Remembering the original Toy Biz Marvel line...
 

Growing up I was heavy into Mavel comics, even more so then I am now. I read DC too, but not as much (of course later in life my taste changed and I got more into DC. anyhow...) I always wanted figures to re-enact the stories. But alas there were no toys available aside from some bendable figures.

That all changed in 1990. I remember walking into Toys R Us one Saturday afternoon, probably to get some Ninja Turtles and low and behold what did I see on the Shelves? Captain America! I was so excited that I started looking through the shelves and then there was Dr. Doom, Daredevil, Spider-Man and a few others. It was the first time The Marvel characters were in figure form since The Secret Wars some years before. And as a bonus they were the same size as the DC/Batman line from the year before, how awesome. I walked out with Cap and didn't put him down, over the course of that year I got all the others. These guys saw major Playtime and pretty much outshined all my other toys at the time. Once I grew too old to actually play, They remained proudly on my shelf for years.

Good times..

I found the 800 number on the back of the box and I would call Toy Biz from time to time with suggestions for more heroes to add. Once I was even rewarded and they sent me the Giant sized Venom for free for being such a good fan. In another thread I will talk about the suggestion that actually came true (although I'm sure in actuality I had nothing to do with it but it made me believe they were listening)

Now remember this was the days before the internet and you found out about new toys from either commercials or walking in the store and being suprised.

Anyhow check out this visual guide and relive the beginnings of Marvels return to plastic and feel free to share your own memories.

Marvel Super Heroes

I guess I'm the only one with fond memories of this line...

I wasn't a big fan of the original line because the sculpting and gimmicks were distracting. Although they probably fit in well with Super Powers or those types of figs. Each of the sub-lines like Spider-Man and X-men is where Toy Biz really hit their stride.

I think the only figure I have from this line is Silver Surfer because I had heard he was rare but by the time I found him he was pretty common.

For the time they were good and the gimicks really didn't get in the way on most figures. But hey, without them there would be no Marvel legends. But I also agree that the X-men line was the start of Toy Biz's stride.

I still have the Captain America and Dr. Doom figure from that line around here somewhere. I was five or six and didn't even know who they were but I will always remember my aunt bringing me those two figures at the court house during my parents divorce hearing.

She also brought Annihilus for some reason but he didn't catch my attention much and those wings broke quickly. Oddly I had Cap and Doom teaming up and making Annihilus the bad guy,

heres what I remember from the toybiz marvel figures
I remember being a kid, getting Tiger Striped Wolverine. This was wave 2 of the x-men line. Super rare figure at the time because he was wolverine.
I was so happy cause ever since my dad and cousin introduced me to x-men, I wanted this figure
I get it, I open it up, I play with it for a day, and he breaks. His arm tore off at the elbow joint.
I was heartbroken, and it was then that I learned that Toybiz toys were pieces of crap. same thing happened later when I collected Marvel Legends and nearly every ML I opened had atleast 1 glued joint which easily broke 1 out of 5 times.

Toybiz was not the makers of fine quality products

Never saw this thread until now. Was not impressed with the first offerings Toybiz had, but by the second wave of X-Men, they really started to pick up. And I think they were in their golden age around when they started the Marvel Legends. My favorite lines come at the tail end before they switched over. Sculpting was fantastic, and the only drawback were when they tried to go McFarlane and prepose them (Robot Fighters had some of the best sculpting, but practically ruined with preposes)

sounds like either you were *really* hard on your toys, or just had absolutely rotten luck. aside from ML Mystique, I've never had a single toybiz figure break on me.
I started collecting them around the same time as you, as that wolverine was one of my first figures, too.

I have the same kinda luck when it comes to new electronics. My first DVD didn't work properly (Fortunately it was the dvd and not the player). My first CD player didn't work properly. My first gamecube didn't work properly. My first DS didn't work properly (dead pixels). My first 3DS didn't work properly (dead pixels). There have been a few others that I can't recall ATM.

I remember laughing at the sad quality of early Toybiz toys- having bought the old Secret Wars line as a little ki, I could not understand why the toys had gotten so bad years later!
It was like startiing out with current SW figs and years later you have Kenner straight-arm figs with yellow lightsabers.

Towards the ninties they made some good stuff- Bonebreaker of the Reavers I bought and I recall really liking him. I've considered getting one, slapping a dreadnok torso on there and making a custom- I loved the reavers!

That first tiger stripe wolverine broke for me too at the elbow.

Those first couple of waves were single elbows. It wasn't until later they started doing the triple elbows that are standard today. So a lot of people had their early figures break whether they were hard on them or not. They just weren't durable at all or quality at all. (The very first wave that wasn't TAS connected was durable, the TAS line wasn't at all until a much later wave, about the second or third year).

Heck, that first Iceman's "Freeze" color change caused the glue that held the figure together to breakdown. Early toybiz was a ton of trial and error, mostly error. Gotta give them props though, Mattel's secret wars had no knees or elbows, and everyone came with the same shield and gun just about.

Their Marvel Universe line at the time was fun if albeit hit or miss at times. Some figures rocked, others were weird. Loved the ironman figure though that had removable armor to reveal tony stark underneath. Just wish it had more paint on the armor. And they really did manage to get a lot of figures out that were neat, including US Agent, Safety Armor Daredevil, and many others. The spraying venom was a badass toy for that day and age too.

holy thread resurrection!

man i remember the x-team outfit wolverine i had broke at the elbow too. but definitely had a toooooooooooooon of these guys thanks to kaybee toys and their 3 for 10 dollar deals after a while.

My LCS has all the first wave of Toybis hung up on walls- no one buys them- though I sometimes consider buying that awful "snowman" Iron Man for laughs and having the oher IM figs stand around laughing.


I should point out that later Toybiz stuff is pretty cool- Warstar, Mojo, Strong Guy and others look pefect with MU scale figures.
I just got a Captain America 6" fig from Big Hank's customs to make a Super Adaptoid...and the Toybix Satchsquatch kicks ass with MU Alpha Flight.
Seen here with Astonishing Wolverine
http://pic90.picturetrail.com/VOL221.../399067166.jpg

I have most of them MOC. Brings back great times when you had to get up and hunt for toys. When the variant was just a hard to find figure short packed in a case.

When hard to find mean "looks okay and not like crap" and you heard about upcoming figs from the back of the card!
I recall being shocked they made a Professor X- bald paralized guy with no guns or anythig? Pretty suprising..
I honestly think the 90's cartoon is what kept that line going- and get kids interested in other characters on a "that guy looks cool" basis.

Sasquatch looks like he is PERFECT MU Size there, nice photo

Thnks- check Amazon!
Eight buck and shipping!
Amazon.com: Marvel Comics 1999 Collector Edition 2 Pack Alpha Flight Action Figure - Sasquatch (6") and Vindicator (5") Plus Bonus of Exclusive Motion Card: Toys & Games

Go get him!

whoa! Thanks for the link!

Anytime, man...anytime.

The P-x figure looked just like my dad. lol I remember the Marvel and X-men line was end capped at Toysrus for like a year.

I remember all the terrible 10" figs they made that clogged Kat Bee Toys forever- and stuff like unreleased Iron Man armor bodies with the Beast or Wolverine's head stuck on.

Back in the day Kay Bee toys used to be the bomb.

your telling me. They put toysrus to shame. I remember buying beast wars toys for 3 dollars at one point.

I have most of the early 90's Toybiz figures still in their packaging.. My parents bought them dirt cheap but gave them to me when I was more of a MOC collector but I do remember having Captain America, Spider-man, Doc Ock, Dr Doom, Iron Man and Thor loose when I was younger. I still have them, and still have fondness for them.

I remember really wanting the talking Hulk figure, even though I was scared of him as a child...

Hell yeah- they'd also have tons of older toys from a year or two back at their outlet stores- it was the only place I ever saw the "Marvel Universe" line of repackaged toys and occasional new one tossed in.

You know what i need from back then> a 10" Silver Surfer or black Spidey- the Figure Realm goons have made insane Celestials customs from those.
Insane.


also, if anyone has one, I'm looking for an odd character from the old X-Force line called Comcast ([yes I]really[/I], like the cable company). He'd get customized into a Mandroid.
(with a ton of work, that is!).

Man I love the whole 90's line! Got most of them and while the detail isn't as great as some newer lines, most figures are still pretty good and the character selection can't be beat.

marveltoys.net's got a good database of most of those old figures

The repackaged toys were the rebranding. The initila Marvel Universe line were before the TAS lines, about the same time as that very first non-TAS related X-Men line if not before it. They were on gray blistercards. The figures had no elbows, used t-cut legs, head swivel, and single knee bend.

The repackaged line were on colorful cards and used the TAS various lines figures. So they had elbow bends. The first one was late 80s, the rebranded was 90s.