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Action Figure Justification

154 statements
29 feature instances
15 referencing feature instances

Action Figure Justification	type	FeatureClass
Action Figure Justification	label	Action Figure Justification
Action Figure Justification	page	ActionFigureJustification
Action Figure Justification	comment	Dolls, be they dress-up fashion dolls or Creepy Dolls, are generally seen in fiction, and often in real life, as being distinctly a toy for girls. There are multifold reasons for this, and it would require a lengthy treatise on the subject to explore it fully. Suffice it to say, boys do not like to have their toys referred to as "dolls". They play with "action figures" (which, until the 2010s, were distinct by their usually smaller size and more points of articulation). In the world of fiction, however, it's not young boys who will insist their coveted toys are referred to as "action figures", but grown men who are either nerds or Otakus. They may also insist that they're not for playing with, but are, in fact, collectibles. This may also be the reaction of a Tomboy who doesn't like to associate with girly things. Men who aren't worried about how they're perceived by others may not make the same insistence. A sub-trope of Insistent Terminology, as well as of Less Embarrassing Term. However, it's worth noting that some characters in fiction seem less embarrassed and more offended that the term "doll" was used for their "action figures", which, with some "nerd" characters, will legitimately be part of a collection. Indeed, there are male doll collectors who cross genres and will simply insist on the correct terms for the correct toy lines. To them, mixing up the terms is as irritating as mixing up Star Trek and Star Wars is to sci-fi fans. In the United States of America, it's important to note that for purposes of taxes and tariffs, the law defines a doll as a "toy figure which clearly represents a human being", which, for a time, meant that many action figures were considered "dolls" in the eyes of the law, and actually led to a court case where Toy Biz, Inc and Marvel Comics argued that their characters were "non-human creatures", including The X-Men.note In the comics, the X-Men have fought against the notion that being mutants somehow made them something other than human beings. The lines are further blurred with the collector's market for anime-based PVC figures, which were typically non-posable and molded entirely of poly-vinyl, and invert the number of female characters vs. male characters that is typical of action figures. These are neither traditional dolls nor action figures, but might be referred to as dolls by someone not familiar with the terminology used by collectors. In addition, there are several sub-categories that further muddy the waters. The term "figure" can be used to describe immobile PVC figures that have little to no articulation and would be closer to statues. However, it's also used to describe toys that are often highly articulated and come with accessories and/or effect parts that allow people to duplicate famous scenes, poses, or moves.note For example, the S.H.Figuarts line for Ultraman often includes exchangeable Colour Timers and effect parts to represent the various beam attacks. The term "doll" (or sometimes "fashion doll") is used for toys that include things like exchangeable clothes, brushable hair, and various accessories. Examples of this would include Barbie, My Little Pony, and Licca-chan, as well as more high-end offerings like the custom-built VOLKS dolls. The primary difference between the two appears to be intent: "figures" are meant to be displayed in dioramas (an assertion backed up by the fact that several companies in Japan specialise in diorama background sets like "city streets" or "ruined buildings"), while "dolls" are toys actually meant to be played or interacted with. That's not to say there isn't overlap: Many retailers, like Amazon Japan, list Transformers under both "figures" and "dolls". Some toys, like certain G.I. Joe characters, are actually listed as "collector dolls" in addition to "figures" and "dolls."note For example, the exclusive G.I.Joe Classified Series Snake Eyes comes with additional accessories compared to the retail version Compare Unmanly Secret.
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Action Figure Justification	isPartOf	DBTropes
Action Figure Justification / int_18270023	type	Action Figure Justification
Action Figure Justification / int_18270023	comment	In Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Rodrick Rules, Greg Heffley's dad is a huge war buff, and he sets up elaborate Civil War dioramas with toy soldiers. So when he finds his figure of Ulysses S. Grant on the thermostat, he flips out on Greg and Rodrick — though not before reminding the boys that "these are not toys, they're figurines!"
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Action Figure Justification / int_18acb3a5	type	Action Figure Justification
Action Figure Justification / int_18acb3a5	comment	The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air: In "Soul Train", Carlton is trying to practice to audition to be on the show, but Will wants him to stay away, because he's hoping to land the hosting job, and is afraid Carlton will embarrass him.
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Action Figure Justification / int_22d87fc9	type	Action Figure Justification
Action Figure Justification / int_22d87fc9	comment	That '70s Show: This is a running joke; practically everyone makes fun of Eric for collecting his G.I. Joe "dolls". At one point, Eric and Donna are arguing, when Kitty comes into the kitchen and asks her son if he was playing "with his little dolls in the tub again." Eric exasperatedly says, "It's an ACTION FIGURE!"
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Action Figure Justification / int_2898b26e	type	Action Figure Justification
Action Figure Justification / int_2898b26e	comment	Referenced in Shinji And Warhammer 40 K: Rei uses this line as an Insult Backfire when Asuka calls her a "doll".
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Action Figure Justification / int_35f1d3fb	type	Action Figure Justification
Action Figure Justification / int_35f1d3fb	comment	G.I. Joe: G.I. Joe is actually the originator of the term "action figure". In 1964, Hasbro created a line of soldier toys with articulation and accessories such as weapons, naming the line "G.I. Joe" after a popular nickname for US troops in World War II. Recognising that the term "doll" implied they were playthings for girls, Hasbro coined the term "action figure" to differentiate. In 1967, G.I. Joe introduced their first female character, a Vietnam-era nurse, which prompted some difficulty determining whether or not to market it as part of the G.I. Joe line, or as a doll.
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Action Figure Justification / int_3d962ad5	type	Action Figure Justification
Action Figure Justification / int_3d962ad5	comment	The Simpsons Futurama Crossover Crisis: When the Planet Express ship is approaching Nerdanus XII, the Living Planet, it flies past the Action Figure Moon, which has a sign that reads "Action Figure (Don't Call Them Dolls) Moon".
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Action Figure Justification / int_3e0b28b5	type	Action Figure Justification
Action Figure Justification / int_3e0b28b5	comment	Referenced in Dead Rising 2 with one side mission, where Chuck has to convince an old lady in a toy store to follow him to the safe house. When he mentions the zombies, she says that she's looking for toys for her granddaughter, who is too young for zombie toys. Chuck replies, "They're not toys," and the lady gives an annoyed, "Fine, action figures." Chuck then explains that he's talking about the real zombies that are infesting the city.
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Action Figure Justification / int_4dd54482	type	Action Figure Justification
Action Figure Justification / int_4dd54482	comment	In the Ben 10: Alien Force, episode "Voided", Gwen finds a Sumo Slammers playset in Ben's closet, and she calls it a dollhouse, Ben corrects her by saying it's a Sumo Slammers Battle Ring, to which Gwen responds "with dolls inside", Ben then corrects her by saying "action figures".
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Action Figure Justification / int_4e45b093	type	Action Figure Justification
Action Figure Justification / int_4e45b093	comment	The Big Bang Theory: After an effort to order custom action figures of themselves delivers disappointing results, Raj and Howard buy a 3-D printer to custom make the toys themselves. Howard shows off the results to his wife, Bernadette, who is less than pleased that Howard dropped that kind of money without consulting her. She furiously asks him if he thinks $5000 for a couple of "dolls" was worth it. Howard wisely doesn't choose to correct her terminology, even though he'd been calling them "action figures" before, as Bernadette is quite frightening when enraged.
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Action Figure Justification / int_4e7cac32	type	Action Figure Justification
Action Figure Justification / int_4e7cac32	comment	Supergirl (2015): In the episode "How Does She Do It?", Winn claims not to be very good with kids, but Kara points out that he has a lot of childish interests himself, like decorating his desk with toys. Winn protests that "They are not toys, they are adult collectibles!" Justified when it's later revealed his father was a villain called The Toyman, and Winn likely wanted to psychologically distance himself from any similarities to the man.
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Action Figure Justification / int_4f9064f7	type	Action Figure Justification
Action Figure Justification / int_4f9064f7	comment	Kung Fu Panda 3: When Po's dad Mr. Ping is worried about his son, he starts with, "I come home to find you taking a bath with your dolls..." Po grumbles, "They're action figures!"
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Action Figure Justification / int_59c939c6	type	Action Figure Justification
Action Figure Justification / int_59c939c6	comment	Nodwick: One strip had the heroes discover a group of dwarves who were making Dungeons & Dragons (2000) tie-in merchandise. Nodwick made the mistake of calling them dolls. The dwarves promptly shouted that they were ACTION FIGURES so hard that he was knocked off his feet.
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Action Figure Justification / int_6c1d09b4	type	Action Figure Justification
Action Figure Justification / int_6c1d09b4	comment	Referenced in the Fallout 4 achievement, "They're Not Dolls...", for collecting Vault-Tec bobbleheads, though in this case, they're not action figures either.
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Action Figure Justification / int_6c3b2d36	type	Action Figure Justification
Action Figure Justification / int_6c3b2d36	comment	Kung Fu (2021): In "Reunion", Althea catches her husband indulging in his hobby of painting Dungeons & Dragons mini figures, something he usually only does if he's prepping for a game or if he's down about something.
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Action Figure Justification / int_89b7cf47	type	Action Figure Justification
Action Figure Justification / int_89b7cf47	comment	Rizzoli & Isles: Jane insists on referring to the Captain Chogokin toy that Frost bought at the garage sale held by Angela Rizzoli as a "doll". Both Frost and Frankie (the original owner) will state, in unison that it's an Action Figure.
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Action Figure Justification / int_8c5b6668	type	Action Figure Justification
Action Figure Justification / int_8c5b6668	comment	In the My Weird School book Mrs. Kormel is Not Normal, AJ is bringing his Striker Smith toy to show-and-tell. Andrea derisively calls the toy a doll, and AJ insists that it's an action figure. Andrea says that action figures are dolls for boys.
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Action Figure Justification / int_8e2aba6a	type	Action Figure Justification
Action Figure Justification / int_8e2aba6a	comment	Legion of Super Heroes (2006) has a moment were Kell-El has to bond with a young boy and taunts the kid over his 'dolls', he comes around at the end of the episode, correcting Phantom Girl when she refers to them in a similar manner.
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Action Figure Justification / int_8f4d6da2	type	Action Figure Justification
Action Figure Justification / int_8f4d6da2	comment	In the docuseries Menudo: Forever Young, former Menudo member Johnny Lozada pulls out the two dolls issued in his likeness. Or, as he clarifies (complete with Gratuitous English for emphasis), despite the copy on the boxes: "No son dolls, son action figures!"
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Action Figure Justification / int_90a3a7f4	type	Action Figure Justification
Action Figure Justification / int_90a3a7f4	comment	Kim Possible: When SeÃ±or Senior, Senior shows Junior some mockups of potential doomsday devices so that he can select a birthday gift, Junior scoffs at him for playing with dolls. Then he sees that Senior planned on demonstrating them on one of his dolls, which he defends as different because it's an action figure (the "action" being hula dancing).
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Action Figure Justification / int_97abe183	type	Action Figure Justification
Action Figure Justification / int_97abe183	comment	Sheen Estevez from The Adventures of Jimmy Neutron, Boy Genius does not like when someone calls his Ultra Lord action figures dolls. A good example of this is in this exchange in "The Junkman Cometh", when Jimmy, Carl, and Sheen visit Brobot on the moon.
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Action Figure Justification / int_9888f901	type	Action Figure Justification
Action Figure Justification / int_9888f901	comment	Daria: After Jake has a mild heart attack, his mother comes to visit, and discuss his abusive late father. Jake talks about a toy he wanted (something similar to the original G.I. Joe) but his father wouldn't have his son play with dolls. His mother says she wanted him to have that doll, to which Jake angrily replies, "It was an action figure, Damnit!"
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Action Figure Justification / int_a8729c90	type	Action Figure Justification
Action Figure Justification / int_a8729c90	comment	At the end of the episode "You Doo!" on The Fairly OddParents!, Timmy learns a lesson where it's not nice to control people, as demonstrated by the character-shaped voodoo dolls, and that boys like Timmy shouldn't play with dolls, and that they should play action figures!
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Action Figure Justification / int_aedfc20a	type	Action Figure Justification
Action Figure Justification / int_aedfc20a	comment	A variant in The LEGO Movie, when the Man Upstairs tells his son not to touch his model Lego city, saying it's not a toy.
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Action Figure Justification / int_b712435c	type	Action Figure Justification
Action Figure Justification / int_b712435c	comment	Leverage: Eliot refers to the fact that Hardison has a "Green Hornet" doll.
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Action Figure Justification / int_bbe42b2	type	Action Figure Justification
Action Figure Justification / int_bbe42b2	comment	She-Ra: Princess of Power: She-Ra's toyline was a hybrid of action figures and more traditional dolls compared to the previous toyline He-Man and the Masters of the Universe. Female characters such as She-Ra, Glimmer, and the like came with accessories such as weapons, but also famously had brushable hair. In comparison, female characters in the He-Man toyline were completely plastic molded (though the fact that the likes of Teela and Evil-Lyn kept their hair up in sensible buns makes this a Justified Trope).
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Action Figure Justification / int_cacc7427	type	Action Figure Justification
Action Figure Justification / int_cacc7427	comment	Galavant: Galavant, finally taking a level in kindness toward his squire Sid, appreciates Sid's honesty about being "a late sleeper and a lover of dolls."
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Action Figure Justification / int_e885c808	type	Action Figure Justification
Action Figure Justification / int_e885c808	comment	Spaceballs: Averted. Dark Helmet is so mortified that he was caught by Col. Sanders play-acting a fantasy of him and Princess Vespa using his toys that he doesn't balk when Sanders denies seeing him "playing with (his) dolls, again."
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Action Figure Justification / int_ec66836a	type	Action Figure Justification
Action Figure Justification / int_ec66836a	comment	Â¿QuÃ© Pasa, U.S.A.?: Juana and Pepe wonder if their teenaged son Joe is gay when they find textbooks on the subject. They argue, with him claiming that if Joe is gay (he is not), it's her fault for buying the boy dolls as Christmas presents. Juana points out that they were G.I. Joes.
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Action Figure Justification / int_fb9c177d	type	Action Figure Justification
Action Figure Justification / int_fb9c177d	comment	Transformers: As befitting a toyline where change is a key focus, in Japan the Transformers are listed under multiple categories including "figures", "dolls" and "robot toys". In fact, the "figures" definition mentioned in the trope description (i.e. primarily used for dioramas and display) is one of the big focuses of the Masterpiece line that's explicitly aimed at high-end collectors. Designed primarily for the Japanese market, each release contains multiple accessories and alternate parts for people to set up displays, including obscure ones like tools or devices that only appeared once or twice in The Transformers. The line began in 2003 with Convoy/Optimus Prime, but was rebooted in 2011 with a new version of Convoy in order to introduce a more consistent scale (the original version of Convoy towered over subsequent releases, including characters who are explicitly taller like Grimlock). Even mainline Transformers toys meant for older children (e.g. the Transformers Siege, Earthrise and Kingdom toylines) include features meant to help with display. Most notably, many modern Transformers toys as of 2010 come with a small hole somewhere on the back or lower torso meant for usage with flight stands for display purposes.
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The following is a list of statements referring to the current page from other pages.

Action Figure Justification	processingCategory2	Toy Tropes
Highlander Penance (Fanfic) / int_5ae16e13	type	Action Figure Justification
Spaceballs / int_5ae16e13	type	Action Figure Justification
DC Super Hero Girls (Franchise) / int_5ae16e13	type	Action Figure Justification
G.I. Joe (Franchise) / int_5ae16e13	type	Action Figure Justification
My Weird School / int_5ae16e13	type	Action Figure Justification
Galavant / int_5ae16e13	type	Action Figure Justification
¿Qué Pasa, U.S.A.? / int_5ae16e13	type	Action Figure Justification
Rizzoli & Isles / int_5ae16e13	type	Action Figure Justification
That '70s Show / int_5ae16e13	type	Action Figure Justification
The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air / int_5ae16e13	type	Action Figure Justification
Dead Rising 2 (Video Game) / int_5ae16e13	type	Action Figure Justification
Daria / int_5ae16e13	type	Action Figure Justification
She-Ra: Princess of Power / int_5ae16e13	type	Action Figure Justification
The Adventures of Jimmy Neutron, Boy Genius / int_5ae16e13	type	Action Figure Justification

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