Should There Be a Cartoon Aimed At Kids?

[Freedom]

It seems to be the trend lately to have a cartoon and animated style toys aimed a kids. There's Transformers, Spider-Man, and Wolverine & The X-Men. Star Wars: The Clone Wars and the figures are aimed at kids. I personally don't want Hasbro's G.I.Joe department spending any money on animated style figures, and I probably wouldn't buy them, but will the movie and movie toys be enough to capture kids imagination and keep it? Does G.I.Joe need the kids on board to sustain longevity?

[UMAN]

No! **** kids! (not literally)

Sigma Six was the best shot at a kids-oriented take on GI Joe... it did its thing.

I like the way things are going now - no need to fix what isn't broke.

[Moses]

If the movie is successful, then they would be fools not to put a cartoon out to keep the momentum. Sure most of us would rather see them focus on reworking ARAH, but if a successful movie/cartoon line had kids buying GI Joe rather than Ben 10 we would likely see more classic lines as well. I think if GI Joe does not get the kids onboard the retailers are going to edge out more of their space to something that does sell to kids.

[bigdaddyblue73]

Something is needed to broaded the customer base. Hasbro needs to get kids bugging their parents for Joes. It would mean not only new figures, but larger production runs, making it easier to find the toys we want. I have still never seen a Sting Raider or Ghost Hawk in a store and very few of the last couple of waves.

[crock master]

kids dont play with toys anymore. its all about video games and computer now. they will never put the money down for that.
they wont even put money down to make new molds now!

[Freedom]

What got me thinking about this, I see a lot of kids buying up the Animated Transformers over the regular Transformers.

I think to myself, "We didn't have/need/want animated styles toys. We liked our Joes just the way they were. The more realistic, the better. Action features and spring-loaded weapons just got in the way."

I do think there needs to be a cartoon based off the movie and aimed at kids, and ready for TV this Fall to grab the kids. It doesn't have to be as dumb as Sigma 6. Kids are smart. It doesn't have to be dumbed down.

[skatezaz]

a movie style cartoon might not be a bad idea if the movie is a success

[Zarana]

kids dont play with toys anymore. its all about video games and computer now. they will never put the money down for that.
they wont even put money down to make new molds now!


Agreed. Hasbro needs to put their money instead toward a MMO

[Dreadnok619]

I have to agree with CM. Kid don't play with toys like we did in the 80's. Toy companies try to market to them but it seems that collectors get more excited about the toys than kids do. TF animated is definitly aimed towards kids in its approach and marketing. The show is pretty childish. As for Spiderman, Wolverine and the X-men, and Clone Wars I have to say that after watching them they are marketed towards kids but the content of the shows are more fan based.

[gunslingercbr]

kids dont play with toys anymore. its all about video games and computer now. they will never put the money down for that.
they wont even put money down to make new molds now!
of course kids still play with toys and watch cartoons. because they don't do so as long as children in the past doesn't mean they don't at all.

yes, Hasbro should aim a new cartoon at children, which means you could have also titled this thread "should Hasbro make a cartoon that adults will cry is aimed at children?"

I'm fascinated at the psychology of adults who are upset that things like toys and cartoons which are entertainment for children are in fact then produced to appeal to children. what next, adults who are angry that play-doh or Lincoln Logs isn't doing enough to appeal to adults.

[darkshadow]

nowadays,kids are more into online games,PS3,PSP.at least that's what kids in my country are interested in.patrons in toy shops mostly consist of adults.

[Bravestarr]

Kids today are into some pretty weird stuff.

Walking through the toy aisles, I can hardly understand most of the stuff on the pegs.

Yuki-Goh, Pokemonia, rubber ball cartoon Japanese dinosaurs?

I still don't understand the fascination with spongebob and a lot of the other stuff out there.

GI Joe Sigma Six was trying to push the Joe team toward that Yuki-Goh audience, and I am not sure if it was successful or not.

Bottom line is that I don't think most kids appreciate GI Joe or He-Man because they would rather have their Japanese dinosaur bouncy balls.

[foor]

They'll do another series aimed at kids once the movie is done! Got to have the 2 year filler TV series before the next movie.

I bet it's gonna be called "GI Joe Animated". And will be done by the people who brought you Teen Titans. They're all going to be young teenagers in power armour.

You think I'm joking! But wait and see! I am PSYCHIC!

[Gatchaman]

They'll do another series aimed at kids once the movie is done! Got to have the 2 year filler TV series before the next movie.

I bet it's gonna be called "GI Joe Animated". And will be done by the people who brought you Teen Titans. They're all going to be young teenagers in power armour.

You think I'm joking! But wait and see! I am PSYCHIC!

I agree. I don't think it's what they should do but if they do make one for kids it will be as you predict.

I think they need to make a cartoon that appeals to kids but is cool and smart enough for adults. Something along the lines of Batman the animated series and Justus league. And I don't think they need to change anything as far as the toys go "except for maybe Gun Ho, Quick Kick and Spirit". That’s what I would like to see and I think kids would dig it too. The kids liking the line will never last without a good cartoon.

[CaliBeachhead32]

as much as we'd like to preserve the Joe legacy for those that were there originally, we must always keep in mind that these are TOYS and CARTOONS.

hence, for kids.

i have a 7 year old daughter who is now obsessed with Joe's because she sees Dad get such a kick out of them.

she now has Scarlett and Lady Jaye next to Jack & Sally on her mantle.

yup, she's cool.

[1SGHauser]

I would have said both had there been any interest in Joes from a younger generation, but there just sin't. If it's roots aren't in anime or some other kind of card playing monster game rife with stupid catch phrases (yo joe?) and cute furry little main characters capable of static shock prowess then it just sin;t for kids these days. There are many attempts at trying to get todays kids onto toys and such, but we're in the computer age where video games trump anything that requires imagination to create.

I'm not saying all, but most. As soon as a kid is old enough to truly enjoy Joes they are also old enough to enjoy Xbox and since Xbox has hte following in school, online and so forth, it will take precedence. This isn;t to say that today's kids don;t have imagination, but they are losing it.

I recall I wanted nothing but toys, figures and so on. Joes, transformers, tmnt or anyhting that I could make fightone another was the way to go. Now, there are figures based on games and I see the pegs chock full of them.

Todays figures are best marketed to the 25-45 age group.

Tangent complete. No, any effort to make a Joe cartoon and toy line geared towards kids is destined to fail and thus possibly slow down the toy line we here at the tank love most. Combat Heroes are everywhere. The only people I see buying them are adults... Not that kids can buy them themselves, but I mean I don't see ids taking an interest in them. Surely kids love to go to the toy aisle, but not for Joes sadly.

[MTN]

Kids today are into some pretty weird stuff.

Walking through the toy aisles, I can hardly understand most of the stuff on the pegs.

Yuki-Goh, Pokemonia, rubber ball cartoon Japanese dinosaurs?

I still don't understand the fascination with spongebob and a lot of the other stuff out there.

GI Joe Sigma Six was trying to push the Joe team toward that Yuki-Goh audience, and I am not sure if it was successful or not.

Bottom line is that I don't think most kids appreciate GI Joe or He-Man because they would rather have their Japanese dinosaur bouncy balls.

Yugi-oh, Pokemon, Bakugan, and Ben Ten are all shows that are on Cartoon Network. Mainly the shows on cartoon network are greater success when marketing toys for them. I bet if you aired sigma six on Cartoon Network there'd be kids buying joes. I really liked sigma six and I watched it every week. Why make a new cartoon when you can use the one you've already got? It'd be more successful on a mainstream station.

[hamilcar]

there will be a kids' cartoon in the theaters in August, with related figures hitting in July. zing!

[Zartanman]

Kids today are into some pretty weird stuff.

Walking through the toy aisles, I can hardly understand most of the stuff on the pegs.

Yuki-Goh, Pokemonia, rubber ball cartoon Japanese dinosaurs?

I still don't understand the fascination with spongebob and a lot of the other stuff out there.

GI Joe Sigma Six was trying to push the Joe team toward that Yuki-Goh audience, and I am not sure if it was successful or not.

Bottom line is that I don't think most kids appreciate GI Joe or He-Man because they would rather have their Japanese dinosaur bouncy balls.

That brings up a good point. Why does everything have to be Japanese these days?

Now don't get me wrong. I Love a good Anime myself and I do understand the appeal of certain Japanese properties.

But Japanese cartoons were originally inspired by American Cartoons...but now it seems truly original American cartoons or ideas for toys are gone. Almost all of the cartoons on now seem directly from or inspired by Anime.

Whatever happened to the American style of storytelling and animation. I Like both.

[minstrelboy]

kids dont play with toys anymore. its all about video games and computer now. they will never put the money down for that.
they wont even put money down to make new molds now!

I dunno. My daughter (who is 9) plays with toys, and even played with my Joes this past summer when she was staying with me. So I don't agree that kids don't play with toys anymore.

However, I do think that kids have less time to play with toys nowadays - both parents typically have to work, it's harder to make ends meet, there's just too much to do with an increasingly lessening amount of time to do it in...

Suprising as it may sound - these Joes are for kids. It's just that the majority of us 30-something man-children get the majority of the plunder, while the few interested kids get whats left on the pegs. And isn't the Combat Heroes line for younger kids as well? So I think Hasbro already has toys "for kids", regardless of how old they may be.

As for the cartoon - a lot of modern cartoons are geared towards kids and adults. The Joe cartoon is specifically geared towards adults, because we have made ourselves their target audience with our constant, incessant complaints and rants. So, you've always got the original cartoons, I guess, as craptastic as they were...

[Headman]

I wouldn't mind a cartoon show aimed at kids, because the show I grew up with was aimed at kids too. My only problems are the writing and artistics direction cartoons today are taking. It's all either anime or the TF animated look, and I'm sick to death of both styles.

[Mtolen78]

I think a lot of people who responded to this thread don't even have kids. Anyone saying that kids today aren't playing with toys aren't either aren't around them, or would rather sit them down in front of an xbox rather then play with them.
I hate to remind you guys, as much as you think these toys are yours, first and for most toys are for kids. It says right on the box. ages 3 and up. Kids don't by the Joe because they are not that playable (except the vehicles). My son doesn't like them so much because they don't feel like toys, they feel fragile and don't hold their gun well. He loves the Sigma stuff I've let him play with. He also loves the combat heroes but those don't hold his interest nearly as long as the Sigmas. I would love a new cartoon and toyline geared for younger kids. Why should adult collectors have all the fun.
For those who say it would just take more money from the 25th line, it would generate more money as a whole. It's not like Hasbro takes the money from 25th sales and use that only for 25th development. As the fan base I think we shoot ourselves in the foot from everyone's incessant crying over anything that is different or new. Maybe if we all realize that these toys/movies aren't made for specifically just for you and what you think they should be and just relax a little bit we could all get something both kids and adult collectors enjoy. Kids need Joe to. Would you go back and time and steal a toy from your younger self? That's what we're doing with our kids. Let them play man. Let them play.

[minstrelboy]

Maybe if we all realize that these toys/movies aren't made for specifically just for you and what you think they should be and just relax a little bit we could all get something both kids and adult collectors enjoy. Kids need Joe to. Would you go back and time and steal a toy from your younger self? That's what we're doing with our kids. Let them play man. Let them play.

Amen.

[Von Blitzkrieg]

Why not do it in the Justice League/JLU style? Aimed at both adults and kids.

Another solution could be for two seperate series, a cartoon aimed at kids and live show aimed at adults.

[arthurdent]

There is going to be one anyway. Movies like Van helsing, Starship Troopers, and Baby geniuses had cartoons tie ins, counting on the popularity of the movie. And when the movies are box office duds, the cartoons are either shelved or wind up syndicated and being shown at 2:30 am on a tuesday on cable.

[ParatrooperCarbine]

How much would they have to change GI Joe to make it something kids would watch in the first place?

[SgtMajor]

Why not do it in the Justice League/JLU style? Aimed at both adults and kids.

Another solution could be for two seperate series, a cartoon aimed at kids and live show aimed at adults.


I agree with you here Von Blitzkrieg, the JL/JLU animated style is very linear and has very simple lines, the figures are okay, but Im sure there is a variant of this animated style that would appeal to both adults and children. Add in some decent articulation and have it still fit within RAH scale vehicles and you are good to go.

As far as two different series, I dont think you need to, twice the work and twice the money. JL/JLU was very well written and wasnt dumbed down. I see cartoons now and just want to shut off the tv, I hate, nay, loathe this new animated style. Kids act immature because of the impressions they see and hear. The appeal of Joe was that he wasnt a superhero and he was a serious soldier that took time to make a joke when it was time, but took care of business when work called. Today's cartoons are an insult to the natural intelligence that kids are inherent with. JL/JLU had crappy marketing and why they kept rescheduling when it aired was just moronic. This figure line has surpassed super powers and has quite a following due to the storytelling and the variety of characters. GI JOE could do this easily. Mtv had a great spiderman cartoon-while the animation was interesting, I dont feel it was dumbed down all that much, now there is a new one that has more of a Disney feel to it, but it looks pretty good. I dont care for the style, but I dont feel the cartoon was dumbed down, it still shows Peter Parker having troubles in and out of costume. There is alot to be said about good writing. Look at BSG-even after waiting oh so many months, Im still glued to the set.

[Jmacq1]

Well, we'd be back to the days of fighting lots of BATs and nobody (not even the bad guys) ever really dying, for starters.

Then again, "Clone Wars" is proving that you can have violence and death in a cartoon and kids will still watch it and buy the toys. But there are parents that will let their kids watch Clone Wars because its' Star Wars-related, but won't let their kids watch G.I. Joe because it's a "war cartoon."

Anyway, I think it's entirely possible that a G.I. Joe animated series could be done in a manner that appeals to both kids and adults (or at least "bigger kids"), but most toon developers don't seem interested in trying to find that balance.

Regardless, I do think Joe should try another animated tie-in, particularly if the movie is successful. Something needs to be done to keep G.I. Joe on kids' minds between movies.

[dukeisawesome]

If they do, I can't wait to watch it. I pretty much watch cartoons and profesional wrestling exclusively. I used to watch Monster Quest until my girlfriend pointed out that they were never going to find Bigfoot... you know, because he doesn't exist.

[Lifeline_MD]

ABSOLUTELY NOT!!!

We'd get G.I. Joe Animated - anyone seen the travesty that is transformer's animated????

[Nemesis*Prime]

My own personal hope is that, if the movie does do well at the box office, and Hasbro wants to air a new regular G.I. Joe animated series they expand on the Resolute series. They would probably have to tone it down a little for the kiddies. But I agree with a lot of other people here that the last thing we need is another 'Transformers Animated' toon. That show sucks.

[G.I.Eddie]

for sure!...just so long as we still get Resolute for us grown up kids:D

[Dangerman_1973]

My first post.

I don't want a GI Joe animated show that has M16s and 45 pistols shoot cheesy lasers. And I have a hell of a nightmare living through the hell of the DiC series, Extreme and Sigma Six.

I want a series not having some comic relief and with the same level of storytelling and intensity as Bruce Timm's DC series. And if I want another animated series, I'd rather prefer one with real bullets.

[idellasnolley]

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[idellasnolley]

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b.) never lost the deposit since 1999

c.) works fully automated while you sleep!

IMPORTANT: Those are not paper results or demo.. they put showcases on their website that show how the robot rades and multiplies the money in real time! REAL DEPOSITS with renown brokerages like interbank fx, fxcm fxdd, fxpro ducascopy and many many more!


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[TheBaroness]

I'm half and half on this one....on one hand, making cartoons allows the kids of today to enjoy what we once enjoyed...problem is, the new cartoons suck.

On the other hand, G.I. Joe isn't something that should be geared for kids, anyways, unless they water it down a lot.

[Headman]

On the other hand, G.I. Joe isn't something that should be geared for kids, anyways, unless they water it down a lot.

Huh?

[TheBaroness]

Huh?

So I am guessing that guns and violence are okay with you and your future/present young kids? Back in the day, kids weren't crazy like they seem to be now so it wasn't a big deal to have violence in it. Now, kids copy everything they see on TV.

[Headman]

So I am guessing that guns and violence are okay with you and your future/present young kids? Back in the day, kids weren't crazy like they seem to be now so it wasn't a big deal to have violence in it. Now, kids copy everything they see on TV.

Yes, I think guns are fine. Kids are going to copy what they see, and that's why context is important. Back then shows had context, and even included moral lessons. Today giving moral advice is considered self righteous and judgmental. I miss the days when right was right and wrong was wrong. To be honest I think kids today need the 80's style GI Joe more than ever. That and parents who aren't still rebelling against their parents by screwing their own kids up.

[Indy]

A few kids in my area play with action figures and toys. Same with Legos. Most adults here collect figures as is. Considering I keep 'em in their packages and safe. Aside from the ones on my TV.

[primenemesis]

Kids watch more mature cartoons nowadays anyway so why would they sugar coat it?

[blayze5150]

The leagacy of GI Joe must be passed down. Both.

[Lifeline 71]

What made Joe a success in the 80s was the multi-media approach: toys, comics, and a cartoon. As much as we, the adult fans/collectors, want a 'toon for us (which I do), there also needs to be something to attract kids to the line. if that's a new cartoon aimed at kids, so be it.

[Hang Ten]

Give me a cartoon with the feel of the originals and I will definitely watch...as an adult. And force me kid to watch also.