Sharks Bite Rangers A New Family Of Action Toys Is Making Its Mark In The Industry

The Street Sharks are biting and fighting to make their mark in the $18.7 billion toy industry, outselling the Mighty Morphin Power Rangers in many spots.

Street Sharks action figures, which sell for about $9 each, have become hot sellers nationwide since hitting toy shelves early this year, retailers say.

Once Shark television advertisements hit the airwaves, F.A.O. Schwarz in New York sold out of the six-inch half-human, halfanimal figures. The Wal-Mart in South Charleston followed suit this week.

“We can keep Power Rangers now, but we can’t keep Street Sharks,” said sales associate Greg Metz. “We can’t keep those longer than a day or so.”

Toys based on television shows and upcoming movies received the most attention at last month’s annual trade show in New York.

“The whole action-figure market is very dependent on media exposure,” said Frank Reysen, editor of Playthings magazine, an international trade publication in New York.

Street Sharks sales figures for February, the first month of full distribution, won’t be available until late March or early April, said Lisa McKendall, spokeswoman for Street Sharks’ maker, Mattel Toys Inc. of El Segundo, Calif. But she said sales exceeded expectations.

The Sharks’ packaging, which resembles a chewed-up cage, has helped them become a hot seller, said said Pauline O’Keefe, spokeswoman for the Kay-Bee Toy & Hobby Shop chain based in Pittsfield, Mass.

Street Sharks may take a bigger bite out of the market once they go on the air Sunday with a 90-minute syndicated television special scheduled to become a series next fall.

The television adventure series features four brothers who are “gene-slammed” by the evil Dr. Piranoid, and they fight to keep him and his cronies from taking over the world.

There’s Jab, the hammerhead shark; Ripster, a great white shark; Blades, a tiger shark; and Big Slammu, a whale shark. Dr. Piranoid is joined by Slobster the lobster and Slash the swordfish.

The Power Rangers line has topped toy sales for two years, but some industry watchers say they may be nearing the end of their peak, and there’s a slew of characters ready to battle for consumers.

“My guess is, after two really great seasons, kids are ready for something new,” said Jodi S. Levin, spokeswoman for New York’s Toy Manufacturers of America Inc., which sponsored the toy fair.

But Reysen and others wonder if the Sharks or other action figures can defuse the Rangers’ power, which could widen with this summer’s scheduled release of “Mighty Morphin Power Rangers, The Movie.”

Bandai America Inc. in Cerritos, Calif., which makes the hottest Power Rangers toys, has expanded its line in anticipation of the movie. The new toys are expected to hit the shelves about June.

Bandai Director of Marketing Trish Stewart said the Rangers have excellent staying power.

“The secret is keeping the line fresh,” she said. “Also, keeping the show fresh is important, too … so kids don’t feel like they’re seeing the same old thing.”

For now, 7-year-old Joseph Cevallos of Charleston is taken with the Sharks. He learned about them through show-and-tell at school and now has four figures.

“The Street Sharks do more things than the Power Rangers,” he said. And, “the bad guys have more weapons.”