Mattel could always be relied upon to produce some great toys, as shown by Hot Wheels, Matt Mason and Thingmaker. The licence for the TV series of Battlestar Galactica meant that it could step up to the plate and turn out toys to compete with Kenners dominance of the space toy market with Star Wars.
Unfortunately, somewhere along the line, Mattel seemed to have fumbled the ball. The action figures for the series were little more than static manniquins with doll like mouldings and the company even resorted to retooling an old moulding from ten years earlier - making Captain Lazer into a rather stupified looking 'Colonial Warrior' and even worse, into a naked Cylon with a severely enlarged head.
However, it did manage to briefly redeem itself with the vehicles range, producing some rather fine toys of the Viper, Cylon and adding two 'expanded series' vehicles, the Colonial Stellar Probe and Scarab. Apart from being quite accurate representations of the ships and featuring a nice little 2 inch action figure, the colonial ships could be taken apart and connected in a limited way with other ships. The Stellar Probe came with extra parts to make a satellite, a missile and an extended probe ship.
Ive yet to find the Viper or the extended range of vehicles as shown in the catalogue as after a successful release in 1978, disaster struck. Shortly after xmas in 1979 a recall order, prompted by the death of one child and injuries to 10 others from the small missiles featured in most of the ships, meant that the toys disappeared from shop shelves. Apparently a 4 year old boy choked to death after accidentally putting the nose of the Viper into his mouth and the missile lodged in his windpipe.
The recall of the missiles for the toy and the consequent re-tooling of the line, was a major setback and a second wave addition to the line, the Colonial Landram vehicle never made it to stores, apart from a very limited release in Canada.
This unfortunate incident also sent shockwaves across the toy industry and any toy with small firing projectiles was inspected and reviewed. The silicon revolution had also had a pronounced effect on the industry and the ability to place a sound FX chip in toys was seized upon by manufacturers. As a result, toys which would previously have been able to engage in our favourite game of carpet wars, blasting battalions of soldiers and action figures with firing missiles, became obsolete and the all singing, all dancing electronic era took over. The Galactica toys did continue to sell, but with modified launchers that allowed the missiles to pop out slightly to simulate firing.The infamous Boba Fett figure from the Empire Strikes Back was initially intended to have a missile firing backpack, but to every fans dismay he was ignominiously released in 1979 with the missile securely welded in place after Kenner had seen the problems Mattel had run in to and quickly changed the tooling before the figure made production. These two events marked a radical sea change in the toy world as one element of interactivity and playability was lost and the era of flashing lasers and beeping and squeaking electronic novelty took over.
The death of a child is a terrible thing. How horrifying to have to live with that. But on the other hand, how safe (and dull?) must the world be made? Injuries to 10 others? How many have been injured by playing ball? ... yet I don't see balls being removed from toy store shelves (not yet anyway .. give them time, I suppose ...). For that matter, how many children get killed by cars, yet we have more and ever more of those on the roads.
ReplyDeleteI don't mean in any way to be cruel. I'm sure I'd feel differently if I lost a child. And I do understand that toy companies have to protect themselves from lawsuits. But it does seem a sad world when there cannot be projectile-firing toys. Beeps and flashing lights are good - very good - but better as an accompaniment to spring-loaded guns than as a replacement.
Toad sighs and shakes head :(
The Colonial Landram looks to be a rather marvellous vehicle. Another I would like in my collection.
Excellent article, WOTAN. More, more, please ...
very true toad, its unfortunate and a terrible thing to happen, but it could easily have been a multitude of other things, including sweets.
ReplyDeleteIts unfortunately lead to the situation we face today whereby kids no longer need an imagination to fill in the gaps in play, toys talk, sing, walk, interract and almost converse with children due to the amount of electronic trickery inside. Anything that shoots or looks like a gun is immediately jumped upon by the health and safety police or shunned by the politically crrect nanny culturists. I had an entire arsenal of toy weapons as a kid, swords, daggers, grenades, rockets, pistols etc and I havent grown up sociopathic or murderous..
*Toad nods* This doing away with imagination worries me.
ReplyDeleteMy thoughts exactly Wotan, couldn't have said it better.
ReplyDeleteMan, the Landram looks great! Sign me up for wanting one of those (or an army of them!).
ReplyDeleteFYI, Hasbro is releasing a mail away Boba this year in the vintage style...and the firing backpack missle!
It seems a bit strange to say the lack of firing projectiles on toys leads to a lack of imagination. IF anything, this forces children to imagine the result of a weapon firing. We certainly did a lot of that as kids (in the 80's) and felt that toys without a gimmick (firing, noise making, etc.) were better as they allowed us to imagine and play as we wished without being locked into whatever play mode the designers put into the toy. There are plenty of firing toys today, by the way, but they are always larger, longer rockets so no child can actually choke on them. They even made a retro rocket firing Boba Fett recently!
ReplyDeleteAs cool as the Galactica toys or Boba Fett undoubtedly were (or might have been) back in the day, I ultimately think saving even one child's life is worth their removal from the market. I suppose companies not wanting liability for such things and opening themselves to lawsuits is another aspect of why this was done. It's too bad that it had to be that way, but to say it resulted in a lack of imagination seems a bit... off.