It’s been a good many years since we have seen ALIEN themed toys overtly marketed at children. 40 years ago, the first Kenner ALIEN action figure, rated “AGES 5 AND UP” was released to retail and was received by the buying public as bemused at best and reviled at worst. It flopped miserably at retail and it’s failure was largely attributed to the toy based on an R-rated movie with it’s target market being children who weren’t permitted to see it due to the movie’s gruesome nature.
The failure of the Kenner toy ensured the company wouldn’t return to the series for over a decade, completely avoiding and sidestepping the manufacture of children’s toys based on the 1986 sequel, ALIENS. As a result, no toys or action figures intended for children were released based on that movie during the time of its release. 1992 would be the first year of Kenner’s wildly imaginative ALIENS series of toys to make up for that oversight. These were also based on R-rated media but given a decidedly child friendly ambience, rating them at an even lower age group of “AGES 4 AND UP”. Acceptability for such product was becoming more mainstream and for the next six years, Kenner delivered such product.
Then, in 2000 Kenner was shut down by it’s parent company, Hasbro. Extant Kenner product lines were absorbed by Hasbro while other licences, ALIEN for example, were deemed outside of Hasbro’s family friendly mandate and subsequently abandoned.
Since the beginning of this century, no manufacturer has been prepared to step up to bat for kids who might like to play with such things. Other manufacturers have indeed released product age rated as such, but still intended for a more mature collector market. Until now. It appears budget manufacturer, Lanard Toys, feels it’s time to bring ALIENS back into the family lounge room with an affordable price tag attached. 2020 will be remembered among fans, toy enthusiasts and families for doing just that. Mid January, at the time of this writing, sees Lanard stocking Walmart toy shelves with their own interpretation of ALIENS toys – product specifically made to appeal to children. Continue reading →