A review by robertrivasplata
The He-Man Effect: How American Toymakers Sold You Your Childhood by Brian Box Brown

dark funny informative reflective sad fast-paced

4.5

Box Brown's history of advertising, propaganda, & the monetization of nostalgia. Draws a line from the inception of modern advertisement in the early 1900s to the corporate intellectual property franchise nostalgia engineering of today. Also discusses the child-psychology & child-development aspects of mass media children's programming, especially the advertising directed at children. Includes history of U.S. regulation, & sudden de-regulation of children's programming, showing how “the 80s cartoon toy boom ended up being a unique moment in time” that was a creation of the Reagan-era FCC's (un-) regulatory environment. Not that Clinton's FCC overhaul The ending chapter is full of ominous lines, e.g. “Whatever form future nostalgia takes, it'll be more extreme than it is today”. I imagine this book narrated by a being stern, deep, authoritative voice (similar to the Frontline voice, or maybe even a Ken Nordine, or Joe Frank). Brown's art is simple, but very evocative. It looks like it belongs in wordless instructions, signage, or maybe even old-style agit-prop posters. Something about his Mr.Potato Head image on page 115 speaks to something deep in my subconscious; I would vote for Mr. Potato Head.