Pilot's Log

Coming This Year From OriToy In Hong Kong.

The vehicles will be scale-compatible with the smaller G. I. Joe and World Peacekeepers/Power Team Elite figures (1:18).

Stikfas II figures scale at approximately 1/23.

http://gravatar.com/fpilotbierce

PS:

Is it a ploy to recruit teens into the People's Liberation Army, or just to sell action figures? I'm talking about 《正义红师》, a.k.a. "The Red Division of Justice".



And what's stranger is the inclusion of the "psychedelic blues" rock act The SuperVC (think they filed the serial numbers off completely?):





Hmm. There are videos on Chinese websites.

Aye, if Wonder Woman is basically ethnic Greek, her skin tone would be darker, right?

And Aquaman should have had skin like a manatee's. (Sorry, he and his Marvel counterpart Sub-Mariner will never get love from me.)

More than one kind of "suit" too.

Powersuits. They were EVERYWHERE in Eighties/Nineties-era sci-fi, and you'd halfway expect them to be in use now by police departments, armies, security guards, firefighters, and so on. Heck, my very-start-of-my-blog columns included a powersuit story as part of my "Dirty Laundry". No, I was NOT original.

Which brings me to my blog entry related to This Lawsuit's Resolution. Why am I interested?

Hasbro, in its corporate domination of the end of the previous century, swallowed up Kenner, Tonka, Galoob and Coleco, and between them, they either created or marketed...

* Centurions
* Spiral Zone
* STARCOM
* Sky Commanders
* UniFighters

Plus the additional vehicle-related lines Battle Squad, M.A.S.K. and Megaforce.

In theory, Hasbro can incorporate any and all of these into a new property, possibly tied-in with G.I. Joe. The trademarks would have lapsed, and so would the industrial design rights...but the copyrights for all of them would still be valid.

This new property could serve as a "refresher" for those years when Joe's popularity is in a neap tide.

Just thinking aloud, of course.

A few months ago, somebody on USENET (which I still read and will until my ISP pulls the plug) asked about a series of action figures that were around about ten years ago and haven't been seen since. Well, from his description I felt that I had seen them as well, but couldn't remember what they were or who made them.

Got the answer today. They were "Unifighters" from Galoob. They were G. I. Joe (of that era, mind you)-sized and had backpacks that could mate with one another to make vehicles. The Air Force set made a fighter plane, the Marines set made a helicopter, the Army set made a tank and the Navy set made a hoverboat. They were pegwarmers at Kay-Bee (they were only available as the set, not as individual blister cards, so it was on the expensive side) for about a year when I was in college. Galoob was eventually taken over by Hasbro, so in theory Hasbro could re-issue these Joe knockoffs as Joe merchandise, if they still have the molds.

FP

(Cross-Posted to the Forum for the webcomic Shortpacked!:)

( Ultra-Cool Action Figure and Motorcycle/Sidecar Set Behind Cut )

Merowlink and his ride from the VOTOMS side-story Armor Hunter Merowlink. (The plot: his infantry squad was wiped out, he knows who betrayed his buddies and left them to die, and he's aiming to kill them ALL.) Pictures courtesy Takara-Tomy (the manufacturer) and HobbyLink Japan, respectively.

The toy is 1/18 scale (same as the 1980s G.I. Joes), so Merowlink could bring Scarlett or Lady Jaye along for the trip in the sidecar. And check out all those joints on the figure!

His gun is a 20mm anti-tank rifle, almost as long as Merowlink is tall.

And my misfortune? This set is retailing at about $45, nobody on this side of the Pacific is carrying the VOTOMS merchandise, and I DON'T HAVE ANY FRIKKIN' MONEY.

Did I mention that Merowlink is one of my favorite anime characters of all time, along with the likes of Captain Harlock and Roger Smith of The Big O? It was even my long-time ambition to cosplay Merowlink.

Those Japanese toy makers are cruel and relentless.

FP