The lost art of vintage toy packaging.

[Werewolf]

From the vibrant RAH GI JOE card art to the amazing hand painted MOTU vehicle and playset packages, there is just something special about the toy art from the era.

This video breaks down all the effort and thought that went into the RAH GI JOE figure cards.

[Bocasean]

Thanks for posting this!

[Marvelmania]

You're so right. Today's packaging is no where near as much fun. Loved the video too!

[enyawd72]

I have to say the new Super7 MOTU card art is amazing and right up there with the best of the 80's.

Some other packaging with amazing painted art...

Ideal's Manglors
Galoob's Defenders of the Earth
Mattel's Clash of the Titans
Kenner's Batman Returns

[HardyGirl]

Hmmm...well I really like the GIJoe Adventure Team package, and Mego's AJ packaging, b/c the artwork is so cool. It just screamed adventure! I really wish GIJoe would have kept up w/ the comics inside as well. But I think it would have been cool if Mego had trading cards of the AJ artwork, (like the pics of all the different outfits on the back of the packaging).

[alex]

Great packaging, but that guy is full of BS , just for starters what kid would remember or care for his dads 12" joes ??

[HardyGirl]

Ok, I didn't watch the video, (b/c I'm not an 80s baby), but just to reply to your comment...There are plenty of parents, (my mother included), that wanted to share their favorite things w/ their kids. For instance, I'm a big fan of old time radio shows b/c of my mother. As a teacher, I share the classics like View-Masters and the original Weebles w/ my pre-schoolers. I've also shared things like classic TV, records and other things from my past w/ my students. So who's to say that some of the kids in the 80s wouldn't have known about and/or enjoyed the ORIGINAL GIJoe line? I know when I saw the 80s cartoon for the frist time, the first thing I wanted to do was show my kid brother what an ORIGINAL GIJoe was and what the concept was behind it. (Sadly I couldn't at that time, b/c I hadn't started collecting yet, but I wanted to). So I think it's likely that dads who might have saved their '64 Joes might have wanted to show their kids what the original concept of GIJoe was.

Great packaging, but that guy is full of BS , just for starters what kid would remember or care for his dads 12" joes ??

[palitoy]

It doesn't get better than this for me personally.

[Werewolf]

It doesn't get better than this for me personally.

The Micronauts aliens card art is fantastic. Great figure too. Membros is the only Micronaut I have left from childhood.

[palitoy]

As a struggling college student, I was really to pick up one or two of these and store them for the future but money was too tight. As it turns out, it would have been wise.

This impulse was solely on the box art and the science fictiony connection to the Adventure team.

[PNGwynne]

Ideal's Manglors

lol I recall loving the packaging, but boy where those toys crap.

[palitoy]

lol I recall loving the packaging, but boy where those toys crap.

Oh yeah, Ken Kelly did that art.

[enyawd72]

To this day, the single greatest achievement in toy packaging IMO are the Aurora monster model boxes painted by James Bama.

[El Hombre Nuclear]

A real hidden gem for vintage package art has got to be the Dynaman/Dynagirl line by Barter, I believe mainly sold in Spain and France circa '77-'82. The art is pretty awesome, and they use that very distinctive "collage" style of commercial art that was so popular in the late '70s and early '80s. You would see it all over the place back then, on book covers, movie posters, Atari/Intellivision boxes, etc. That totally era-specific art style is a real childhood nostalgia magnet for me, as it seemed to completely disappear sometime after the mid '80s...

[Marvelmania]

To this day, the single greatest achievement in toy packaging IMO are the Aurora monster model boxes painted by James Bama.

Funny you mention that because the Aurora 70's superhero model box artwork is a huge favorite of mine. They really speak to me in terms of fond memories.