Action Man (1993–2006 toyline)

Action Man Is a line of action figures produced by the toy company Hasbro from 1993 to 2006 and again in 2009. The line began as a relaunch of the original Palitoy action figure range and eventually grew to become a multimedia franchise consisting of toys, books, video games, two television programs and a comic book published by Panini Comics. The toy line centred around the eponymous 'Action Man', an action hero who continuously fought to foil the evil, world-conquering schemes of his nemesis Dr. X. Toys were also produced of several supporting characters, who were often allies of either Action Man or Dr. X.

This article is about the second generation Action Man, in the Action Man toy line. For the original Plaitoy Action Man, see Action Man.
Action Man
Created byHasbro
Original workOriginal Palitoy toy
Print publications
ComicsPanini Comics series
IDW series
Films and television
Film(s)Robot Atak
X-Missions - the Movie
The Gangrene Code
Animated series1995 series
2000 series
Games
Video game(s)Search for Base X
Operation Extreme
Robot Atak
Miscellaneous
Related franchisesAction Force
G.I. Joe
A.T.O.M
Max Steel

History

Beginnings and success

Following the end of the Action Force toyline, Action Man was rebranded and relaunched by Hasbro in 1993. The initial releases were the US Hall of Fame figures modelled on the 3​3⁄4" GI Joe line-up. This was followed by a 30th anniversary edition modelled after the original 1966 Palitoy release, albeit using the GI Joe "Hall of Fame" body, that lacked the articulation, scale and proportions of the original figure and accessories. A variety of body types were subsequently offered across different price ranges. This new version of the Action Man figure moved away from the more militaristic theme of the original Palitoy range in favour of an "extreme sports" theme, and introduced a fantasy terrorist antagonist in the form of Dr. X. Branded toys, stationery and other items were also subsequently marketed, while Panini Comics began publishing a tie-in comic book series in 1996.

Cancellation and A.T.O.M. launch

The Action Man toy line and comic book both ended in early 2006 and was replaced with Hasbro's A.T.O.M. series, a spin-off toy line based on an animated TV show of the same name. This new series was thus rebranded as Action Man: A.T.O.M. in certain regions, including the United Kingdom. Panini Comics also launched a new tie-in comic book series.

Subsequent revivals

In 2009, Hasbro briefly released a new wave of Action Man toys exclusively to Tesco stores.

The New York Comic Convention saw Hasbro release a catalogue showing off some upcoming toy lines that Hasbro have been well known for in the past including the new "The Action Man". It is currently unknown when or if these toys will ever be released.

In June 2016, IDW began publishing a new series of Action Man comic books, simply titled Action Man, to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the original Palitoy action figure.

Appearance

As with the original Action Man releases of 1966, the first re-releases of Action Man in the 90s were simply re-packaged Joes; Duke, Cobra Commander, Stalker and Snake Eyes; in boxes that resembled the standard GI Joe HOF blue packaging. Shortly thereafter Hasbro International developed packaging unique to the Action Man line; bright orange coloration, and a new Action Man logo. The 1990s 12" Action Man was closer in construction to the poor quality imitations of the original line; very limited articulation, with equipment not to scale (see illustration below). The hands could not really grasp any of the accessories. These figures were essentially G.I. Joe Hall of Fame bodies with a different set of head moulds, some of which had "fuzzy" hair. Later examples improved on the articulation, depending on the price point. The figures were marked "©Hasbro International 1993" across the buttocks. Some came with blue shorts, reminiscent of the late 70s–80s body. The articulation of neck, waist, arms and legs varied as mentioned. Some, like Tiger Strike (see below) have rubber legs, no waist, elbow or wrist pivot, and a head that only looks left/right. Even the more articulated versions cannot compare to the range of motion offered by their early predecessors; for example, the knee/ankle joints only pivot up/down; they do not rotate, and the waist does not allow for rotate and "lean" to the extent possible with earlier figures. The feet on all body variants are like Barbie; not to scale with the body. Unfortunately, these bodies are also grossly overweight in comparison, and as a result of this and the small feet, they are much more difficult to pose freestanding. The more articulated bodies were also of a harder plastic, rather than the softer vinyl/rubber used for basic figure limbs that were similar to Barbie's "Ken". Basic figures were available in a variety of configurations such as Tiger Strike and Sport Extreme, as well as deluxe sets such as Sky Dive, CrimeBuster and Raid and Roller Extreme. The more expensive sets contained the more articulated figures.

Vehicles, accessory packs, carded items; 1993–2006

A number of vehicles were offered for the 12' figure line, with bold graphics and the signature orange background coloration. Included were the Super Bike, Mission Raft, 4×4 Jeep, Silver Speeder, Racing Car and others. A large quantity of carded accessories/uniform sets were also offered at this time. As with the boxed figures, the first releases were repackaged GI Joe HOF sets, with similar design blue graphics, subsequently replaced with the new orange graphics and new Action Man logo.

30th/40th Anniversary and special editions; 1996–2006

In addition to the three 30th anniversary sets, a number of special edition figures were also released, one of which was the 1996 reproduction football player, in a numbered box. As with others from 1996, this was the extremely limited articulation Hasbro Hall of Fame body, with a flocked hair head sculpt. This item would never have been intended as a toy, but merely a collectable. From 1997 to 2000, Action Man was also released in the uniforms and costumes from six James Bond movies. These included Thunderball, You Only Live Twice, The Spy Who Loved Me, GoldenEye, Tomorrow Never Dies, and The World Is Not Enough.

In 2006, after the main toy line had ended, a number of Action Man: 40th Anniversary sets were released.

Characters

For a full list of characters please see; List of Action Man characters.

Many recurring heroes and villains have featured in the toy line, TV series and comic book. The most notable are listed below.

Action Force
  • Action Man (1993–2006) - The eponymous protagonist of the franchise and leader of the Action Force, typically referred to exclusively by the 'Action Man' moniker.
  • Red Wolf (2004–2006) - Action Man's Native American teammate. Two types of action figure were released.
  • Flynt (2004–2006) - Australian teammate. Two styles of action figure were released.

Council of Doom

Dr. X is a mad scientist who is the arch-enemy of Action Man within the Action Man canon, introduced in the mid-late 1990s.Despite being constantly defeated and humiliated by Action Man, Dr. X remains bent on world domination.

In the toy-version plot, Dr X is bent on ruling the entire world and is prepared to kill anyone who stands in his way. He has recruited many villains into his army over the years such as MAXX (or 'the man with no name') (1999), Tempest (2001), Asazi (from the 2000 animated series), Anti-Freeze (2003),[1] No-Face (2004) and Professor Gangrene (1997, 2000, 2002, 2003).

Several variations of Dr. X action figures have been released: in 1994 - a rotary, firing shield; In 1995 - a laser eye & exposed brain; In 1996 he had a bio-stomach (toxic gut), in 1997 - a firing hand; in 1998 - a chopper bike, in 1999 - a laughter button, in 2000 - a robotic arm, in 2001 - a bronze arm and ball & chain, in 2002 - a firing missile arm, in 2003 - a titanium arm In 2004/5 a Komodo Dragon and a whole new body.

For storylines involving Action Man and his nemesis Dr. X, see Action Man (comics).

Video games

Several Action Man video games were released over the franchise's history, including Action Man: Destruction X,[2] Action Man: Raid on Island X, Action Man: Jungle Storm (PC, 2000), [3] Operation Extreme (PS/PC,2000) and Search for Base X (GBC, 2001), [4] as well as the movie tie-in game Action Man: Robot Atak (GBA, 2004).

Comics

Panini series

Panini Comics published an Action Man comic book between 1996 and 2006, running for 138 issues before it was replaced by Panini's short-lived Action Man: A.T.O.M. Comic. The title was published every three weeks. Following the 2002 cancellation of the Action Man TV Series, the comic would be the only source of official story line for Action Man, aside from a trilogy of direct-to-DVD films. The final editor was Ed Caruana, who would go on to edit Panini's A.T.O.M. series. Panini Comics also own the Marvel UK licence, with Marvel UK having previously published an Action Force comic during the 1980s.

IDW series

The Action Man character was again rebooted by IDW Publishing in 2016 for a four-issue limited comic book series set within the Hasbro Comic Book Universe.[5] This rebooted version of the Action Man character was placed within the shared continuity of IDW's Hasbro Comic Book Universe, appearing in the crossover storylines Revolution and First Strike alongside several other Hasbro characters.

See also

References
  1. http://www.actionmanhq.co.uk/frameset/frameset2.html
  2. http://www.gamespot.com/action-man-destruction-x/
  3. "Action Man: Jungle Storm". Gamespot. 27 October 2000. Retrieved 11 February 2020.
  4. "Action Man: Search for Base X". Gamespot. 6 February 2001. Retrieved 11 February 2020.
  5. "Action Man #1". IDW Publishing. June 2016. Retrieved 11 February 2020.
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