Galaxy Laser Team: 2014 'jumbo' reissues

Packaged jumbos shown with standard minis

Following multiple reissue sets of Galaxy Laser Team mini figures over the past couple years, the latest incarnation of these classic space-fantasy toys is has arrived, and it's the biggest re-release to date. Literally. Earlier this year the old molds were unexpectedly found for the "jumbo" versions of these figures (which measure up to 4.75 inches tall), and brand new sets have been made!

According to the product description for this release, the super-sized versions were originally produced by Tim Mee Toys' parent company, Processed Plastic, in 1979 as a follow-up to the standard 2-inch mini figures released the previous year. They were typically sold under the name "Star Patrol."

The 2014 reissues have been produced in bright green, with each bagged set consisting of six figures: the Chewbacca-esque alien, the space hero, the stubby robot, the Vader-esque villain, an astronaut, and of course, the ever-awesome lobster-turtle alien. The paper header on the sets features the same type of fun, colorful artwork that we've seen on the previous Tim Mee reissues.

There are a couple of the mini figures that didn't make it into the jumbo set, including an astronaut in a different pose and the space heroine standing by her console. While the absence of the space-lady is especially noticeable, from what I have read she was never produced in jumbo size and a mold doesn't exist, which explains why she isn't included.

When you first get these figures in hand, you might be surprised by just how much larger they are than the mini versions. I know I was. As you can see above, they pretty much tower over them. These figures have a really solid feel to them, and are made of a hard and sturdy, yet somewhat flexible plastic. The details come through crisp and clear. It looks and feels like a high quality set.

I was especially excited to get a giant version of the lobster-turtle, as it's long been one of my favorite non-articulated figure sculpts. I immediately got the urge to pose him along with the smaller versions in all of the different colors that I own, and the result did not disappoint. The lobster-turtle overlord has found his minions! We can only hope that more colors will continue to be produced so they can join the ranks. There will never be an army of lobster-turtle aliens that is too big.

Aside from that classic weirdo, the super-sized figure I dig the most is the R2-D2-meets-mailbox robot. I don't know exactly what it is, but there's just something about this particular sculpt being in the larger scale that makes it extra fun. I love the textures on on it, and the fact that the jumbo version features the solid, fully-sculpted back instead of the hollow back that is seen on most of the mini versions.

If you're a Galaxy Laser Team fan, you'll no doubt want to add this set to your collection. And you can do just that via Amazon, where each set of six costs just under $16. Hopefully we'll see some more colors in the future. I'd love to see some glow-in-the-dark colors, or maybe a snazzy neon pink set.

What about you?

Galaxy Laser Team: 2013 reissues in new colors

After a reissue in black and gray colors last year, the classic Tim Mee Toys space-fantasy mini figures from the '70s/'80s best known under the name Galaxy Laser Team are back again this year with releases in four new colors!

There are two new bagged sets of 50 pieces each: one with red and orange figures, and one with blue and green figures.

The same characters that Galaxy Laser Team collectors know and love are back: the Darth Vader-esque villain, the fantastic lobster-turtle alien, the heroic space warrior, the space woman and her console, the Chewbacca-inspired space beast, the R2-D2 knockoff robot, and the two different astronauts to round out the set. Each set also comes with spaceships in corresponding colors.

If you prefer brightly-colored mini figures like I do, you should be very happy with these reissues. The orange and red set is my personal favorite--I love the combination of these warm colors, and the figures really pop in them. In fact, orange might be my favorite Galaxy Laser Team color to date. The blue and green set is great as well, although a similar green was used in old Galaxy Laser Team releases, so if you own some of those already you probably won't find it as exciting as the other three new colors.

Once again, these reissues come via J Lloyd International and VictoryBuy, and are available for around $12 per bag on Amazon (you can find the red/orange set HERE and the blue/green set HERE). Be sure to check out the Tim Mee fantasy warrior figures that were recently reissued, as well.

I love the fact that these figures are back on the market in multiple colors, and hope new ones continue to be produced. I'd love to see a purple/yellow set, or maybe even some transparent or glow in the dark colors. I want to create an army of lobster-turtle aliens in as many colors as possible!

Here are some additional photos of the new versions:

My current group of lobster-turtle aliens, with the addition of the new colors

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Yucky yellows & petrifying pinks

I love taking these photos of like-colored mini figures. It's a good excuse to dig through my big ol' box of "little rubber guys" to figure out which ones I want to include in the shots! You can check out all of the "by color" photos I've done on my Flickr page here. I'm thinking I'll do blue next.

Here's a list of all the toy lines represented in each of the above photos:

Yellow: Terekoma vending machine bootleg, Ultraman vending machine bootleg, Monster in My Pocket, Mini Boglins, Musclemania, OMFG, Zoids vending machine bootleg, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles action figure companion, Monstruos Mutantes, Diener Space Creatures, Kinnikuman bootleg, Space Ace, Martian Fink

Pink: Vending machine kaiju, vending machine MUSCLE bootleg, Mini Boglins, Diener Space Raiders, Monstruos Mutantes, ZOMBIE, fantasy playset skeleton warrior, OMFG, Galaxy Laser Team, Necros Fortress, Monster in My Pocket, Cosmix

Galaxy Laser Team: 2012 reissue

What: When I first wrote about Galaxy Laser Team plastic space figures here just a couple months ago, I had no idea that versions of the toys were going to be available to buy new right now in 2012. But it's true--an online retailer, VictoryBuy, has worked with the current owners of Tim Mee Toys to manufacture a small production of the figures using the original molds. So Galaxy Laser Team figures are officially back on the market! All the original figures are there, including the gun-wielding space hero, Darth Vader-esque villain, the little robot, the space woman with her trusty console, the Chewbacca-like guy, the two astronauts, and of course, the infamous turtle-crab alien. Also included are two starships. As with previous editions, this new set includes black figures, but this time instead of white, green and pink, the other color included is light gray. This gives the set a very cool, retro sci-fi feel. The bag comes packaged as a set of 48 figures and 2 ships with a header card featuring some very cool artwork of the various characters. I'd recommend picking up a set whether or not you already have some of the older versions. It's very cool to see these available again!

When: 2012

Where: Sold on Amazon.com. Get them here.

Who: Manufactured by Tim Mee and sold by VictoryBuy.

Galaxy Laser Team

Turtle-crab alien

Sort of Han Solo, sort of Chewbacca, sort of Darth Vader

R2-D2 was never the same after his trip through the trash compactor

Factory error or victim of turtle-crab alien?

What: If you're going to rip something off, I say do it shamelessly. Like these figures, "Galaxy Laser Team," space-themed mini figures that make no attempt to hide the fact that they are directly inspired by Star Wars characters. There's a dude that looks a lot like Darth Vader, a creature that looks a lot like Chewbacca, a robot that looks a lot like R2-D2, a hero that's Han Solo-ish, and a female character that was presumably inspired by Princess Leia but is not nearly as interesting because she doesn't get a weapon (only a computer thingy), or even a cool hairdo like Princess Leia. Then there's a couple random astronauts and a random turtle-crab alien (my favorite), which actually seems to have nothing to do with Star Wars. Fun stuff. Each of the eight sculpts came in four colors--green, pink, white and black--and many figures came packaged together and sold as bagged sets, which you can see a photo of here.

When: I think I got these in the very early 1990s, but from what I have read they were first produced years before that, shortly after Star Wars first came out.

Where: I remember getting these at a dollar store. I'm not sure where else they would have been sold.

Who: Tim-Mee