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Toyco Alien Attack

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    Museum Robot
    • May 9, 2007
    • 5788

    Toyco Alien Attack



    Today's update is the answer to one of those riddles that plagued for years. The play set you see above has been something I've been trying to track down for well over 20 years and it's a wealth of toy history (and re-used molds) inside, more after the jump.

    Despite the Woolco price tag on this one, I vividly remember buying this set at the pharmacy next to my grandparents store (oddly the same place I bought my last Star Wars figure General zzzzzz Mandine) there were three types of sets available a Dungeons & Dragons fantasy version (which I would also pick up that summer), this one and I think a war theme.




    The insides were what you expect, some cardboard for a back drop, a thin sheet for the ground and some pretty nice figurines. I really dug that the box was it's own carry case.



    In the end, while these things held a mild distraction at best for two weeks during that summer. I was on the cusp of being a teen and toys weren't really doing much for me. I was finding myself more into records (still something of a problem for me) and sneaking into R rated movies.



    I have no idea what happened to either set and they became fond memories.


    And then i became a collector and one who likes information.

    For years and I mean years, I had no idea what this set was even called let alone who made it. I'm not positive how i stumbled onto "Toyco" but i kept it as an Ebay search for at least ten years until i finally found this set.



    These are the astronauts included with the set, their origins are unknown to me but I know they're at least from the 1960s. I also found them in a dollar store a few years back, so they're molds still get used. I'm also positive that if you go to my parents house right now, you may be able to find one.



    The real stars of this set were the amazing aliens, little did I know as a kid that they were knock offs the Colorforms Outer Space Men from the 1960s, the very same characters I lusted over in this set.


    It seems kind of fitting that i reunited with this set as I'm late in career as a toy collector these days, more interested in stories and friends than buying new things. I'm still into records but i sadly just waltz right into R rated movies now.....

    Thanks for reading, hope you have a tremendous weekend.









    For more Fashion Mockery and 70's toy love visit us at Plaid Stallions.com


    More...
  • alex
    Permanent Member
    • Jun 15, 2009
    • 3142

    #2
    What a great little playset, love everything about it. Mindu it says over 60 pieces, I presume theres some missing?

    Comment

    • Earth 2 Chris
      Verbose Member
      • Mar 7, 2004
      • 32498

      #3
      Wow, neat set! There is a Jack Kirby vibe about that box. I wouldn't be surprised if someone didn't paint over a Kirby design lifted from a comic.

      I had some of those astronauts...but I'm guessing a lot of us did. The Outer Space Men...nope. I would remember those for sure!

      It's always nice to hear about a happy reunion!

      Chris
      sigpic

      Comment

      • palitoy
        live. laugh. lisa needs braces
        • Jun 16, 2001
        • 59204

        #4
        Originally posted by alex
        What a great little playset, love everything about it. Mindu it says over 60 pieces, I presume theres some missing?
        there is a metric ton of astronauts but i only have one set of aliens (I assume they're collectible) and i remember getting at least 3 of each.
        Places to find PlaidStallions online: https://linktr.ee/Plaidstallions

        Buy Toy-Ventures Magazine here:
        http://www.plaidstallions.com/reboot/shop

        Comment

        • Bruce Banner
          HULK SMASH!
          • Apr 3, 2010
          • 4327

          #5
          Awesome. I also had some of those astronauts as a kid, although I can't remember what they came with now.
          The aliens are fantastic. (The Colorforms set was always one of my favourites growing up.)
          PUNY HUMANS!

          Comment

          • SpaceCrawler
            Veteran Member
            • Mar 20, 2008
            • 441

            #6
            Originally posted by palitoy
            there is a metric ton of astronauts but i only have one set of aliens (I assume they're collectible) and i remember getting at least 3 of each.
            The mini-Colorforms Aliens were re-released in recent years (each painted with silver, red, blue) and were widely available for a time. They came with some space ships- a space shuttle, some sort of oval space station, etc, that were not in scale with the aliens. I got handfuls at a local store that had tons of them in a bin for like 50 cents a piece. They were sold in boxed sets too.
            I stripped the paint off a set and painted them like vintage Colorforms Aliens.

            Sean

            Comment

            • Klosterheim
              Persistent Member
              • Mar 23, 2013
              • 1121

              #7
              That is really enjoyable to see this play set.

              I did have a couple of the 'hose carry' astronauts, that might have been from the 60's Marx set.

              Comment

              • TrekStar
                Trek or Treat
                • Jan 20, 2011
                • 8355

                #8
                Nice set to have, those aliens look cool.

                Comment

                • cjefferys
                  Duke of Gloat
                  • Apr 23, 2006
                  • 10180

                  #9
                  Cool set, I would have loved this as a kid, but I never saw it before.

                  And man, those Colorforms aliens puzzles always mystified me too!

                  Comment

                  • Bravestarr
                    Museum Super Collector
                    • Mar 26, 2017
                    • 185

                    #10
                    That is so cool

                    Comment

                    • greensavage2000
                      Veteran Member
                      • Aug 9, 2013
                      • 415

                      #11
                      Simple, imaginative and fun. I can't help but love it. Thanks for sharing. I wish I could walk into a store and see something like this on the shelf now a days.

                      Comment

                      • tay666
                        Career Member
                        • Dec 27, 2008
                        • 753

                        #12
                        I never saw this before, but what a cool story.
                        Love hearing about successful long-term hunts.

                        Comment

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