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The Dirty Dozen Violent Toys, Video Games and DVDs to Avoid in 2003-2004 Violence for Tiny
Tykes: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles The toy: From the Casey Jones action figure box: "Judge, jury and enforcer! … Casey has a unique sense of what’s right or wrong and you better be on the side of right or he’ll slapshot you upside your head with his hockey stick. This hockey mask-wearing vigilante roams the streets of New York City serving up his brand of quick justice to punks and thugs." The brand: The seemingly cute Ninja Turtles – being "relaunched" in 2003 -- actually behave according to a vigilante code, where they (and not law enforcement officials) are "judge, jury and enforcer!" The box illustration of another toy in this brand -- the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle Combat Lair (for six-year-olds, by Mega Bloks) – depicts a scene of gleeful mayhem as the ninjas fight "bad guys" with ninja chains, swords and overturned barrels. In addition to the TV program, this brand is marketed by three movies and a video game.http://www.konami.com Power Rangers Ninja Storm The toy: This year’s version of the ubiquitous Power Rangers also focuses on ninjas. The current villain is Lothor, who "kidnapped students at 19 ninja schools in an evil plan to take over the world. Now the battle is on!" A frightening story line for four-year-olds, who don’t fully understand the difference between fantasy and reality. Yet the "Training Playset" urges pre-schoolers to "start Ninja Storm training today!" The brand: Like
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, this is another television-generated brand with the message
that the best way to solve problems is through violence. While the Power Rangers are
portrayed as "good guys," they solve problems through fighting. For example, the
Tsunami Cycle toy features the Red Ranger and "Missile Firing Action!" Transformers http://www.hasbro.com World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) The Toy: This is a "training" set of WWE action figures. "Are you tough enough to train with these WWE superstars?" the wording on the box asks children. This is part of the "Ruthless Aggression" series and is "safety tested for ages 8 and up." The brand: Although the WWE website tells
parents that the television show is "tailored for teens and young adults," WWE
licenses numerous action figures, video games and other products for children. Jakks
Pacific also offers an "Elimination Chamber" playset, and a series of
"Flex’ems" action figures with proportions that can only be achieved with
massive doses of steroids. Deceptive Branding: Jak http://www.naughtydog.com From Preschool to PG-13: Marketing Movies, DVDs, Toys and Video Games to Tots The Hulk (movie and DVD
rated PG-13) The Toy: This "Roaring Hulk" is a stuffed green toy that looks as friendly and harmless as the Jolly Green Giant – but is based on a PG-13 movie about rage. If toddlers punch this Hulk in the chest, it emits a cry. The copy reads: "Easily excited by sunny days, weekends, and ice cream trucks, Bruce Banner turns into the green playing machine known as the Hulk. The Hulk likes to jump, lift things, and has a unique ability to heal quickly." The brand: The Hulk was originally a comic book, but the recent marketing blitz of toys, costumes, video game and other products are all related to the release of the PG-13 movie. The Incredible Hulk video game suggests that children "Rage through more than 30 levels of intense action, crushing everything and everyone in your way."http://www.marvel.com X-Men (movie and DVD rated PG-13) http://www.activision.com Spider-Man (movie and DVD rated PG-13) http://www.marvel.com 2 Fast 2
Furious (movie and DVD rated PG-13) The DVD: Many critics questioned the PG-13 rating of this movie, suggesting it should have been rated R. The movie contained one particularly excruciating torture scene, where a man has a rat placed on his stomach and the implied action suggests that the rat will try to escape by eating into his stomach. The movie has "a great deal of violence, including gunplay," notes the Movie Mom. The brand: This adult brand featuring speed and violence is being marketed down to children through two movies – the original Fast and Furious and the current sequel – in addition to a DVD and video game. There is even a series of die-cast cars marketing this brand to elementary-school children with the following message: "Buckle yourself into the lifestyle of The Fast and the Furious – a world of attitude … where the cars remain the stars, and your name is only as good as your quarter-mile time!"http://www.vugames.com From Hollywood, with
Love: The Matrix The video game: This video game is rated T for Teen, yet is based on an R-rated adult movie. Enter the Matrix is written and directed by the Wachowski Brothers, who also wrote and directed the movie, and includes "previously unseen film footage" from the adult-rated movie. The game features a "sniper mode" and allows players to "ride shotgun, shooting from passenger’s seat." The brand: The Matrix trilogy has been described as a marketing phenomenon as much as a movie. While the brand is allegedly intended for adults, release of the teen-rated companion video game on the same day as the movie raises questions about the true intended audience. Other products used to market this brand include action figures, a Matrix Reloaded DVD, a daylong MTV special (teens are a prime audience of MTV), and a Powerade drink.http://www2.warnerbros.com Terminator The video game: Another example of a video game rated T for Teen but based on an adult-rated
movie. As in the Enter the Matrix game, this video game "weaves in and
out of the movie script," according to an Atari press release. Terminator 3
features "exclusive film footage created specifically for the release of the
videogame and not available in the motion picture." The release boasts that players
will be able "to engage in true movie-like Terminator combat" through moves such
as "smashing opponents into walls, massive two-handed chops and crushing kicks." PUSHING THE ENVELOPE Manhunt The video game: Manhunt is a "tense, nerve-wracking experience filled with beatings and gruesome deaths," according to the IGN web review. It is "brutal, a little sadistic and perhaps even cruel," according to the same review. Weapons range from shards of glass to baseball bats, shotguns, meat cleavers, and plastic bags for suffocating victims. The video game includes the filming of a virtual snuff film. ("It’s best to think of these flicks as home movies where your relatives do unsightly things to one another and one of them winds up dead," notes the GameSpot review.) The brand: This game is produced by the same company that
created the Grand Theft Auto series, which pushed the envelope on violence. The Grand
Theft Auto series was very popular with teenagers, yet it is "tame" compared
to this newest game, according to a review on the gaming website Shacknews. Even
though Manhunt is rated M for Mature by the video game industry, teenagers can
easily purchase this game. According to the most recent Federal Trade Commission secret
shopper survey, 69 percent of underage teenagers were able to buy M-rated games at retail
stores. If you have any suggestions for toys for
our next list, If you send us a toy recommendation,
please include all the relevant details If we pick your recommendation to be
included in one of our lists, |
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