Plastic Power! Action Figures Through the Years (1970s-1980s) - Flashbak (2024)

Plastic Power! Action Figures Through the Years (1970s-1980s) - Flashbak (1)

Up until the early seventies, action figures were basically Barbie dolls for boys; there wasn’t much separating a Ken doll from GI Joe besides their wardrobe. So, boys primarily played with those cheap green army men and made do.

Then, Batman and other superhero figures started appearing on the shelves, and it wasn’t long before Star Wars unleashed the Kraken – a tidal wave of action figures from all manner of movies and TV shows flooded the market. Generation Xer’s ate them up and begged for more.

Let’s have a walk through some old catalogs, taking it year by year from the early seventies through the eighties, and look at the various action figure offerings through the decades. Enjoy.

1973

Plastic Power! Action Figures Through the Years (1970s-1980s) - Flashbak (2)

Like I said, there wasn’t much separating Barbie dolls from action figures back then – just more furry facial hair and different shirts.

1975

Plastic Power! Action Figures Through the Years (1970s-1980s) - Flashbak (3)

In 1975, the figures still had that “doll look”, but I’d say this year was a big leap forward, at least for your average seventies kid. I had the Shazam figure and played the hell out of it. You can’t underestimate what a big break this was from the tired old army-themed figures.

Certainly non-military figures had been around. But if you had to put a date on it: the Summer ’74 was the year the action figure came into its own. Planet of the Apes, Star Trek and DC superheroes suddenly started winding up in the grubby hands of seventies kids like myself, and a new world was opened up.

Plastic Power! Action Figures Through the Years (1970s-1980s) - Flashbak (4)

Plastic Power! Action Figures Through the Years (1970s-1980s) - Flashbak (5)

What seventies kid didn’t idolize Evel Knievel? The man was a real-life superhero.

Plastic Power! Action Figures Through the Years (1970s-1980s) - Flashbak (6)

Big Jim and Big Jack are sporting some skimpy star-spangled tighty-whities; did they not come with actual clothing?

1976

Plastic Power! Action Figures Through the Years (1970s-1980s) - Flashbak (7)

Steve Austin, astronaut. A man barely alive… We can rebuild him. We have the technology. We can make him better than he was. Better… stronger…. faster.

Plastic Power! Action Figures Through the Years (1970s-1980s) - Flashbak (8)

That Hall of Justice needs a makeover; I don’t remember it looking so pitiful.

Plastic Power! Action Figures Through the Years (1970s-1980s) - Flashbak (9)

Plastic Power! Action Figures Through the Years (1970s-1980s) - Flashbak (10)

Plastic Power! Action Figures Through the Years (1970s-1980s) - Flashbak (11)

1977

Plastic Power! Action Figures Through the Years (1970s-1980s) - Flashbak (12)

They really merchandised The Six Million Dollar Man to hell and back. I had the figure, and also the lunch box. Alas, I did not have the CB headset.

Plastic Power! Action Figures Through the Years (1970s-1980s) - Flashbak (13)

Plastic Power! Action Figures Through the Years (1970s-1980s) - Flashbak (14)

Ah, the Micronauts. I had one or two figures myself. The toys actually had their start in Japan a few years earlier, and were licensed by Mego in 1976.

Plastic Power! Action Figures Through the Years (1970s-1980s) - Flashbak (15)

If you go back and watch a Starsky & Hutch episode you’ll find it clearly wasn’t targeted to kids. This was a very grown-up show; it’s incomprehensible that seventies kids (including myself) embraced it, and had the action figures and lunch boxes. Take note of the “Huggy Bear” action figure – Starsky and Hutch’s pimp informant.

Plastic Power! Action Figures Through the Years (1970s-1980s) - Flashbak (16)

Looks like Isis has been added to the product line. I religiously watched the Saturday morning show, hopelessly in love with Joanna Cameron.

1978-1979

Plastic Power! Action Figures Through the Years (1970s-1980s) - Flashbak (17)

Star Wars has arrived, and all hell breaks loose in the action figure world.

Mego was offered the Star Wars deal, but refused (what were they thinking?). So, Kenner picked it up, but were woefully unprepared for the demand. The movie was released in May of 1977, but it wasn’t until 1978 that they were widely available – even then, they were in short supply. In 1978 Kenner sold 40 million units, making 100 million dollars in revenue.

Plastic Power! Action Figures Through the Years (1970s-1980s) - Flashbak (18)

Plastic Power! Action Figures Through the Years (1970s-1980s) - Flashbak (19)

Plastic Power! Action Figures Through the Years (1970s-1980s) - Flashbak (20)

Micronauts still going strong… but not for long. Mego would file for bankruptcy in three years (1982).

1980

Plastic Power! Action Figures Through the Years (1970s-1980s) - Flashbak (21)

The Empire Strikes Back is released, and the Star Wars merch continues to sell unabated. Even figures like IG-88 (the gangly robot above) who only appear on film for a few seconds become treasured, sought-after items.

Plastic Power! Action Figures Through the Years (1970s-1980s) - Flashbak (22)

Plastic Power! Action Figures Through the Years (1970s-1980s) - Flashbak (23)

Buck Rogers, Flash Gordon and Battlestar Galactica were a poor substitute for Star Wars merch, but the demand for sci-fi action figures was nothing short of rabid and there was plenty of room in the market.

Plastic Power! Action Figures Through the Years (1970s-1980s) - Flashbak (24)

Plastic Power! Action Figures Through the Years (1970s-1980s) - Flashbak (25)

1981

Plastic Power! Action Figures Through the Years (1970s-1980s) - Flashbak (26)

Yoda: “Alot of money Kenner will make. Strong in their bank account The Force is. Hmm.”

Meanwhile, the company that turned down the Star Wars deal, Mego, is about to declare bankruptcy.

Plastic Power! Action Figures Through the Years (1970s-1980s) - Flashbak (27)

1983

Plastic Power! Action Figures Through the Years (1970s-1980s) - Flashbak (28)

Plastic Power! Action Figures Through the Years (1970s-1980s) - Flashbak (29)

So, as the last Star Wars movie is released (until it is resurrected decades later), the toy line begins to wind down. While nothing could ever fill this void, another very different line of action figures explodes on the scene without benefit of even being linked to a movie franchise…

Plastic Power! Action Figures Through the Years (1970s-1980s) - Flashbak (30)

1984

Like Mego, Mattel had also declined on the Star Wars. In 1981 they were desperately trying to claw their way back into the market. With Masters of the Universe they finally hit the right cord with youngsters in the early eighties. Eventually there would be a flood of MOU merch (comic books, Saturday morning cartoons, a Dolph Lundgren movie, etc.), but initially it was just an imaginative action figure line with no mass media connection.

Plastic Power! Action Figures Through the Years (1970s-1980s) - Flashbak (31)

Plastic Power! Action Figures Through the Years (1970s-1980s) - Flashbak (32)

We’ve seen DC lead the market in the action figure biz. It’s about time that Marvel gets with the program.

Plastic Power! Action Figures Through the Years (1970s-1980s) - Flashbak (33)

I’m not sure this Hall of Justice is much better than the one from 1976.

Plastic Power! Action Figures Through the Years (1970s-1980s) - Flashbak (34)

Plastic Power! Action Figures Through the Years (1970s-1980s) - Flashbak (35)

1985

Plastic Power! Action Figures Through the Years (1970s-1980s) - Flashbak (36)

Plastic Power! Action Figures Through the Years (1970s-1980s) - Flashbak (37)

Admittedly, I’m a bit out of my element at this point. I was too old to be interested in Sectaurs toys in 1985. However, I can definitely see that we’ve come a long way from Starsky & Hutch action figures!

1986

Plastic Power! Action Figures Through the Years (1970s-1980s) - Flashbak (38)

It looks like the action figure market is once again reaching a new benchmark. There are just so many product lines at this point: Thundercats, Transformers, MOU, Ghostbusters, Rambo… the days of being stuck with a bag full of plastic army men and a furry headed GI Joe are long, long gone. There’s an endless buffet of action figure choices on the shelves…

Plastic Power! Action Figures Through the Years (1970s-1980s) - Flashbak (39)

Plastic Power! Action Figures Through the Years (1970s-1980s) - Flashbak (40)

Plastic Power! Action Figures Through the Years (1970s-1980s) - Flashbak (41)

Plastic Power! Action Figures Through the Years (1970s-1980s) - Flashbak (42)

Plastic Power! Action Figures Through the Years (1970s-1980s) - Flashbak (43)

Plastic Power! Action Figures Through the Years (1970s-1980s) - Flashbak (44)

Plastic Power! Action Figures Through the Years (1970s-1980s) - Flashbak (45)

1987

Plastic Power! Action Figures Through the Years (1970s-1980s) - Flashbak (46)

And so, this is where we get off the action figure train. It’s been a fun ride traveling from GI Joe and Captain Kirk, then arriving at He-Man and Mr. T. Cheers.

Plastic Power! Action Figures Through the Years (1970s-1980s) - Flashbak (47)

Would you like to support Flashbak?

Please consider making a donation to our site. We don't want to rely on ads to bring you the best of visual culture. You can also support us by signing up to our Mailing List. And you can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. For great art and culture delivered to your door, visit our shop.

Plastic Power! Action Figures Through the Years (1970s-1980s) - Flashbak (2024)

References

Top Articles
Latest Posts
Recommended Articles
Article information

Author: Jeremiah Abshire

Last Updated:

Views: 5936

Rating: 4.3 / 5 (74 voted)

Reviews: 89% of readers found this page helpful

Author information

Name: Jeremiah Abshire

Birthday: 1993-09-14

Address: Apt. 425 92748 Jannie Centers, Port Nikitaville, VT 82110

Phone: +8096210939894

Job: Lead Healthcare Manager

Hobby: Watching movies, Watching movies, Knapping, LARPing, Coffee roasting, Lacemaking, Gaming

Introduction: My name is Jeremiah Abshire, I am a outstanding, kind, clever, hilarious, curious, hilarious, outstanding person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.