This second part of The Toys That Made Us shows us the creation and evolution of 4 major toy brands. The authors of the Netflix series open the doors to different universes.
The Star Trek, Transformers, Lego and Hello Kitty franchises are dissected in these 4 episodes. Through the voices of their creators, spectators discover the evolution of toys that marked their childhood. The Toys That Made Us tells us the story behind the great sagas!
This new season of The Toys That Made Us takes us to discover the story of toys that were not all designed in the United States.
We learn the different ways of functioning and the different techniques that the creators used.
The credits are still as good as the first season. It even adapts to some toys like in the episode dedicated to Hello Kitty.
The rhythm of the documentary is still as suspenseful. Actors play sequences that tell the great moments of the company. This allows a better understanding of the words even if it can be disturbing at times.
In some parts of The Toys That Made Us, professionals give advice on selling toys. By telling us about the evolution of their brand, we learn how to start a toy brand without financial support from a studio or a large company. Some toys target children but also adults. Designers try to keep childhood passions going into adulthood to make a constant or greater profit.
The Lego episode is very constructive. His true success story highlights his country of origin. This family business has managed to build a real empire. In addition, following the evolution of the company through the evolution of a tree built with Lego bricks was quite playful.
This season 2 is not only about artistic creation but also about the legal creation of a toy. Indeed, Lego designers tell us about their system and the fact that they protected it by patenting it.
This second part highlights the contribution of the toy industry to the country's industry. Indeed, the Lego company has created a lot of jobs and at its peak has produced 1% of the country's GDP.
The toys presented are more sought after and more philosophical. They have a history of their own and want to create a connection with children. Creators want to bring something more than just temporary entertainment, they want to make their ideas last.
This season also talks about the marketing aspect of the toy industry and especially its relationship with celebrities.
Creators are not ashamed to talk about their failures and it is very refreshing. Curiosity is once again satisfied on certain points.
However, there are a lot of grey areas. We don't talk at all about how the toys were created, let alone the conditions of creation. Indeed, it is quite ironic to dispute that toys made for children were created by them. It feels a bit like the series is there to glorify brands but completely obscures the horrific conditions in which toys are created.
The interest of the creators of The Toys that made us is unclear. Is the series made to give ideas to younger generations and influence them? It can also be a tribute to the creators or simply a valorization of a certain form of American Dream.
The Toys That Made Us ends with these last 4 episodes. This second part opens up the worlds of toy giants that are not only American!
