you're giving the product monetary support and showing Hasbro and their partners that we won't accept a substandard product.
I really have to do some research into how much the older fanbase spends on Fan-Created Pony Products. It just feels like Hasbro is leaving massive amounts of money on the table by not making some products for our part of the fandom. I mean, you can have all of the crappily colored, "my wings are pretty" bullcrap toys you want, but not thinking outside of the box really does cost millions in the long run.
@Crazed Geek Glad I saw your comment, because I came here to suggest the same durn thing.
ReplyDeleteThis is no longer the age of having piles of copies in a warehouse not shipping. Print as needed is completely viable, and I can NOT believe that none of the companies involved couldn't finagle a reasonable price for a small run on a boxed set.
Well, I was really hoping for a Blu-Ray set, but I kind of realize now that's a bit silly. I was hoping to support the show by buying those DVDs, but since that won't be happening, I have to support them in a different way.
ReplyDeleteEven though I don't like dealing with Apple, I went and bought the whole season on iTunes (so I can have it "officially" and so Hasbro/Hub gets my money for ponies). I was buying some toys, but I don't feel that's enough support for a show I love.
I think a box set may still happen eventually, but it's not going to be this year or next. Maybe 2013, if single disk sales are good enough to warrant it, but don't hold your breath.
Why on earth should retailers even have to enter into the equation when dealing with the box set issue?
ReplyDeleteJust sell 'em online, guys! That's where the ENTIRE periphery demographic is!
Simply put them in a box set, put the sets up on an online store like Yahoo or something, and sell them like that! The guys behind Homestar Runner lasted YEARS that way, so don't tell me it wouldn't be profitable!
And sure, a large percentage may be content with their ripped episodes from YouTube, but having owned said DVDs from HR.com, I can tell you that they are WAY easier to view and allow for easy offline viewing without having to deal with media player format compatability issues. And if you throw in something cheap and easy like commentaries from animators or writers or other team members? INSTANT GOLD MINE, since you won't find those commentaries online.
Plus, it would allow them to use box art that wouldn't necessarily have to appeal the target demographic since, as you say, are getting THEIR episodes from three-packs sold by retailers.
Honestly, Hasbro, you could learn a LOT from Homestar Runner in terms of profiting from an online craze... just saying.
This just in: Hasbro doesn't want my cash in any form. No AJ toy with a brown hat and no box set DVD. :T Oh well. There's always burned copies.
ReplyDelete@StrangeNoise
ReplyDeleteYou make sense with what you say, and sadly there is a very fine line to supporting a company so that they can do more, and not supporting their crap product.
I don't know personally that the DVDs are going to be a crap product yet, but anything is possible. And there wasn't a definite "no" about not ever making the box-sets.
As for the iTunes thing, I think that that is probably a much closer to the chest method of supporting the company, and gets the money more directly into their hands. Which is a better all around venture. It eliminates the third-party necessity of the retailers altogether, and shows Hasbro that their fine product is worth more expansion, copy, manufacture, continuance.
@PredhackI think this idea is an awesome one. I don't see anything illegal about making a box and adding new labels to purchased DVDs and selling on eBay.
ReplyDeleteIt seems just like custom pony repaints on eBay...
The only question is whether it will be possible to get all the episodes on DVD...
I hate that they call it a children's show. It deserves to be called a family show (like Doctor Who).
ReplyDelete@cutechao999
ReplyDeleteMaking a profit by redistributing MLP episodes without a license? Now THAT'S illegal.
As a parent, I want box sets. Cause I can only put up with the same 4 episodes of Pingu for so long, and eventually had to spent $80 importing a box set from china.
ReplyDeleteWhat Hasbro ought to do is make a separate toy line for the Bronies. The toys can be of a higher quality, like we want, and not limited by child safety issues. To keep them separate from the little girl toys, they would only be sold online. Bronies are tech savvy, so that shouldn't be a problem. That way they can keep doing what they're doing for the little girls while still making the toys we want, and cut overhead by not having to ship the stuff to stores.
ReplyDelete@NotAGoodUsername360
ReplyDeleteThat's a great idea. They could even set up a pre-order page, and only actually produce the things if the pre-orders exceeded the break-even point.
That way, they don't need to spend a thing until it's guaranteed that a box set would actually recoup.
It's too bad that it's only on DVD because box set or not, I want it in a 1080p BD format.
ReplyDeleteI don't understand the comment about not wanting to make a box set if retailers don't want to carry it. The primary market for that sort of thing is MORE than content to purchase things over the internet. If you don't have to sell them to retailers, you don't have to ask retailers to take the risk which they are loath to do.
ReplyDelete*SIGH*. It's the magic of internet commerce, people. It lets you directly engage the long tail, it lets niche products find their markets. You're willing to admit that a box set is a niche product but you want to sell it for mass consumption? Setting up a concept to fail doesn't exactly instill confidence that these words are particularly genuine.
At the end of the day, I want to be able to support the show BY BUYING A PRODUCT I DESIRE. Not by buying a product I don't desire in the hopes that it'll convince some beancounter that there is money to be made off of this market. By buying a product that I actually want.
I mean, they can't even give us a hard number on what it would take to make the beancounters happy. Why should I shell out on a mere hope when I don't even particularly want the current product? I'm not even one of the people holding out for an HD release, I just want a simple box set of DVDs.
This is downright frustrating. Stop trying to engage with a niche market as if it's going to be a secondary mass consumption market. It's not, you know it's not, but you're too inflexible to actually do what you ought to do!
This is their response to everything "it's like, a show for little girls what do you expect?" GOD, it's Pink Celestia all over again.
ReplyDeleteGet real, there's a huge untapped market, and companies should be more flexible if they see that the demographic has changed. This is all because the west isn't used to adults liking animation. There's this whole stigma of "it's for kids" and that's how they think it should stay. I'm 23, I still love cartoons, and I always will. It's a medium that should be taken more seriously.
And for the record, HELLO KITTY!! Hello kitty has a huge adult following, even though her cutseyness implies she's for kids. Sanrio acknowledges this adult market and creates products FOR ADULTS, including three different types of Hello Kitty wine. Sanrio also makes lots of cuddly toys and playsets featuring HK that are clearly meant for children. Is it really this difficult for Hasbro/Retailers to wrap their heads around?
I don't have this problem. I already have a complete box set with menus cases labels the works. I used corel dvd factory pro to make it all.I would sell them if it wasn't against the law but maybe sometime in the future i will give 5 or six of them away.
ReplyDeleteThis is, regrettably, understandable. Will a 5 year old care about a director's commentary or even know what a director is?
ReplyDeleteIf I may go on a slight tangent...
It is often forgotten in this community that MLP and FiM has, is, and always will be first and foremost for little girls. Sure we male Bronies maybe many but I do not believe that we are (nor should be) the major contributing demographic to the generation 4 MLP sales figures. If we were it would mean from a corporate stand point that the show and toy line are failures, and would be discontinued.
So tell your daughters, nieces, cousins, neighbors and friends with the aforementioned to order the Hub (or whatever television station FiM is airing in your country), watch the show, and buy the toys. If Hasbro finds that FiM and Gen 4 pony are a success with its original target demographic then in years after the series has run its course and said original target demographic is older they may feel inclined to release a Blue Ray (or whatever home video format will be standard at that time) box set of the entire series.