@kirinsretrocloset / kirinsretrocloset.tumblr.com
Hey everyone, sorry for the sudden hiatus; personal crises + a new job starting up at the same time = no energy left for side-projects. Rest assured lots more Lego posts and other fun stuff are coming... eventually. Don’t wanna give an ETA yet and then miss it.
But meanwhile as a consolation prize, have this pic I took in Pokemon GO of Moltres vs Sky Lynx.
Quick break for one of the big boxes I found while cleaning up.. Sky Lynx!
Man, IO remember that Metroplex artwork.
Time for a bigger Classic Space set - 1985′s Gamma V Laser Craft. This has a lot of the hallmarks that the big spaceships would expand upon going forward - modular design where the cockpit snaps off the rear portion, translucent highlights, some flexible tubing, and a cargo compartment.
A couple wheeled Classic Space sets today - first is the little Surface Transport from 1983. Pretty simple and definitely in the “NASA collecting moon rocks” aesthetic. Next is 1987′s more complex Terrestrial Rover, with a neat hinged enclosure holding a little satellite. Never could find that fourth blue hinge and had to sub in a black one...
Have a whole batch of tiny Classic Space sets...
6809: XT-5 and Droid (’87) - An extremely simply hover-chair deal, but the droid is super cute
1557: Scooter (’86) - Probably one of the simplest recognizable spaceship designs you could make. Not sure if the hinged nose-cone had a purpose, or it was just the best way they had at the time to do the horizontal turn it needed.
6801: Moon Buggy (’81) - Odd name as I’d expect a buggy to have wheels, but the downward dish design is pretty cool.
6822: Space Digger (’81) - The neat claw on this will show up on a bigger set later...
Not the droids you’re looking for...
As a prelude to more actual kits, here’s some space-theme home made bits and bobs I had to disassemble to complete other sets. Pretty sure several were fully intended as affronts to god and man. (Though, the tiny guy in the first pic turned out to be a legit part of a set that’ll go up next.) The mobile launcher vehicle at the end was pretty cool, though, had a lot of flat-top bricks making a cradle the ship could slide out of easily.
Okay, kicking off the Lego sets with one of my oldest big ones, the Beta I Command Base from 1980. This is pretty representative of the early Classic Space aesthetic, which just has NASA style retro-future all over it. The boxy base, tiny rover, booster rockets - all classic designs that seem inspired by NASA equipment and concept art. And of course the Classic Space logo is somewhat reminiscent of NASA’s as well.
The builds from this era tend to be a bit more clunky and simple than modern stuff (most ships are based heavily on flat wing plates, lots of right angles, etc), but you can’t beat the attention to detail in this set. The guys chilling in the base have their own coffee mug, posts to hang their unused oxygen tanks, a unique big monitor screen, equipment racks, seats, and beds. The simple straight monorail track leading to the launchpad is pretty cool for a set this size. And the base windows even tilt open, which seems like a questionable choice on the moon, but hey.
Also included are a couple promo pics from the manuals giving a good overview of this era in Space Lego.
Consider this a teaser and a warning - I’m currently back at my parents’ house finishing one last round of cleaning, and this is what I’m mostly sorting and photographing right now. So while this has mostly been a G1 Transformers and retro game blog lately, in the near future it’s gonna be at least 80% Legos for a while. Hope you enjoy!
The bottom of the box holds a treat - the entire Constructicon team, combining to form the classic Devastator. Predating the more standardized “Scramble City” style combiners which are all 5-bot teams with a larger one forming the torso and four others forming interchangeable limbs, Devastator (who was originally the Diaclone “Construction Vehicle Robo” team) is made of six parts, all of which are unique and have some very weird ad-hoc connection methods. To make it all work they come with a bunch of extra parts, most of which can be repurposed to change the vehicles into “Attack Modes” with oversized weaponry or wings.
The individual Constructicons (L-R: Bonecrusher, Scavenger, Scrapper, Hook, Long Haul, and Mixmaster) are a mixed bag with some having simple, stiff transformations and other being more complex. Putting them all together can be a bit fiddly, but they hold up pretty well once combined (though a few joints on mine are a little loose after 30 years).
Had to cross-post this to multiple blogs I’m running - this is Susan Kare, a bitmap artist who worked on the look of the original Macintosh OS back in the 80s. Very cool to begin with, plus if you zoom on a high-res copy of the image, you can find Macross and Transformers/Diaclone toys up on her shelves!
It’s time for TECHNOBOTS, combining to form the mighty COMPUTRON!
Led by the previously-profiled Scattershot, L-R at the top we have Nosecone, Strafe, Afterburner, and Lightspeed. As usual for G1 “scramble city” style combiners, the four smaller bots look great in vehicle mode and a bit clunky as bots, and each can be used as any limb of the combined form. The first pic of Computron is done as per the instruction booklet, while the second is more like a pic found on tfwiki, with the leg bots flipped around and extended for a slightly taller stance, and a few more weapons attached. Bonus pic of Computron and our previous combiner Abominus mugging in bad lighting.
Smokescreen, one of my oldest Transformers and my only one of the original G1 cars. He’s adapted from the same Diaclone base as Bluestreak and Prowl, and transforms into a Datsun 280ZX, aka Nissan Fairlady Z in Japan. Smokescreen’s deco is based on Don Devendorf’s Electramotive team racer. (Thanks for tfwiki and transformerland for that trivia.)
Like some other Diaclone originals, his transformation is more fiddly than other G1 bots and some parts are a little fragile. He also has a bunch of die-cast metal, though, which gives him some heft, and his arms are way better articulated than most.
Some sources claim only the Japanese release had spring-loaded missiles in the shoulder cannons, but mine has ‘em, so maybe they were in an early US release too before Hasbro removed them for safety reasons.
The Decoys were a bonus pack-in that came with a bunch of 1987 card-pack Transformers like the Throttlebots and several sets of combiners. Tiny, unarticulated, mono-color figures, they were originally "keshigomu" eraser-gum toys in Japan, sold as gachas, with candy, and even in game sets. In Hasbro Transformers continuity they came with a little comic explaining that they represent drone replicas sent out as a distraction.
These guys were basically a direct response to the Kinnikuman toys, which came to the US as Ultimate M.U.S.C.L.E. and were popular in both the regions for a few years. Some other toy lines also tried to get in on the tiny figure action, like these Gundam guys I also found:
Brainstorm and his partner Arcana; together they form an Autobot Headmaster that I skipped over earlier because I’m missing his instructions. Fortunately the transformation is totally straightforward, so it was easy to guess.
One of the shorter-lived Transformers gimmicks, Flywheels here is a Duocon, consisting of two vehicles that automatically transform into a single robot via spring-loaded mechanisms when the plane is pressed down on top of the tank. Only one other Duocon, Battletrap, exists.
Tailgate is the last G1 mini I have on hand (I know I owned more once, but they maaay have been sold for middle school pocket money back in the day). Like several of the 1986 last wave of minis, he’s a retool, in this case of Windcharger - both transform into Pontiac Firebird Trans Ams.
Continuing with the G1 minis, here’s Seaspray. A hovercraft is a pretty cool vehicle mode, if you ask me. The free-spinning propellers are a nice touch.
