Gobots Scooter

My love for Gobots is no secret, and I think the arguments against them are hilarious. There's no argument against them that can't equally be lobbed right back at Transformers. It's like Marvel fans dogging DC, or Rose Petal Place fans bashing Strawberry Shortcake. Or the Amish bashing Quakers.

Can't we all just get along?

Gobots were one of my top favorite toylines of my youth, and Scooter is one of my favorite Gobots of all time. Sure, a riderless Vespa rolling down the highway and getting shot at by a riderless motorcycle makes about as much sense as a driverless F-1 racer going down the highway being shot at by a personless handgun...while a walkman watches on, ejecting cassettes that turn into birds... (come to think of it, perhaps Gobots were even LESS ridiculous than Transfomers. At least they had the decency to only turn into vehicles!), but to my kid mind the toy Scooter fulfilled all the requirements of a great transforming (or should I say 'going and botting') toy:

'If I had an Autobot symbol you'd love me.'

He had a good looking robot mode, he had a good looking vehicle mode, his transformatio...err..ahem...going to bot-hood...wasn't overly complicated, and he required no extra parts.

From an engineering perspective, this really is a clever 'simple' transformation. It would also be pretty easy to cosplay.

Sadly none of my original Gobots survived in my collection as I marched my way towards adulthood. Honestly, I don't think any of them even made it to my teen years. I got rid of them and my MOTU before Jr. High. A time I was more into 'serious' stuff like Batman and yes, the aforementioned Transformers. Which is also why, at the time, I ignored TMNT. Hahaha oh how naive and stupid I was.

Alas, I have also made little to no effort to reclaim the Gobots, owing to mere chance and the flea market to gather together the ones I have now. Ok, so I did pick up Leader-1 off eBay many years ago, but for the most part I have trusted to chance and cheapness and somehow have amassed a decent collection again, albeit one made up mostly of characters I didn't have as a kid.

There are still characters I really do want to own again, like Pathfinder and Cy-Kill (I do have his Super Gobot version), and characters I need a better specimen of than the rough ones I've chanced upon, like my second favorite Gobot of all time: Turbo.

And of course there's the Gobot Command Center, which I will probably never find in decent condition for as cheap as I am willing to spend on it. But for the most part my Gobot collection has come back together nice and quiet like, and I'm surprised it's as robust as it is today. I really should get them all together for a photo shoot!

As for finding Scooter; that's a whole story unto itself!

We were at the Goodwill Bargain Barn on Valentine's Day, cuz that's how we roll around here. If you don't know what the Goodwill Bargain Barn is...imagine if you took your local Goodwill, removed the good stuff, ran it over with a bulldozer, then let folks dig through the rubble and charged them by the bagful.

Or imagine a bomb went off at a hoarder's house, and the bomb also blew up the neighbor's garage and the junk yard on the other side of the block; and then someone took a snow shovel and scooped everything into large industrial bins and said you could have a bag of whatever you wanted for five bucks, you merely had to brave the bins and tetanus and the homeless people digging through the bins next to you and probably some living in them too.

Yeah, it's a little bit like that.

So I'm digging through a bin with toys, what were once toys, what should never have been toys, broken glassware, and lots of unsafe levels of lead when I came across some Gobots. Broken Gobots. I mean REALLY broken Gobots. Like, die-cast metal split into pieces, arms broken (not missing or removed, but literally sheared off), multiple missing pieces...it was a massacre. I want to believe that someone's 'parts bin' had ended up at the Goodwill but I just couldn't imagine anyone keeping anything in the condition many of these guys were in. It was heartbreaking.

Then I found half of Scooter. Literally, his top half. No legs. But also...no 'breakage', just...legs missing. I had a glimmer of hope that I might dig some more and find the legs and that I could simply unscrew the lower torso and re-assemble him. This was after seeing the Cy-Kill with two sheared arms and the Leadrer-1 missing an arm, a leg and his fuselage.

What can I say, I'm an optimist in my prime. GET IT?!?! HAW HAW HAW!

Anyhoo, as you have probably surmised by now, I did find his legs, and it was a simple matter of two separate parts having become disengaged, and not an instance of actual breakage. So along with a bunch of other stuff in my bag of trash, I tossed both halves of Scooter. And upon returning home I got a small screwdriver and voila! HE'S BAAAACK

I also found this rider, who ironically is in perfect scale with Scooter!

I'm not sure exactly, the guy seems very familiar to me, but I think he originally came with a motorcycle that had a zip-pull feature. You could zip the line and shoot the motorcycle across the floor while this rider clung on for dear life (or more likely flung off to your sheer delight.)

He rolls at a different speed now.

No, YOU Kneel Before ME! :: Random Toy Pic

Random Halloween Pic :: I Got a Rock...Lord

Last weekend I stumbled on a beautiful specimen of Rock Lord-dom. Boulder - the leader of the good rocks!

Rock Lords are stupider than shit but damned if I didn't love them as a kid.

Rocks that transform into robots.

W
T
F.

I really wish I had held on to all of the ones I had when I was a kid. But I didn't, and they rarely show up during my second-hand hunting. So when I found a near minty fresh Boulder at the flea market last weekend for two bucks I had to have him even though i think I might have a less perfect one around Toyriffic headquarters somewhere.

This one even has his gun! The tab that holds it to his wrist is broken but that's not a big deal since I haven't seen Boulder's gun since I was a wee lad.

Boulder....he turns into a rock...HEROICALLY!

Kneel Before Zod!

Gobots are awesome or GTFO.

Of all the Gobots I owned as a kid and have wished I could recapture in adluthood, the motorized tricycle Dinosaur Zod has eluded me the longest.

Well now that title belongs to Scooter, because I found Zod at the flea market this past weekend!

Zod is a motorized monster and with the help of three 'C' batteries he frantically chomps (or as my intern says 'snops') and lurches forward in spasms and fits and leaps until you spear the red button on his belly.

Fun!

He originally came with a joust-like spear to help you stab him into submission. Mine doesn't have his but mine does work perfectly, which is a nice bonus.

Zod isn't in mint condition, but I don't care. The guy selling him had no idea what he was, and so I tried to talk him down from his five dollar asking price since there was no telling if Zod worked or not. The seller didn't even realize Zod was supposed to be motorized. Well, he tracked down some batteries at another seller's booth (hey, it's the flea market, they have EVERYTHING!) and when Zod proved to be in perfect working order, he wanted more for him. I ended up paying seven bucks for him but got fresh batteries so I guess I should have just nabbed him at five, but either way I think it was money well spent.

I wish I had held on to all my Gobots from childhood, but I guess you can't win 'em all. I also wish I still had my Gobot Command Center. That thing was epic.

Here I am back in the day with my Gobots collection (along with some transformers and other transforming robots and an Astro Magnum Shockwave which is probably worth more these days than a regular Shockwave.) WHY DIDN'T I KEEP ALL THIS BEAUTIFUL STUFF?!?!?!

Okay even I admit Zod is ridiculous. But I still love him and am ecstatic to have regained his big lumbersome self.

More Than Meets the Eye Week :: Bootleg Geeper-Creeper

During the 1980s heyday of transforming robots, not only were Transformers and Gobots and other branded toys available, but bootlegs were everywhere and popped up in almost every kids collection - seemingly out of nowhere. Everyone I knew had a 'bot or two that was just a little left of center. But we were fine with it, because the quality wasn't always that bad.

This guy is a fine example of that fact. He's obviously not the GoBot Geeper-Creeper, or his Machine Robo predecessor. The plastic seems just a bit flimsier, and there are no manufacturer markings on him whatsoever.

But he's still got more real metal in his 1:64 scale body than a modern day KIA. He's a good, solid toy and I just can't help think how much he, a 'rip-off' cheap version of an under two buck toyline, must have cost new?

Well he (as well as Hans) only cost me a quarter each this past weekend, so he sure hasn't appreciated in value. He's missing the passenger side half of his windhield and a piece of his bumper is broken off, but he's still a great representation of a cheap toyline's cheaper bastard cousin.

More Than Meets the Eye Week :: GoBot Hans-Cuff

Today I bring you the GoBot Hans-Cuff.  Hans here is in pretty good condition, I can only assume the kid(s) who owned him spent little time playing with GoBots. They were most likely an anti-GoBite.

Hans is solid in police car mode, but is pretty floppy in robot mode. His right arm was difficult to keep up in a normal pose, and his knees wanted to give out from under him. Regardless, he's a fun little guy and I'm glad to have him in my slowly re-growing GoBot collection.

Gobots Bolt :: The OTHER Transforming P-38

'Bolt' is a WW2 era P-38 Lightning, and a damn fine looking one at that. GoBots always seemed to have been designed from the vehicle mode out. The vehicle modes were often pretty accurate appx. 1:64 scale die-cast and plastic representations of their real world counterparts, and GoBots didn't shy away from vehicles from many different eras and walks of life.

GoBot haters tend to give GoBot robot modes a hard time, which I will never understand (G1 Megatron, anyone?) Sure, there were some lemons, but no more or less than in the Transformers line. And in fact there were many really clever transformation designs in the GoBot line. Bolt is one of these.

Bolt transforms easily and turns into a rather solid robot - no small feat for any transforming aircraft toy of the eighties. His change is simple but effective, and he feels like he'd stand up well to play in both modes - hell, he stands up, and that alone is a success (many Transformers and GoBots can't say the same.) In airplane mode he even has little rolling wheels - a level of detail that would be tossed right out today in favor of a cheaper alternative.

I found Bolt at the flea market last weekend and am lucky he is in such great condition. All of his propeller blades are intact and he has minimal chrome wear. His joints are tight and solid, and he still has all his stickers! Not bad for two bucks.

Bolt is a really cool GoBot who is even more impressive in person. Pictures just don't do the engineering and quality of the toy justice. Especially when you consider this guy is close to thirty years old!

Simple yet effective, Bolt is a great 1980s era transforming robot/vehicle in general, let alone a great GoBot.

Loco en la cabeza

This is the GoBot Loco, also knows as Machine Robo Steam Robo designation MR-05.

He's pretty Christmasy, with his vintage steam engine look and shiny red trim, and is currently on display with our Christmas decorations.

I'm way too busy to transform him myself however, so I'll go grab an egg-nog and let the Toyriffic Intern take over for a minute...

"I got this, Daddy."

"Okay folks, follow along closely. First, you grip the train like so..."

"...then you unfold his legs like this..."

"...then you turn him over in this fashion..."

"...then you make sure his legs are straight..."

"...you might have to wipe some dust off his face before you pop his arms out...and voila..."

"...you have a nifty robot!"

Thanks intern! Now go eat your oatmeal.

Loco is as simple as GoBots get, but is very effective in both robot and train form. His body is die-cast and his joints are pretty tight for such an old toy, in fact he's in unbelievable condition considering the fact that I found him at the flea market in a pile of Hotwheels and only paid a buck for him.

Helpful hint: look for GoBots in piles of Hotwheels/Matchbox when at flea markets/garage sales etc. They often get piled in by the uninitiated.

Gobots: We'll Pick You Up

What do the Renegades do when they need stuff moved from one end of the building to another? They call in Spoons, of course!

Spoons is the evil Renegade Gobot that turns into a forklift.

The forklift even 'lifts!'

Not too shabby for such a maligned toyline!

I owned Spoons as a kid but this is not my original. I found this guy at a local flea market recently in a box of random kids stuff. He was a bit dirty and his joints are super tight; he probably hadn't been transformed in decades.

What I loved most about Gobots, and Spoons here is no different, is that they were simple, sturdy, well designed, had a lot of die-cast parts (unlike their mini Transformer contemporaries) and fit right in with Hotwheels and Matchbox vehicles, making the 'robot in disguise' angle of much greater value during playtime.

Spoon is simple but not a bad toy in either form, and it's a real shame that Bandai has never re-released their original 'Machine Robo' castings (since Hasbro now owns the Gobots in name only.)

Spoons was originally released in Japan as MR-34 as part of Bandai's Machine Robo series, and was later released in the US by Tonka as a Gobot.

Megatron who?

Megatron may be the best known robot who transforms into a gun, but he's not the only one:

I don't know anything about this guy. EDIT: I was lazy when I wrote this, but just took a minute to Google for this guy and apparently his name is Cap Pistol (original, I know.)

He's clearly branded as a Gobot and I know he's legit, but he's nothing like any of the better known Gobots of yesteryear. All plastic and super low-rent, the only marks I can find on him is 'Made in Hong Kong' inside one of his legs. *edit I take that back, it says 'Arco' in his left armpit.

He looks like he's wearing a dapper red cap over his hair and sideburns. Get it? a red cap - Cap Pistol! Hahaha them dudes at GoBots were cleverer(er er er) than I thought! /sarcasm

His face is just a decal, so I imagine that part of him takes a beating over the decades. I am surprised I found him in such good shape at the (you guessed it) swap meet.

Unlike Megatron who transforms into a realistic Walther P-38, Cap Pistol transforms into a spiffy space gun ala Flash Gordon. PEW PEW PEW! Take that Ming!

And he's a real working cap gun too. Fun!

This guy is super kooky and I'm glad I have him now, although I probably would have thought he was the lamest toy ever back in my Gobot collecting youth.

YesterToys: Haters gonna hate edition

A lot of people like to bash the GoBots but I'm here to say they were, are, and will always be AWESOME!

What's not to love? They were equal opportunity employers, they fit right in with Hotwheels (making them true robots in disguise,) they made a ton of cool vehicles like motorcycles and P-38s and Japanese Zeros and Submarines, every figure was made with die-cast and plastic parts, they were inexpensive, the good guy leader (Leader-1) was an F-15 not a mamby-pamby semi truck that couldn't break 55mph unless it lost it's brakes going down a steep grade and the bad guy leader (Cy-Kill) not only had "Kill" in his name, but he was a motorcycle, not a low caliber gun who had to ask his fellow villains to hold him and tickle his nether-regions before actually being any kind of threat (guns don't kill people...)

And I say all this as one who loves Transformers. Let's face it, most GoBot haters are just prejudiced and have not actually come to their hatred through actual contact with GoBots.

Sure a few were lame, but so were, and are, more than a few Transformers.

Anyways, let's call a truce. Transforming robots are damn cool no matter what.

I'm not sure the exact year of the picture here, but I'm posing with quite the transforming robot birthday haul. You can see I was no Toyline Nazi as a kid either; I integrated everyone together in peace and harmony.

Largest of all is the GoBot Command Center, an epic AT-AT like playset with lights and sound and even an elevator! Mixed in the scene are some smaller Transformers like Huffy, looks like 2 Cliffjumpers, Windcharger, and Brawn. From the GoBot camp are Fly Trap, Small Foot, Block Head, Spoons, and I think Crane Brain. There is also what looks like 2 watch-transformers who are most likely generic, a Convertor brand transforming car, a "generic" Astro Magnum version of "Shockwave," and finally Zod, the battery operated evil GoBot dinosaur tricycle monster thingy. You turned him on and had to stab him in the gut with a joust-like stick to shut him down. That dude was epic and I so need one now. I really wish I had held on to all my GoBot stuff!

Everybody Must Get Stonedar

The 80s apparent fascination with rock-based action figures was either a stroke of updated Pet Rock genius, or proof that toy designers were flat out of ideas by the ends of both the Masters of the Universe and GoBots toylines.

"Nuthin' here but us rocks. Move along."

While I admit I DID buy into the Rock Lords faction of the GoBots (and had quite a few of them I might add,) I had moved on from MOTU by the time Stonedar made his appearance. There was another character called Rokkon who was more boulder-ish, while Stonedar looks like a meteor or some type of space debris. Both transformed in the same fashion into mighty Masterrrrrrs of the Universe-erse-erse-erse!

Stonedar's "change" is actually quite inspired, and his joints all move nice and free in much the same way most MOTU figures did, so he could probably sit in some of the vehicles and certainly fit right in with the castle playsets. Unfortunately his hands can't really grip anything so they designed him to have a satellite dish type weapon that clicks into his belly (which I don't have.)

He has a rather odd space-man ish look to him, but he is still pretty neat and clever and if I were still into Masters of the Universe when he came out I would surely have wanted him. Thanks to the magic of the swap meet, I have him now. Yay swap meet!

Next up is another recent swap meet find, Magmar - Evil leader of the bad guy faction of the Rock Lords.

I didn't have Magmar as a kid, but I did have Sticks N' Stones who I previously blogged about, so now my sole Rock Lord has a leader!

"Rock on."

Okay it's your turn; commence with the cheesy rock-based comments like "this post rocked" or "Magmar rokksors my sokxsors!"