TAtTF: Robocop Toys Rule
One toy line I hadn’t really thought about in a long time is the Robocop line. For a very short while in the early 90s Kenner had a line of 3 and 3/4ths (about) scale figures and vehicles based on a ridiculous Robocop cartoon for kids. Here’s the opening to the show. You can’t tell me that this isn’t all kinds of fucked up:
The show only lasted 13 episodes. I really don’t think you have to ask why.
Here’s a series of commercials for the toys from some foreign country. I’m not sure from where, because the kids have some crazy ass accents:
Here’s a commercial featuring real kids from AMERICA:
As you can see, Robocop the figure had a stupid cap firing mechanism in his back, but he was a better representation of the character than ever should have been made, considering his roots are an ultra violent film that’s certainly not for children. But being a child of the 80s, I loved me some Robocop and was grateful to have a figure of him any way I could get it. I didn’t give a crap about any of his buddies in the Ultra Police or the enemy figures they made up. I mean… just look at those fruits. Robocop was were it was at. He also had certain features that put him over the top from being great to truly awesome. Not only did he have a removable helmet* to revel the penis-like head of Peter Weller, but his gun plugged into the side of his leg, which is kind of like where it went in the film.
Out of the vehicles seen in the ads, I had the cop car. It was flipping awesome because it fit in so well with all my other toys back then. The styling fit with Captain Power’s vehicles and Batman always needed a crime fighting buddy.
The line produced two more figures that are near and dear to me before it went down the crapper. The first was a Robocop who was made purely for the toy line that came with a GUN ARM! It wasn’t any regular gun arm either, it was a MINI-GUN ARM! That Robocop was also fricken glow in the dark. You can’t get any more awesome or 90s than that if you tried. Finally, the line had ED-260, which was one of the coolest figures you could add to any 3 3/4ths scale army of toys. Talk about being able to mesh with any number of figures in your imagination. ED-260 served many roles as well as making Timmy Gill jealous of me, which was super sweet because he had all the Bravestarr figures I wanted, including the horse that he wouldn’t let me play with. Take that, jerkbag!
Bonus: Believe it or not, there was yet another Robocop cartoon later on. This one focuses more on Robocop being a badass Inspector Gadget with things like jetpacks and rollerblades, rather than the fact he’s cop who was brutally murdered:
This cartoon series had a line of toys associated with it, but since it wasn’t a part of my childhood… I really don’t give a crap about it.
*Of course, I lost the helmet and the gun. Why wouldn’t I?
August 22nd, 2008 at 8:19 am
Wow–your post about this line (and show) is almost identical to one I might have written (or probably will write at some point, rather). I LOVED this toy line, and I’d get a DVD of the show if they’d release it here.
And you named all my favorites–the regular Robocop, the glow-in-the-dark one (which was initially a mail-away, which I got, but was later sold at retail), and of course, ED-260. Both Robo and ED-260 currently occupy places of honor in my Shrine.
August 22nd, 2008 at 1:10 pm
I remember the toys (though I never had them), but the cartoons are both new to me.
August 22nd, 2008 at 2:36 pm
The cartoon looked just like the movie, ‘cept for the part where Peter Weller gets his arm blown off. Which, obviously, makes the cartoon inferior.
Oh, man, I forgot about all the “cap firin’” action. I almost wish that trend has stuck for action figures. I would have gone apesh*t in my GI Joe battles.
August 22nd, 2008 at 4:43 pm
those robocop toys were amazing. i had robocop, whose helmet i lost, his car (the chrome peeled off immediately) and ED-290 or whatever his name is. they all fired caps and were AMAZING.
August 22nd, 2008 at 7:32 pm
why can’t you find cap firing action figures anymore? even if this was after my favorite time with toys, it’s great that grownups found ways to injure little kids in new and exciting ways. love it!
August 23rd, 2008 at 5:46 am
Also of note: McFarlane’s Robocop figure was an orgasm in plastic form.
August 23rd, 2008 at 10:48 am
I have the Glow-boCop. It’s awesome.
August 23rd, 2008 at 2:48 pm
Man I still have my cap firing robocop, I remember trading kids stuff from my cafeteria lunches for more boxes of cap rolls. I lost the helmet but still have the gun and figure.
Jeez, now i’m going to repair the foot of my McFarlane Robocop and bring him into the webcomic.
Now if only someone would make a damn BAF sized Ed-209 and Robocop Mark II… KAIN! muahahahaha
man i still want that Ed-260.
August 23rd, 2008 at 2:51 pm
I <3 you so much Paul for this post.
August 23rd, 2008 at 8:21 pm
God our toys were awesome as kids. How did the heads at Kenner think that incorporating a cap firing function would be safe? You don’t see that kind of reckless abandon these days in toy design.
I remember my neighbor had the ED-209 toy and man was that an unfair advantage when compared to my lame ass eco-warrior gi joes I got for christmas from my grandma …
Robocop is relentlessly violent and awesome if for only that greatest line in cinematic history “Bitches LEAVE”
August 24th, 2008 at 1:12 am
At first I thought the advert was Australian but then at the end it shows a retail price in GBP, so I guess it’s English!
August 24th, 2008 at 8:07 pm
[...] with work? Browse Toy Bender and read about the Robocop toy. Did You Enjoy this Post? Subscribe to Microsoft Office. It’s Free! [...]
September 8th, 2008 at 7:00 am
[...] been on a bit of a Robocop kick after my latest article dealing with him, so this was an immediate must have. Sadly, this did not contain bubble bath, but the dollar [...]
September 16th, 2008 at 11:27 pm
You forgot the Robocop live action show that used to come on (around me at least) at like 1 in the morning.
Talk about some good times!
Sam