Trendmasters
Encyclopedia
Trendmasters was an American toy company most notable for its figures based on the Godzilla
series, as well as the 1998 film of the same name.
It closed its doors in 2002, and its IP assets were acquired by Jakks Pacific
.
After the success of its first wave of Godzilla
toys in 1994, Trendmasters began producing toys based on many licenses, including the series Voltron: The Third Dimension
, as well as films and television programs such as Nova's Ark, "Battlefield Earth
, Gamera
, Forbidden Planet
, Independence Day
, Mars Attacks!
, Extreme Ghostbusters
, Lost in Space
, Gumby
, Cardcaptors and The Spooktacular New Adventures of Casper
.
In 1999, the company released a line of animated watches called C-watches. These watches allowed the user to set alarms for Mon-Fri, alerted the user to mealtimes, and had many other uses and animations. Special editions of these watches included the *NSYNC edition, Austin Powers Edition, Pro Wrestling Edition, Pokémon
Edition, Star Wars
Edition, etc.
Trendmasters produced the War Planets toy line, which even spawned a successful television series entitled Shadow Raiders
, however the series is off-air and the figures have ceased production since Trendmasters closed. In addition, the company created the Rumble Robots toy line in 2001, as well as the Wuv luv line of fuzzy toys. It also created the KittyCatz and PuppyDogz line for the game Petz, which contains the combined games Dogz and Catz. They were also ingame as advertising for the real toys. Petz 5, the last old-school style Petz version, made in 2002, still had these, and there was no update system to get these out of game.
Ironically, although the figures based on the classic Godzilla series are often attributed for Trendmasters' rise in popularity, the failure of the extravagant toy line from the 1998 film is sometimes blamed for its ultimate demise - retailers refused figures for Godzilla: The Series
due to the failure of the 1998 toy line.
Godzilla
is a daikaijū, a Japanese movie monster, first appearing in Ishirō Honda's 1954 film Godzilla. Since then, Godzilla has gone on to become a worldwide pop culture icon starring in 28 films produced by Toho Co., Ltd. The monster has appeared in numerous other media incarnations including video games,...
series, as well as the 1998 film of the same name.
Godzilla (1998 film)
Godzilla is a 1998 science fiction monster disaster film film co-written and directed by Roland Emmerich. It is a loose remake of the 1954 giant monster classic Godzilla. The storyline was conceived from a screenplay written by Emmerich and Dean Devlin. The film relates a tale of a nuclear incident...
It closed its doors in 2002, and its IP assets were acquired by Jakks Pacific
Jakks Pacific
JAKKS Pacific, Inc. is a designer and marketer of toys and consumer products, with a range of products that feature numerous children's toy licenses...
.
After the success of its first wave of Godzilla
Godzilla
is a daikaijū, a Japanese movie monster, first appearing in Ishirō Honda's 1954 film Godzilla. Since then, Godzilla has gone on to become a worldwide pop culture icon starring in 28 films produced by Toho Co., Ltd. The monster has appeared in numerous other media incarnations including video games,...
toys in 1994, Trendmasters began producing toys based on many licenses, including the series Voltron: The Third Dimension
Voltron: The Third Dimension
Voltron: The Third Dimension was a computer-generated series was released in 1998 to a mixed response, because of its departure from the original Lion Voltron's animated look, as well as some character changes, such as the physical appearance of Prince Lotor...
, as well as films and television programs such as Nova's Ark, "Battlefield Earth
Battlefield Earth (film)
Battlefield Earth is a 2000 American science fiction film adapted from L. Ron Hubbard's novel of the same name. It was directed by Roger Christian, and stars John Travolta, Forest Whitaker, and Barry Pepper...
, Gamera
Gamera
is a giant, flying turtle from a popular series of kaiju films produced by Daiei Motion Picture Company in Japan. Created in 1965 to rival the success of Toho Studios' Godzilla during the daikaiju boom of the mid-to-late 1960s, Gamera has gained fame and notoriety as a Japanese icon in his own...
, Forbidden Planet
Forbidden Planet
Forbidden Planet is a 1956 science fiction film directed by Fred M. Wilcox, with a screenplay by Cyril Hume. It stars Leslie Nielsen, Walter Pidgeon, and Anne Francis. The characters and its setting have been compared to those in William Shakespeare's The Tempest, and its plot contains certain...
, Independence Day
Independence Day (film)
Independence Day is a 1996 science fiction film about an alien invasion of Earth, focusing on a disparate group of individuals and families as they converge in the Nevada desert and, along with the rest of the human population, participate in a last-chance counterattack on July 4 – the same...
, Mars Attacks!
Mars Attacks!
Mars Attacks! is a 1996 American science fiction film directed by Tim Burton and based on the cult trading card series of the same name. The film uses elements of black comedy, surreal humour, and political satire, and claims to be also a parody of multiple science fiction B movies...
, Extreme Ghostbusters
Extreme Ghostbusters
Extreme Ghostbusters is an animated television series and a follow-up to the animated series Slimer! and the Real Ghostbusters. It is a part of the film/TV Ghostbusters franchise...
, Lost in Space
Lost in Space (film)
Lost in Space is a 1998 American science fiction film starring Gary Oldman and William Hurt. The film was shot in London and Shepperton, and produced by New Line Cinema. The plot is adapted from the 1965–1968 CBS television series Lost In Space...
, Gumby
Gumby
Gumby is a green clay humanoid character created and modeled by Art Clokey, who also created Davey and Goliath. Gumby has been the subject of a 233-episode series of American television as well as a feature-length film and other media...
, Cardcaptors and The Spooktacular New Adventures of Casper
The Spooktacular New Adventures of Casper
The Spooktacular New Adventures of Casper was an animated television spin-off of the feature film Casper, which, in turn, was based on the Harvey Comics character of Casper the Friendly Ghost....
.
In 1999, the company released a line of animated watches called C-watches. These watches allowed the user to set alarms for Mon-Fri, alerted the user to mealtimes, and had many other uses and animations. Special editions of these watches included the *NSYNC edition, Austin Powers Edition, Pro Wrestling Edition, Pokémon
Pokémon
is a media franchise published and owned by the video game company Nintendo and created by Satoshi Tajiri in 1996. Originally released as a pair of interlinkable Game Boy role-playing video games developed by Game Freak, Pokémon has since become the second most successful and lucrative video...
Edition, Star Wars
Star Wars
Star Wars is an American epic space opera film series created by George Lucas. The first film in the series was originally released on May 25, 1977, under the title Star Wars, by 20th Century Fox, and became a worldwide pop culture phenomenon, followed by two sequels, released at three-year...
Edition, etc.
Trendmasters produced the War Planets toy line, which even spawned a successful television series entitled Shadow Raiders
Shadow Raiders
Shadow Raiders is an animated television series produced by Mainframe Entertainment that aired from 1998 to 1999. The show was loosely based on the Trendmasters toy line, War Planets. The original character designs were created by ReBoot designer, Brendan McCarthy...
, however the series is off-air and the figures have ceased production since Trendmasters closed. In addition, the company created the Rumble Robots toy line in 2001, as well as the Wuv luv line of fuzzy toys. It also created the KittyCatz and PuppyDogz line for the game Petz, which contains the combined games Dogz and Catz. They were also ingame as advertising for the real toys. Petz 5, the last old-school style Petz version, made in 2002, still had these, and there was no update system to get these out of game.
Ironically, although the figures based on the classic Godzilla series are often attributed for Trendmasters' rise in popularity, the failure of the extravagant toy line from the 1998 film is sometimes blamed for its ultimate demise - retailers refused figures for Godzilla: The Series
Godzilla: The Series
Godzilla: The Series is an American/Japanese animated television series which originally aired on Fox in the United States. The show premiered on September 12, 1998, and is a direct sequel to the American Godzilla remake.-Plot:...
due to the failure of the 1998 toy line.