shaxper
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Post by shaxper on Jan 11, 2023 9:41:28 GMT -5
Most underrated toy line ever:  I often think about how many properties certain licensees had (not necessarily at the same time). For instance, Galoob did Micro Machines, WCW, Defenders of the Earth, etc. A quick check of Wikipedia reveals that Hasbro acquired Galoob in 1998. I didn't even know this line existed, and I consider myself a bit of a vintage action figure expert. Was it 3.75" scale? Galoob also did the initial line of Star Trek: The Next Generation before the license moved to Playmates. While the sculpts and details were extremely lacking, I thought they made an outstanding shuttlecraft vehicle:  The Playmates figures were odd in their own way. I prefer the galoob line for the 3.75" scale. These guys can interact with my Star Wars and G.I. Joe figures, as well as the new Kenner Marvel Legends. |
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Post by Deleted on Jan 11, 2023 10:00:44 GMT -5
This’ll explain the scale better (I can never articulate it well):  Oh, and I learnt something, too. I had no idea there’d been TNG figures prior to Playmates. I like the photo you shared! |
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shaxper
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Post by shaxper on Jan 11, 2023 11:36:35 GMT -5
This’ll explain the scale better (I can never articulate it well): Ah, 5" figures. So these would have been on par with the Kenner Super Powers figures. Very nice. Glad I could help! Trek has gone through a lot of different toy manufacturers over the years, and galoob was definitely one of the less impressive of these, but it still had its charm. |
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Post by Deleted on Jan 11, 2023 11:52:35 GMT -5
It’s interesting to me how certain figures didn’t make their way to my hometown.
I mean, as a kid, I saw Galoob’s WCW toys and Hasbro’s WWF toys, but never the AWA toys by Remco. Did that mean Remco didn’t reach here or was I just unlucky?
The Super Powers line was interesting. Brainiac and Flash seemed elusive in my local toy store.
And I don’t recall the Galoob TNG toys here, only Playmates. Makes me wonder, could a near town or city have had them, or were we Brits just unlucky?
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shaxper
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Post by shaxper on Jan 11, 2023 12:39:40 GMT -5
It’s interesting to me how certain figures didn’t make their way to my hometown. I mean, as a kid, I saw Galoob’s WCW toys and Hasbro’s WWF toys, but never the AWA toys by Remco. Did that mean Remco didn’t reach here or was I just unlucky? The Super Powers line was interesting. Brainiac and Flash seemed elusive in my local toy store. Interesting. Flash was very common in my neck of the woods. From my understanding, the rarest ones in the US were Cyborg, Mr. Freeze, and Shazam. I guess I could see the rationale for why Star Trek figures might not have made their way across The Atlantic. The U.K. had a lot more options for science fiction entertainment than the US did, and so might not have been expected to take as much of an interest in a Star Trek spinoff. We didn't have Doctor Who, Quartermass, Blake's 7, or Red Dwarf over here. |
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Post by Deleted on Jan 11, 2023 12:46:00 GMT -5
Good point. I only saw a few TNG Playmates figures in Woolworths, certainly none in other toy stores like Smyths and Toys ‘R’ Us.
It’s so random here at times. Makes me angry (just kidding).
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shaxper
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Post by shaxper on Jan 11, 2023 12:54:35 GMT -5
Good point. I only saw a few TNG Playmates figures in Woolworths, certainly none in other toy stores like Smyths and Toys ‘R’ Us. It’s so random here at times. Makes me angry (just kidding). At least you guys got those cool Dinky diecast cars.  Far cooler than Hotwheels and Matchbox. We never saw those Stateside. ![]() |
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Post by Deleted on Jan 11, 2023 12:58:52 GMT -5
And an incorrectly coloured Thunderbird 2:  |
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shaxper
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Post by shaxper on Jan 11, 2023 13:07:08 GMT -5
Oh, you also got some Starcom and (I believe) M.A.S.K. toys that never surfaced in the US!  |
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Post by Deleted on Jan 11, 2023 13:09:26 GMT -5
Ah, Starcom. Manta Force was another one, although I don’t know if that was a U.S. or UK brand.
I’ve heard about those European-only M.A.S.K. toys. For a long time, they were seen as a myth, but I think an article confirmed them years ago.
With any toy brand, “European exclusive” is music to my ears.
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shaxper
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Post by shaxper on Jan 11, 2023 13:54:22 GMT -5
Ah, Starcom. Manta Force was another one, although I don’t know if that was a U.S. or UK brand. Yet another toy line I've never heard of. The google images look amazing. I may need to start collecting this! Was Stiletto a UK exclusive? For Starcom, chasing down those UK exclusives was a ton of fun. I have them all now. That reminds me -- you got some Transformers that we never saw here, the most notable probably being G1 Thunderclash.  |
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Post by Deleted on Jan 11, 2023 14:05:23 GMT -5
I don’t know if Stiletto was a European exclusive. The European exclusives I am thinking of are these:    Perhaps there were other European exclusives! |
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shaxper
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Post by shaxper on Jan 11, 2023 14:23:45 GMT -5
Ah, gotcha. Yeah, I was never into that '80s trend of buying additional figures and accessories for a vehicle-focused toyline. MASK, Starcom, Wheeled Warriors...quit warming the pegs and make room for some new vehicles!
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Post by Deleted on Jan 12, 2023 6:21:50 GMT -5
I shall not be offended if anyone buys this for me:
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shaxper
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Post by shaxper on Jan 12, 2023 7:47:13 GMT -5
I shall not be offended if anyone buys this for me: For my sixth birthday, while everyone else was giving me Masters of the Universe toys and whatever else was popular at the time, one classmate I barely knew gave me The Fall Guy Adventure Stunt Set (tried to find a picture online, but no luck!). Within seconds of seeing the box, I was already visualizing all the cool stunts I'd have it do! I should have realized how weird it was to be getting something that was definitely at least half a decade old by this point, but I was excited and naive. Then I opened the box. Clearly, this kid had grabbed whatever he could find around the house at the last second. The truck was missing, as were many of the other pieces. So yeah, when someone inevitably gets that for you, invite me over! |
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