Rumors of a Soda wind-down

[FunkoAlphaBravo]

Although I never got a chase in any of my sodas still going to miss adding new ones to my collection

[Shuttlzworth]

Although I never got a chase in any of my sodas still going to miss adding new ones to my collection

R.I.P.

[kdmlvr]

Soda is sadly dead

[cnote424]

sad times but its clear to me who was the visionary to make them in the first place

[Ronnie18]

I like the size of sodas and thought it was a fun concept but I would be nice to see something new replace them.

[Meckdee]

Was thinking the same thing. The bouncing Freddy's distracted me from the topic at hand. I remember when Soda's were arguably as popular as Pops

:freddy2:
hopin it'll come back.

omg, i'm being hypnotized with the bouncing freddys

[Meckdee]

100% agreed that the non numbered mass production was a bad idea but I think the excitement was dying for them regardless because even the pieces that were lowerish in count and older tanked in price and interest

The Soda category was removed? Im curious if that is because there isnt enough of them to justify a whole dedicated page/link or if theyre truly dying off. At one point recently I heard talks of a potential comeback which wouldve been cool

Indeed saddening. The other day, I was browsing the Funko site and saw that the Soda category was removed - although the remaining in-stock Sodas still can be found under the Funko Gear category.

Honestly, I'm good with Sodas fading away. Wasn't my favorite look anyways and the unlimited Sodas really tanked the value of these (even with chases).

[Meckdee]

You make a really good point, the singular Stone Cold soda always confused me because WWE is such a big IP especially with Pops

:freddy2:

The Soda category was removed? Im curious if that is because there isnt enough of them to justify a whole dedicated page/link or if theyre truly dying off. At one point recently I heard talks of a potential comeback which wouldve been cool

hopin it'll come back.

Same! And if so, I’d love for them to revisit prior franchises and release additional characters from them versus exploring brand new ones. For example, they only released 1 of the Animaniacs, 1 from WWE, and are only missing 1 of the main crew members from Cowboy Bebop.

[ldela001]

You make a really good point, the singular Stone Cold soda always confused me because WWE is such a big IP especially with Pops

:freddy2:
hopin it'll come back.

Same! And if so, I’d love for them to revisit prior franchises and release additional characters from them versus exploring brand new ones. For example, they only released 1 of the Animaniacs, 1 from WWE, and are only missing 1 of the main crew members from Cowboy Bebop.

I would’ve loved more WWE sodas, since they remind me of some of the more old school toys from back in the day.

[sealordbrian]

You make a really good point, the singular Stone Cold soda always confused me because WWE is such a big IP especially with Pops

Same! And if so, I’d love for them to revisit prior franchises and release additional characters from them versus exploring brand new ones. For example, they only released 1 of the Animaniacs, 1 from WWE, and are only missing 1 of the main crew members from Cowboy Bebop.

I would’ve loved more WWE sodas, since they remind me of some of the more old school toys from back in the day.

Same here.

[kmandude92]

100% agreed that the non numbered mass production was a bad idea but I think the excitement was dying for them regardless because even the pieces that were lowerish in count and older tanked in price and interest

The Soda category was removed? Im curious if that is because there isnt enough of them to justify a whole dedicated page/link or if theyre truly dying off. At one point recently I heard talks of a potential comeback which wouldve been cool

Honestly, I'm good with Sodas fading away. Wasn't my favorite look anyways and the unlimited Sodas really tanked the value of these (even with chases).

Yup, these items never had any consistent hype behind them

[Universalman]

The idea was kinda cool... the small ones anyway... the 3L ...eh

[StrangerPOPs]

i could never really get into the sodas, still love my POPs though

[Swirv1211]

RIP to the sodas

[hawkman2]

They had a longer run than most.

[thejaimeh]

The idea was kinda cool... the small ones anyway... the 3L ...eh

Agreed. The smaller size made them great for my desk. I don't really need anything bigger than a standard Pop!

[Brettfes]

there is going to be alot of changes and challenges because of tarrifs... rip.

[FireEmblemZack]

I'm gonna make a bit of a longer post here and I really want it to create some discussion.
So it's been spread that Funko have removed the Soda tab from the Funko Shop, most likely aiming to the end of sodas.

Sodas have been so important to me.
I have memories during 2020 and 2021 where I had a hard day at school or work and what would bring me joy is thinking about sodas and my preorders and thinking of my chases and potential chases I could get. Thinking about potential sodas they could make and just being so excited about it.
I remember the hype releases and amazing convention releases.
The amazing cool sculpts and great chases that made you super anxious and nervous and can't wait to see what you got!!
Sodas made me branch out and be social with other funatics for really the first time and I have made my lifetime friends because of it.
One story in particular was me checking out Emoagogo's twitch stream because he was opening sodas, and now we are besties.
My wife and I loved opening these so much, we opened the Marvel sodas that were at Walmart and would always get sodas from HQ when we went. We would make whole trips around getting the Aquasox Sodas.
Sodas mean so much to me.

Then they started up-ing the numbers.
And moving away from retro characters.
And up-ing the prices.

I am so sad soda is gone. I miss this era of Funko. I miss the fun in Funko.

[scullysdad]

I miss this era of Funko. I miss the fun in Funko.

This is the part that really sticks out to me. It's all about products now and not fun - I mean, even Hasbro and Mattel have events where the company interacts with the fans but now Funko just has a few YouTubers make product update videos.

When Brian and then Mike left Funko, it seems like the attempt to do anything outside of Pops went with them. Most people on here loved Pops more than the other product lines (although I know we still have some OG Wobbler peeps and a few huge fans of Dorbs) but there were different product lines that would catch your interest too. Has anything new come out after Mike left? I am pretty sure the last new product line was Jumbo Chan and that was definitely a Mike creation.

Sodas were definitely a great thing and they were killed when they took the numbers away and went to mass retail. I never even bothered to buy anything from Target or Walmart because if I see 5 Sodas and 4 were sitting there opened, I knew that someone just opened cans until they found the chase and then moved on.

[FireEmblemZack]

Spoiler: show

I miss this era of Funko. I miss the fun in Funko.

This is the part that really sticks out to me. It's all about products now and not fun - I mean, even Hasbro and Mattel have events where the company interacts with the fans but now Funko just has a few YouTubers make product update videos.

When Brian and then Mike left Funko, it seems like the attempt to do anything outside of Pops went with them. Most people on here loved Pops more than the other product lines (although I know we still have some OG Wobbler peeps and a few huge fans of Dorbs) but there were different product lines that would catch your interest too. Has anything new come out after Mike left? I am pretty sure the last new product line was Jumbo Chan and that was definitely a Mike creation.

Sodas were definitely a great thing and they were killed when they took the numbers away and went to mass retail. I never even bothered to buy anything from Target or Walmart because if I see 5 Sodas and 4 were sitting there opened, I knew that someone just opened cans until they found the chase and then moved on.

Exactly! Hasboro and Mattel listen to their fans and do fan livestreams and do teases and upcoming products. It's nice to have faces to the team that work on the toylines! Funko used to do that with FunTV and I remember every single one of us tuning into that!!!

Yeah I think the only new line since Mike left is technically just the expansions to Bitty which to me just feel like jumping on a bandwagon (even though some are cool to me like the TRON arcade and Funko HQ)

This is an odd comparison but it's like how Taco Bell is right now. They changed leadership and gone are the days of wild experiments like the Dorito taco or Naked Chicken taco, but now it's like once in a blue moon they do something super new and cool, instead of just removing nacho fries and bringing it back with a booty sauce or something. None of these companies wanna take risks.

[wolfy233]

Man, this actually really bums me out because there was once a time when you could only get very specific character iterations in sodas. The mass production took the "specialness" of that away because they would immediately make a pop version of that character [style] and completely negate the relevance of the soda version. It reminds me of the Rainbow Batman dorbz. It was very special and then they went and made a pop version later and complete killed its uniqueness.

[FireEmblemZack]

I just watched Top Pop's video on this, he did mention that in Funkos quarterly report thing they do still show sodas!
He also said an idea to bring them back would be making the can cardboard and I would be on board with that! I just want the figures!!!

[bitmap]

I just watched Top Pop's video on this, he did mention that in Funkos quarterly report thing they do still show sodas!
He also said an idea to bring them back would be making the can cardboard and I would be on board with that! I just want the figures!!!

hopefully this is still the case, sodas are still iconic even though they aren't as popular as the pop line. would be a shame if they just discontinued it without any reason and feedback from the community.

[FunkoSven]

I just watched Top Pop's video on this, he did mention that in Funkos quarterly report thing they do still show sodas!
He also said an idea to bring them back would be making the can cardboard and I would be on board with that! I just want the figures!!!

hopefully this is still the case, sodas are still iconic even though they aren't as popular as the pop line. would be a shame if they just discontinued it without any reason and feedback from the community.

Yah its sad that companies make decisions based on financial performance and cut product lines before trying to fix it or reaching out to fans to see if there is anyway to improve it : /

[ldela001]

I just watched Top Pop's video on this, he did mention that in Funkos quarterly report thing they do still show sodas!
He also said an idea to bring them back would be making the can cardboard and I would be on board with that! I just want the figures!!!

Very interesting! I figured show sodas would be the way to go moving forward versus dropping them completely. Hopefully, this means both Funko and non-Funko characters.

Regarding cardboard cans, that’s something I’d definitely want to see before I make an opinion. But I totally understand what you’re saying since the important part is containing the soda figures.

[Meckdee]

Does anyone know if Dorbz had a bigger run or Soda? Trying to think of the longest/most successful line outside of Pops

[Stragon]

there is going to be alot of changes and challenges because of tarrifs... rip.

Yes, agree, there are going to be a lot of challenges going forward.

[Kuya_Kulture]

Wife we can bring back the demand for Sodas it was a create product

[keyese]

I'm not too surprised after they kept raising the prices to more than a Pop, but it is a bummer. As others have mentioned, my area had a problem with people opening them to try to find the chasers so it was difficult to find them sometimes.

[emzben25]

Yeah, same here. It was difficult to find where I'm at too. And with all the changes going on at Funko and globally, things are getting more expensive and challenging for companies.

[buddylee]

sad to see the Soda's going away. love the product. certain sculpts and characters translate better for the design style. when it worked I loved it.

[Joker3346]

I hope they just needed a break. I’m ready for them to make a come back.

[SpaceDude]

sad to see the Soda's going away. love the product. certain sculpts and characters translate better for the design style. when it worked I loved it.

I know right it is sad, always been a fan of the sculpts and characters!!

[jcrook]

I liked the sodas and even some of the 3L ones. Was sad that their run came to an end.

[Relinquish]

it is sad I think the concept was really clever and I enjoyed their unique look given their size limitations and having to be able to fit into a can. kind of felt like older pop molds where it was more consistent where now they do some crazy things with pops and just adapt the boxes to fit them.

[CaliCollectibles]

RIP sodas, you had a great run

[buddylee]

sad to see the Soda's going away. love the product. certain sculpts and characters translate better for the design style. when it worked I loved it.

I know right it is sad, always been a fan of the sculpts and characters!!

i personally loved the old cartoon sculpts. The animals usually looked great and fit the can packaging style.

[SpaceDude]

sad to see the Soda's going away. love the product. certain sculpts and characters translate better for the design style. when it worked I loved it.

I know right it is sad, always been a fan of the sculpts and characters!!

i personally loved the old cartoon sculpts. The animals usually looked great and fit the can packaging style.

I totally agree!

[Shuttlzworth]

RIP sodas, you had a great run

pour one out for the dead homies

[nightbodega]

I'm so bummed about this. Maybe one day it will come back at a con.