#732 HE-MAN AND THE MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE – MINI-COMIC COLLECTION

One of the latest books related to toys I have bought is this compilation of all Masters of the Universe (and related toylines) mini-comics.

There is nothing much to say of this huge book (Around 1200 pages). It is just the mini-comics for Masters of the Universe, He-Man, Princess of Power and the newer Masters of the Univevrse toylines put together in one.

Some of the original mini comics are currently very hard to find, and some are sold for over 100 euros, so collecting around 100 titles in one book is something nice in terms of avoiding the investment in all those mini-comics, or if you were already a collector, you can use this book not to spoil the condition of your hard-collected mini-comic series.

The mini-comics are complemented by a series of interviews with pencillers, writers, Mattel staff and various artists. The interviews are nice to get a brief portrait of these people, but they do not bring much light into He-Man or the Masters of the Universe, since nobody saw the success of the toyline coming and none of them ever thought their work would actually survive further than a few years.
Apart from this book, I have my own mini-comic collection. Since they don’t need much space, and selling them won’t make me rich, I decided to keep all variants that I could find. There are mini-comics printed in Hong-Kong, the U.S., Malaysia, Taiwan, Spain… there are versions with only one language, with two or four languages, and some include extra pages with ads from Mattel.

#731 UNKNOWN MANUFACTURER - GAME WATCH BASKETBALL (Around 1990)

Game Watchs became really popular by the mid 80s. Most kids back then wanted a Casio watch with chronometer, alarm and as many other functions as possible) and then a Game Watch. There was no Game Boy yet, so this was the “top” in electronic games…

Well, not this game in particular, but some made by Nintendo with double screen and most complex controls (up, down, left, right and two buttons). Those were great games, and very expensive at the time. Even today are very sought-for and very expensive to find in good condition.

The toy I am presenting is the cheap alternative to those Nintendo or Casio games. As a kid I had two of them that I will rescue for a future entry. In the first one I had, you had to move a trampoline to avoid that some gymnasts fall and hurt themselves. The second one dealt with basketball players that passed the ball to each other until the ball was thrown to the basket.

This third game was found in a flea market several time ago, as one family that worked as travelling sellers decided to sell some stock that they had from the 80s and the 90s. Every piece costed one euro, so I picked this machine.

Note that the controls are limited to two buttons (left and right) and then you have “Start” and “Game A/B”. The A and the B are usually a difficulty level mark, so, one you master A, you can play a little longer with the B-mode before it becomes too boring. The thing about these games is that they had no-end, so you could play for the infinity, each time faster and with more and more balls, gymnasts or whatever your game was about.

I don’t think this machine has any interest for collectors today, note that it tries to imitate the current arcade machines, in which the screen was usually framed by some figures or illustrations of the game. Back then, the graphics were not very good, so any hand-made illustrations would help the player to go into the story in a much easier way.

This machine comes with a rather poor box (original, though), two instruction sheets: one generic in English, and the translation to Spanish, and one battery, which after 20 years, I’d better take it to a recycling-spot.

And why game-watch? Because on top of the game, the machine had a clock and you could see what time it was. I think some also had an alarm, but not this one.

FACTS AND FIGURES:

• Name: BASKETBALL GAME WATCH
• Year: Around 1990
• Company: Unknown Manufacturer (China)
• Size: approx. 9 cm long

#730 CORGI – ADAMS DRAG-STAR (1972)

There are some Corgi models from the early years that I love for being quite accurate, or for representing rare models that were not made by other manufacturers, but in this case, I love this model for its weirdness.

To my knowledge it is not based on any known model. I have been looking for it thinking it is maybe an “Adams Bros” creation, but I couldn’t find it anywhere. The toy model is often refferred as Adams 4-engined “Drag-star”, although 4-engined is not casted on the base (but maybe on the box or in some promotional catalogue).

If it exists or not, however, is secondary, the design is amazing, no doubt about that, and the finishing by Corgi is also great. I love that red colour that fades into (the base-) orange, the small plastic figure inside the cabin/cockpit, the four lined-up motors that leave some space for the pilot to see between them, the usage of chromed and black parts, the great wheels (think and big behind, small at the front), and the action feature of that rear-bumper that can be triggered from the front. Is it really a bumper? What is the purpose of it? It is also not very important… as I said before, just looking at the car brings happiness to car-lovers and car-fanatics like me.

This model was first released in February 1972, being among the most popular that year. It came with whizzwheels.

I don’t know if you would agree with me, but during the 70s, there were tons of great concept cars and prototypes that caught great attention. This continued during the 80s, but then it disappeared in the 90s. Today there are more and more car manufacturers, but they do make these rare prototypes only in very rare occasions. I guess with the current automation in factories, it would be too costly to design only one unit of some avant-garde car for shows that is really fully-functional (including security aspects, durability and more). Today, they just show some concept art or 3D animations, but back then, you could really go somewhere and see the car yourself.

FACTS AND FIGURES:

• Name: ADAMS DRAG-STAR
• Scale: Approx. 1:43
• Year: 1972
• Company: Corgi Toys (Great Britain)
• Size: approx. 11 cm

#729 STAR WARS – ANNAKIN SKYWALKER and HAN SOLO in CARBONITE CHAMBER (1985)

For the amateur collector of Star Wars figures (like me), finding some of the most difficult figures of the series (like the last 17) can be a really difficult task. I first found Han Solo in a flea market and bought it for almost no money, but then I had to wait like 2 years to get the carbonite chamber for a reasonable price. This accesory has not been reproduced yet (and it will probably never be), because a cast with these dimensions would simply cost toooooo much money.

No matter what, I completed this figure, and then I recently bought Annakin.

Continuing with Han Solo, the figure is probably one of the worst ones in the whole series, pretty dull outfit, the face does not resembles Harrison Ford and it came only with the chamber accesory, not even a small gun or something to add some playability (note that the hands are prepared to carry any accesory from another figure). The cool feature is that the figure is placed in the chamber, and then, since the chamber is partially transparent, you can see the figure from the outside, a little bit like in the Return of the Jedi.

The other figure I present today is Annakin, who by the end of the first trilogy (episodes IV to VI), was a very enigmatic character. We know it is Darth Vader, but we would have to wait around 15 years for the second trilogy (episodes I to III) to know the complete story of Annakin Skywalker). This figure was initially a mail-away offer, and could be obtained bagged for a few proofs of purchase and some money. Later was packaged in blister cards available in the US and the UK. The figure came without accessories.

Like other figures in this series that wear those long dresses, I like the way the legs articulation is solved. It looks fine when standing or seating, and it is still movable and can be played in a normal way.

Both figures are among the famous Last 17, which are the last figures ever produced by Kenner during that first “vintage” era, and that ended in 1985 with the “The Power of the Force”. All 17 are very hard to find, as I explained in a previous entry with Barada and Yak Face (see #138).

FACTS AND FIGURES:

• Name: ANNAKIN SKYWALKER and HAN SOLO in CARBONITE CHAMBER
• Toy Line: Star Wars: Power of the Force
• Year: 1985
• Company: Kenner (U.S.A.)
• Size of the figures: 11 cms or 3,75’’

#728 SIKU – MERCEDES-BENZ 280 GE and JEEP CJ-5 (1044, 1344 and 1053) (1982, 1983 and 1986)

Two more Siku models, in this case two ATV, 4x4, off-road vehicles.

 

The first one is the JEEP CJ-5 (reference 1053), which was available between 1983 and 1990 in four colours: red, metallic red, blue and white. The interiors could be white, yellow or black and the rollbars are always either black or white. Unfortunately, the blue model is missing its bar.

The second model is a MERCEDES-BENZ 280 GE, a car that was available in several versions with different reference numbers: standard (1044), police (1346), fire brigade (1344) and tow-away car (1313).

The standard version (1044) was available between 1982 and 1995, in several colours (gold, metallic red, plain red, dark blue, metallic dark blue and cream). I am not sure if my red model comes with the right roof, since it has yellow sirens. This may belong to the Fire Brigade model which has a different reference number (1344).

The police version seems to have been available for over 25 years, but to my knowledge is not available anymore. It appeared in 1986 and in 2002 was still available. Note that I show two different models with different wheels. The one with the grey hubcaps is newer.

Last, I would also like to say that this model was also available with a trailer in bigger packs. A white version with a trailer (both with dark blue roofs) (ref. 2010) and a tow-away car with car-trailer (both in yellow) (ref. 2221).

Do not mistake the 280 GE with the 280 SL (shown in entry #455).

UPDATE (Dec/2024):

Oh, it seems like I have some work to do, I have two more Mercedes and one Jeep that I didn't upload yet.

Let's start with the Mercedes-Benz 280 GE ADAC Straßendienst. It is  missing a white roof with yellow sirens.

 

Next one is the same car, only in golden. Not sure what this car was carrying or what is missing here.

And finally, the CJ-5 Jeep in Black with red/orange interior. In many places, it is listed as a Kellogg´s Frosties promo, although I cannot find much information about it... In sikumuseum.nl it says that it came without a box, maybe in a bag?

FACTS AND FIGURES:

• Name: MERCEDES-BENZ 280 GE and JEEP CJ-5 (1044, 1344 and 1053) (1982, 1983 and 1986)
• Scale: 1:55
• Year: 1982, 1983 and 1986
• Company: Siku (Germany)
• Size: approx. 7 cm