#196 G.I. JOE - NINJA FORCE (1st WAVE) (II) (1992)

G.I.JOE's NINJA FORCE (II)

The story behind these figures is that they appeared sometime in ebay: I decided to buy them since they were MOC (Mint On Card), and the card was in Spanish, which is something I always value a lot. They were for sale in China, and even today can be bought at very low prices. It surprises me that they are still available… Were so many of those made? (they were packed in a village near Valencia called Quart de Poblet for the Spanish market, although the figures were produced in China. 

From the first two or three I bought, some came with a bent card, so I had to order the same again.

I also have the figures loose, since they are cheap and easy to get in lots. I will soon post pictures of the loose figures too.

T'JBANG v1:

 T'Jbang v1 (Spanish Card)

T'Jbang v1 (Spanish Filecard)

I include pictures of the cards, plus a bigger picture of the filecards. If you can understand Spanish, it is a great exercise to read the cards and to compare it with the original (American) cards you can find at yojoe.com. As it happened with the Talking Battle Commanders and many other figures from the 90s, the card was “revisited” by some person in Spain, who invented a hell of new facts in the biography of G.I.Joe and Cobra members. This is something that annoys quite a lot hard-core collectors, but that I find completely amusing.

SLICE v1:

 Slice v1 (Spanish Card)

Slice v1 (Spanish Filecard)

Something surprising about this series, is that Hasbro created 5 new characters and names, when it was common to reuse names and release new versions of old characters. In this series, only Storm Shadow is not a “v1”. There were not so many ninjas to pick from: Snake Eyes, Jinx (well Jinx is a woman, maybe it wouldn’t fit any cast), Night Creeper, maybe Quick Kick…

Snake Eyes and Night Creeper would be released in the mentioned second “Ninja Force” wave, together with old characters like Zartan and Scarlett, a second version of Slice and two new characters Banzai and Bushido (also two vehicle drivers with reused casts from Storm Shadow v3 and Dice, but other names – T’Gin-Zu and Red Ninja, relatively difficult to find nowadays). The third Ninja Force (Shadow Ninjas) wave are all reused characters from the first two Ninja Force waves.

Some of these new characters never got to see a second version.

 

DICE v1:

 Dice v1 (Spanish Card)

Dice v1 (Spanish Filecard)

Note that in Spain, Storm Shadow appears for the first time with the original name, the first two versions had the name “Sombra” (English: “Shadow”),

FACTS and FIGURES:

• Name: T'Jbang , Slice and Dice
• Alternate Names: Bang Jo, Afilado and Dado (Spa)
• Toy Line: G.I.Joe (Wave 11)
• Year: 1992
• Company: Hasbro (U.S.A.)
• Size of the figures: 3¾’’ or 9,5 cm

#195 G.I. JOE - NINJA FORCE (1st WAVE) (I) (1992)

G.I. JOE's NINJA FORCE

The “first” G.I.Joe: ARAH era came to its end in 1994. Since the decay of sales in 1990, each year was worse than the previous one. Hasbro creatives, however, did many things trying to keep the line attractive. One of the most criticised ideas, was to use bright colours and big missile launchers (as already commented in entry #4), another one was a complete change of the designs in the packages in 1993 and 1994, and also creating new subseries, like the “Star Brigade” in 1993, or the “Ninja Force” in 1992.

The ninja force was a subgroup of the G.I.Joe including both G.I.Joes and Cobras. Initially were 6 of the made (4 vs. 2), but there was a second wave in 1993 including 7 new figures and a third wave in 1994, comprising 6 figures more (reused casts with some transparent plastic effect, that changed colour with temperature). This third wave was actually renamed “Shadow Ninjas”.

The first wave include the following characters (first three in this entry, last three in the next one):

• Storm Shadow (v3)
• Dojo (in Spanish: Doyo)
• Nunchuck (in Spanish: Nunchuk)
• T'Jbang (in Spanish: Bang Jo)
• Slice (in Spanish: Afilado)
• Dice (in Spanish: Dado)

 

STORM SHADOW v3:

 Storm Shadow v3 (Spanish Card)

Storm Shadow v3 (Spanish Filecard)

Bonus: Storm Shadow v3 (Stornschaduw/Tornade) Dutch/French Filecard

 DOJO v1:

 

  Dojo v1 (Spanish Card)

Dojo v1 (Spanish Filecard)

The great innovation from this figures was, that they had some “action” movement they could perform. This idea was maybe taken from Hasbro’s WWF figures, since some moves are very similar and in the packaging, the featured action is displayed very similarly. Because G.I.Joes are much smaller than WWFs, the mechanisms (springs) are not so powerful. Another innovation in this figures was the use of “hair” in the figure of Dojo and some pieces of cloth, simulating ninja belts and head bands. The addition of cloth pieces was not new at the time, but certainly rare.

The mechanisms that allowed the figures to make those amazing moves were later reused in the rest of Ninja Force waves, for which some new were invented, like a quite impressive kick. These same actions were also used in the Street Fighter 2 (both in videogame and movie lines) and in the Mortal Kombat line. The SF2 figures made for the videogame are part of the G.I.Joe official series, and were a great sales success, similar to other figures made years earlier. They sold even well in countries were G.I.Joe were not so popular, like Germany or Austria, but this topic will be addressed some other time.

Unlike the standard figures, these do not have a screw at the back and cannot be opened easily.

NUNCHUCK v1: 

 Nunchuck v1 (Spanish Card)

Nunchuck v1 (Spanish Filecard)

 

FACTS and FIGURES:

• Name: Storm Shadow (v3) Dojo (in Spanish: Doyo) and Nunchuck (in Spanish: Nunchuk)
• Alternate Names: Stormschaduw (Hol), Tornade (Fra), Doyo (Spa), Nunchuk (Spa)
• Toy Line: G.I.Joe (Wave 11)
• Year: 1992
• Company: Hasbro (U.S.A.)
• Size of the figures: 3¾’’ or 9,5 cm

#194 REDONDO – BRABHAM REPCO F1 & BRM H16 F1 (PENNY KNOCK-OFF) (around 1970)

JUGUETES REDONDO - REDONDO TOYS

It is almost impossible to find information about the toymaker Redondo, what makes this article a bit of a challenge. We know however a couple of things about them.

Redondo was a Spanish toymaker founded by the end of 1949. It was based in Aldaya a small town in the province of Valencia (Aldaia in Valencian language). The factory was located in 5, Avenida Miguel Hernández, but it doesn’t exist anymore. Before that factory, they were in Fleming Street without number.

By the middle of the last century, the town developed rich industrial activities with furniture, brick, hand fan and toy factories. The population back then was around 6400 inhabitants, but grew quickly and today it has around 30.000 inhabitants.

Redondo catalogue from 1970 (taken from an auction listed in todocoleccion.net)

The toy factory was, of course, Redondo. Redondo was never one of the “top” toymakers in Spain, but somehow “second class”. This would explain why there is not so much information about the company on the internet. Please let me explain that “second class” does not mean that Redondo built worse quality toys, but less quantity. Most of the times, the toys were cheaper, since smaller companies couldn’t afford advertising campaigns and the only way to compete against much more popular toy lines was offering them at a lower price. 

I remember when I was a kid in the 80s, that toys I used to see in the city where I lived were not the same that I saw in summer when I came to visit my grandparents. In small towns, where people had (in average) less money, cheaper toys would fill local toy stores, and that’s where Redondo had its business. The same applies to local festivities, where street vendors needed cheaper toys to offer. In such a festivity it’s where I bought my only Redondo toy ever… a plastic robot, something between Mazinger Z and a Transformer. I still have it with most of its accessories, so I’ll try to review it as soon as possible.

The company, as said before, was founded in the year 1949, so, to my surprise, my father also kept one toy made by Redondo, and it was the car I am presenting here. Unfortunately it was not in its best shape, so after playing with it, it finished in the state your seeing now. The grey car I am presenting was found in a flea market many years ago. I can estimate how rare Redondo cars are, because it is the ONLY Redondo car I have seen in flea markets in more than 20 years (and I visit flea-markets very often).

 

It is unclear how many models were manufactured by Redondo (from the 15 original Penny models), but here’s a list of the known references. Apart from these F1s, other cars by Penny were also manufactured, mostly the lower 200 references, for example nr.204 OSSI BISILURO, nr.205 FERRARI P4 or nr.206 FERRARI DINO (read comments below).

1-Ferrari-F1

2- Honda-V12-F1

3- Brabham-Repco-F1

4-Lotus-Climax

5- Cooper-Maserati-F1

6-BRM-H16-F1

7- McLarenFord-8V-F1

8- Eagle-Westlake-F1 
10- LOTUS BRM H16 F1

12- McLaren-Serenissima-F1 
13- BRM F1
15- FERRARI 36V F1
16- Ferrari 12V F1 

All cars were available in the following colours: red, yellow, gold, blue and turquoise, and available in cardboard box or jewel case.

The company also manufactured other types of toys, most notably metal-casted guns (most of them with powder capsules), key-chains (some of these formula1 were also available as key-chain! –in blister cards-), plastic robots, metal-casted planes and spaceships (in the Transformers-style) and other plastic items, for example a toy magnifying glass, an acrobatic motorbike. Most of this items can still be seen in auction sites.

 

At least one of the pistol models was forbidden and recalled, after a child died in 1983. In this article fromthe 31st May 1983, it is also explained, that Redondo exported the bigger part of their production. If you ever find one of these toys in its package, you’ll find that the instructions are often marked in three languages: Spanish, English and French.

The company definitely closed in November 1996, although it seems, that it continued in the toy industry, as it was absorbed by the Hasbro Iberia group.

UPDATE: Other Redondo die-cast models, pictures from the collection of Coro Naro from the Netherlands.

nr.204 OSSI BISILURO
nr.205 FERRARI P4
nr.206 DINO

FACTS AND FIGURES:

• Name: BRABHAM REPCO F.1 & BRM H16 F1
• Scale: 1:66 (approx.)
• Year: Around 1970
• Company: Redondo (Spain)
• Size: 6 cm

#193 ZYLMEX – EAGLE and B.R.M. H16 F1 (PENNY KNOCK-OFFs) (1969)

ZYLMEX FIRST RELEASES AND "D" SERIES

About half a year ago, I published three entries dealing with the first “Penny” models ever produced. It was a collection of 15 die-cast F1s from the 60s, from which I owned 12. You can check these old entries here, here and here.

As mentioned in the last of these three entries, this Penny models were copied (or licensed) by many other companies. In this entry I will show a knock-off made by Zylmex (Hong Kong), and in the next entry one made by Redondo (Spain).

Maybe this is the moment to write something about Zylmex (also known as Zee Toys). The whole information for this article was taken from Garyscars. If you want to go directly to the source or you want know more about this brand after you finish this entry, please visit: http://www.home.railscene.com/garyscars/zee/index.htm

Zylmex is known for the die-cast toy cars in 1:64 scale that were produced from the late 60s to the mid 90s. The production of the company splits in two big series: “D” (“Dart-Wheels” or “Dyna-Wheels”) and “P” (“Pacesetters”). Both are basically the same, but “P” series have a better quality (metal chassis), and often features practicable doors.

The first cars produced by this company are precisely the Penny knock-offs numbered D1 to D8 (These would be re-released many times; mine seems to be a reedition since in the box the “new” references are 8301 to 8308). They were available in the UK in “Texaco Scorchers” box (could be found in Petrol Stations).

This series is considered to be a different series from the “D” series, although the models would be later re-released through the 70s and 80s as a part of that series. The formula ones were also available under many different names and packages (blister card, box…). “Flitzer” for example was intended for the German marked, “Racing Car”,…

In the early 70s, the references D9 to D26 were released. Surprisingly, D9 to D14 have “Zee” on the plate, while D15 to D23 have “Zylmex”. These models are mostly custom and fantasy cars, pretty much in the line of Mattel’s HotWheels!

Over the next few years, the collection expanded with new F1s (D27 to D34) and European Cars (D35 to D40), what meant a complete change of mind. Shortly afterwards, models from the D9 to D40 range were re-released in a parallel series called “Crazy Wheels” (CW), featuring “Big foot” type wheels. This parallel series was numbered DxxB.

The mid 70s saw new models (D41 to D72), all realistic reproduction of American and European (also some Japanese) cars. Almost at the same time, the first “P” models were also released, although that will be explained some other time.

As seen on picture galleries, cars were released in different colours, different stickers and wheel types, so there’re a lot of variations for collectors out there. I own around a dozen of these, and I hope to take a picture of them soon, and show them to you.

Interesting about this model are the bright green colour (not the original of the car, nor the colour of the Penny model), the Ferrari sticker, and the wheels with hubcaps. The same car can be found with other types of wheels. Also interesting to mention is the german box, which includes a small sticker with the sentence "Express für Schnellbahnen", which is surely an indication, that the car can be used with HotWheels! tracks.

FACTS AND FIGURES:

• Name: EAGLE (No. D4) and B.R.M. H16 F.1 (No. D8)
• Scale: 1:66 (approx.)
• Year: 1969
• Company: Zylmex (Hong Kong)
• Size: 6 cm

#192 COMICS SPAIN – CAPTAIN AMERICA, SPIDERMAN, SUPERMAN, STARFIRE and AQUAMAN (1990, 1992)

Comics Spain is together with Yolanda, the most important manufacturer of Plastic (PVC) figures from Spain. Unlike Yolanda, Comics Spain disappeared by the mid 90s (some say 1996). Although there are many webpages and photo albums depicting the figures, you won’t find a single bit of information about the company in the whole internet… nothing. That’s why I have been skipping this article for so long. 

A few days ago, I contacted a seller of these figures who claimed to have met a salesman of the company, from whom he got a catalogue, bought some rests, and so on… but he never replied to my message. I contacted him a 2nd time, but he simply ignored me. Maybe it’s a good idea to publish an “empty” entry about Comics Spain with an open request: “please provide me information about Comics Spain!”

The company, as well as it’s concurrent Yolanda, made figures out of famous TV series, cartoons, comic books, and toys, everything that was popular among children had its place here. Most celebrated lines include My Little Pony, Star Wars, Ewooks or Marvel and DC Superheroes. And among Spanish television programs and cartoons (very unknown outside Spain): Capitán Trueno, Zipi y Zape, Don Quijote, Un, Dos, Tres, los Fruitis...  As said in the Yolanda entries, these figures were sold in toy stores and bakeries, since they are used to decorate birthday cakes and Easter Monas.

You might be asking yourself, what's that Batman figure there... Some Comics Spain figures are copies of (previously) existing Bully figures, and although I do not have the Comic Spain's Batman Figure, I have the german one. If I ever get it, I'll make a better comparison. Here are Comics Spain's Batmen (among other Superheroes).

In the last months, I managed to acquire a couple of figures by this company. Mostly superheroes, like those three I am presenting today.

An interesting article about Comics Spain's Superhéroes was published in the F.E.A. Magazine from December 2014 (in Spanish).

UPPDATE (Feb/2018): Two more characters: Starfire and Aquaman.

 

FACTS and FIGURES:

• Name: CAPTAIN AMERICA, SPIDERMAN, SUPERMAN, STARFIRE and AQUAMAN
• Alternate Names: CAPITÁN AMÉRICA (Spain)
• Year: 1990, 1992
• Company: Comics Spain (Spain)
• Size of the figures: Around 7 cm (between  2’’ and 3’’).

#191 MADELMAN 2050 – DELTOX-ZAN (Ref. 1506) (1989)

M2050’s SECOND WAVE

The second wave of Madelman 2050’s was already mentioned when I first introduced this great line of action figures. The first wave had relatively bad sales, but it seems that the plans to develop and manufacture a second wave were done earlier than usual. Maybe the company expected better results and decided to work directly in a second wave without waiting at the sales. The thing is that a complete second wave was designed, including prototypes, packaging and bringing some innovation to the toy-line, like for example, remote controlled vehicles.

Blister design for Gornak "Assault Megacaptor"

After the bad sales of the first wave, Exin decided to launch the second wave: not as initially planned, but in a reduced form. All vehicles (or almost all) were marketed together with two new figures (if we do not consider the two pilots of the “Clonstar” as figures, but as “vehicle”): Deltox-Zan and Alactro-Lagard. These two figures were the only two in the new wave that were repaints of the figures in the first wave. The unproduced figures (they were only produced as prototypes) were new and exciting designs that, unfortunately, never did it to the toystore shelves. Those toys that were sold are nowadays very hard to find and very expensive to buy.

The two repainted figures are the same characters that were already available in the first wave: Zan and Lagard, who, if you revise the old entry, are the commanders of both factions.

Different close-ups of Deltox-Zan and accesories

Deltox-Zan in a repaint of Bran

The gun is the same that was available with Bran

the helmet was also available with Bran, only in blue instead of red

Unexpectedly, the “v2”s of these characters were made using the bodies of other figures: Darman was recoloured in red as Deltox-Zan and Reptis in black as Alactro-Lagard, but we don’t know why did they took those casts and not others.

This figure came with the same weapons as Bran except the backpack, that was replaced by a bigger three-pieced backpack that resembles a delta-wing, or some kind of flying backpack.. Alactro Lagard came with a similar backpack and a new casted gun.

M2050 second wave's backcard

Specially interesting are the new designs of the blisters. Personally, I like them less than those from the first wave, with the great drawings by Rafael López Espí, but these blisters might have looked more modern at the time. Note the scrollbars and some symbols used in computers. In 1989 the symbols might have been a complete mystery for 99% of the population...

In this wave, the figure and accesories were placed over a big plastic "M" (symbol from Madelman 2050) with the comic behind. Unlike the first wave blisters, second wave blisters have the bubble glued to the card. That's why I cannot put pictures of the comic book this time. It should be one of the 4 comics books ever released. The first one can be seen here.

COTA Men - This picture belongs to a vehicle box, is the same picture above, but with higher resolution

Zarkons - This picture belongs to a vehicle box, is the same picture above, but with higher resolution

The other 4 figures that were never produced were: Nork (ref. 1504), Dron (1505), Cranax (1604) and Gornak (1605). A lot of prototypes was once sold at ebay.es for around 300 Euros (375 US$), and the buyer was somebody most figure collectors may know. I took this screenshots as a “souvenir”. 

If you analyze the pictures thoroughly, you might recognise:

• the two drivers of the clonstar, plus a figure based in the same cast, but repainted.
• Dron, one of the unreleased figures
• Two (same) soldiers in green camo uniforms (prev. unreleased)
• A mixture of Serpion and Reptis repainted.
• Two comics (“Basertron 2050” and “¡Combate!”), both previously released
• Stickers sheets (unidentified, since they are similar for all vehicles)
• A bunch of weapons, most of them already released. Specially intereting are the “boots” of Dron, the weapons of the Clonstar pilots, and the weapon that should have belonged to Cranax. Among this pieces are also some parts of vehicles, and two green backpacks that I don’t know where do they belong.

FACTS AND FIGURES:

• Name: DELTOX-ZAN (Ref. 1506)
• Toy Line: Madelman 2050 (Wave 2)
• Year: 1989
• Company: Exin (Spain)
• Size of the figures: 3¾’’ or 9,5 cm