No Rey Merchandise

[IWannaBeAPopstar]

www.pajiba.com/star_wars/heres-the-ugly-truth-about-exactly-why-rey-was-missing-from-star-wars-merchandise-.php


I wish I could say I'm surprised, but I'm not. The reasoning behind these decisions is baffling to me, though - my ds loves Star Wars and thought Rey was awesome. Not in spite of being female, just because she was.

And the language in the article annoys me, but I could be misunderstanding; does "breakout star" mean it's a surprise? Because Rey is the central character of the film - the entire plot surrounds her life and choices. The end of the movie focuses on her face, while her male compatriot was left in a coma. How would anyone be surprised that people want more Rey merchandise? Even the trailers and movie posters downplay her character. Infuriating.

[GreenTomatoJam]

People seem to have this bizarre thing about boys not wanting to play with, read about, or watch tv with girls in it. It's not my experience at all (at least with young kids)

I think it's self-fulfilling, because my two boys watch pretty much anything they like, and have specifically sought out some female dolls because all they had were male ones for instance - they might be uniquely oblivious though - admittedly DS1 was 5 before he reliably picked the right pronouns for people.

[YogaDrone]

How odd. The Disney Infinity 3.0 playset for the Force Awakens has Rey and Finn. All the other characters, including Kylo Ren, are add-ons.

DS thinks Rey is fab (as do DP and I). He's even calling his Luke Skywalker lightsaber "Rey's lightsabre" now.

[unexpsoc]

Only just saw this film at the weekend (childcare commitments getting in the way of Star Wars - I will hand back my "geek-club" membership card).

Rey IS awesome. Absolutely the star of the film, and quite openly feminist in some of the opening seens with Finn "(I can run quite well without you holding my hand, thanks").

Most bizarre decision ever to not include her. This weird crap about "boys toys and girls toys" needs to end. And the thought that boys wont watch stuff about girls is plain wrong. My DS loves Disney princesses and my little pony (who I don't know enough about horses to know better, but I believe are female horses).

[startrek90]

My little pony is female!?! I had no idea entire childhood changed

I agree with you it's stupid. I am concerned that Disney are marketing this in such a way that star wars and other Sci FI is seen as a 'boy thing'.

That's concerning as the Sci fi/gamer culture is only just starting to accept women I would hate for us to go back.

Would a petition or a complaint work? If Disney knew that they would sell the merchandise surely they would make it?

[MajesticSeaFlapFlap]

The Force Awakens director, JJ Abrams, waded in as well and said it was preposterous and wrong

www.theguardian.com/film/2016/jan/11/jj-abrams-says-star-wars-toys-omission-of-rey-preposterous-and-wrong

My son 13 would love a rey doll for is action figure collection

[onahorsewithnoname]

Bill imports crap from China, Disney sell licences to produce film associated goods, hence the proliferation of Elsa and Arna soap, flannels and such essentials.
They got it wrong about Frozen, completely underestimated how popular it would be, and still is in some households .
So it is quite possible that they got it wrong again.

[onahorsewithnoname]

BIL - bloody autocorrect

[Dervel]

I swear I had a Princess Leia action figure as a little boy (In a bounty hunter disguise), have things actually gotten worse? I've known a little girl who has liked both marvel movies and now the new Star Wars. Couldn't find a Black Widow, and now Rey...

I did hear the reason was she is packaged with a light saber which is a bit of a reveal. However I recall the episode I soundtrack releasing with a track called Qui-Gon's funeral being in stores before the actual movie, so they haven't given that much of a shit in the past.

As a big Star Wars fan one of the things that blew me away was quite how much I absolutely loved the three new leads. Finn & Poe were relatable and developed a more believable friendship in 4 minutes of screen time than I think was managed in the entire prequel trilogy.

Of course Rey was pivotal and very likable, she should have pride of place in the toy line what with being the protagonist of the new trilogy. I've been going a little bit mental at anyone who suggests she's a Mary Sue.

[RiverTam]

Your link wasn't clicky so I haven't read it but are people saying there is no Rey merchandise at all? Just because I'm looking at my Rey bubblehead as we speak.

[Dervel]

All I know is in the run up to Christmas throughout toys r us, tesco and a few other places nary a Rey was to be found.

[HerRoyalNotness]

Rey appears in Lego sets. And if she is who we suspect she is, she would fit with the Disney princess set not saying that is a good thing

[RiverTam]

Oh yes, we have a Lego Rey as well. So two Reys in this house (bobble head Rey was bought in Toys r Us in Christmas Eve).

Has the author of this actually done any research?

[KathyBeale]

I'm not sure if I can attach pics but we have Star Wars Monopoly which doesn't have Rey and I was also in the Disney Store the other day where Rey was very under-represented...

[onahorsewithnoname]

I shall suggest to BIL that he may have an opportunity here

[BarbarianMum]

Really? And I sat through the whole of Star Wars VII thinking how refreshing it was to have the central character be female (even if there were more than a few parallels with Luke Skywalker).

[MrsFogi]

My dd is furious at the lack of Rey merchandise - she has bought everything with Rey and still has money burning a hole in her pocket that she cannot spend. Disney can maintain a sharp distinction if they wish but my daughter who is now permanently dressed in her Rey outfit is unlikely to be buying any of their princess crap anytime soon so instead they don't get her ready cash…..bonkers.

[WMittens]

This bit of the article is rubbish:
“We know what sells. No boy wants to be given a product with a female character on it.”
They want cool stuff from the films they've watched.

However:
*“She has a tight black outfit. Our main customer is concerned with ‘family values’.

For the record, here are some of the Avengers action figures, including Captain America and Thor in their skintight costumes:

This is something of a double standard, considering the furore about female superheroes being depicted in skin-tight costumes in comic books when, as this article correctly points out, it is no different to male superheroes.

[BarbarianMum]

"No boy wants to be given a product with a female character on it"

This is a myth surely? My dses wouldn't object to a 'cool' female character like Rey on an otherwise cool piece of clothing or a mug or lightsabre. Maybe if Disney tried putting female characters on things that weren't pink or glittery or otherwise clearly screaming "this is meant for girls only" they'd realise this.

[WoTmania]

No boy wants to be given a product with a female character on it = no parent wants their boy to play with a product with a female character on it.

It's the same old same old, we're told boys don't want to watch/read about girls or have toys that are girls so they don't get given them, so they don't like them and play with other toys. Add a nice hefty dose of sexism and regarding girls as slightly lesser (subconsciously) and this is what you get . It's why men barely read female authors and most films are made for men with male characters...they've been told as children they shouldn't like 'girl stuff' and the myth ('cos myth it is) perpetuates.

[KathyBeale]

It was my son's birthday on Monday and he now has all the Star Wars toys. A lot of Kylo Ren (he loves a baddie) but in amongst all that he got a box of figures from the Disney Store which - shock horror - actually contains both Rey and General Phasma (and Finn, Kylo Ren, storm troopers etc). It's Rey he took to the childminder today.

It is rubbish that boys don't like female characters. I think it's more the other way round. Little girls only like passive princesses because they're told to. Give them proper female characters who do stuff and it's a revelation. I hold that Frozen's success was less to do with the sparkles and more to do with Anna and Elsa being strong, sparky, independent characters. Both my boys loved it when they first saw it and only went off it after the relentless Disney 'this is for girls' marketing.

[BarbarianMum]

When ds1was little I found it really difficult to find books (he's an avid reader) that had a good balance of interesting male and female characters. Now he's 10 it is really easy -I've been pleasantly surprised at how much there is out there with strong female characters. And he reads them, and his friends read them, as a matter of course.

All this leads me to believe that this "men won't read books by female authors/ watch films with female characters in lead roles stuff" is likely totally untrue. Maybe if publishers published and promoted female authors more widely (ie in a wide range of genres) and Hollywood just cast more female leads, they'd realise this.

[caitlinohara]

BarbarianMum That's so true about books. Liz Pichon totally depressed me on Womans Hour when she admitted that she made Tom Gates a boy because "boys don't like reading about female protagonists".

That's so weird about Rey. You go to all the trouble of creating a really good female character and then assume that no one will want the merchandise? Isn't the whole Star Wars thing ABOUT the merchandise? Where's the logic?