Get your questions ready for my next YouTube Interview - David Vonner

[JayC]

I've been doing a interview series on my YouTube channel where I talk with folks who work in the toy industry, and my next interview coming up in the next week has some Marvel connection. I am going to be interviewing David Vonner. David currently works on Mattel's WWE line, but many here probably know him best for his work on Hasbro's Marvel Universe line as well as his time at Toy Biz where he worked on Marvel Legends. If you have any questions for him you'd like me to possibly ask during the interview, post them here.

[Sasquatch]

Is the Marvel Universe line ever coming back?

[JayC]

10 hours ago, Sasquatch said:

Is the Marvel Universe line ever coming back?

I dont think in any real way, but Dave doesn't actually work at Hasbro anymore so he's not the one to ask that question.

[Guest EUPHORICVIKING]

10 hours ago, Sasquatch said:

Is the Marvel Universe line ever coming back?

if they do they better come with the tried and true. They were getting rather sloppy and passable in their later years. once they shifted to Marvel Legends 3.75" I was no longer impressed.  Plus they were getting to be $12.99. That's when I made a full switch to marvel legends. 

[Sasquatch]

11 hours ago, JayC said:

I dont think in any real way, but Dave doesn't actually work at Hasbro anymore so he's not the one to ask that question.

Oh okay, yeah, now I see you said he works at Mattel.

[Sasquatch]

11 hours ago, EUPHORICVIKING said:

if they do they better come with the tried and true. They were getting rather sloppy and passable in their later years. once they shifted to Marvel Legends 3.75" I was no longer impressed.  Plus they were getting to be $12.99. That's when I made a full switch to marvel legends. 

Yeah, I was confused about the 3.75 scale name change to Marvel Legends because that's the name of the 6 inch scale. How are you supposed to differentiate which one when searching online for a Marvel Legends Captain America from a Marvel Legends Captain America?  I also started with collecting 3.75 scale and switched to the 6 inch scale. I guess it was a good choice since the 3.75 scale became extinct.

[monron999]

I'm not sure exactly how much involvement he had in the DC Multiverse line, but could you ask his honest opinion about McFarlane's decision to take DCM to a 7" scale rather than meet Marvel Legends on the battlefield at 6.5" like I think most of us fans were hoping? I, for one, think it was a huge mistake for 2 reasons. One, with offerings from companies like Mezco and DC Direct I think there is more than enough 7" representation in DC action figures. Two, I think many ML fans, who might not be fans of DC toys, might have been willing to start collecting DCM if they could just have Batman squaring off against Captain America or Superman going toe to toe with Iron Man. I've seen many comments online, and while it seems that avid DC fans are mostly happy with the 7" line, it's almost unanimous with Marvel fans that they intend to take a pass on the line or at least collect more selectively, than they would have if the line had been in scale with ML. I think they are missing out on a massive sales block from the Marvel fans. I saw your interview with him and even though his answers were spoken with a certain amount of conviction and confidence, he was clearly contradicting himself quite often and speaking out of both sides of his mouth. He would say the fans would decide what the line does, yet when you mentioned many fans wanted them to be in scale with ML he stood fast that it was his decision to stick with what he was already familiar with as a means to do what 'HE' wanted with the line. When you questioned him on the CnC format he said he didn't want to force fans to buy figures just to get a figure nobody wants, but then he mentions wanting to "sell the crap" out of figures (which the CnC & ML's BAF helps to do), do the larger figures at a standard price point (the BAF actually adds a bonus figure at no cost) and fold in as many of the obscure characters into the lines as the fans will allow (also something the BAF does well).

I know most people were "impressed" by his strong standpoint, but you can't take such an unmoving stance on these issues and still act like the fans are the final decision makers. Over the years he's become somewhat of a competent writer and storyteller. By no means is he a Claremont or Miller, but I'm sure he's well practiced on thinking on his feet and I think most of the answers he gave you were mostly BS just to make his own personal points. Even when you pressed him on the CnC issue, it seemed like he just kept saying the same thing over and over till you more or less submitted under the understanding you weren't gonna get anything out of it.

Let me be clear, I'm not a huge fan of McFarlane by any means. I think he's done more damage to the comic industry than he progressed it, which is what I think helped me to see that interview with a less adoring eye, but I think he's a snake oil salesman that schmoozes people to tell them what he thinks they wanna hear all the while justifying what he personally decides to do. I know it's probably not your intent to interview Vonner about your interview with McFarlane but I left that interview with a hella lot more questions than answers, and what better time to ask, and I think a person with his main ties to the toy industry might have a different take than a guy who started out as a fan, became an artist, then a writer, then did action figures, then did statues and tried to call them action figures, and then finally, finally submitted to the concept and learned how to do ultra articulated figures. My personal opinion is that he's afraid he can't outdo ML at 6.5" and as long as he sticks to 7" scale he'll never have to explain why.

[Guest EUPHORICVIKING]

10 hours ago, Sasquatch said:

Yeah, I was confused about the 3.75 scale name change to Marvel Legends because that's the name of the 6 inch scale. How are you supposed to differentiate which one when searching online for a Marvel Legends Captain America from a Marvel Legends Captain America?  I also started with collecting 3.75 scale and switched to the 6 inch scale. I guess it was a good choice since the 3.75 scale became extinct.

it's not to difficult, it would be very similar to the Black series 6" line and the black series 3.75' line. They just started making junky 3.75" marvel figures while over charging.  Although I do think they should have stuck with marvel universe.