I suspect that the Playmobil Western sets tend to continue is more to do with executive decisions that hard sales data (and the fact that most to of the western re-issues aimed at collectors have often been very heavily reduced, and keep popping back up for sale, suggests to me they were disappointed with the sales)
So how do you explain that Indians are still being sold? There are currently 9 Indian figures available on the Playmobil.us website ( 4 discrete SKUs ), and they're not discounted either. With that, one could create a whole tribe! No cavalry, though, besides the conspicuously empty fort. ....My guess is that the overall western theme is indeed probably not a
huge seller, but likely sells
enough to make it worth their while ( which is why the theme never fully goes away — kind of like
history ☺ ). It would be interesting to have access to actual sales figures, though ( for both the US
and Europe ).
As far as 'presence on the ground' of this theme, growing up, it depends not just
when, but
where, one grew up. I get the sense that the appeal of the western genre has lingered far longer in Europe than in the US, for some reason — to this day ( maybe because it seems 'exotic', part of the "rêve Américain" — in this context: the idealization and mythologizing of the US ). In comics, growing up in France in the 70s and 80s, we had,
for example:
Blueberry,
The Bluecoats,
Yakari and
Lucky Luke ( all European / Franco-Belgian made ). These comics are still published and popular today, afaik; not just in France, but in other European countries as well ( ex: the latest
Lucky Luke album is currently a best-seller on the German Amazon ). In fact, some of these comics were made into animated series for the European market (
Yakari, 2005, and
Lucky Luke 2001 ). And on TV, for kids, in the mid-80s, there was notably
Bravestarr ( Filmation ), in both markets ( US + Europe ). Nowadays, the western genre appears on kids and teens' radar, everywhere, mostly via video-games; many of which are best-sellers (!), like:
Red Dead Redemption ( I & II ),
Hunt: Showdown, or
Call of Juarez ( I thru IV ). ...It's still there! The other instances, are western mixed with some other genre ( usually sci-fi or fantasy ), as mentioned, like
The Mandalorian recently, for example. The archetypes of the gunslinger and of the frontier are still very much with us, still.
Also, for a boy, a 'fort' is a 'fort'. Ultimately, beyond fleeting trend-appeal, it doesn't very much matter which theme it's from, the play-patterns are essentially the same: attack-and-defend, put the bad guys in jail, break them out by hook or by crook, etc. The western fort, medieval or Asian castles, police or spy team headquarters, are very similar, in this sense: a fortified place to defend ( with a prison, and usually a secret treasure location, inside! ). Which is why I suspect my 9 year old nephew spotted "Fort Brave" out of the blue, in the latest catalog, as a Christmas-wish possibility: it's just a different flavor ( a 'theme' ) of the thing
he, and I suspect
most boys, like. Which is why, as an adult, I believe you can't go wrong gifting a — preferably loaded — toy-fortress to most boys: 'western', or otherwise. They'll know how to play with it! ☺
( Adult appeal: ...Plus, with the western fort, you might get a nice discount!!!
)
P.S. As far as the timeline's cutoff: it is somewhat arbitrary, indeed. Though, the conquest of the American West is roughly 200 years old, and we're well-past having direct survivors around ( 8 generations! ). I also think it shouldn't be up to a 'plastics manufacturer' to essentially take sides in the ongoing culture war, and in so doing, impose their moral views ( hypocritically, imo ), by effectively partly
erasing what is now a rather distant chapter in history, but up to parents. As I said, this theme — actually, we're referring to a sub-theme within the western genre ( "Cowboys and Indians" ) — offers a plethora of learning opportunities —
either way: for, or against —, which can grow out of, and extend well beyond, kids' gameplay. As far as alleged 'dodginess', mentioned earlier, I submit that
all themes have dodgy elements — depending on one's
point-of-view! For example, settlers in the early American West might have been
thrilled to have the cavalry next door; and, it seems to me, American Indians at the time weren't exactly choir boys plucked from tribal bliss, either ( except in
some movies )! ...So, where should the censorship end? And by whom?
