The Many Toys of the Dark Knight

In may 1939, the world was introduced to a new comic hero. Drawn by Bob Kane and written by Bill Finger, Batman immediately captured the attention of fanbase clamoring for something different. What differentiated Batman from other contemporary heroes was the fact that he did not possess any superpowers. Batman fought crime relying on a combination of wit, technology, physical prowess and intimidation striking fear into the hearts of the underworld. Batman's popularity easily transferred into a number of films, television series and toys throughout the decades since his debut. It is no surprise that Batman has produced more action figures than almost any other fictional character.

Mego Corporation would be the first to produce toys based on the Caped Crusader. In 1972, Mego secured the rights to produce Batman toys for National Periodical Publications(later DC Comics) and Marvel Comics. Mego would go on to produce a complete line of DC and Marvel action figures under the title "World's Greatest Super Heroes"!". The entire line lasted for a decade between 1972 and 1983 and included a host of popular Batman characters. The line was also expanded to include the popular 1966 Batman tv series with the Batmobile, Batcycle and playsets such as the Batcave.

As Mego went out of business in 1984, the Kenner toy company took up the popular DC comic character line and modelled it after their popular Star Wars line making them 5" in scale. In 1990, the Warner Bros feature film Batman release created a demand for Batman toys and Kenner quickly released a line of movie toys which included several versions of Batman, the Joker and the Batmobile. Kenner would also release future Batman toys in line with the subsequent release of Batman movies.

Eventually, Kenner would be bought out by Hasbro who would release a line of toys based on the animated series, The New Batman Adventures. The new line dubbed "Mission Masters" created a cartoon look for the Dark Knight which was well received. Over the next few years, Hasbro would release a number of successful Batman lines based primarily around the DC Comic. However, in 2003 Hasbro would relinquish control to Batman's rights to Mattel. Mattel's strategy would also be to release a Batman animated line based upon the WB animated series which would feature more articulation than the previous line.

With a new Batman movie released in 2008, the Batman franchise was rebooted and a whole new line of Batman toys were created to mimic the look of the movie characters. However, the film's main villain, The Joker, bore little resemblance to the Heath Ledger character, displaying a simple cartoon like face and not the psychotic look in the movie. A 6 inch line was also produced dubbed The Dark Knight Movie Masters. The first iteration dubbed Wave 1 was of particular popularity and became difficult to find in stores. The Joker figurine became high in demand due to Heath Ledger's death.

Throughout the years, Batman has enjoyed the support of major toy licensees eager to produce the latest version of the Dark Knight. This is not surprising, given the Batman's popularity and crossover appeal. With major motion pictures and video games scheduled to be released in the near future, there is no doubt that Batman toys will continue to have a place amongst old and new collectors alike.