The best of those toys were, without question, the Micronauts! More correctly, the Interchangeable World of the Micronauts.
The Micronauts were, as the story went, a technologically advanced race of beings that existed in a parallel, micro universe, or inner space. What that meant to me as a kid was, if these beings were ever able to cross over into our universe, they would be very small people with very small ships. Simply put, the four inch tall action figures I held in my hands would really be four inches tall in our universe. They were actual size!! Awesome. But the true genius of the toys was, as the tagline stated, their 'interchangeability'. You could take pieces of one spaceship or character and combine them with any of the other vehicles to make brand new ships and characters, which greatly extended the playability of all the Micronaut toys. Some of these toys actually had motorized parts, while others were cleverly held together with magnets...and all of the vehicles had several spring loaded weapons that fired plastic or rubber coated bullets. It was like having the best Star Wars toys with the built in power of Lego's!
There were great characters in the Micronaut universe like Acroyear, Biotron, and Baron Karza, as well as some unique interchangeable ships like the Photon Sled, Mobile Exploration Lab, Battle Cruiser, Astro Station, and the Hydro Copter. There was even a huge city called Micropolis, which had tons of plastic wall and girder pieces that could be assembled, much like an Erector Set, into whatever cityscape you wanted.
And of course, who can forget the icing on the cake. Rocket Tubes! A transportation system made of interconnecting clear plastic tubes that could shoot your Micronaut action figures from one end of Micropolis to the other on a motorized cushion of air! Brilliant. Yes, the Micronauts were easily the best, most creatively thought out sci-fi related toy I ever owned. (And what a great concept for a live action movie!! Hint, hint, Steven Spielberg.)
Now, moving on. The other toy that had completely captured my youthful attention was the gigantic Space: 1999 Eagle Transport. This thing was a big sucker, over 2 1/2 feet long, and held all the three inch tall Moonbase Alpha action figures inside. For me, Space: 1999 was second only to Star Trek, so when this thing popped up under the Christmas tree, I was absolutely beside myself with elation. You could put two characters in the front section and a whole bunch in the middle transport section. There was a winch in the middle of the transport section for lifting and lowering characters or cargo, and the front pilot module could detach, along with the engine stack in the back, to be combined together to make a smaller scout ship. Wicked! Ironically, many Micronauts could be found piling into that Eagle from time to time too, if the mission warranted! HA.
It's funny to think that these toys, when they first came out, were just, well...toys. But now, over thirty years later, they embody the very essence of my childhood, like playable scrapbooks of my youth. What I wouldn't do to get my hands on some of those classic Micronaut figures again, or even the big Space: 1999 Eagle, just for the chance to unlock all those fun-filled memories.
(For more info on the classic Micronaut toys, check out http://www.micro-outpost.com/, and for more on the this Eagle Transport and other Space: 1999 classic toys, see http://www.toysyouhad.com/1999.htm)
(For more info on the classic Micronaut toys, check out http://www.micro-outpost.com/, and for more on the this Eagle Transport and other Space: 1999 classic toys, see http://www.toysyouhad.com/1999.htm)