Elemental Action Figures for Girls

First thought, before reading the entire campaign.

Do boys explode if they play with them?

It seems strange to attempt to be gender-positive and pidgeonholing in the same project.

Good heavens, the deep psychological damage that I have done to myself by playing with 'non-girlpower approved' toys when I was a kid! No wonder that I wear plaid shirts, hang out in hardwear stores and am still waiting around to be bitten by a radioactive marmot. Curse you, male-dominated superhero universe and your lack of collectable bracelet shields! *insert random reference to Joan of Arc*

Okay, I'll say something nice, too. Kudos on the slightly improved body shape and almost reasonable costumes. Colours and boring-ness of the uniform aside, some of them have a nice style, I guess. If I knew any little girls (or boys) that are into dolls and love pink and other so called 'girl stuff', this might be something I'd get them for their birthday in an attempt to get them interested in superheroes. However, for a girl that already likes superheroes, I could probably find something better.

(Also, mystery bags and deliberate underproduction of certain figures? Eeeevillllll...)

This was my initial reaction as well

Yeah, I don't like things like this--why not just make the action figures and say "Hey, these are cool for both genders"? I thought people wanted to move away from inclusivness.

I'm just not really sure what message they were going for there.

I think the issue is less "We need to make superheroes for girls" and more "We need to stop spreading the idea that all the current superheroes are only for boys". Which is not what is here.

Why is everything that's "for girls" always goddamn PINK all the time?

I hate that. Other colours exist.

And my vote is totally for inclusive toys which are marketed at, well, kids, rather than for boys or girls. Why can't children of any gender play together wit the same objects?

See http://www.lettoysbetoys.org.uk/

Other than the lack of inclusiveness, the problem I have with most "female friendly" attempts to recreate female superheroes is they usually make them so dull.
Sure I get the intent, even if it isn't expressed well here and ends up with its own gender bias, but making generic looking figures isn't going to get anywhere. Which is a shame as some of the design there isn't too bad either, just need a bit more variety in look and colour.

Also, mystery packs means I instantly hate you.

What we need are Sentinels dolls, I would buy those for my kids in a heartbeat ;-)
Speaking as the parent of both a boy and a girl I don't get why >G can get it right first time off the bat and yet so many other creative people gravitate back to the same well, even when they have the best intentions. Being girlish and 'for girls' are two different things - going back to Sentinels, Unity is girlish (my daughter loves her character most of all) without being obviously designed for girls (Unity is also my favourite character). Why are the dolls on this kickstarter pink? Because girls like pink stuff? Well I can vouch that it is true that a lot of little girls do like the colour pink, but all it takes to be cool is something like a pink headscarf. These dolls just scream "We're pink because girls like pink stuff!! But we are into non-gender-role-enforcement so they wear black!!! And have fire hair and stuff!!!! Look at the cool bracelets, 'cos lazy market research tells us that girls like jewellery too!!!!!"
Stuff like this only damages the whole gender role issue by getting it so horribly wrong.

How is Fear an element of courage?  If Bravery has the ability to create a protective force-field around herself or others, why does she need to carry a shield?  I don't care what color they are, or what their breast to waist ratio is.  I won't buy them for my children if they can't atleast make sense.

Because courage is at least partly about being scared of something, but facing it anyway. It's not really courage if it's easy because you're not scared. 

If you want to bring up "elements" which don't make sense you could ask what on earth such a use of Energy even means and how it ties into the overall concept of bravery. Not entirely sure how Industry fits into the theme either... other than maybe be industrious, keep busy and you won't succumb to your fear or something like that.

Also, as a ManWho'sGoodWithColours I have to say; Bravery, red skin with pink hair? Oh honey no, gurl you clash with yourself.

This cracks me up. I thought the same thing. The same reason I can never wear red or orange shirts with my red hair; it just doesn't work. And this from the gay man who has no fashion sense.

I had this thought after my initial post, but it's kind of like saying you can't have good without evil.  A lack of evil doesn't mean there is no good also, it just means all there is is good.  Just because you've never been tested doens't mean you're not courageous.

I'm not saying that courage needs an opposite to exist. I'm saying that fear is an essential part of courage.

Soneone dashes into a burning building to save a trapped child. They have no protective equipment, no training or experience with such situations, no knowledge of whether the building is structurally sound, and a moderate fear of fire.

Another person dashes into a different but identical building to save an identical child. They are wearing a flame-proof suit and breathing apparatus and they know that the fire hasn't been burning that long so the building's likely okay. They've had firefighting training and while they have a healthy respect for fire they were never actually scared of it.

Both of course are brave. But which is the most brave?

Okay, a different analogy then: I give blood. This is not brave; all I have to do is sit there while a needle is stuck in me for a bit.

A friend of mine gives blood. She's terrified of needles, but does it anyway because it helps save lives. That is brave.

I'd say the fire rescuing person is both brave and stupid, honestly.

But what if my copy of Sentinels of the Multiverse was in the building on fire, with all the wonderful promos? I wouldn't be able to live knowing that it will burn to a crisp. I would rush to save it, pushing any helpless person that happens to be in my way!

But what if that helpless person was Christopher, would you still push him out of your way (and potentially into the fire)?

I sure would! It's his own fault for getting in my way.

No different body types then. Huh.

"We can customise your figure any way you want! As long as what you want is the standard size and shape that every action figure already is..."

I'd be super happy to see a more muscular female body, or a less muscular male one, for once.

I'm a naturally muscular girl myself - I have wide shoulders and a fairly square torso (no wasp waist) and muscular legs. Okay, I'm overweight as well, but even if I was super-fit I wouldn't look like the comic book ideal*. A lot of people don't. It drives me crazy when there's only one shape presented, because that doesn't represent me at all. /mini-rant

* I'm totally good with being "non-standard". The rest of the world, not so much. 

I don't know about you, but I TOTALLY have a superhero figure.
... The Scholar is technically a superhero, right?

Is there a superhero shaped like a female version of Scholar? I'm guessing probably not. 

Not exactly what you're talking about, but I'll just leave this here.

http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Big_Bertha_(comics)

Superheroes always seem to be tall, I've noticed (unless they have a specific superpower that lets them shrink or something I suppose, in which case they become tiny)...where are all the ones who're short-arses like me and Ja'Ph? ;)

Wow... just... wow. Vomiting to get thinner? Superhuman strength and bulletproof-ness via presumably life-threatening super morbid obesity?

Colour me disturbed. 

Wolverine is rather famously short in the comics.

5' 3'' last time I checked.

Short man syndrome, huh? Makes sense...

There is also Gertrude Yorkes of The Runaways.  She has a figure that isn't completely insane.