more stuff at HT

[jekylljuice]

This is sad news, for sure, but I have to agree with ORD. Hot Topic churned out some really lovely Foster's merchandise throughout it's time, but toward the end it was getting more than a little ridiculous. By focussing so extensively on Cheese (who is, when all is said and done, only a semi-regular character), they failed to take advantage of the highly diverse and colourful range of characters that Foster's has to offer. You could argue that, from a retailer perspective, Cheese is what sells, but it's not like they gave the rest of the cast much of a chance. Admittedly, with high international postage fees and my ever-diminishing bank balance, I was unlikely to shell out any further notes unless HT coughed up something really special...I guess it's the thrill of checking the site for new updates that I'll miss the most.

[WiltsAKGirl17]

Originally Posted by jekylljuice

This is sad news, for sure, but I have to agree with ORD. Hot Topic churned out some really lovely Foster's merchandise throughout it's time, but toward the end it was getting more than a little ridiculous. By focussing so extensively on Cheese (who is, when all is said and done, only a semi-regular character), they failed to take advantage of the highly diverse and colourful range of characters that Foster's has to offer. You could argue that, from a retailer perspective, Cheese is what sells, but it's not like they gave the rest of the cast much of a chance. Admittedly, with high international postage fees and my ever-diminishing bank balance, I was unlikely to shell out any further notes unless HT coughed up something really special...I guess it's the thrill of checking the site for new updates that I'll miss the most.

This is pretty much what I said in my letter to HT asking to PLEASE put the othr characters on some merchandise. This was the letter (I put it in smaller text because it's rather lengthy. And I sent this over the site, not on paper):

To whom it may concern:
I would like to take a moment to express my mild dissatisfaction with the types of ?Foster?s Home for Imaginary Friends? merchandise being carried in your stores as of late.

I very greatly enjoy ?Fosters?? and love that the series has such a successful merchandising deal. However, as I peruse your site and talk with other fans, it seems that only two characters of the show, Bloo and Cheese, are part of the merchandise being carried. The spirit of ?Foster?s?? is in the vein that Mac shares his adventures with Bloo and the other friends at the house?Wilt, Eduardo and Coco?and all are quote-unquote guided by the adult figures of Frankie, Madame Foster and Mr. Herriman.

Despite this, Bloo and Cheese ([the latter being] an admittedly popular but minor character, being in only three of the series? episodes) get the entire proverbial spotlight. Indeed, Bloo and Cheese are wonderful characters, embodying the series? sense of childlike fun and whimsy and adding color and humor to each episode, but the other characters have several other wonderful qualities. For example, Wilt is a very warm, friendly character who is much more complex than originally thought, as shown in the Emmy?-nominated hour long special ?Good Wilt Hunting.? Frankie is another prime example?she serves as a ?big sister? to the other imaginary friends and to Mac, balancing the chaos around her.

If one were to look at the variety of Foster?s-based fan-made art on deviantart.com and the fan fiction on fanfiction.net, they would find that Wilt and Frankie are two of the most focused-on characters, both in fan?s art and stories. It would be a foolish idea to not cater to these fans? love of these and other characters. Wilt would make a wonderful vehicle for a sports-based line (given his profound love of basketball, which is frequently addressed in the series), while Frankie could be used for a line geared more towards young adult women: shirts, purses, a possible fragrance, etc.

I hope very much to see more Foster?s merchandise on Hot Topic shelves and on hottopic.com; I also hope that that future merchandise showcases all of the wonderful characters on the show.

Thank you for your time and consideration.

I got this relatively form letter response:

Hi There,
Thank you for emailing us! We appreciate your suggestion and I will be
sure to pass it onto the correct people. Please feel free to get back to us
with any comments or suggestions you may have in the future! We'd love to
hear from you. If there is anything else we can do for you please do not
hesitate to ask.

Thanks for shopping with us.

Silvia
www.hottopic.com
800-892-8674

Ugh. I feel like I'll be forever deprived of Foster's stuff. Hopefully Torrid won't quit carrying the stuff in April, too.

[Shelltoon]

Another problem with Hot Topic... they focused WAY TOO MUCH on clothing for girls, while males like me got the short end of the stick when it came to this clothing line.

[One Radical Dude]

Originally Posted by Shelltoon

Another problem with Hot Topic... they focused WAY TOO MUCH on clothing for girls, while males like me got the short end of the stick when it came to this clothing line.

I disliked that, too. It might be better that someone else is going to be offering Foster's apparel, as long as there's something for the dudes -- and that they don't focus too much on just Cheese.

[jekylljuice]

I actually thought that Hot Topic was doing a bit better throughout the summer. They were bold enough to take a few steps away from the Bloo-Cheese-Eduardo furor which had pretty much dominated the earlier stuff and to try a few new things, devoting at least one shirt each to Wilt, Coco, and even relatively minor characters like Berry and Bendy (though they were still pretty reluctant to give any of the human characters the spotlight). We did see a couple of shirts which were suitable for the guys to wear, even if they were never much of a scratch upon the vast range of skinny fit designs available for us lasses. It's only in recent months that they seem to have regressed into doing absolutely nothing but Cheese - even their earlier favourites Bloo and Eduardo started to come out a bit short in the process. True, Bloo's face still found its way onto a lot of stuff, but chiefly as Cheese's marketting sidekick. I can only imagine how degrading Blooregard Q. Kazoo would find such a prospect.

Case in point: the new "Imaginary Friends are Forever" shirt, while a nice enough design, really does strike me as being better suited for Bloo and Mac than for Bloo and Cheese. But that's just my opinion.

[One Radical Dude]

Originally Posted by jekylljuice

I actually thought that Hot Topic was doing a bit better throughout the summer. They were bold enough to take a few steps away from the Bloo-Cheese-Eduardo furor which had pretty much dominated the earlier stuff and to try a few new things, devoting at least one shirt each to Wilt, Coco, and even relatively minor characters like Berry and Bendy (though they were still pretty reluctant to give any of the human characters the spotlight). We did see a couple of shirts which were suitable for the guys to wear, even if they were never much of a scratch upon the vast range of skinny fit designs available for us lasses. It's only in recent months that they seem to have regressed into doing absolutely nothing but Cheese - even their earlier favourites Bloo and Eduardo started to come out a bit short in the process. True, Bloo's face still found its way onto a lot of stuff, but chiefly as Cheese's marketting sidekick. I can only imagine how degrading Blooregard Q. Kazoo would find such a prospect.

Case in point: the new "Imaginary Friends are Forever" shirt, while a nice enough design, really does strike me as being better suited for Bloo and Mac than for Bloo and Cheese. But that's just my opinion.

It isn't just your opinion, but mine, also. If the reason for discontinuing the merchandise isn't because of other companies to license FHFIF merchandise, then I think it could be the over-saturation of Bloo Cheese (especially Cheese) merchandise. I look forward to seeing what's being offered from other retailers in the future.

[Sparky]

I wandered into an HT today...I was too poor to buy the new Darkwing t-shirt, but I got the last Wilt shirt on deep discount ($2!). My sewing machine is broken but I'm thinking of cutting the designs out maybe and stitching them to a white men's t-shirt. Oh and look what else they finally started carrying:



Yay!

[antgirl1]

Dang...but I already ordered the Wilt wristband...(The OTHER one, lol)

[BlooCHEESE*182]

I really need a sweatshirt but they dont have any guys ones at HT...Someone tell me where to find them!!!!

[WiltsAKGirl17]

Originally Posted by Sparky

I wandered into an HT today...I was too poor to buy the new Darkwing t-shirt, but I got the last Wilt shirt on deep discount ($2!). My sewing machine is broken but I'm thinking of cutting the designs out maybe and stitching them to a white men's t-shirt. Oh and look what else they finally started carrying:



Yay!

Aw, stab and twist. *Mimicis stabbing self and twisting knife* I wish I had access to a HT. That or a credit card or somethin'...