#84 MADELMAN 2050 – BATRUS (1988)

Here is one of the vehicles from the first M2050 wave. Batrus is some kind of flying robot which can carry one figure in its chest. It is aligned with the evil Zarkons, and as indicated in the box, Batrus is the “Robot Insignia del terrible ejército de Zarkon” (Flagrobot of the terrible army of Zarkon).

The first wave of vehicles consisted of 6 different units, 3 for each faction. The COTA men had Sentinel, Tarantula and Defender, Zarkons had Batrus, Falcon and Scorpion, as it can be seen in this figure backcard. If you pay enough attention, you’ll probably observe, that many parts are reused from one vehicle to another one: Batrus and Sentinel are very similar; the cockpits of Tarantula and Defender are the same, and so they are Scorpion and Falcon; the legs of Defender and Falcon are also the same, and the same happens with the legs of tarantula and Scorpion, not to mention minor details, like the missiles, cables, cannons, wings, hands/claws, and so on.

Even considering that some parts are reused, this toy has an excellent quality, and looks really awesome. The pictures show my actual robot, to which I haven’t applied any stickers, but with the stickers it looks even better. The vehicle also has an interaction feature with the figures. As I told in older entries, the Zarkon figures had two faces, well, when a Zarkon figure sits inside Batrus, his face changes automatically to its “reptilian” mode, as it doesn’t need to hide its identity. Additionally, it has two missile launchers that actually shoot (similar to the ones included with G.I.Joe: ARAH figures in the 90s), and grappling claws… personally I think this robot as a toy is much better than any G.I.Joe vehicle made on these years.

If that was not enough, each vehicle was packed with a figure inside, which unfortunately wasn’t an exclusive one, but one of the 8 ordinary ones in its original blister, and a comic book. In the photograph above are depicted two comic books: one belongs to the figure, and the one named “¡Combate!” is the one that came with those first wave vehicles (there were three more comics made). The green card is just the quality control inspection of the toy. You could send it to Exin, if something was missing or broke.

 

Also amazing is the illustration in the box’s flap, made in the same style and by the same artist who did the artwork for the figures, Rafael López Espí. You can visit his website, and enjoy his great creations for M2050, Masters of the Universe, Comic covers for 26 different series, and much more.

FACTS and FIGURES:

• Name: BATRUS (Ref. 1726)
• Toy Line: Madelman 2050 (Wave 1)
• Year: 1988
• Company: Exin (Spain)
• Size: Approx. 24 cm

#83 MB – HERO QUEST + EXPANSION SETS (1989)

Hero Quest was at the time the most complex board game ever. Profiting from the fashion of the role-playing games (many of which are set in this ancient age of Warriors, Dwarfs, Elfs and Wizards), MB launched a game together with Games Workshop (a figure manufacturer, worldwide famous for series like Warhammer 2000), which was partially inspired on those.

The four heroes...

...and their abilities.
Also in this pic, the block to keep control of the events happening during the game.

Each player takes the identity of one character, and controls him the whole time, fighting evil creatures and looking for secret doors and corridors. All 4 characters were different in strength and intelligence, and had specific abilities. 

There is a story behind each adventure, which is narrated by the Gamemaster, who, at the same time, controls the evil forces and sets the dungeons as the heroes go by.

Adventure and rule books, plus master edition's adventure number 13 "The Black Guard" (keep reading)

The difference to real role-playing games, is that the action is limited to the board, and not to your imagination, and the second difference is that your characters have simple and fixed values that you cannot change, so you cannot “design” your character.

I remember when it came out in Spain, and the commercial shown on tv, which was amazing. At the time, it was mandatory that toy commercials showed a label indicating if the toy was over 5.000 or over 10.000 pesetar (30 or 60 Euros), and this toy was over 5.000 pesetas, that in 1990 was extremely expensive! (game was edited in Spain one year later).

Nowadays, it’s even more expensive: collectors and players worldwide search the old games to play again with their children, or people who sold their games want to recover it, because it is so much fun. It has become a boardgame classic, and since there seems to be problems with the copyright of the name “HeroQuest”, it doesn’t seem probable that the game will be released again.

These are the monsters included on the basis game, plus the cards for the gamemaster to control them.

A complete set of cards in included in the box, to make the game more exciting. Otherwise it would just be a dice game. The cards above are magic spells, the other ones are Book, Armour and Treasure cards. Gold is used to buy equipment; sometimes heroes find gold or weapons in the rooms they are exploring.

There was a second version released with 12 extra miniatures and 1 new adventure (huge one!) named “Master Edition” or “Advanced Quest”. In these pictures you can see the cover and the additional figures.

Master Edition Box: So amazing looks the game

These are the extra-figures in the "Advanced Quest Version", there are 12 of them, with interchangeable weapons. I photographed four of them, each one with a different weapon, plus a 5th one unarmed.

And these are their abilities.

This is the 13th adventure, only for experts!

After the great success of the basis game, numerous expansions were released. I own two of them:

-“Return of the Witch Lord", a expansion that doesn't include any new figure, but 8 skeletons, 4 zombies and 4 mummys, apart from a few tiles and some new features, like the twisting room.

Contents of the expansion: "Return of the Witch Lord"

Back cover illustration of the adventure book included in the expansion "Return of the Witch Lord"

-“Against the Ogre Horde” includes 7 new figures, and new playing possibilities, since the Ogres can be enemies, or can be hired as unpredictable mercenaries. It was only released in Europe, what makes it a complete rarity, and also very expensive.

Contents of the expansion: "Against the Ogre Horde"

Close-up of the 4 different types of ogres included in the expansion

These expansions, and all the other that I do not own, are extremely valued by collectors, who pay over 100 Euros for each of those packs (some are so rare, that can go up to 200 or 300 Euros). Maybe it’s because of the miniatures, that were made exclusively for the game, or maybe it’s just they are really scarce.

If you want to read more about Morcars Magicians, click here.

FACTS AND FIGURES:

• Name: HERO QUEST, HERO QUEST ADVANCED QUEST, RETURN OF THE WITCH LORD, AGAINST THE OGRE HORDE
• Year: 1989, 1990, 1991, 1993
• Company: Milton Bradley (MB) (U.S.A.)
• Size: approx. 51 x 32 cm or 20 x 12,50 inches (basis game box)

#82 GUISVAL – COLECCIÓN RÉPLICA II (1985)

The other 4 models in this series are these (note that they were available in two colours each):

• ROLLS-ROYCE PHANTOM II “1934” in yellow or silver.
• BUGATTI T-50 “1930” in blue or red.
• M.G. T.C. “1945” in red or green.
• CADILLAC V-16 “1932” in white or red.

It is important to note, that these models were produced during a couple of years, but in the recent times, it was possible to buy these models again directly from the company for advertising and marketing purposes. Take a look at this excerpt taken from the guisval official website on the 15^th October 2011. Note that in the photo after this paragraph, a few models are depicted in different colours than those indicated above. Although now it's not possible anymore to order these models, many can be still found in shops on the internet or sites like ebay. If the model doesn’t have the colours indicated above, it is 100% sure a later reedition. Since I have never seen one of them, I cannot compare the quality of the car. My guess is that they can’t be as good as the old ones.

FACTS AND FIGURES:

• Name: ROLLS-ROYCE PHANTOM II “1934”, BUGATTI T-50 “1930”, M.G. T.C. “1945”, and CADILLAC V-16 “1932” (Ref. Nrs. 17201, 17202, 17203, 17206)
• Scale: 1:43 (estimated)
• Year: 1985 (to 1990?)
  
• Company: Guisval (Spain)
• Size: approx. 9 cm

#81 GUISVAL – COLECCIÓN RÉPLICA I (1985)

This collection was oriented to adult collectors rather than to children, this is somehow strange in this brand, since the only try to release a product for adults was the 1:23 line known as “Serie Rally”.

These are completely different miniatures, all based in classic cars from the 30s decade in a 1:43 scale. This collection was made in 1:43 scale and should not be confused with the “Replica Junior” series, which featured (partly) the same models in 1:64 scale, or the “Replica Junior Transportes” series, which featured only classic vans and trucks in 1:64 scale. In the very first days of Guisval (around 1963-64), there were old classic cars from the end of the 19^th century and the beginning of the 20th century made.

Size comparison between a Packard Boattail Speedsteer "Replica" and the same model "Replica Junior"

As we can see in this catalogue picture, there are eight models in this series (these 4 plus 4 more in the next article), and they were sold in individual packages, in packages of 3, or simply in exhibitors in which you could choose one of them (jewel-case or loose).

Special thanks to Speedy, who provided me with this catalogue picture

The most interesting of this cars, is that they are completely different from everything else made by Guisval, with great quality (despite the plastic chassis), new special wheels, chromed parts, two-coloured body (in 6 out of the 8 models), removable rooftops (4/8), and two versions of each car.

Note the following models were available in two colours each:

• MERCEDES 540 K “1939” in silver or light brown.
• LINCOLN M.L. “1928” in metallic blue or yellow.
• PACKARD BOATTAIL SPEEDSTER “1930” in red or silver.
• DELAHAYE 135 M “1935” in blue or red.

UPDATE: Some of these models were "inspired" by Matchbox "Models of Yesteryear", as an evidence, I include two Matchbox catalogue images from 1980-1981 and 1981-1982. Note for example the Mercedes in the lower right corner of the first image, again the Mercedes in the second picture and the MG in the third picture. The MG will be shown in the next entry.

Matchbox Models of Yesteryear 1981-1982

Matchbox Models of Yesteryear 1982-1983

Matchbox Models of Yesteryear 1982-1983

Story continues here.

FACTS AND FIGURES:

• Name: MERCEDES 540 K “1939”, LINCOLN M.L. “1928”, PACKARD BOATTAIL SPEEDSTER “1930” and DELAHAYE 135 M “1935” (Nrs. 17204, 17205, 17207, 17208)
• Scale: 1:43 (estimated)
• Year: 1985 (to 1990?)
• Company: Guisval (Spain)
• Size: approx. 9 cm

#80 LEGO – WEEKEND HOME (Ref. 6370) (1985)

I guess there are many Lego fans out there. I was never a Lego collector, I just own a few sets from the 80s. Since Lego is one of the most popular toys ever, and even today it’s among the most popular toys, it’s difficult for me to imagine it as a collectible item. It’s simply a too large collection to seriously think about collecting each reference. I like them more as a toy, a large set of random pieces to build anything that I want.

I recognise the idea is great, since it’s a toy both for boys and girls, there are so many themes, that every child can choose their favourite: City, Pirates, Medieval, Futuristic, Star Wars, Sports… and also many other series like Technic, Duplo, Ninjago, Bionicle…

The plastic blocks were invented in 1949, although the company exists since 1932. Between those years, the company also had construction blocks, but they were made of wood. The history of the company is very well documented, so this time I’ll talk about trademark infringement. It was not so long ago, that the Canadian company MegaBrands was exonerated from copying the construction block from Lego for their MegaBloks toy-line: first in 2006, by the Supreme Court of Canada, and then in 2008 by the European Union’s High Court of Justice, after the lawsuit was accepted by the OHIM (Office for Harmonization in the Internal Market).

In the first case, the Canadian patent for the Lego blocks had expired in 1988, so the 25M US$ Lego claimed as damage, were dismissed. In the second case, the European court tried that Lego blocks “merely performs a technical function and cannot be registered as a trademark”, and therefore should be available for everybody. Since this judgement, many companies have copied Lego blocks, with different qualities and sets.

A story that is not very well known, and that was only available on the internet in Spanish until now, is that Exin was already judged in the 80s for copying the block system for their toy-line Tente. The judgement took place in Israel, were Lego and Tente shared the market of construction toys. Lego wanted to reduce the concurrence in this country and in all the others in which Tente was present. It is believed, that Lego chose Israel for being a far country, and that Tente/Exin wouldn’t be able to afford the costs of a trial there.

The High Court of Israel judged similarly to the European High Court of Justice, and Exin was not guilty of infringement of copyright. If it had been judged the opposite, Tente would have needed to pay copyrights to Tente, what would have made the toys more expensive.

Tente was not merely a copy of Lego: since its creation in 1972, Exin improved the original idea and obtained several international patent registries. Compared to Lego, a Tente piece could be connected to another one in up to three times more ways. One system was not compatible with the other one, even though the bricks had absolutely identical dimensions.

After the closure of Exin, the rights of Tente were bought by Borras, that kept the line until 2007. Now it has disappeared, but another construction systems, like TecniToys' Construblock are available in the spanish market. Tecnitoys is the company that currently owns the rights of Scalextric and that has between their most important leaders members of the Arnau family, founders of Exin (Lluis María Arnau is the current R&D manager). Construblock sets are compatible with Lego.

Since the article is longer than I expected, just a few words about the Weekend Home set form 1985. It includes 177 pieces and two minifigs. It is specially interesting since the house includes a kitchen, a bedroom plus two more rooms and in the garden, a barbecue. The worst part is the side of the house, that doesn't look that well. The bike is also a great complement.

FACTS and FIGURES:

• Name: WEEKEND HOME (Ref. 6370)
• Toy Line: Lego City
• Year: 1985
• Company: Lego (Denmark)
• Size: 25 x 13 x 12 cm
• Scale: 1:48

#79 POLISTIL – BRABHAM ALFA BT-48, LIGIER JS 11 & LOTUS 80 (Nrs. RY 66, RJ 64 and RJ 65) (1980)

Polistil also built Formula 1s in 1:55 scale. This series were even more popular than the series in 1:41, since they were cheaper and compatible with many other brands, like Matchbox, Majorette and so on. Note that the cars have great detail, mostly considering their small scale. Every year, a few models were released, other discontinued, and that's why the numbering is so confusing. There are references starting with RN, RY or RJ, but there could be more of them.
The first model is the Brabham Alfa BT-48, that was driven most of the 79’ season by Austrian driver Niki Lauda (the last two races, he was replaced by the argentinian Ricardo Zunino, after Lauda quit Brabham and Formula 1). The team didn’t make as expected and ended the championships with only 7 points (in eighth position). In 1980, Brabham did much better.

Picture taken from histomobile.com

The second model is the Ligier JS 11 driven by Jacques Laffite (number 26) in 1979, that ended 3^rd, after winning two races. An improved version also took part in the 1980’s championships (Ligier JS 11/15) with the same number and same sponsors (Gitanes).

Picture taken from histomobile.com

The third model is the Lotus 80 from 1979, driven by Mario Andretti. The american driver was the current champion (number 1) but the 1979 season could only be the 12th classified with just 14 points in 15 races. His colleage Carlos Reutemann (Argentina, race number 2) did better and ended 5th.

Picture taken from lotusbuzz.com

As a curiosity, This same casts were shared with or maybe copied by the Spanish brand Pilen, that released 12 models (6 different casts, with two decorations each) in the mid-80s. I’d make a comparison between them some time in the next months, since the casts share is a topic that interest me quite a lot.

FACTS AND FIGURES:

• Name: BRABHAM ALFA BT-48, LIGIER JS 11, LOTUS 80 (Nrs. RY 66, RJ 64 and RJ 65) 
• Scale: 1:55
• Year: 1980
• Company: Polistil (Italy)
• Size: approx. 7 cm