Cashing In On Nostalgia

Children are a cash industry. Along with the food that only they eat, diapers that are disposed of after one use, clothes that they will quickly outgrow, there is also the huge multitude of entertainment aimed solely at children. Now to be perfectly honest, most children’s television when I was growing up was nothing but a series of glorified toy commercials. The program would show some new shiny character and vehicle and then advertise that I could purchase a small plastic version of aforementioned character or vehicle that I could play with in my very own home. As my mother could probably corroborate, this form of advertising worked very well, based on the number of Transformers, G.I. Joes, Thundercats, Masters of the Universe, Voltron, and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles she purchased for me after a barrage of nagging.

Comic-Con: Collector's Mecca

While physically it may look like I have outgrown any such obsession with such trinkets, the child who loved those little sculpted bits of plastic is still alive inside me. And like a werewolf on a full moon, that child uncontrollably bursts forth and demands that I provide it with the things it loved in youth. Modern entertainment companies are well aware of this affliction and seek to exploit it to the fullest. Over the past several years I have seen an influx of childhood memories be rereleased and/or reimagined. Initially I could think that perhaps they are trying to show a new generation the greatness that I, and my friends, grew up on. But the truth is, I am the target audience. They want MY money.

How do I know they want my money and not the money of the younger generation? Because while they are simultaneously releasing a new version of the thing I loved from my youth, they (yes, the mysterious and evil THEY) are also putting out releases of the classic toy. So if these genius marketers do not rope me in with their new release, they will certainly get me with the classic toy. Toys that sadly I have long since gotten rid of. In actuality it was my mom who got rid of them. I would never throw out such beloved pieces of my heart. My apartment still holds many an action figure, cartoon DVD and trade paperback comic. And what I do not currently possess is on a list of something I hope to one day possess.

Nostalgia is the driving force behind fandom collecting. There is this longing desire to recapture a youth that many feel has long since slipped from their grasp. While some people seek to make themselves physically appear younger, for many it is all about the saying “You are only as young as you feel.” Collectors take that saying to heart. Possessing a treasured toy or rare comic gives a feeling of the lost youth. The very essence of collector culture is almost a perpetual midlife crisis. There are few collectors who do not have stories about the items in their collections that is someway connected to their childhood. Be it a beloved film, cartoon character or comic, there are usually items connected to their past.

As one can see in Hollywood, the reboot rules supreme in the studio system. Rather than seeking out new material (like one of the many scripts I have written) the studio executives seem to want to just give audiences what they know and feel comfortable with. And why not? Everyone wants to be comfortable. While there is bravery and pride in experiencing something new, people are often scared of what they have never experienced before. People want what they already know they will like. It’s why fast food restaurants are so popular.