CBS Introduces Star Trek QUOGS – New Cartoon-style TOS Character Designs For Multiple Products February 12, 2009
by John Tenuto , Filed under: Merchandise , trackback
Two days ago TrekMovie highlight the new Star Trek GoAnimate site featuring a number of newly designed characters from The Original Series. Today CBS announced that these new character designs (called ‘QUOGS’) will appear on a number of new products from a number of their Star Trek licensing partners. More details below.
Star Trek QUOGS
The new designs, previously seen at the GoAnimate site and with some Funko figures, are part of a much bigger push to create a new line of Star Trek merchandise that will appeal to a broader audience with what CBS are calling ‘a fresh and accessible look.’ The proprietary animated art style applied to the classic TOS characters and settings will be extended to multiple Trek licensees and products beginning with Gluck (watches), Funko (vinyl figures), Trevco (t-shirts), Hallmark (greeting cards) and more.
According to CBS they created QUOGs to ‘broaden the Star Trek universe.’ The press release from CBS notes that QUOGs will ‘appeal to collectors and new fans alike.’ From the designs it is clear that what they are doing is creating fun character interpretations from Star Trek that will appeal to a younger crowd, including girls. CBS Products EVP Liz Kalodner says of QUOGS:
The development of QUOGS displays the continued power of the Star Trek brand and its ability to bring smiles to fans around the world. With Star Trek’s rich history, we believe QUOGS is a gateway to the future.
Meet the QUOGS
And here are the first looks at QUOGS across multiple products.
Star Trek QUOGs – Funko Vinyl figures (click to enlarge)
Star Trek QUOGs – Gluck Watches (click to enlarge)
Star Trek QUOGs – Trevco Shirts (click to enlarge)
Star Trek QUOGs – Hallmark Greeting Card (click to enlarge)
Plus here are the QUOGS as seen at the GoAnimate Trek site (see full TrekMovie review)
GoAnimate.com: TrekMovie
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Comments»
Doesnt do much for me…
If it pays for more TV series… then it’s good.
But I’m not a collector (my mother would disagree). I’m all over the role-playing accessories!
Y si fui primero!
I love the shirts…and my son will be asking for the watches…I think it’s a good direction.
Maybe we will eventually see a Clone Wars style animated Star Trek series.
Well.it will be great for Children and I think it is a good Direction for Trek. pretty Cool stuf.
#6 Maybe we will eventually see a Clone Wars style animated Star Trek series.(Well. That would be kool. But I hope it is based on the Tos Series and it’s First 5 year Mission.
Two things:
They don’t have to pay likeness fees to the actors, since these representations aren’t directly culled from their faces.
With a new cast coming in for the movie, having “generic” representations of the characters would help to bridge the gap, somewhat.
ety3,
As soon as I saw your name, I tried to implicitly differentiate it! HAHAHA! Okay… I’ve officially gone crazy. Someone get me a mind meld.
Sorry, had to.
On a Trek note, these toys are definitely interesting. I really like the shirts, especially. I think it’ll help to bring in the younger generations.
This is pretty cool, mainstream design stuff. A fun take on Trek. I like this direction – and the GoAnimate.com site is fun like anything to play around with.
http://tinyurl.com/dycfzp
These designs kind of unify the look of the Chris Pine Kirk and the look of the Bill Shatner Kirk.
I kind of like it.
Yeah, my boys are gonna go nuts for this stuff.
If e^(ty^3) = C
(-e^(ty^3))
——————– = dy/dt
(3y^2)(e^(ty^3))
===========================================
Sorry, had to figure it out. I have a math midterm on Monday, so it’s good practice.
Back to Trek: I just told my little cousin about these. She’s not a big fan of Trek, but she wants the “green lady.” Apparently she’s pretty and looks like broccoli.
McCoy has the prop that was called a Tricorder.
*squeals with joy*
All this great new stuff, and me with no spare cash…..*sigh*
I may be bi-polar.
No, I am not.
Oh well, I’m off to the blood bank!!!!!!
:o) Ok, I love these!
@15…
indeed ;))
I wonder, oh, I wonder how long it will be before we see an official cartoon series with these things. I dread it; a comedy Trek toon.
Well, that’s something I don’t need.
6:
“Maybe we will eventually see a Clone Wars style animated Star Trek series”
Please, God. No.
19,
I don’t think they would. Paramount wouldn’t be stupid enough to do that. I’m pretty sure that anyone with half a brain would see “The Clone Wars” monstrosity and know not to touch it.
AJ,
That was perfect. Great minds think alike.
With all this so called “collectable” crap being pushed out this will only help bury the franchise. This junk won’t sell and the only ones buying it are old school Trekkies with money to burn.
Star Trek Bratz, pleeeeze!!!!
Darth “feed my dog” Ballz
…..I have to remind myself…..it’s for the kids….its for the kids……
Captain George W! ??
did the guy who drew these have a habbit?
I liked the shirts, but I’m not gonna get one. Still, it’s nice to see Trek getting more attention.
these ones have five fingers.
i really like the design and look of these products.
i like the Mighty Muggs style as well. That would be cool to get some Trek Mighty Muggs.
OK, this time the E strayed too close to a slightly smaller black hole and the breakaway took them to 1972.
I like GoAnimate, but “QUOGS is a gateway to the future”? Nah.
Love this stuff… I need all the shirts!
Gateway drugs.
I added the hallmark card image above
Ah, the raping begins.
Yeah, this feels totally like an effort to create generic faces for the characters, sort of like some James Bond merchandise that isn’t tied to particular movie or actor.
Oh lawd. Not sure I’m ready for Trek to go THIS mainstream.
I’ve heard TOS referred to as many things in my lifetime, but I’ve never heard it called “cute”. Something very wrong here.
14………That post is awesome.
Kid appeal? Necessary for Trek’s survival?
Perhaps…. Perhaps.
It’s so crazy, it just might work.
Personally, I think this kind of thing is awesome. When I was a kid in the 70s, there was all kinds of Trek merchandise meant to be played with — Mego figures, toy phasers (that could put your frikkin’ eye out!), puzzles, board games, etc. Trek was *fun.” If Star Wars, DC and Marvel superheroes, etc. can provide different versions of their characters for different audience age levels, why not Trek?
Bring it on. My kids will love this stuff.
Part of Star Wars’ appeal is that it has “luvable” characters. Cute Yoda plush dolls, for example.
Cute tribbles, mock-snarling targs, Data’s kitty-cat Spot… these things DO help broaden Trek’s appeal, just as Cuddly Yoda does.
So… what’s wrong with this again, critics?
i don’t get it. What is the point to get us to go out and by more figures cause they are a different design?
I mean how many ways can they repackage the same stuff , so we have to buy the same stuff all over again.
Is this stuff connected to a new animated series?
I just don’t get it enough to feel good or bad about this.
Here are some examples of Yoda plush toys:
http://www.thinkgeek.com/computing/bags/817c/
And, scroll down at :
http://www0.dealtime.com/-yoda+stuffed+animal
40 — I think it’s a really great marketing tool for the franchise. Seven-year-olds who like the Trek dolls are more likely to grow up to be seventeen-year-olds who think Trek is cool and twenty-seven-year-olds who go to cons and make fan films and more.
What’s wrong with that, I wonder?
If we want Trek to succeed and to survive, and shall I dare say PROSPER, it has to expand and attract audiences that have not taken notice before. As a twenty year veteran in advertising, I think this campaign is brilliant. As a previous post said, it has proven successful with Marvel, DC & Star Wars. And although based on TOS, it certainly could be from the new movie as well. So if a young new audience only knows the new movie, they would be attracted to this campaign.
#40: “i don’t get it. What is the point to get us to go out and by more figures cause they are a different design?”
No.
They’re hoping to get kids and *women* to buy some Trek stuff. Where no Trek licensee has gone…any time recently.
How stupid.
Fools and their money….
I love the shirts, and the new Doc McCoy can “check my vitals” any time, muha!
diggin the quogs, its time for a new animated series.
finally a new trek product that i might actually have to have, they’d look great in my cubicle…
may da schwartz be wit’ you!
I want Orci/Abrams/Lindelof QUOGs so that I can glue them to my screen ;))
Actually the clone war cartoons are miles ahead of the prequel movies. I just wish they focused in on the New Republic
They could turn these cartoons into figures like hasbro did for Star Wars.
#44
C’mon, Doc. Are you the voice of sense and reason? I’m certain that your home is a sterile laboratory type environment where items of personal interest and no immediately recognizable worth are nowhere to be found.
And it is OUR money. We can spend it how we please.
The QUOGS put a smile on my face. I like the cartoon look and finally something different than the standard action figure variety.
Don’t know about a cartoon, CG or otherwise. TOO kiddy would put me off. I enjoy Clone Wars alot though.
Is it politically correct to resell an Orion Slave Girl?
The New Clone Wars Cartoon is really great. I would love to see a Trek cartoon done with the professionalism that is poured into that series.
I would love a Clone Wars type animated series of the ongoing adventures of the new crew. I hated the prequels, but love watching Clone Wars. An animated program is about the only way we will see these guys (or at least hear their voices) doing a TV show. There is no way Pine would do an ongoing live TV series considering the press he is now getting and the motion picture history he has. Same for the others, except maybe Qinto (though that may change after the movie). But, hey, give us ongoing adventures ala Clone Wars (which is hugely popular with kids) and I think Trek lives on with great stories between movies with the same actors doing the voice acting.
That would be a win-win.
The did this with Wonka™, too. Look at the WONKAQUOG® on your box of Nerds©.
For any number of reasons… but specifically to create brand uniformity. I took, like, marketing classes at uni when I got the business degree, dude.
THE WOMEN!!
=h=
[...] Trekmovie Publicado [...]
Speaking of QUOGS and GoAnimate…here’s something for you, Anthony. :-)
http://goanimate.com/go/user/0Cvnk3ytdbdQ
Roland
Yours is the superior animation
thanks….we are all touched
Anthony,
I’m EXTREMELY flattered that you watched it…let alone liked it. Thanks so much for recommending that site. I’ll be wasting many hours there during the wee hours of the morning.
And as always…LOVE this site.
heeee so cute ^_^
Ooo, SNAZZY! :D I’m not too crazy about the t-shirts, really (ugh. this franchise is SO geared too much towards guys.) but I like it.
#57 Ensign Ro: OMIGAWD, THAT VIDEO WAS HYSTERICAL!!!!! xDDDDD I laughed my butt off at the part where Spock smiles kind of sheepishly (oh!!! he smiled!!! ah that warms my heart so much. ^^) and everyone’s laughing and Kirk’s just like, “WHERE THE FRACK IS MY CHAIR.” And then the incorporation of Trekmovie.com… Priceless and infinitely creative!!!!!
*****/**** ;3
So now are we all allowed to use “Paassscccallllllle”?
Good bit, Roland.
Meh. I like playing with the goanimate stuff though. No bobbleheads for me.
RE: Christine & Jason…
Thanks so much. I’m glad you enjoyed it. I certainly had fun creating it.
I say FAIL
As soon as I saw the GoAnimate site I KNEW the designs would be used for much more than playing around with animation. I can’t find any fault with the designs per se, and they definitely do bridge the looks gap between TOS NewTOS, but as far as the t-shirts go: I live in a big city, and the only people you see shirts like this on are those who don’t understand what the words mean.
There’s a small chance they could work in the same way that young hipsters wear shirts with ’70s iconography on them like Scooby Do, etc., but I think most young hipsters would prefer TOS cartoon shirts using imagery from the animated series. They can smell, and despise, fake ironic kitsch.
Personally, I’d get a molded plastic cartoon Kirk keychain if they made them (somewhere other than China.)
When did they recast Conan O’Brien as Kirk?
I will have the watches and t-shirts.
That is all.
Jim Henson’s Star Trek Babies!
People criticizing these QUOGS need to relax. If you don’t like ‘em, don’t buy ‘em. I personally think they’re cute and funny.
Aaaaah cute!!!! XD
Ehhhh. At least they’re modeling them after the original cast…… I think. Hard to tell, being all stylized almost beyond recognition.
Does anyone else think that Funko Vinyl figure Kirk looks like the former prez George Doobya Bush?
These are kinda cute, and I love the shirts, but doesn’t Sulu look angry? Like he’s going to randomly punch you
I want to see some Trek creatures QUOGSed. Namely Balok, Gorn and Mugato.
I’m wracking my brain trying to come up with what QUOGS is an acronym for… hate to admit I got nothin’…
Hmm, interesting thoughts.
The Gorn would be uber-cute. Kind of like Barney the dinosaur, except with fangs and a horn.
The Mugato is already somewhat cute, in a Halloweenish sort of way. (Take a gander at the pic at the Star Trek wiki.) I can only imagine what could be done with him.
Balok — well, he’s a baby, really, so what else need to be done? All we would need is a politician kissing him while campaigning for office and we’re done.
The real challenge would be Horta, the rock creature. On the other hand, if they could make Pet Rocks work in the 1970’s….
:-)
Oops. I said, “The Gorn would be uber-cute. Kind of like Barney the dinosaur, except with fangs and a horn.” Lose the horn. I was thinking of the Mugato. Sorry about that.
If I hear the term “fresh look” once more, I’ll scream…
Ah, stuff it! Any classic TOS is good TOS! :)
YES! Bring on the green women merchandise!
And then I’ll find a way to explain it to the wife…
yuk!
#77
I meant the puppet Balok, not the Cliff Howard child Balok. ;)
The child Balok would be too creepy. LOL
#77
They’ve put a Gorn on one of the shirts:
http://www.trevcoinc.com/style.aspx?pID=12607&cID=694
The rest of the designs can be seen here:
http://www.trevcoinc.com/search.aspx?cID=694&p=3
Edit #82 Clint Howard (it’s early here)
#83
Sweet. Now we need a Gorn vinyl figure.
Excellent idea. Don’t dig them hugely myself, but I can see exactly where they’re going with this – they’re moving to make Trek appeal more to kids.
Fab! My three-year-old son and two-year-old daughter will LOVE stuff like that!
83, that Gorn T-shirt is awesome. It should be a hit with the ‘tweeners set (i.e., those not yet teenagers).
pretty cool indeed
Although I can see the value in this product line, it concerns me that TREK is moving into the same merchandising frenzy as Star Wars. The Lucasverse has similar character designs, and they don’t appeal to me personally.
I think Paramount needs to be very careful, that they don’t over-saturate the market with a lot of TREK merch, then have the movie disappoint the way the SW prequels have done. Best to tread carefully until the product has been proven.
And the Orion girl seems a bit too lime green for me. She should be more of a hunter green…
this would be great……if i were 5 years old…..but i’m not….
I LOVE these new t-shirts.
I definitely want the one with Kirk, McCoy, Spock and the phrase “Forget the Red Shirts, WE Got it Covered.”
LOL!
Wow, I think I’m in love! Definitely getting some t-shirts and watches. It’s great that they’re breathing new life into the original series (which in my mind will always, always be the best). Great job!
Very cool idea. I wish there was a Spock shirt here… the way Kirk and Bones have their own shirts. I like this new direction, and I liked the old animated series as well. It’s a way to continue the story line with the same characters you love in the same time period without the actors changing ;)