From the moment you walk into Todd McFarlane’s Tempe office, you could swear you’ve walked into another world.
A world filled with everything awesome about popular culture.
At the entrance, the walls are adorned with "Spawn" figures and comic books, along with various awards the legendary comic book artist has won through the years.
The further you walked into his office space, the more you were surrounded by pop culture icons; from KISS to the Tom Brady, Eleven to Rick Grimes. No, not the actual people, but incredibly articulated and detailed action figures.
And now we can add Arizona Cardinals players Larry Fitzgerald and David Johnson to this impressive roster.
Star running back David Johnson is making his action figure debut for McFarlane Toys in the Madden NFL 18 Ultimate Team Series 2. The latest series is the third figure for Larry Fitzgerald.
“Larry’s as amazed at the final product as I am when he makes a one-handed catch,” McFarlane said.
But when creating this latest batch of figures, McFarlane said the really fun part was with Johnson.
“This was David’s first figure, so he really enjoyed the whole process,” he said. “He couldn't wait to give the figures to his family and friends.”
McFarlane went on to say that he thinks the younger players get a charge out of seeing themselves in figure form because it’s another unique thing they can share with their friends.
“Once they get one, then they get to big their buddies," he proclaimed. “How many people get to say they have their own figure?”
So how does McFarlane go about picking which players to add to his figure lines? He said it’s not as complicated as you may think.
“Here’s how I start; has my wife heard of him,” McFarlane quips. “She’s not a giant sports fan, but if I turn to her and ask her if she knows Brett Farve, that’s a good thing.”
Another big factor McFarlane says plays into choosing players is uniform.
“Let’s say if it comes down to the best player on the Marlins or the fifth best players on the Yankees, I know I’m going to sell more Yankees figures.”
While McFarlane has immortalized some of the greatest players in Arizona sports, there is one Arizona athlete that he would like to see added as a toy.
Diamondbacks first baseman Paul Goldschmidt.
“He’s a superstar on the level of Larry Fitzgerald and would make a great choice,” McFarlane said.
Even though we don't have a Goldy figure for now, fans will continue to collect and admire the incredible toys from the country’s fifth-largest action figure manufacturer.
If you want to learn more about how and where you can find the latest Fitzgerald and Johnson figures, visit the McFarlane Toys website.