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Post by wildojinx on Aug 13, 2023 13:49:11 GMT -5
We all know that most of the major toy lines of the 80s and early 90s had tie-in cartoons, heck, we still see many today. But what are some toylines that DIDNT have tie-in cartoons, but should have? Exhibit 1: The Food Fighters: Maybe this would have been too ridiculous even for 80s cartoons, but they gave cartoons to stuff that had less backstory (Lazer Tag Academy, Potato Head Kids, etc), and I can see the writers and animators having fun with this concept.
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Post by The Dark Order Inferno on Aug 13, 2023 14:06:15 GMT -5
The 80s incarnation of Zoids/Z-knights/Starriors was crying out for a cartoon to set lore going forward so the western brand had a solid base to build from when it came to fiction. Starriors had something in production, but it fell through for whatever reason.
Microman/Micronauts. There's supposedly a completed animated series for an aborted 2020's series that's been Batgirl'd, completed, canned and used as a tax writeoff.
Xevoz. I love Xevoz, but they needed more lore to really take off with the intended audience.
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Post by Big DSR Energy on Aug 13, 2023 14:44:50 GMT -5
Oh god, I haven't seen Food Fighters in forever!
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MolotovMocktail
Grimlock
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Post by MolotovMocktail on Aug 13, 2023 16:39:35 GMT -5
Rock Lords. They debuted in a Go-Bots movie, presumably for them to get a spinoff series, but it never happened and the toy line was largely forgotten as a result.
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Post by Hurbster on Aug 13, 2023 18:04:40 GMT -5
The 80s incarnation of Zoids/Z-knights/Starriors was crying out for a cartoon to set lore going forward so the western brand had a solid base to build from when it came to fiction. Starriors had something in production, but it fell through for whatever reason. Microman/Micronauts. There's supposedly a completed animated series for an aborted 2020's series that's been Batgirl'd, completed, canned and used as a tax writeoff. Xevoz. I love Xevoz, but they needed more lore to really take off with the intended audience. There was a cartoon strip in I think Star Wars Weekly (UK mag I collected as a kid), and I know there was a Zoids game for the C64 around that time. I would definitely have watched a cartoon if one had been made.
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El Pollo Guerrera
Grimlock
His name has chicken in it, and he is good at makin' .gifs, so that's cool.
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Post by El Pollo Guerrera on Aug 13, 2023 18:08:15 GMT -5
"ROM: Spaceknight" would've been a great show.
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Post by The Legend of Groose on Aug 13, 2023 18:22:12 GMT -5
Did Stretch Armstrong ever get a cartoon? I feel like there's potential there.
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Cranjis McBasketball
Crow T. Robot
Knew what the hell that thing was supposed to be
Peace Love and Nothing But
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Post by Cranjis McBasketball on Aug 13, 2023 18:22:57 GMT -5
We all know that most of the major toy lines of the 80s and early 90s had tie-in cartoons, heck, we still see many today. But what are some toylines that DIDNT have tie-in cartoons, but should have? Exhibit 1: The Food Fighters: Maybe this would have been too ridiculous even for 80s cartoons, but they gave cartoons to stuff that had less backstory (Lazer Tag Academy, Potato Head Kids, etc), and I can see the writers and animators having fun with this concept. Holy shit. Totally forgot about these. Believe I had the hot dog.
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schma
El Dandy
Who are you to doubt me?
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Post by schma on Aug 13, 2023 19:13:42 GMT -5
Did Stretch Armstrong ever get a cartoon? I feel like there's potential there. I don't know if he got one originally but there was a cartoon in 2017 called Stretch Armstrong and the Flex Fighters.
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Paul
Vegeta
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Post by Paul on Aug 13, 2023 19:13:44 GMT -5
Army Ants!
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Dr. T is an alien
Patti Mayonnaise
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Post by Dr. T is an alien on Aug 13, 2023 19:15:21 GMT -5
As awesome as the actual toys were, I cannot believe there wasn’t a Sectaurs cartoon.
Another one that seemed prime cartoon material was Robo Force.
I know there actually was an animated series for Wheeled Warriors, but I never saw it.
Lastly, there’s the reverse of the topic. Mecha animes were popular in Japan long before they were here in the US. There was a rush to gain access to anime intellectual properties in the 80’s. World Events Productions did it smartly when they licensed 3 anime series for their Voltron series (they didn’t use the third series). When they got the licenses from Toei, they also got the rights to make toys.
Not everyone was so forward thinking.
Harmony Gold also licensed 3 separate animes to make Robotech, but they did not navigate the different licensing laws nearly as well. For starters, they were not the only ones to license anything from those animes in the first place. FASA licensed the likenesses of several mecha from Japanese mecha series for use in their source materials for their tabletop game BattleTech (as well as for the miniatures for use in the game). Additionally, Hasbro also got the rights to make some Macross toys for their Transformers toy line.
How could this be? Well, because Harmony Gold only got the rights to edit, rewrite, and dub to make an American show. This also allowed them to publish books based on the show. They did not procure any other rights, but believed they did. They sued FASA and Hasbro over their licenses. They also started to make their own toys and claimed the other companies using their legally obtained licenses damaged their actually unlicensed toy line.
It was a shitshow that had legal battles, mainly with BattleTech’s different owners through the years (including Hasbro for a while) that eventually ended 30 years later with Harmony Gold getting a definitive judgement against them. All because they didn’t bother to do their homework.
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tirtefaa
Unicron
If you wanna know the truth, you gotta dig up Johnny Booth.
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Post by tirtefaa on Aug 13, 2023 19:25:54 GMT -5
Good ol' Food Fighters! My favorite action figures ever. They were never in any major retailers, but that's one of the reasons it was worth it going to places like Ben Franklin that had them. I bought Sergeant Scoop (the chocolate ice cream cone) back in 1989. One of my biggest frustrations as a kid was coming across Fat Frenchy (the french fries) a short time later...and I never asked for toys, but I begged my mom for him, only for her to tell me no multiple times. So aggravating! Anyways, despite scouring flea markets in the years to come, I never came across any. However, when I heard about eBay for the first time in 1999, these guys were the first thing I ever bought. I don't have all the weapons or backpacks...or even the cards, but the fun is the characters themselves. A few years ago, the Barnyard Commandos (who were a sister series that was also made during the late 80's early 90's) were rereleased in a new articulated form. I think the Food Fighters deserve the same treatment. Heck, they should have a second wave of characters...and luckily for them, I whipped some up a while back for fun. Come on Mattel(?), make it happen!!!
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Post by Stu on Aug 13, 2023 19:36:38 GMT -5
As awesome as the actual toys were, I cannot believe there wasn’t a Sectaurs cartoon.
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Push R Truth
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Post by Push R Truth on Aug 14, 2023 6:58:24 GMT -5
Did Stretch Armstrong ever get a cartoon? I feel like there's potential there. Cartoons? I dunno. Pornos? Like a half dozen, probably more.
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thechase
King Koopa
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Post by thechase on Aug 14, 2023 8:28:41 GMT -5
Robocop got a cartoon, but the rest of the Ultra Police line he was packaged with didn't.
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Post by WoodStoner1 on Aug 14, 2023 8:51:01 GMT -5
He didn't begin life as a toy line, but...Freddy Krueger. Yep, I said it. As there was tons of merch aimed towards kids from Nightmare on Elm Street, I am shocked that no one tried to pull a Crypt Keeper and make a Freddy cartoon show.
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thechase
King Koopa
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Post by thechase on Aug 14, 2023 10:08:20 GMT -5
M.A.S.K's final line, the 'Split Seconds' range, had no third season backing it.
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Gunhaver
Team Rocket
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Post by Gunhaver on Aug 14, 2023 10:08:28 GMT -5
I don't care that the pilot bombed, Incredible Crash Dummies deserves a full season.
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Post by Toilet Paper Roll on Aug 14, 2023 18:10:53 GMT -5
Did Stretch Armstrong ever get a cartoon? I feel like there's potential there. Cartoons? I dunno. Pornos? Like a half dozen, probably more. I think it had one pretty recently
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Post by A Platypus Rave is Correct on Aug 14, 2023 18:57:25 GMT -5
Aliens... though it almost happened
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