imagineer boy
Well-Known Member
Hey now, we're not trying to attack you. Don't give up your arguement, but don't keep taking things so personally.
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Stitch Fatigue: A look into the rise and accomplishment of a modern icon
- Thread starter Stitchfan712
- Start date
I know its been said before, but i'll say it again. None of us (or most of us) have anything against Stitch. What we do have a problem is the "over-using" of him and the fact his attraction sucked. Now just as an example, Simba from the Lion King is one of my favorite characters but even I wouldn't like Simba to be EVERYwhere (from the monorial, to the hotel, every single store). Not only that, if an attraction made after him was bad, i would want better- not try and stick up for a terrible attraction. (Now, you may like SGE but the fact is that just because i am saying how bad the attraction was doesn't mean i don't like the character)
And, just as a side note- i don't think Stitch is heading anywhere down the road of becoming one of the (or as respected/recognizable) "fab 5". There are MANY other characters that are just as/more popular than Stitch (and Nemo DOES count IMO). Sure Stitch is an OK character, but he's nothing special. That's my view.
And, just as a side note- i don't think Stitch is heading anywhere down the road of becoming one of the (or as respected/recognizable) "fab 5". There are MANY other characters that are just as/more popular than Stitch (and Nemo DOES count IMO). Sure Stitch is an OK character, but he's nothing special. That's my view.
PurpleDragon
Well-Known Member
I agree whole heartedly. Stitch may have a wide fan base, but his popularity is nothing remotely close to that of the fab5 and others previously mentioned.basas said:
The only reason his popularity is increasing at this time is because of Disney marketing the character to coincide with the opening of the new attraction. But as others have said Disney marketing is going way overboard with the promotion of this character and they are begining to over saturate the market and pretty soon the general public will become "burnt out" on Stitch.
For a character to have enough staying power, it must be popular enough to stand on the strenght of the character alone. Stitch's increased popularity is based soley on the increased marketing and nothing more. I would bet that a large number of people who now like Stitch, didn't know who he was until the ride announcement/opening.
The Box office numbers are what makes or breaks a movie and its characters. If the movie didn't do well out of the gate, then more than likely its market numbers will dwindle rather quickly. Since L&S box office numbers weren't great, why would the DVD sales be any better? If people didn't go see it in the theatre, then why would they go buy the DVD or any other merchandise for that matter? It doesn't make sense. Simply saying the box office numbers don't matter is just an excuse, when in reality the box office numbers are all tha matters. Good box office numbers= better marketing sales, Bad box office numbers=poor marketing sales
PurpleDragon said:
You are incorrect, sir. And this is not just personal opinion.
Before SGE was being promoted, Stitch had a very large, wide fanbase and was known the world over. As he is now. That ride has not even been open a full month, PurpleDragon. Do you mean to say that in just that short time Stitch went from "unknown" to "household name"?
If that's the case, disney should be congratulated. That's one hell of a promotional success.
the fact is that Stitch was a modern icon before SGE even came about. SGE came about because Disney saw how popular the character was, and found him to be a good candidate to replace AE with. If Stitch wasn't popular, they would have chosen a different attraction or character.
Why would Disney pick an "unknown character" to be the star of a major attraction at MK? That makes no sense whatsoever.
So, I'm sorry to say that this isn't my personal opinion, it is a fact: you are incorrect.
No. It's not as black and white as that, PurpleDragon. And it's not just an excuse. Saying that is an excuse to make your argument look more correct. But it's not. Box office returns are only one piece of the puzzle.
A movie can be immensely popular at the theatres...and then after that, the public may reject it in other ways and the movie's franchise will fail.
Lilo and Stitch was the opposite:
It had a healthy box office, but through word of mouth, its popularity grew exponentially AFTER the movie's run in the theatres.
This is a FACT!
Stitch is one of Disney's strongest characters in a decade. He has more popularity right now than any recent Disney characters because the PUBLIC likes him.
I stand firmly behind my argument that Disney can't "force" people to buy the merchandise. They can promote all they want, but the public buys what it wants to buy, and likes what it wants to like.
Stitch is popular because he's in demand, because the public likes him. disney has responded to this demand by testing the waters on merchandise and promotion, and met with overwhelming positive response. So disney is continuing.
You say I don't know much about captalism, well I know this much: If they won't buy it, you don't sell it. It's a money loss.
People are buying, so disney is selling, and it's that simple. If Stitch weren't popular, disney wouldn't be continuing with the new merch, the ride, the promotion, etc.
If Stitch weren't popular, the lines at SGE would be tiny and sparse. People are going on this thing because it has Stitch's name on it. I say that's popularity.
Sorry, I disagree with you all. Stitch is, for now, almost as popular as the Fab5. And if this lasts, he'll probably be inducted into the "fabs" but he'll have to last more than a couple decades for that to happen. I don't know how on earth anyone can think that Stitch didn't have much merchandise before SGe and much popularity. The guy was a household name moreso than any disney character of recent times (post 1995).
We don't know that he's a fad. We'll have to see. If he lasts till the end of this decade and beyond, he's not a fad.
I don't see why Stitch wouldn't become part of the Fab5 if his popularity lasts for decades. The Fab5 is a bunch of very simple, predictable characters for the most part. Stitch is predictably unpredictable...I think a misfit will actually FIT in the fab5 for this modern era.
He's already invading the shirts of the fab5...granted on a limited scale right now. But some Fab5 shirts have Stitch in them too.
Accomplishment!
I don't see why Stitch wouldn't become part of the Fab5 if his popularity lasts for decades. The Fab5 is a bunch of very simple, predictable characters for the most part. Stitch is predictably unpredictable...I think a misfit will actually FIT in the fab5 for this modern era.
He's already invading the shirts of the fab5...granted on a limited scale right now. But some Fab5 shirts have Stitch in them too.
Accomplishment!
PurpleDragon
Well-Known Member
World wide fan base? Where is your proof? This is just your assumption. If Stitch had a world wide fan base then Disney would have been more aggressive about their marketing of the character but alas they only marketed him thru the Disney stores. Yes I would say that a large number of people have never heard of Stitch before the current market flood. I myself did not know who he was till I was looking for something on TV for my Niece and I found a cartoon on TDC that he was in. Whats bad, is right after I turned it on, my 2 year old niece turned to me and said "I wanna watch somtin' else". So you see he is not this hugely popular/instantly loveable character you are making him out to be. Yes, I will agree he has a large fan base, but he is not this huge icon you are trying to make him out to be.Stitchfan712 said:
That a fact? Okay then name one movie that had huge box office success that failed in the retail market. I'm sorry but the way I see it if the movie is good enough to get those type of numbers and ticket sales, then it is a given for the retail sales to recieve the same type of numbers.Stitchfan712 said:
You even said yourself there was a shortage of Stitch stuff after the movie release, you also stated that it was only in Disney stores that this stuff could be found. If the Disney company felt Stitch was such a strong likeable character, then they would have already setup to sell his items thru Wal-Mart and Target. But it seems that Disney is only using these outlets for its most popular/likeable characters, Mickey, Nemo, Ariel, Simba, Tarzan, etc...
Up until recently Stitches popularity was sub-par to say the least. His popularity was around the level of "Kim Possible", or one of the other Disney channel cartoons. You don't see those characters with their own attraction do you? No you don't even see them in the park except for the occasional gift shop. Disney pumped money into marketing Stitch's character, to hype people up for the ride opening. If they didn't then the turn out for the new attraction would not meet the numbers they were projecting.
Its a new attraction, every new attraction has huge lines when it opens! That is a fact! The public is merely curious about the new attraction, you can argue the line in about 6 months when the newness has died down, then we'll see what the lines look like.Stitchfan712 said:
Stitch will never become a part of the "fab" group. Why? Because he was not an original Walt creation. That is what the "fab" group is, the collection of Walt's most popular original character creations. And to think that Stitch would become a part of that is the most rediculous thing I've ever heard in my life. Your dreaming my friend!!Stitchfan712 said:
PurpleDragon said:
That's incorrect. A large, large number of people had heard of stitch and knew who he was prior to the, as you put it, "current market flood".
Where is this market flood occuring outside of WDW? And the Stitch's Great Escape commercial on the Disney Channel?
If Disney has started a global advertising campaign about the ride, I sure haven't heard about it.
I really do not understand where you're coming from with your argument that Stitch wasn't well known before the attraction. Again, the attraction has only been open a month, so either Disney has just conducted the most successful promotional campaign for a character in history...or...more accurately...Stitch was popular beforehand.
I'd have to do research to get you some exact numbers, but I can tell you with certainty that Finding Nemo, with it's huge box office success, did not do as well merchandise-wise as The Lion King, nor has it done as well as Lilo and Stitch.
Targets and Walmarts may not have Stitch stuff right now, but a lot of the Nemo stuff is finding it in the surplus warehouses because it is not selling. Finding Nemo's merchandise did not do nearly as well as expected. That's why Disney pulled back on what it was offering as merch from that movie, yet Stitch is still selling like hotcakes and Disney keeps putting out more to satisfy demand.
I did not say this, you said that it could only be found in Disney stores. I said that there was a shortage of Stitch stuff, period, but it could be found in the resorts and the disney stores. Actually, i should clarify. There was a shortage of ADULT Stitch stuff. Pins, shirts, general merch. The kids had plenty of kid-sized Stitch clothes.
And I said to you earlier that Stitch was a slow-burn. He started off slow then he grew exponentially large, and all this happened BEFORE SGE. BEFORE even the announcement that AE was being replaced with Stitch! It was only after Disney recognized the demand for Stitch that it began putting more stuff out, and that didn't happen until mid-2003!
Stitch only as popular as Kim Possible? I'm not even going to address that...that's ridiculous.
For once, I agree with you on something.
We'll see. Give it 20 years, let's see if he's strong then as he is now. It could go either way.
Look, you and I are not going to agree on anything regarding Stitch. Let's just stop now, I'm tired of wasting my days arguing on here.
It should be interesting to see which characters stand the test of time. I for one, think the "fab" characters of Disney are like i do the fab 4 of music- the Beatles, timeless...
And Stitch is kind of N' Sync. designed to pimp merchandise to a certain demographic.
Probably harsh, just an opinion...
And Stitch is kind of N' Sync. designed to pimp merchandise to a certain demographic.
Probably harsh, just an opinion...
TikiBears said:
Using Stitch, N'sync and pimp in the same sentence is not right. People might get a bad opinion of pimps......
PurpleDragon
Well-Known Member
TikiBears said:
Hey thats actually a very good analogy!!! I would have to agree with you there!
PurpleDragon
Well-Known Member
StitchFan712,
What I'm basically telling you is that Stitch does not have the noteriety(sp?) that the "fab 5" and others have. Just because you and your friends like him, or he was popular at your school or whatever, does not mean he is loved world wide. The box office sales and the info NemoRocks provided should prove that to you. I am agreeing with you that he is popular, I am just simply stating that he is not as popular as you are making him out to be. And until you have some numbers or Nielson ratings(cartoon series), or other info to prove it, I am not going to believe otherwise.
Also the whole issue with the Nemo merchandise, your info is actually incorrect. Forbes magazine on October 25th of this year, published Nemo as one of the top 10 richest fictional characters. The earnings were calculated by adding together worldwide toy/merchandise sales, videogame sales, publishing and box-office revenue, and DVD/VHS sales and rental revenue. Overall the character grossed 2 billion in revenue, and considering only $339,714,367 was from the movie itself. That leaves roughly 1.6 billion in revenue on worldwide sales of Nemo merchandise and products. So I don't see how you can say that Nemo merchandise falls short.
What I'm basically telling you is that Stitch does not have the noteriety(sp?) that the "fab 5" and others have. Just because you and your friends like him, or he was popular at your school or whatever, does not mean he is loved world wide. The box office sales and the info NemoRocks provided should prove that to you. I am agreeing with you that he is popular, I am just simply stating that he is not as popular as you are making him out to be. And until you have some numbers or Nielson ratings(cartoon series), or other info to prove it, I am not going to believe otherwise.
Also the whole issue with the Nemo merchandise, your info is actually incorrect. Forbes magazine on October 25th of this year, published Nemo as one of the top 10 richest fictional characters. The earnings were calculated by adding together worldwide toy/merchandise sales, videogame sales, publishing and box-office revenue, and DVD/VHS sales and rental revenue. Overall the character grossed 2 billion in revenue, and considering only $339,714,367 was from the movie itself. That leaves roughly 1.6 billion in revenue on worldwide sales of Nemo merchandise and products. So I don't see how you can say that Nemo merchandise falls short.
waltdisny
New Member
Hi, I'm Walt and I'm a Stitch fan.Legacy said:
Stitch, like another great but very underrated film The Emperor's New Groove, was horribly promoted. As such, I thought it looked annoying, like something meant to apeal to the Sponge-Bob/Rugrats crowd. So I skipped it, until it came out on DVD and I forced myself to watch it. Suprise! I liked it. As the first post said, the movie had a lot of heart, and Stitch was a great character. It was wonderful to see him evolve from a disgusting irritant to loveable misfit. Kudos to the team who pulled that off.
Now, I have to agree, Stitch will never be a part of the Fab 5. He can't be, anymore that Pooh can, but I see no reason why Stitch will not earn his own place in the Pantheon. After all, Pooh, and the Princesses have certainly carved a place.
As for the Anti-hero gap, I'd like to point out that the EARLY Mickey Mouse was very much like Stitch: slightly obnoxious, prone to various outrageous and anti-social behaviors (such as converting farm animals into musical instruments, operating aircraft in a careless and reckless manor, etc.) but over the years he matured, and became everyone's best friend.
That is the challenge Stitch faces; in order to build his legacy, he needs to go through that maturation process. I for one question whether emphasising his most obnoxious behaviors is the best approach, and from what I've seen so far, that's what this attraction does.
Also, I think that most of us will agree, Stitch needs a place in WDW. There's no objection to that. What we object to is Disney management feeling they had to gut a fine attraction like AE to do it. The same thing is true of Pooh, there was no reason Toad had to be sent to Neverland to make way for him. Or for that matter Deramfinder, and Food Rocks, and......Well you get the point.
NemoRocks78
Seized
First off, Nemo sold MUCH MORE than Stitch did in 2003 (as proven by Forbes), so you have your facts wrong once again. The Power Rangers, Pokemon, and Yu-Gi-Oh, franchises that have been around for years, also sold more than Stitch.
Also, if Disney is putting out more merchandise because Stitch is "selling like hotcakes," then where is it? I don't see merchandise anywhere outside of The Disney Store and Walt Disney theme parks.
Once again, IT IS A BRAND NEW ATTRACTION. Were you expecting lines to be very small? There's also the fact that it doesn't have a very big capacity and it's running on the FastPass system, which easily ups the wait times. Alien Encounter had just as big, if not bigger, lines when it had opened.
I predict Stitch going the way of Buzz Lightyear. He earned his own attraction, merchandise, and television show. He had been a HUGE character, I remember all the merchandise available and the lines for meet-and-greets. However, while still a major character, his popularity has dwindled down, and I do very well believe that Stitch will suffer the same fate. Stitch can NEVER be popular enough to earn a spot in the "Fab 5" (plus I think it would be a horrible idea to include him with the classics).
PurpleDragon
Well-Known Member
Pooh and the Princess's had already carved their nitch well before they became Disney icons!Waltdisny said:
Pooh has been around fro over 75 years, he has only recently become part of the Disney family. He carved his nitch during the years of the morning cartoons and bedtime stories, way before Disney bought the rights to him.
The Princess's also existed before Disney ever came into the picture! Their fairy tale stories have been around for probably 100 years or more. Most of them were adored by children already from the original stories, before being turned into animated movies (i.e. Snow White, Cinderella, etc...) So in my opinion, none of those characters can be compared to Stitch in this instance.
Wilt Dasney
Well-Known Member
Six pages now. Wow.
This should be (but won't be) the final post:
*Stitch is popular and has been since the start.
*Stitch has been relentlessly hyped by Disney, to the joy of some and the disgust of others.
*Stitch has a high level of popularity but is not on the level of Mickey, Donald, or Goofy.
*There is a new attraction at MK that (surprise) draws crowds. It also features Stitch.
THERE. That's it. You don't need 6 pages. Go mow your grass or download or find something else unproductive to do with your time. (Except the kids. Go mow the grass while your dad downloads .)
This should be (but won't be) the final post:
*Stitch is popular and has been since the start.
*Stitch has been relentlessly hyped by Disney, to the joy of some and the disgust of others.
*Stitch has a high level of popularity but is not on the level of Mickey, Donald, or Goofy.
*There is a new attraction at MK that (surprise) draws crowds. It also features Stitch.
THERE. That's it. You don't need 6 pages. Go mow your grass or download or find something else unproductive to do with your time. (Except the kids. Go mow the grass while your dad downloads .)