G.I. Joe is on par with Barbie as the male counterpart in dominating the action figure industry. He has been around for over 40 years and to this day is still popular with young boys. Action figures are also worth quite a good sum of money to collectors, especially the vintage figures. Take a look at some of the action figures that have remained a force in the market since their introduction.

The first action figure we will look at is the invincible G.I. Joe, introduced to the toy industry by Hasbro in 1964. This first version of the action figure was an immediate success with young boys all over wanting one. The success of the original figure has led to many variations being created and offered now and children can decide on a G.I. Joe, allies, enemies and now even foreign fighters. They are now even introducing signature lines of the figures that represent heroes from the military as well as famous astronauts. The first G.I. Joe dolls from the 1960's are now a collector's item that is thought of as a cultural icon bringing big money on eBay.

Another segment of the action figure market that never seems to weaken is the superhero genre. Superman, Spiderman, and Batman remain the strongest favorites even staying popular without a corresponding movie. Spiderman has been very much in demand of late since the last Spiderman movie. Batman is marketed along with the popular movie series and cartoons. Superman, the figure that actually created the category is coming back strong now even more than ever with the release of the latest Superman movie. The X-Men movies have led to a strong following in these action figures as well. If you are looking for any of these figures you should check out some of the sites online like eBay.

One of the biggest surprise hits to me was The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Who would have thought that an idea about mutant turtle superheroes would be so huge? This superhero niche began as a comic book then led to the cartoon series which was then followed by a popular movie franchise. You talk about an imagination, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles who are pizza-loving martial artists mentored by a sewer rat ninja master. Another neat twist was naming them after famous renaissance artists.