Spotted Online – Action Figure Playsets

When I posted Cardboard and Plastic: Cheap Star Wars Playsets last weekend I specifically focused on those playsets that included a lot of cardboard. I’ve taken some abuse (both online and off) for my admitted love of cardboard playsets (especially those that include a plastic base) but I don’t care. They’re neat, they’re goofy, and kids these days are missing out.

Of course, as a child of the eighties it would be wrong of me to not also embrace some of the more spectacular playsets of my youth. In poking around online I ran across Retro Junk’s Top Ten 1980s Action Figure Playsets, an article that lists such awesome playsets as the USS Flagg, Boulder Hill, and Snake Mountain.

Yes, these towering works of plastic are impressive and highly-desirable, but I’ve gotta say that I don’t completely agree with Retro Junk’s list of ten playsets. If I were to choose my “Top Ten 1980s Action Figure Playsets” I’d have to list:

Boulder Hill – I’ve actually got one of these and it’s a huge, fantastic piece. Probably the most unusual “toy” that’s part of the playset is the over-sized boulder that hides the top-most cannon. Do you think it would be okay if I replaced the boulder with a Rock Lord?

Castle Greyskull – Another playset I never owned (in fact, I had very few Masters of the Universe toys as a child), Castle Greyskull was one of those that I was lucky enough to play with because another kid owned it. Growing up on a military base worked out great, since there were so many kids (roughly) my age within a few blocks of the house.

Death Star – Yes, technically this was a 1970s playset. No, I don’t care. And I know it doesn’t look all that much like the Death Star, but it’s still a toy I never owned and one I wanted. Maybe if I had six or seven of them placed together it would start to look like a Death Star, but when I was six I didn’t care at all what it looked like. It was the Death Star and I wanted it!

Defiant Space Shuttle Complex – Nobody did action figure playsets in the 1980s like Hasbro did with their G.I. Joe line. It wasn’t until about seven or eight years ago that I actually got the chance to play around with one of these in person and it’s still an incredible toy.

Hall of Justice – Kenner’s Super Powers line in the 1980s was one of those series that I never got into. I wanted to, but there were more cool toys out there than I could ever hope to own so after a while I started focusing on specific lines. This is one of those playsets that I never even saw, but to this day I think of it when I think of large playsets. www.actionfigureinsider.com has a pretty good section on the entire Super Powers line.

Metroplex – Was the Transformers Metroplex a figure or a playset? I don’t know, but I often used mine as a playset since so many of the smaller Transformers could sit inside him, walk on him, and generally interact with him as an environment.

Tactical Battle Platform – Another G.I. Joe playset, this is another one of those toys I never owned but I was lucky enough to play with.

Terror Drome – I told you G.I. Joe had great playsets. I recently reviewed the re-released Firebat but I’d kill for an actual Terror Drome. This toy was cool and even today it’s massive. If I did own a Terror Drome, where would I put it? Take a look at the Terror Drome page at www.yojoe.com and you’ll see what I mean about the toy’s size.

Turret and Probot Playset – There were dozens of Star Wars playsets and, even as a child, my love of droids left me wanting this particular set. I mean, who wouldn’t want a probe droid? Unfortunately, I had to wait until the late 90s before I could add a probe droid to my toy collection. (And I still have him.)

USS Flagg – As a child I actually knew a kid who had one of these in his basement. I used to love playing with it; even today I wouldn’t dream of buying one of these because I have no idea where I would put it. I can’t very well tell Gina that “we’re gonna need a bigger house” just to buy this thing.

And that’s my ten playsets. Notice that there’s not a single Ewok Village in the bunch. That’s intentional, because the Ewok Village sucked. Anyone who adds the Ewok Village to their top ten playsets list has to be feeling ill; you can’t actually expect me to believe that the Ewok Village is anywhere in the top twenty playsets of the eighties.

For a while playsets were difficult to find. These days, though, it appears that toy companies are once again producing new playsets. Hopefully there will be something as massive and amazing as the old sets from the 80s, but we’re not quite there yet. For more thoughts on playsets and vehicles today hop over to www.comicbookbin.com for Randy Herkowitz’s thoughts on today’s toys.

Philip Reed knows better than to start collecting playsets. They’re massive, ugly, and expensive and buying a new house just to have a room for large toys isn’t a realistic option. Still, he can dream.