Robo Force: Maxx Steele - the Leader

Back in December of 2013, I posted a quick review of my first Robo Force toy, Blazer. I had forgotten the lot of toys I had purchased actually had two boxed Robo Force toys. These pictures have been edited and sitting in one of my "to do" folders for awhile so why not put them to good use?

I vaguely remember these toys from my childhood, but I never owned any of them. I was surprised that Maxx Steele's box was in good condition as the other one in the lot I purchased had a very tattered box. Max Steele has a very boring design in my book, however some of the other robots released later looked really cool.

I think it's funny how people thought of robots back in the late 70's / early 80's. The suction cup bottom and the tube arms...this screams 80's. I do have to give it to the designs on the engineering of the arms and how they move with the press of the button on the back of the robot.

I guess I can see the collectible niche of these figures. While they really aren't for me, I was glad I had a buyer at Charticon in 2013 that was more than happy to take off my hands the two Robo Force toys I had at the time.

Robo Force: Blazer - the Ignitor

Earlier this summer I had the chance to buy a lot of vintage toys from the 80's and 90's. Of course I grabbed them as I knew at some point I'd want to take a look at some of the toys here on this blog. Some of the toys I knew about, while others I remember seeing as a kid, but didn't know what they were called.

Robo Force, created in 1984 by a small toy company called Ideal Toys, was a toy line that I barely remember. I don't recall seeing these toys on retail shelves, but I'm sure they were in one of the many Sears Christmas catalogs I used to rummage through when making my annual Christmas list.

Blazer, the Ignitor. Is it odd that a figure called Blazer also shoots water? I don't know where the idea for this toy line came from, but I find it funny that in the early 80's this is what people though robots should look like. Short w/ flexible arms and a suction cup base.

The packaging for this figure looks rather nice, despite the box showing it's age. Surprisingly the plastic window is still intact, albeit very brittle. The box is very colorful and has some nice artwork of the character. I find it odd that a box of this size would have a hanger tab. I would've thought this packaging would have been better suited for shelves versus pegs.

The side of the box shows off the action features of the toy. Blazer comes with two different flame thrower attachments that are interchangeable and work on either arm. Surprisingly it doesn't mention the button on the back of the toy that works the moving arm mechanic.

I would have thought that Blazer would have been one of the enemy robots...then again I'm not completely sure on the story (if one even exists) behind Robo Force. The little blurb of text underneath the logo tells you a little bit more about the character and his abilities.

These robots stand about 8 inches or so tall and it appears they all feature a similar body construction. The head is made of a soft plastic that actually squirts water. The base of the figure is a large suction cup and even after all of these years still works.

On the back of this figure (and all of the others from what I know) is a square button that depresses. When pushed in, it sends a stream of (weak) air down each arm. This makes the arms bend inward, almost like it's trying to grab something. While compared to today's action figure standards the gimmick is pretty weak, but I would imagine this was pretty revolutionary for it's time.

I ended up taking the two Robo Force toys I had with me to Charticon 2013 to sell at my booth. Being a Transformers convention I was hoping that someone in attendance would know what these are and appreciate them. I didn't prominently display them as I had so many TFs with me, but it didn't take long for someone to spot them on one of the lower shelves behind my table. He was really excited to see them and bought them up without hesitation. I'm just glad they are in the possession now of someone who really wanted them.