All I want outside of transforming robits is a large-ish Star Destroyer with an extremely high level of detail. 12" long or larger. Preferably with LED and fiber optic lit windows, possibly lit weapon emplacements. And a Super Star Destroyer. I would pay so much money for those...

 

DC Universe Classics is in dire need of 3rd party, but only in my wildest dreams would it ever happen.

 

Isn't that pretty much just Teela? They shared a lot of molding/parts.

 

I'm Chinese and i live in Malaysia. I collect G.I. Joes and from the years had gone by, i noticed that G.I. Joes aren't as highly demand in the market compared to Transformers in China or Japan. G.I. Joes gave China/Japanese people the impression that it's an "All American Heroes" line and that didn't really stick to their interests. Transformers are big transforming robots, and most asians (the Chinese and Japanese people) love big robots. Hell, they even have their whole genre based on Real Robots and Giant Robots. Joe fans would love 3rd party figures and toys but, no one's been making them for the past few years.

But i'm glad that OriToys finally releasing their Acid Rain line, been waiting for 2 years for them to release it. There's also Capcom's licensed Lost Planet toys by Toy Notch company, that they made 3.75 inch figures with mechs to go along with them too.

 

Im waiting for a kickass 3rd party Voltron.

 

Not a whole lot of other lines have messed up so much in terms of how poorly the toys resemble their fiction, if they even have gotten a release at all (alpha trion, arcee, etc)

G1 ratchet & Ironhide didn't even have heads, and the CHUG versions? patchwork monstrosities - enter iGear.

CHUG devastator is a 5 bot combiner that doesn't even transform into the same vehicles as the one in the fiction. Then it's not that strange that 3p companies pick up on that and see an opportunity to capitalize on Hasbro's slack by providing something that actually looks G1:ish and fits with CHUG. And after it's success it's not hard to see why they would follow up with more combiners, again - missing from CHUG.

etc, etc.

 

GIJoe has a lot of third party companies, but the majority of them make parts for customization rather than full finished figures. But then again, Joes are easier to customize heavily due to their common construction (compared to TFs where design and transformation make common designs far less common).

Most make heads, torsos, weapons, and smaller accessories rather than full vehicles, but the parts are dirt cheap compared to even the smallest TF 3P item. Plus they also make parts to customize Joes into virtually any other property such as characters from TV, movies, video games, comics, and other toy franchises.

So while the Joe 3Ps don't focus on finished products, that community is extremely large, just in a different way than the TF 3P scene.

 

Amusingly, newer knockoffs of Bandai kits are starting to act more like our 3rd Party stuff: coming with details or weapons the original lacked and even, in some cases, combining parts from several kits to release a Mobile Suit Bandai has not yet, the best example being the new MG Tallgeese III from Dragon Momoko. I think Bandai only put out the I and maybe the II as a web exclusive.

 

If I want a licensed, transforming Optimus Prime, I have to get it from Hasbro Takara. No other company has the license to make such a toy.

If I want an Iron Man figure, I can get it from . . . how many different companies? Anywhere from Sideshow Collectibles, to Bandai S.H. Figuarts, to Revoltech, to Figma, to all sorts of companies.

just the way these character properties are licensed and how shit is distributed

 

With Transformers, because there really isn't a set character model throughout their series, it's easier for 3P to make figures in their likeness without copying them exactly.

It's harder for a series like Gundam, which fans want exact replicas of characters but would face legal action if they did so. So they make replacement parts like metal thrusters and the like.

 

Haha, I've been out of the gunpla scene for quite awhile. That's pretty intuitive. I'm surprised Bandai let something like that slide.

 

yeah I need all 6" classic and remake/new toon

6" gijoes are needed but I won't lie I only want SE & SS

man F**K Ban dai, where are my voltron force lions? if a 3rd party released them plus a black lion arm and leg with core red, green, blue and yellow lions i'd buy in a heart beat all 11 of them and probably enough multiples to have every ver. in voltron form and then another set just to have all lions the same size so yeah a whole bunch of lions so for thunder cats and voltron F**K ban dai with a melted plastic toy appendage

 

There are a ton of 1/6 movie and celebrities heads by 3rd parties.

 

Any links to any of this? I wouldn't mind seeing it.

 

Considering Mattel treats their customers like crap, I don't even want to know how they'd treat those who make unofficial third party products.

 

I must admit I've always been shocked there isn't more 3rd party power ranger stuff, I mean their toy tech is rather on the basic end of the scale, a well articulated combing/transforming megazords would be a must for me.

 

Just for starters, check out RaginSpoon for heads and accessories
Raginspoon's Custom Cast Parts and Figures - Untitled

and Marauder's for weapons & accessories
Marauder "Gun-Runners" Home Page

These are just two I've used & know off the top of my head. There are many, many more small shops. Just google GI Joe custom cast parts etc... I think there are stores on shapeways.com that do similar stuff.

That all being said, I don't know why there isn't a bigger 3P presence for complete figures for Joes. There are tons of "recipes" for customs (using existing parts, paired with a custom cast head and painted) for spot on modern updates to ARAH and modern characters not yet released (the same niche as TFs). It seems like 3P companies could easily cast Hasbro parts (tsk tsk, I know), make adjustments if needed, bring in a custom head and accessories, and viola! A complete product... The only reasons for the lack of 3P Joes that I can think of are 1) the Joefandom is much smaller and therefore the market for expensive 3P products is too small and/or 2) the cost of paint apps might be higher on a Joe figure than a TF

 

misplaced hate on ban dai for the voltron that was actually mattel that dropped the ball on voltron force, all that ish shown at sdcc 2011 had me ready now I feel like stan from southpark yelling they killed Kenny.....cue kyle
also ban dai doesn't get a pass though they still destroyed thundercats

 

There are lots of casters that make Joe 3P customization parts. The ones below are among my favorites.

www.theangelforge.com
www.vortiouscustomaccessories.ecrater.com
www.starwarsgeek.ecrater.com
www.onyxphoenixproductions.ecrater.com
Raginspoon's Custom Cast Parts and Figures - Untitled
TOFUJESSE