Five franchises in need of the Figma touch

4:00 PM on 01.14.2010   |   Brian Szabelski

Before I begin, let me first talk a bit about the process, which took a few days and focused on finding the right franchises for the Figma line. There were some outside stipulations that were created to not only make the process easier, but more fair:

- The series must have no more than one Figma figure released previously for it. For most series, one just isn't enough to satisfy the fans, so it's not fair to keep series off this list that only got a touch of Figma love. And heck, only one series that made my list even ran into this as a potential issue. Plus, it keeps us from having to deal with series that already got plenty of time in the spotlight.

- The series must be licensable for the Figma line. To that regard, I'm going to skip figures released through the Revoltech line. That actually only removes a few major series, and most of those would not have passed the first part of the test anyways.

A few other things went into factoring which series got picked out of the litter, including their popularity in Japan, because often times, Japanese interests do dictate what PVC/anime figure companies produce. Which explains why we have so many damn Ikkitousen figures.

So which five series got the nod by me? They are:

InuYasha (Current number of Figma: 1 - Kagome Higurashi)

Why it's deserved: Surprisingly, Rumiko Takahashi's longest-running series (558 chapters in 56 volumes and two series totaling 193 episodes) has maintained its popularity since the first pages of the manga were printed in 1996. In fact, that second series, InuYasha: The Final Act, is running right now to cover the last 21 volumes, so it's very much on the minds of the market. Plus, honestly, there were never many figures from the series before, something I've openly complained about in the past. The continued popularity, though, is likely the biggest factor in whether more Figma from the series get made.

Who's getting the Figma treatment: Well, Kagome's already out there (and pre-ordered by yours truly), so Max Factory and Good Smile already have the series in their line-up. But it's missing a number of figures, most notably the titular protagonist, who would certainly complement Kagome. InuYasha's brother, the very-popular Sesshoumaru, is also a likely candidate ... if they can figure out what to do with his super-fluffy moko-moko that's draped on his shoulder. There's a very outside chance that Kikyo, Naraku, Miroku, Sango and Kouga could be Figmas, but it's not very likely, no matter how much I wish it to be so.

Odds of it happening: Depends on how Kagome sells. If she does well, InuYasha is almost a certainty in the future. If not, then I can't see them really doing any of the other characters, regardless of the popularity the series has maintained. For the record, I am expecting Kagome to do well enough to warrant future considerations, so I'll lean towards high.

Ranma 1/2 (Current number of Figma: 0)

Why it's deserved: Perhaps even more so than InuYasha, Ranma 1/2 has maintained popularity since the end of its run, both for its harem anime leanings and the action/comedy that graced the series. It's a popularity that's also quite international, so there's a large target audience here. It also has the same benefit of most Rumiko Takahashi series: a huge cast to draw potential figures from.

Who's getting the Figma treatment: The four notables for me have to be Ranma, Akane, Shampoo and Ryoga, with Genma being a potential fifth. And actually, I may have meant sixth, because it's likely that there would have to be both male and female Ranma Figmas produced. The rest of the cast is probably not going to be considered for Figma treatment.

Odds of it happening: Moderate as of now, but moving a lot higher if Lum is a success. Many of you openly pined for a Ranma Figma on Tomopop, and on Figure.fm, there was a similar out-pouring of support, so it's likely that they'll at least look into it.

Sailor Moon (Current number of Figma: 0)

Why it's deserved: Of all five series profiled here, none has a bigger potential audience than Sailor Moon, if only because it was one of the anime series everyone watched or knew about growing up. You'll see another trend here when I mention this, but it's also retained popularity throughout the years. And yes, like InuYasha and Ranma, it's got a very large ensemble of characters to pick from. A very large cast of female characters, who I should remind you, are popular with both men and women alike.

Who's getting the Figma treatment: Very easy call here: all five Inner Senshi (Moon, Venus, Mercury, Mars and Jupiter) along with Tuxedo Mask and maybe Queen Beryl. If they chose to, and they may not since it might be bordering on overkill, they could also take care of Chibi Moon and the four Outer Senshi (Uranus, my personal favorite Neptune, Pluto and Saturn) as well. Again, by that point, we'd already be at 12 Figmas, which is way too many, even for a series as popular as Sailor Moon, so I could see them stopping at just the first 7 mentioned.

Odds of it happening: Slightly below where ever Ranma 1/2 is. Still, there is a massive, massive untapped market here, as the Sailor Moon-age of anime fans have grown up and are now scattered throughout the figure collectors of the world. If they did this just right, Max Factory and Good Smile could not only make a ton of money, but raise the profile of the Figma franchise past its roots in current-running anime series. And like Ranma, it's going to depend a lot on how Lum does.

Lupin The Third (Current number of Figma: 0)

Why it's deserved: Of all the series listed here, Lupin has remained the most popular for the longest period of time. Running in one form or another since 1967, the series is not only popular among fans but has inspired a number of famous directors. Yet, somehow through its continued popularity, no one has brought forth a single Lupin poseable figure. When you consider that Monkey Punch's lanky character designs simply scream for an easy transition into poseable figures, it's mind-boggling as to why no one's considered this. Licensing might be the only issue I can think of keeping this from happening.

Who's getting the Figma treatment: The main cast of characters: Lupin, Jigen, Goemon, Fujiko and Inspector Zenigata. Really, that's all you need, isn't it?

Odds of it happening: Moderately high. If they could get any possible licensing issues out of the way, this is a no-brainer and a total slam dunk for the Figma line. I mean, if Duke Togo's got a Figma already, you'd have to think an arguably bigger name with a design suited especially for this type of thing would be getting made. We should hopefully be seeing Lupin and Co. in the next few years from Max Factory.

Cowboy Bebop (Current number of Figma: 0)

Why it's deserved: This was not an easy pick. It came down to Trigun and Cowboy Bebop, but Bebop's the more popular of the two, so it gets the slight nod here. I could really repeat what I just wrote for Lupin here about the body designs, too, because Shinichiro Watanabe was influenced by Lupin's designs in creating Bebop's style, and it clearly shows.

Who's getting the Figma treatment: Easiest two to mention right off the bat are Spike and Faye, as they're the two most popular characters. Beyond that, it does get a bit murky: cases could be made for Jet and for an Ed/Ein combination. Beyond that, Vicious is an outside possibility and I don't think you're going to really see them do Julia or any of the other minor characters.

Odds of it happening: For Spike, moderate. For Faye, slightly below moderate. For everyone else, I'd say low to very low. Bebop's still popular, yes, but unless they create a line based around classic characters for Figma, I really don't think we'll be seeing the crew of the Bebop itself anytime soon. And that's a shame, because there aren't many figures of them to begin with.

So I've had my say in regards to what series I'd like to see get Figmas. Now, have yours below in the comments. What franchises/series do you think deserve the Figma treatment?