Aaron Margolin

I apologize, we can’t really control how retailers sell our products.

Exclusives are sometimes characters who otherwise could not show up in a mainline wave (not always, but sometimes) opportunities afforded to us by retailers like Hot Topic let us do those characters rather than not.

I’m posting this on Bluesky for a specific reason lol

Ok, back to nonsenseposting lol

If you *ever* doubt what I’m for or against, ask me in person and I’d be happy to tell you.

I generally don’t post about serious stuff cause I prefer to donate and take action offline. I don’t really want to be targeted for stuff by those on the wrong side of history in high places.

5 Calls Spend 5 minutes. Make 5 calls. Make your voice heard.

I'm seeing a lot of posts to call your reps but little on actually how. 5calls.org is a great site where you can put in your zip code and get numbers for your house representative and two senators. You also can get a script if you're like me and stumble over your thoughts.

Blood for the blood god. We literally can’t stop aiding in or directly perpetrating horrific war crimes. What a misery.

A kind reminder for all that I hate generative AI. I find its usage ghoulish and lazy.

Thank you! I mulled over this for the past few days haha.

Hey!

Tricky question, but nearly every product that we put out from 2019 to mid-2025 was in part selected by me to be developed.

As far as personal development efforts, I assisted with the designs of a few figures and plush, but only lightly. I did program all of our feature items though.

I adore the background art in Digimon Adventure. There's often a kind of pastel dreaminess - not necessarily real-life, but the way we view childhood through the lens of nostalgia. Considering the whole series revolves around a coming-of-age, summer camp experience, it's fitting.

Also, if more people enjoy what’s made over a longer period of time, it’s easier to take much deeper and fan-centric actions down the line.

Keep the lights on and you’ll get more opportunities to shine.

THREAD OVER

I think there were a lot of really great considerations made in the film. There were details that were incredibly considerate.

As someone with a writing background, I can understand how people would have criticisms, but I also think people have been extremely volatile.

I say this as someone who has and will continue to openly communicate that I will produce fan-first product lines. By no means does that consideration overwrite that I need to ensure that as many folks as possible resonate with what I help develop.

If something is done in the name of a fandom and that audience does not resonate with the outcome, the backlash can be more brutal than critical panning. Not only do they not care for what was done, it was apparently done in *their* name.

Fandoms are VERY passionate communities who have members who are personally invested in what they love.

This has only become more true with the advent of social media and the good and bad effects of big brands becoming full lifestyles and not just casual hobbies.

To put it simply?

It depends.

That’s the risk you take when you communicate that everything was done with the fanbase in mind. Even if that’s not the case in practice, that messaging can be polarizing.

Now, what happens when large company-backed adaptations of established IPs are communicated as being created exclusively “for the fans” and consideration for general audiences is secondary or seemingly disregarded?

By doing this, we didn’t risk losing support for the line, we were afforded more mistakes, we could expand more steadily, and we could do even deeper cuts over time.

I didn’t get it right every time, but I learned very quickly that you have to find a balance to ensure that you’re casting the net as wide as possible for success in the eyes of fans and those who just care about financial or critical success.

So what I did was pack all new characters who were not Mascot or A+ level in popularity with Mascot level characters.

For the fans and hardcore collectors there was something new and unexpected. For regular folks there was something immediately recognizable.

To be blunt: There are over 1000 Pokémon and not everyone knows who Shuckle is.

*I* do.

*I* love Shuckle.

I’ll use Pokémon as an example.

During the 5~ years that I oversaw the Pokémon line, we made 250+ action figures.

As a lifelong fan, there were some “deeper cut” characters I wanted us to make, but if a figure did not sell well, that could potentially impact the longterm health of the line.

So how does this apply to my experience with making toys for large brands?

Well, as I tell the students I present to, “Toy is the intersection of entertainment and commerce.”

This consideration can be directly applied to a toy line of a large brand.

I’ll reiterate that I don’t mention this cynically. In fact, this formula REALLY seems to work!

Sonics 1-3 and Mario attracted general audiences AND had many members of their respective fanbases celebrate “being catered to.”

Studios make their money, audiences are happy. The world keeps turning.

Live and Learn, “Talk about a low budget flight,” SA2 Chao Posters, etc. It’s auxiliary fluff, but to a fan it *feels* correct.

“Hey, that’s that thing I know from that thing I love! “

Sonic 3 takes a LOT of liberties with established Video Game lore to service the established Film canon and ‘general appeal.’ That could have bothered a lot of fans, but the movie also has a TON of details added to validate the fanbase.

I think a great example of this philosophy being successfully employed is with the latest Sonic film franchise, specifically Sonic 3:

Think Sonic the Hedgehog, Mario, Castlevania, Fallout, etc.

All were praised for their faithfulness upon release, but really, they’re original stories with easter eggs and winks to the fanbase to signal, “yes, we like this thing you like too!”

Thanks to 3 decades of “unfaithful” adaptations “for the masses” any measure of fan first authenticity feels like a triumph.

Enter the early 2020’s, when we really start seeing studios cater towards the fans. Nothing is made JUST for the fans, but there are clear attempts to appeal to fanbases and “ring true” to the source material.

The fans may hate it, because it’s “not the thing they love” which alienates the baked in consumer base. So it’s entirely up to “mass appeal.”