karadinart: (gackt in snow by karadin animation by om)
karadinart ([personal profile] karadinart) wrote2013-12-17 09:35 am

(Young Justice, Green Lantern) Tower Prep Cancelled because too many girls were watching show

Paul Dini -(writer, producer)

DINI: "They're all for boys 'we do not want the girls', I mean, I've heard executives say this, you know, not [where I am] but at other places, saying like, 'We do not want girls watching this show."

SMITH: "WHY? That's 51% of the population."

DINI: "They. Do. Not. Buy. Toys. The girls buy different toys. The girls may watch the show—"

SMITH: "So you can sell them T-shirts if they don't—A: I disagree, I think girls buy toys as well, I mean not as many as f***ing boys do, but, B: sell them something else, man! Don't be lazy and be like, 'well I can't sell a girl a toy.' Sell 'em a T-shirt, man, sell them f***ing umbrella with the f***ing character on it, something like that. But if it's not a toy, there's something else you could sell 'em! Like, just because you can't figure out your job, don't kill chances of, like, something that's gonna reach an audi—that's just so self-defeating, when people go, like… these are the same fuckers who go, like, 'Oh, girls don't read comics, girls aren't into comics.' It's all self-fulfilling prophecies. They just make it that way, by going like, 'I can't sell 'em a toy, what's the point?'

DINI: "That's the thing, you know I hate being Mr. Sour Grapes here, but I'll just lay it on the line: that's the thing that got us cancelled on Tower Prep, honest-to-God was, like, 'we need boys, but we need girls right there, right one step behind the boys'—this is the network talking—'one step behind the boys, not as smart as the boys, not as interesting as the boys, but right there.' And then we began writing stories that got into the two girls' back stories, and they were really interesting. And suddenly we had families and girls watching, and girls really became a big part of our audience, in sort of like they picked up that Harry Potter type of serialized way, which is what The Batman and [indistinct]'s really gonna kill. But, the Cartoon Network was saying, 'F***, no, we want the boys' action, it's boys' action, this goofy boy humor we've gotta get that in there. And we can't—' and I'd say, but look at the numbers, we've got parents watching, with the families, and then when you break it down—'Yeah, but the—so many—we've got too many girls. We need more boys.'"

SMITH: "That's heart-breaking."

DINI: "And then that's why they cancelled us, and they put on a show called Level Up, which is, you know, goofy nerds fighting CG monsters. It's like, 'We don't want the girls because the girls won't buy toys.' We had a whole… we had a whole, a merchandise line for Tower Prep that they s***canned before it ever got off the launching pad, because it's like, 'Boys, boys, boys. Boys buy the little spinny tops, they but the action figures, girls buy princesses, we're not selling princesses.'"

http://io9.com/paul-dini-superhero-cartoon-execs-dont-want-largely-f-1483758317?utm_campaign=socialflow_io9_facebook&utm_source=io9_facebook&utm_medium=socialflow

[identity profile] earthspirits.livejournal.com 2013-12-17 06:54 pm (UTC)(link)
F**k this network, and their crappy attitude! Not to mention, they're just out and out greedy.

And as collectibles vendors, we sell lots of toys, our biggest sellers, and yes, surprise surprise...women and girls do buy toys too. It's not just guys! *eye roll*

Also...have these creeps never heard of dolls and action figures?
Girls buy BOTH, as well as all sorts of accessories, etc. So that makes even more customers for their items.
Edited 2013-12-17 18:58 (UTC)

[identity profile] kinkthatwinked.livejournal.com 2013-12-17 07:25 pm (UTC)(link)
But if there's a girl standing in line with the boys, the boys might get insecure, thinking their toys aren't cool (read: manly) enough if girls are buying them, too. Or, you know, the boys might get too flustered and distracted to focus on their purchases, because there's A GIRL in the vicinity!

It's not about the common sense of recognizing women's money is green, too. It's about protecting the fragile egos and comfort levels of their male clients, who apparently are as delicate as hothouse orchids!

*headshake*

[identity profile] karadin.livejournal.com 2013-12-17 10:09 pm (UTC)(link)
not to mention, why does the shows success hinge on how well the toys sell?

Did you know of the Avatar toys, they didn't make a single female character doll? Not Katara, not Toff, not Azula, not even freakin Karaa, and she's the MAIN CHARACTER.

[identity profile] karadin.livejournal.com 2013-12-17 10:10 pm (UTC)(link)
action figures are dolls!

[identity profile] earthspirits.livejournal.com 2013-12-18 12:02 am (UTC)(link)
I know...but I guess the companies don't like to market them as such to the guys, hence the term "action figure" (this term invented, I think, by some marketing rep when GI Joe first hit the market back in the day). *another eye roll*
Edited 2013-12-18 00:03 (UTC)

[identity profile] margi-lynn.livejournal.com 2013-12-18 04:11 am (UTC)(link)
AHAHAHA, that makes me laugh because the last markings stats I saw, girls far buy more merch then guys at every age level. *shakes head*
Edited 2013-12-18 04:11 (UTC)