“You are going to outgrow those toys one day!” I can recall my Mom scolding me at 12 when I was still taking any earnings I could get, and buying action figures. Several decades later I have learned just how many things my Mom was right about, but on this one, she missed the mark.
I’m Sam Sears, and decades later, I’m still a nerd who loves action figures. I still look at my shelves and see little worlds come to life. I’ve done podcasting, interviews with toy designers, indie artists, and voice actors, I’ve written blogs, gone to, and had booths at conventions, ran message boards and Facebook groups. Through it all, design and the tie in story have emerged as my favorite parts of the toy collecting hobby. I write a lot in my everyday career, and while I enjoy it, it isn’t the same as writing purely for creativity and fun. I’ve designed logos and websites for non profits, but again, separate from my hobby. Somewhere along the way, I began to fall in love with digitally repainting toys and was increasingly curious about which joints allow the most movement. I also longed to write in the vein of the Saturday morning cartoons and comic books I grew up with and the short stories I enjoy as an adult. Stories that feature that classic good vs. evil theme, without some of the more divisive bluntness of modern story telling.
While my toy enjoyment changed over the years, my 2 kids are still immersed in classic fun play. We have opened blind boxes together, set up forts, built model kits, swapped parts and had good old fashioned action figure battles. Along the way I noticed where my tastes and my kids taste overlapped. A few years ago, I got a thought lodged in my head, that I could not escape from. Rather than cheer lead for other toy lines, which I have done, why not create a line designed for the collector and the collector’s kid, and create it with my children?
From which character took priority (the skeleton) to design choices (like color decos) my kids, especially my 10 year old son, have had a hand in creating the Reasonably Chibi line. Designed to have the articulation an adult collector enjoys, a fun style kids enjoy, and “pop and swap” play potential both can take advantage of to add uniqueness to their individual collections. I hope the line fills a unique niche between under articulated stylized figures, and expensive import figures and focuses on fun.
The characters are featured in classic good vs. evil and man vs. monster combos. There are plans for many pairs but we start with a skeleton that serves as a literal skeletal buck for other characters to be sculpted onto.
The Story:
In the past, comics have served as a nice “disposable” introductory entertainment for kids as a way to show the world the toys can bring to life. Comics are no longer cheap to produce, nor are they consumed at the same level as they use to be. However “creepypasta” and “flash fiction” especially in audio form have taken off. Many are accessible right on youtube, where young and old alike spend an embarrassing amount of time.
Using “The Rahtio Foundation” as a hub for a series of short stories, some more connected than others, I plan to have audio available for world building. These stories will stand on their own, even if someone doesn’t want to collect chibi style figures or figures at all. Because it’s a foundation collecting stories from the past, the setting and variety of future releases can have a wide range.
KICKSTARTER
Way back in 2014 I backed my first action figure related Kickstarter, Marauder Task Force. It turned a small independent accessory focused company, into a full blown toy company still making, in my opinion, the best 4″ scale figures on the market.
Although I’ve already made a sizeable investment into the creation of the line, a Kickstarter will allow for payment of the most expensive part, the steel molds, as well as production. It also allows backers to pay, only if the project is funded.
I expect to launch a Kickstarter in 2023.
I hope you join us.
Sincerely, Sam Sears, owner of Rahtio.
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