Machine Robos or Gobots by Tonka and Popy Toys
 Ok, ok. So you don't want to admit that you like Go-bots, right? Real men love Transformers, handy guys like diecast, BIG dudes love Jumbos, artsy men love vinyl, and techies love plastic bots. Women are allowed to love The Go -smile-. So, we have a dilemma. To love a Go-bot is equivalent to driving a Morris Mini, wearing a pink Polo , breeding toy poodles, and having a small tool set. Right?
Wrong. Go-bots deserve respect. There is something to distilling all the best qualities of your favorite car or plane into a toy solder transformer. For about $5.00 kids of the 80's could amass a small army that could fit in your lunch box. Machine robos have always had a power of numbers and realism.
 Would you believe that the MR series was hugely successful in Japan? True. Would you believe that Gobots outsold Transformers for a while? Fact. Tonka imported for Bandai in the 80's. According to an Tonka exec, had Tonka done a better job of marketing they could have outsold Transformers in 1984. Tonka didn't market well, mistimed their toy supplies, and dropped the ball. For a few months Tonka had the lead. Go-bots could have had a better fate and more respect.
But the ice age could have never ended, The Mona Lisa could have had a straight nose, and Monkeys could have ruled the world. We just will never know what could have happened. I am appreciative that Tonka even imported these Fig-Newton sized bots. The outsides are crisp in design and on the inside is an addictive fluid center.
So please sit back, click away, enjoy the photo index, and reflect on the ingenuity of the Bandai Japan engineers. Bandai's Machine Robos, a.k.a. Go-Bots deserve respect. |
