Playmates Toys

[captainjellico]

Hey everyone, long-time lurker and first time poster.

I hope I'm putting this in the right forum, but I couldn't find a merch section and hopefully this post will appeal to fans of all series.

I recently started an Instagram page photographing my Playmates Toys collection from the 90s. I have all of the 4.5" figures as well as practically all of the role-playing accessories and many of the ships. Instead of leaving them to get dusty in my attic, I thought I'd take photos of every item to share with other nostalgic Star Trek fans.

I'm starting with the TNG assortments, but will move on to DS9, VOY and the movies soon. I try and share interesting tidbits about the characters/episodes in the descriptions, so hopefully you guys will find it of some interest.

The link to the page is www.instagram.com/startrekplaymates

I'd welcome any feedback from you and really hope you enjoy the posts. Thank you.

 

[Kor]

Ah, the good old days. The semi-cartoony designs give those figures a whimsical charm which I find lacking in the more collector-oriented figures from Diamond Select, McFarlane, and whoever else has been involved lately.

Kor

 

[fireproof78]

Hey everyone, long-time lurker and first time poster.

I hope I'm putting this in the right forum, but I couldn't find a merch section and hopefully this post will appeal to fans of all series.

I recently started an Instagram page photographing my Playmates Toys collection from the 90s. I have all of the 4.5" figures as well as practically all of the role-playing accessories and many of the ships. Instead of leaving them to get dusty in my attic, I thought I'd take photos of every item to share with other nostalgic Star Trek fans.

I'm starting with the TNG assortments, but will move on to DS9, VOY and the movies soon. I try and share interesting tidbits about the characters/episodes in the descriptions, so hopefully you guys will find it of some interest.

The link to the page is www.instagram.com/startrekplaymates

I'd welcome any feedback from you and really hope you enjoy the posts. Thank you.

I will be reviewing heavily. I have been going through some of my figures but my collection never got that large. I look forward to more

 

[Kor]

I just didn't get it when they decided to do the Star Trek: First Contact figures with the same glossy, plasticky aesthetic, but in six-inch scale instead of 4.5". They didn't go with the rest of the figure line, playsets or vehicles! IIRC they went on to release a precious few DS9 and/or VOY characters in the six-inch scale, but the Playmates Trek action figure line was basically dead at that point.

Kor

 

[pst]

i love these videos. haven't heard these sounds in 20 years.

 

[Armus]

I went a little nuts with The Playmates figures when they appeared in 1992. I was 12 at the time and still obsessed with action figures. Galoob had manufactured TNG figures in 1988 but their line was shortlived. By 1995 I was back into Star Wars and most of my Star Trek toys ended up in my parent's attic.

 

[NCC-73515]

The D and the phaser started my collection! The tricorder is still the best of all. Then I got the amazing Voyager, and the way too big type I phaser, and later found some of the TOS props on eBay. The Innerspace series was also pretty good! Not long ago, I found a few figures and the shuttle at a flea market, and finally expanded the old collection XD

 

[Lance]

I've still got most of mine including the bridge set. I even bought custom 'beardless Riker' and 'Troi in a skant' figures so as to be able to replicate season 1 TNG

 

[t_smitts]

I got a fairly decent amount of those in the 90's through the early 2000's. At the moment, they're stuffed in some plastic tubs in my parents' garage about 2000 km away. I think I gradually got more interested in ships, first the Micro Machines, then the Johnny Lightning and Furuta lines, then the Micro Machines again, and finally the Eaglemoss set.

There's an episode of the Netflix series "The Toys That Made Us" devoted to the Playmates line that's really insightful. I suggest checking it out.

 

[captainjellico]

I just didn't get it when they decided to do the Star Trek: First Contact figures with the same glossy, plasticky aesthetic, but in six-inch scale instead of 4.5". They didn't go with the rest of the figure line, playsets or vehicles! IIRC they went on to release a precious few DS9 and/or VOY characters in the six-inch scale, but the Playmates Trek action figure line was basically dead at that point.

Kor

Yes, I think this was one of several mis-steps that Playmates made that ultimately led to the cancellation of the line. It started with the limited edition figures, beginning with the red Data figure AKA Data from 'Redemption' and then moving on to the infamous 1701 debacle (Picard from 'Tapestry' still sells for several hundred dollars on eBay). It also didn't help that the Generations line was made up of all the main cast wearing uniforms that didn't appear in the movie.

I went a little nuts with The Playmates figures when they appeared in 1992. I was 12 at the time and still obsessed with action figures. Galoob had manufactured TNG figures in 1988 but their line was shortlived. By 1995 I was back into Star Wars and most of my Star Trek toys ended up in my parent's attic.

Yes, it's the same for me. My Grandma bought me my first ever figure in 1993 when I was 9, so I was a little young to have collected the Galoob series.

I've still got most of mine including the bridge set. I even bought custom 'beardless Riker' and 'Troi in a skant' figures so as to be able to replicate season 1 TNG

I've made a season 1 Riker! (second pic here -> https://www.instagram.com/p/BvPe7SyAYV8/?utm_source=ig_web_button_native_share) Troi in her skant is a bit ambitious for me! I'm in the process of making a season 1 Doctor Crusher using Doctor Pulaski's body.

I got a fairly decent amount of those in the 90's through the early 2000's. At the moment, they're stuffed in some plastic tubs in my parents' garage about 2000 km away. I think I gradually got more interested in ships, first the Micro Machines, then the Johnny Lightning and Furuta lines, then the Micro Machines again, and finally the Eaglemoss set.

There's an episode of the Netflix series "The Toys That Made Us" devoted to the Playmates line that's really insightful. I suggest checking it out.

It was a chance trip up to my parent's attic last fall when I discovered all my collection again and it restarted the obsession to complete it! My wife is full of despair

The Toys That Made Us doc is so interesting; I've watched it a couple of times. I just wished they'd spent a little more time focussing on the Playmates line.

 

[publiusr]

The Mego starships from Canada also need some love.

The Playmates Vor'cha is really nice--a bit bigger than the model kit even.

 

[fireproof78]

Random but fun fact. I got in to Star Trek figures after getting Playmates Seaquest figures.

 

[Redfern]

Those figures are almost in scale with Character Options' Doctor Who line, the DW figures being roughly 1/13th scale or 5.5 inches, the Trek figures being maybe 1/14th scale, closer to 5 inches. But as the Trek figures were ever slightly "toonish" in their proportions, that meant their heads were perfectly matched to the Doctor Who figures. TomFan, a member here and at a notable DW board is an extremely talented sculptor and has turned them into museum quality miniatures. He has also used the heads of the figures to create new custom characters, some to fit with Trek, other times melding with Doctor Who.

 

[t_smitts]

I also liked the large ships with sounds that Playmates released. I ended up picking up the Enterprise-D and E and the shuttle. I think we got the Romulan Warbird and Klingon Vor'Cha up in Canada but not really the others, though I could be wrong.

I remember reading an article about a guy who found a Defiant in a clearance bin at a Walmart in someplace like West Virginia a couple of years ago. Somehow, the ship had managed to escape inventories and returns for YEARS! (My guess would be it fell behind a shelf and was just discovered recently by some worker). Presumably, they sold it to him for the sticker price, to boot!

 

[Tomalak]

This is awesome! I loved the Playmates toys as a kid, especially the Enterprise-D, phaser and tricorder.

Last year I impulse-bought a full set of the wave 1 DS9 figures in a bout of nostalgia. These are just awesome figures, probably the peak of Playmates. They have amazing likenesses, unique sculpts, and great accessories. They even did a Morn figure!

I think the First Contact line was the beginning of the end for Playmates. They got screwed over on Generations, but it was an insane decision to make a whole line of figures which were incompatible with all the others and the playsets.

 

[C.E. Evans]

The Playmates Trek toyline was simply "it" for me in the '90s.

Got all of the main characters & bad guys from TOS through VOY. Got the TOS Enterprise, the Galileo-7 shuttle, the Enterprise-D, the DS9 station*, the Defiant, the Voyager, and the Enterprise-E. The very last toy I got from that line was Seven of Nine in the silver catsuit.

I pretty much had every role play toy they produced, but most of those I pitched when I moved house and I had just too much stuff to pack up and carry. As a result, the only ones i still have are the TOS communicator, phaser, & tricorder; the TNG type-2 phaser and tricorder; the TMP/TWOK type-2 phaser; and the TNG movies phaser. I don't even wanna think about the more rare ones I tossed in the bin that I wished i still had.

*I lucked out on the DS9 station. It was sitting on a markdown rack at my local K-Mart for 10 bucks just waiting for someone to take it home. Man, that thing is almost screen accurate.

I regretted not getting the Enterprise-B when I had the chance, thinking I could get it again later. As it was, I only ever saw it that one and only time.

 

[Paul755]

I had a ton of these. Ships, playsets and role playing items included. I can remember being so excited that they came out with the big boxed set of the TOS crew.

Generations was the beginning of the end I think. Not only did they get screwed by the uniform change. But they decided to make them virtually un-poseable.

First Contact was just furthering the decline.

 

[Tomalak]

Generations was the beginning of the end I think. Not only did they get screwed by the uniform change. But they decided to make them virtually un-poseable.

You're right, that was bizarre penny-pinching from Playmates. They did make the awesome Klingon Bird of Prey and Enterprise-B, and Kirk, Scotty and Chekov in their monster maroons. But overall the Generations line was a big miss.

I loved the TOS movie figures too. It was cool to make them in the unfashionable TMP costumes, but then there was no Decker or Ilia. She did come later in the line though. I heard that the Sulu and Uhura figures were supposed to be Decker and Ilia, which makes more sense, but for whatever reason Playmates changed their minds. They never did Scotty or Chekov in those costumes.

Overall it would have been better to do them in the TWOK uniforms to go alongside the brilliant Saavik and Khan figures in that line, plus Scotty and Chekov from the Generations line.

 

[The Wormhole]

Due to the longevity of the Playmates line, there resulted in quite the variety including figures most certainly not likely to be done again. Captain Dathon, Tosk, even Morn! And the variations on the main characters we got. Picard and Data in Romulan disguises from Unification, Picard as Dixon Hill, Worf in 19th century costume, mutated Tom Paris from Threshold, Geordi from Identity Crisis. The Playmates line almost rivaled the Kenner/Hasbro Star Wars figures for sheer thoroughness of the franchise.

I remember when I was twelve I glued a pin onto the back of one of the insignia resembling bases to stand the figures on and made it my own comm badge. Then I left it on my shirt when it went in the wash.

Generations was the beginning of the end I think. Not only did they get screwed by the uniform change. But they decided to make them virtually un-poseable.

Yeah, I remember that. For some reason the Generations figures lacked articulated elbows and knees, despite being a common feature on the rest of the line. Never understood why they did that.

 

[Redfern]

I wished they had released a M'Ress figurine (and I guess Arex as well for his fans), but in retrospect I learned of Loreal's purchase of Filmation (though I never understood why?) and thus the true ownership of the cartoon material was in debate at that time. Basically, it could never have happened under those circumstances (but I was not aware of that issue).