I'm curious... what's the attraction to the JLU line?

I personally can't even look at them due to their cartoony design. However I see lots and lots of people here in love with them? Is it just the DC fan in all of you? Or is it the line up of characters? I see how there is almost everyone in this line in one form or another.

I just wanted to see other people's views and thoughts on why they love this line.

The wide range of compatible characters. I passed when it first came aong and was nothing but repaints of the seven main heroes. But after time, there was Aztek, the Ultra Humanite, Gorilla Grodd, etc. And every time I felt like quitting, boom, another awesome figure was announced.

If Infinite Heroes kept going and kept giving us more and more figures, I might have dropped JLU and focussed on them. Smaller figures means less storage or display space required. I just can't get into the 6 inch waves. That collection would just take up too much space for me.

I honestly have no idea what the attraction is.

They can't stand and they have almost no articulation. The only thing I can logically conclude is that they were tremendous fans of the show (and I am as well, but I'm not going to buy substandard toys no matter how great the source material is).

But this board is a major hotspot for JLU collectors.

If only I'd known before I joined!!!!

For many of us, its because of Bruce Timm, his sense of aesthetics, and his love for the source material.

It all started with the Kenner BTAS line and the JLU is the evolution and expansion of everything that happened there.

It is a very streamlined and clean design and execution (scale and the inability to stand not withstanding).
It is a very expansive character roster (from every era of the DCU/DCAU).
It is (to me at least) everything a toy line would ever need to be.

Not only is it one of, if not the best DC action figure line ever made, but the designs are clean and perfect for the Timmverse. Plus the run of cartoons featuring the Timmverse are outstanding and award winning. Best line ever.

To understand fully, you may want to start watching ...
Batman the animated series,
Superman the animated series,
Batman Beyond,
Justice League, and then
Justice League Unlimited,

And then you might see how the well written and complex storyline has grabbed hold of our hearts through
this DC universe created by Bruce Timm and company. The toy line has done a great job of trying to represent
all the members and a lot of the villains, as well as some "tip of the hats" to the DC world and the other Timmverse shows.

All of the above-- plus 5 POA is the best--and I wish every line went back to it. Not to mention Im a Bruce Timm Style junky (although I hate Kirby- go Figure)-- Maquettes, Cels, Magazines, Style Guides, All DCUC animated comic books, regular books, I collect it all.. Plus-- at the core of the beginning of the line it was Batman....

I grew up with all that. Never missed an episode of Batman on FOX... still have the after school VHS tapes I made. I watched everything up till unlimited and then even a few of them here and there. Batman Beyond was great till that clone crap... but still... I can't see the attraction of a toyline form that. I mean to each their own, and how can half a million board members be wrong? But I'm with Shellhead on this one... they come across substandard with what I look for in my toys.

Although I can appreciate the diverse collection of characters...

Toys with so much articulation that they end up like a slinky are substandard in my book.

I am an unapologetic fan of DC Direct. Aside from my love for the Timmverse, which is huge, the JLU toyline USED TO BE a relatively cheap alternative to that brand, what I would deem a higher class figure. I was able to create a substantial collection, including a wide range of characters, for much less money. I also don't play with the figures. I display them. POA don't matter to me because those parts will never ever move.

As far as display pieces go I love the JLU figures but as toys kids toys to play with or being able to display them in action they are severely lacking in articulation as it has been said. I think in this line articulation hurts the display of the toy though too. For example I think the 5POA Batman looks alot better then the 9 POA Batman.

All the reasons I collect JLU have already been stated, mainly being love for the DC Animated Universe.

As far as style, it depends on what you're looking for. Some people like DCUC because the figures look more realistic. That is a plus, if that's what you're looking for. To use a different example, I never cared for Alex Ross' realistic-looking art. I rather have them look more cartoony (yes, I made that word up). I collect JLU because I loved the animated show, and I want figures that have the style of the animated show.

Articulation means nothing to me. I'm not playing with the figures, they are simply displayed on a shelf. I don't pose them doing a freeze-frame from the Beat It video, so I have no desire for thirty points of articulation (although that would be cool if someone did that!). And as ian5555 pointed out, the 9 POA figures don't look as clean as the 5 POA figures.

Again, it's all what you're looking for. Over 180 figures doesn't hurt either.

Art is art. Some people like Bruce Timm, other's like George Pérez. Some people think Bruce Timm's style is cartoony, other people think the George Pérez style is over-rendered.

Bottom line, I don't have a problem with them looking cartoony because they are based off a cartoon. They accurately represent that which they were meant to represent.

Having a Batman in the Bruce Timm style is no different than having a Batman in the Frank Miller style, or the Arkham Asylum video game style, and so on, and so forth. Personally, I don't like all the styles out there; but if people want to buy figures based on the art of Rob Liefeld... that's their prerogative.

Why I love JLU In a nutshell
* The style is Bruce Timm style, yes, but Bruce Timm's style is a very classic, almost silver age, rendition of the characters. It's a very classic look.
* The scale. Is similar to Super Powers. While GI Joe and Star Wars are awesome, I think that scale is too small to capture what I'm looking for in a super hero figure.
* The character selection. Finally getting characters beyond the big 7 that I've been wanting for a long time. The few that haven't been released are easy to get customized.
* The articulation. I'm so not a fan of hyper articulation. Rarely is it done well. For Marvel, the males are done ok, the females look terrible. Hyper articulation is just not for me.

Please don't bring up Rob Liefeld. He should stick to making jean commercials.