Why is Big Hero Six being marketed as a boy's film?

I also hate the 'sides' in the Disney store and feel obliged to point out that they completely marketed Frozen as a girl's film. My boys both loved it originally. My older one asked for the DVD for his 7th birthday last April and now he refuses to watch it because it's 'for girls'. Similarly when he was little he loved Tangled and wanted a Flynn duvet cover but the only ones available had Rapunzel on.

Primark is brilliant for this sort of thing - it was definitely the first place I saw Frozen stuff for boys.

I think it's far more sinister than just a marketing decision, but if we take it on face value, it's a very poor marketing decision - cutting out half of your potential customers.

Wiping the women out of films is dreadful. And I have SO much rage over Black Widow's whole role in the Avengers (her shoes! Her ridiculous shoes!) that my boys won't let me watch the film any more.

My 4 year-old sat there with big wide eyes, loving it (and hid under my arm at a couple of sad/scarier bits - but he's not very good with those, other kids would probably be fine)

My 1 year old (yes, I know, stupid idea, but it was a 10am showing so already full of kids, and DS1 was desparate to see the movie) upended his sweets into the popcorn, then upended the popcorn on the floor to find the sweets that had sunk to the bottom, then insisted on sitting on the stairs rather than in his chair. He won't be going back to the cinema for a good couple of years I think.

That's good to know, Que

My 4 year old liked the robot but I think a lot of the plot went over her head.

Glad you liked them Pilchard - it couldn't really be any more explicit than that, could it?

Which I guess explains the fervent wading through almost the full set of derailment bingo - addressing this directly doesn't leave much wiggle room, so divert & distract it is. Moving on.

QueQuesto - that's interesting, so they exist but aren't stocked elsewhere? Hmmm....

For those of you who've watched Big Hero 6 - is it likely to be too confusing/loud for a toddler? Thinking of taking DS to the cinema this weekend & that or Shaun the Sheep are the options.

I haven't hijacked anything. You are still a fool.

You get a t shirt with the whole 6 including the females at primark. My DD asked for it and got it last week.

scallopsrgreat
"Well that last post really shows how much you don't know DotheyFloat.

But we all like to have our language policed by a bloke. So feel free to carry on making a fool of yourself."

You've hijacked a name of a brutally oppressive racial system (apartheid) in the misguided belief that the name will impart gravitas to your own cause; the discrepancy between the two realities, i.e. of South African racial apartheid and not being able to buy Jacasta the Disney T-shirt you want, ensures the exact opposite.

And you call me a fool. LOL.

Lovecat
"I'm actually half-South African, I'm well aware of the meaning of the word apartheid.

Please stop before you embarrass yourself any more."

You suffered under South-African racial apartheid?

slightlyglitterstained great links really enjoyed them, especially the second one, thanks :)

Well that last post really shows how much you don't know DotheyFloat.

But we all like to have our language policed by a bloke. So feel free to carry on making a fool of yourself.

Lovecat
"Dotheyfloat - I'm wondering on what basis you assume that I'm white?"

I doubt a black person would be so crass on this matter. It'd be similar to a Jew referring to girls' toys overwhelmingly pink colouring as the 'Barbie Holocaust'. It's by no means impossible, but it would be bizarrely self-offensive.

Lovecat
"PMSL @ being considered middle class, as well. My parents would be so proud... grin"

I said typically middle class, not that you are middle class.

scallopsrgreat

Definition of apartheid:

Definition of apartheid in English:
NOUN

[MASS NOUN] historical
1 (In South Africa) a policy or system of segregation or discrimination on grounds of race.

1.1 Segregation on grounds other than race:
sexual apartheid

Example of 1 (Original Apartheid):
Getting a state-sanctioned beating by white policeman because you're black and you just used the white man's public toilet as you needed to take a quick pee. If you're very lucky there might be a blanket in your concrete cell that you can lie down and quietly bleed on, after they've finished kicking the shit out of you.

Example of 1.1 (Feminist Apartheid)
Not being able to find the T-Shirt you want from your local Disney store. The till assistant can't fix the problem. They girl's toys are mostly pink.

Seriously, pick another word.

Basically I suspect that boy fans of Frozen are not seen by marketers as devaluing the franchise for girls in the same way that girl fans are for "boy" films, even to the point of cancelling popular shows with a big audience of The Wrong Sort of People, as described by Paul Dino in the link above.

Bollocks, lost longer post.

So basically, read this:

boingboing.net/2013/12/16/paul-dini-explains-why-execs-d.html

Then this:
howtonotsuckatgamedesign.com/2013/12/marketers-fear-female-geek-2/

Definition of apartheid:

Definition of apartheid in English:
NOUN

[MASS NOUN] historical
1 (In South Africa) a policy or system of segregation or discrimination on grounds of race.

1.1 Segregation on grounds other than race:
sexual apartheid

"in this case the absence of a female equivalent is a bad marketing decision." Oh yes that's what this is about. Bad marketing decision. No pattern here. Nothing to see .

In principle I have no problem with characters being sold exclusively to a group on the basis of sex, e.g. female character T shirts being sold to girls; in this case the absence of a female equivalent is a bad marketing decision.

"...sexual apartheid..."

I wonder how some black people may feel when white, typically middle class, people apply the term apartheid to the colour schemes in their local toy shop.

Given the obsession with princesses, where the fuck is Princess Leia?

Same as reddaisy

the kids were into power rangers and I wanted to get them some night-clothes. Scoured amazon etc. Only pajamas available with power rangers on, OK fine that's alright they can wear "boys" pajamas. And I was really pissed off because basically none had any of the female ones on. There were none with all of them, some with single male ones, and many with groupings with just the male ones.

I was really genuinely gobsmacked I remember ranting about it to DH! There are however many power rangers it is, some are girls, there is only "boys" merchandise (hmmm but well what do you expect) but for them to have REMOVED the female ones and not put them on anything??? WTAF.

Anyway yes I ranted.

OP yes it's fucking outrageous.

So even when something has a female character you can't put them on a boys thing because obviously won't like them (how outrageous is that?!) and it might make their dicks drop off or something fuck only knows.

You might like this OP, on absence of female characters from kids' tv, and the bias that creates.

The thing is though, that there was a fair amount of Olaf merchandise about in blues, which we all know girls can't wear because their vaginas heal up.

That's shit about the Peppa Pig stuff though, I would have thought some unisex stuff with Peppa on would have been a great idea.

Why can't clothes be bloody clothes anymore?

I totally agree that they are trying to make money from the siblings of Frozen fans (often boys)
I was impressed about the female superheroes' human alter egos as scientists but quite disappointed that the female characters were cliched - use of pink and never having the funny lines.

Same reason I can't get DS3 a 'boys' top with Peppa pig on. He doesn't like cry baby George, he likes Peppa.
Apparently girls can't like boys and boys can't like girls.
When we watched a programme about the making of Frozen that was on over Christmas. Big Hero 6 was spoken about by people from Disney as being Frozen for boys.

And there was me praising it as a fairly balanced film!

I confess the only t-shirt I wanted was the grey one with baymax on, so I hadn't noticed the lack of female characters on the others.

Bastards. It's lost its gloss a bit now.