hey came from the Microverse—microscopic interchangeable warriors that filled the imaginations of kids everywhere. Beginning with Takara in Japan, under the name "Micromen," Micronauts were brought to North America in 1976 by the beloved company MEGO. The figures were so popular that they spawned a Marvel comic-book series, as well as a miniseries guest-starring the X-Men.
Now comes Palisades, following a very strong trend to bring back the toys of yesteryear. However, these retroactive nostalgic toys are designed less to spur the imaginations of today's kids than the memories of yesterday's kids. This movement is fueled by those countless kids who experienced the horror of Mom tossing out all their toys, or just the tragedy of losing all of their toys to time.
Palisades now brings back four carded 4-inch figures—Time Traveler, Space Glider, Acroyear and Membros—as well as two box sets of larger figures of Baron Karza, with his Star Stallion Andromeda, and Force Commander with Oberon. These close reproductions of the originals are truly excellent copies. This new line comes in various color variations, much like their originals, and features a peg system that allows for the part interchangeability that was the main advertised feature of the popular toy line.
Time Traveler is the first of the Micronauts. He comes in opaque red, black, transparent clear and blue. He is packaged with six cyber modules, which attach to his chest.
Space Glider's die-cast body and spring-loaded wing pack was revolutionary in 1976. Today's version is molded in green, blue, grey and red. He sports a color-coded battle helmet (originals were always blue), wing pack and space blaster.
Acroyear, enemy of the Micronauts, is a mechanical villain, one of the most popular of the original line. The updated version comes with die-cast chest and wheels, a plastic glider pack, spy drone and power sword. His color variations include red, clear, blue and yellow.
Membros, a "slithery-skinned invader from the remote world of Viceros," disgusted parents at the time, with his lobster-like appendages and exposed brain, but by today's standards, he's no horrific deal. He includes hydra blaster, hydra laser, hydra pak and pipe. He comes in red, black, blue or clear.
Baron Karza and Andromeda are virtually identical to Force Commander and Oberon, but for their heads and color. Karza is molded in black, transparent red and clear. Force Commander comes in similar colors but is known best in white. Each includes a plethora of parts that can attach magnetically to various places all over the figures. Each has several firing missiles.
Reproductions both accurate and flawed
The detail of these figures is reproduced accurately, and while they reflect well the figures of the original 1970s line, this serves to show just how far action figures have come in 25 years. The figures are flexible in many ways, and their main feature, their interchangeability, is less fascinating in today's toy world. However, since these figures were intended for the adult collector market, that's less of an issue.
The Baron Karza package, with its many small parts and firing missiles, has a clear sticker applied to the front that reads: "NOT A TOY! Recommended for Mature Collectors Ages 18 and Up," while, ironically, on the back of the package, Palisades' slogan clearly reads: "PLAY WITH IT!"
Presumably, the caveat on the package is there due to the fact that the Baron has spring-loaded missile launchers. In fact, when attempting to attach many of his parts, one may find himself ducking from various accidentally fired projectiles. Child safety laws have changed drastically since 1975.
Karza can be configured in many different ways, including a centaur format in which his torso replaces Andromeda's head on the horse-like body. Many appendages can be attached, forming a seemingly new toy each time it's played with.
The carded figures feature the more standard age warning of 3 years. None of these figures has firing missiles, though they all have very small parts. In accordance with the original design, many parts of each figure are compatible with parts from others, so great variations can be created.
The plainest of the Micronauts is Time Traveler, whose plastic body has one main feature—interchangeable cyber packs of various design. However, he is a hard figure to pose, as the elastic joining his torso pieces forces the body to an odd angle. This is not necessarily a detriment when placing him in extreme action poses.
Space Glider has an almost entirely die-cast body and comes with a highly cool wing pack whose folded wing arms deploy at the touch of a button—one of the coolest features of the entire line. His joints are strong and flexible, and he is highly posable.
Membros' claws can be removed and large weapons can take their place. His brain detaches, as does his hydra pak.
Perhaps for good reason, Acroyear was one of the most popular of the original figures. His clear arms grip his chrome power sword, and he comes with a large backpack with huge rotating ducted fans at either side. In the red version, the chrome on the chest is rather thin and looks worn. Similarly, the ducted fans have areas with poor chrome coverage where flash was removed from the molded pieces.
Many companies are attempting to cash in on the retro toy market. Sometimes, however, the remakes are so accurate that even the flaws carry over. Whether this is a good thing is entirely up to the collector.
