2021 has been an interesting year. We've seen massive amounts of factory customs. There were a few "retro" items available. And, most importantly, Hasbro is bringing back some vintage Joe style figures with commemorative releases and the Haslab Skystriker. 2022 has much for Joe collectors to look forward to. Promises of a variety of products that should hit everyone's collecting niche abound.
Looking through this year's top 10, it's an eclectic mix. Numbers 2 and 3 are really surprising. But, in general, the popularity seems to be all over the place. The site saw a massive uptick in visitors as both the pandemic raged and the Snake Eyes movie drew close to release. Even after the movie's disappearance from popular culture, though, the traffic has remained high. The site got 189,000 page views this year. That's a substantial increase from years past.
Without further ado, here are the top 10 posts in terms of pageviews that were released in 2020. I put that caveat on there because the most viewed post on the site in all of 2021 was, once again, the 1984 MANTA. I don't know why. But, it more than tripled the number 1 post that was new in 2021.
10. 1986 Claymore
Claymore is a "rare" figure who's price has far outstripped his value to a collection. As I got him for Christmas in 1986, though, he's somewhat important to me. And, his rarity always attracts eyeballs.
Red Laser Army figures tend to do well. Snake Eyes figures tend to do well. So, combined, they clocked in as the 9th most popular new post on the site this year.
8. 1983 Hawk
Hawk is kind of a surprise. I looked at the MMS last year, too. And, it was one of the worst performing new profiles of the year. So, to see the Hawk included with the vehicle get so many additional views just goes to show how valuable the inclusion of the drivers really was.
7. 2020 Black Major Bonecrusher
Bonecrusher was my pick for the best figure of 2020. I still maintain that it's an excellent design that brings some needed life to the 1985 Snake Eyes mold. It showing up there is no surprise.
Crystal Ball really shouldn't be among the most viewed profiles of the year. But, I can also see how he does belong. Everyone knows him. And, sometimes, people just can't look away, even at something that's goofy and silly.
5. 2021 Zica Toys Riot Commando
To be honest, I thought the Riot Commando would have done better. It's an awesome figure and I got him within days of his 1st release. But, it seems this figure hasn't really caught on in the vintage Joe world. I expected lots of photos of him to appear in the months after his release. That hasn't happened. And, the Riot Commando seems to be fading into obscurity. That's an unjust fate for a solid figure with amazing paint applications that's priced right.
This one kind of makes sense. The Toxo Zombie has become a popular figure. Obscure carded figures tend to perform well. And, this is a relatively unknown foreign variant, too. It all added up to a well read post.
Ugh. Crossfire sucks. I despise this figure and have since his release 20 years ago. Yet, I must not be in tune with the community on this one as here he is, the third most viewed page on the site in 2021. Controversy gets clicks, I guess.
This one is surprising. Stargate figures get zero mention in Joe groups. And, while these figures include Joe accessories, they aren't all that exciting to anyone but variant nerds like myself. But, I suspect the offbeat nature of the figure and the loose connection to Joe brought in many casual readers.
No surprise that the biggest Joe news of the year lead the site in traffic. It wasn't a huge advantage, only about 30% more than Lt. Kawalsky. But, nothing beat out the Skystriker announcement. The night the Haslab funded was one of the most fun Joe collecting nights in my more than two decades of being a member of the online collecting community. Here's to another one in 2022.
Thus ends another year of Joe fandom. We know we're getting o-ring figures in 2022. We just don't know who and when. But, it will happen. And, assuming they aren't impossible to get, you'll probably see them here. The night of the Skystriker funding was one of the most fun Joe world experiences of the past 20 years. It's my hope that Hasbro can strike that kind of magic more often.
As 2022 is the 40th anniversary of the vintage Joe line, I'm going to take a different tact for the first part of the year and profile something each week in chronological order starting with 1982 through, at least 1994. (I'll see how I feel about touching on post '94 years.) It will follow my personal chronology with the line, how I grew with the line, abandoned it and then came back.
I hope you and yours have had a solid 2021 and wish you a better 2022. We have much to look forward to this year and I will enjoy sharing it with you!
What are these statistics based off of? Clicking on an individual article? Instagram? Wouldn't most people come to the main page and then start reading down, going to 'Older Posts' at the bottom of the page? How can you track what people are reading with multiple articles on a single 'main' page? Could be why the results are wonky. Could also be random links to this site you don't know about.
ReplyDeleteMost of my traffic is social media driven and I post direct links there. So, I use that as the measurement. (You can watch the counter go up as I post in different places.) I can't take the number as an absolute measurement of people who have seen something. But, it's a solid gauge since I post the direct links to each individual items. Usually, Twitter and FB engagement matches up with the page's popularity.
DeleteThank you. This is one of the main places I find out about Joes.
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