Toys R Us sells Breaking bad "action figure"

[CathyA]

Wow......this is hard to believe. Toys R Us is selling the Breaking Bad characters. The main guy comes with a gun, a bag of money and a bag of CRYSTAL METH. OMG! What's next??
As someone pointed out, is this any different than GI joe/Teenage muntant ninja turtles, etc., .........but I do think it goes too far. The store said that they do keep the action figures in the "Adult" part of the store. Oh.........then I guess that's okay. >8)

[jp1]

SO loves that show. Maybe I'll have to get these for him for Christmas!

[CathyA]

Well, it's one thing to love the show, but putting that kind of thing in a toy store is, well................

[RichLife]

Guess it depends on how supervised and controlled the adult part of the store is. If kids can just walk in there and buy it, or get the parent to buy it for them, that might not be that great an idea.

[kib]

... exactly what part of this IS a great idea?

[Tenngal]

This should be in a gift shop for adults not a toy store. Who lets their children watch this show?

[Tussiemussies]

I agree with you CsthyA, we have been teaching our children violence through all types of media. When I go onto my Kindle, the first page before you actually get on usually advertised books and games for young children. About 90% of the games have some violent tendency and look like sensory overload, which most are...

[ToomuchStuff]

Guess it depends on how supervised and controlled the adult part of the store is. If kids can just walk in there and buy it, or get the parent to buy it for them, that might not be that great an idea.

I would guess it is similar to some games and movies sold, The store is open, but they need to see some form of id at the cash register for age related purchases.
That said, it may not all be bad, after all there have been a few arrests of meth manufacturers wearing breaking bad shirts, that I am aware of.

[jp1]

If the kids haven't seen Breaking Bad then they probably won't be particularly interested because they won't recognize the characters. If they've already seen the show then action figures aren't likely to make the situation any worse than it already is.

[kib]

Dunno ... giving a kid a bag of crystal meth?

I guess "cops n robbers" is an old game, but "you be the drug dealer and I'll be the junkie?" That one's a trifle disturbing. Maybe because there is no good guy. We want a good guy, so if we don't have one, we start transferring the higher status onto archetypes that don't deserve it, and then internalizing it. Breaking Bad is hard for me to watch, because I find myself identifying with scummy behavior just because the other scum is even worse. I have a hard time imagining what this could do to a child of action figure age who's encouraged to not only observe, but act out the roles.

[Spartana]

Definitely should be in the adults only category IMHO but it's really no different from the various video games that have come out over the past 10 - 20 years. I remember when Grand Theft Auto first came out back in the late 1990's and how all the character roles you could pick to play were all bad guys way worse then the Breaking Bad bad guys - and killing other bad guys (or good guys) got you the most points. I think those were also suppose to be adults only, or at least 16 or over, but assume many younger kids played them. And of course there is a big difference between a video game and a doll. I just can't see older teens or adults playing with dolls so assume that they are meant to attract young kids.

[Glo]

This is the worst thing I've heard in a long time. What were they thinking? Just don't buy this trash! (I will admit to being a huge fan of the show.)

[ToomuchStuff]

Never watched the show, but did see in the news that they have stopped selling them due to a petition. Did you go sign it, or just complain about it?.

[Packy]

What has happened in popular media is that Life now must Imitate Art. No matter how stupid the trendsetter-media proposition is, some people are only gullible copycats. I have several areas of interest in which a number of the enthusiast publications are based in California----not surprisingly, in the same locale these TV shows originate. Well, some of the trends that these magazines set are not very sensible or even good for the hobby! Novelty, or carrying unconventional concepts to extremes, is valued much more highly than practical considerations. But, they apparently couldn't care less. Just want to sell magazines, influencing impressionable novices, heading them in what I believe is the wrong direction. I really think TV is having that effect on our culture, too, pushing it along.