20 GREATEST Toy Lines of the 80s -- RANKED!
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- Опубліковано 5 лип 2024
- The 80's was the greatest time to be a toy lover. This video ranks the 20 greatest toy lines from the action figure decade.
#actionfigures, #80s, #toyline
We talk about all the greats: STAR WARS, GI JOE, TRANSFORMERS, HE-MAN & THE MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE, M.A.S.K., THUNDERCATS & more....
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Stock footage provided by Freepik, downloaded from videvo.net
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Music by Renoirkobashi
renoirkobashi.com/ - Розваги
Like I tell my kids- the 80s was the greatest pop culture era of all time. TV, movies, music, fashion, toys, Nintendo vs Sega, cartoons…everything was hittin’!
It's true. Just about everything right now is a rehash of something made in the late 70's or 80s--from horror to toys
I agree with the top two for sure. G.I. Joe was and is still the best toy line.
Yup. it is the GOAT
Some honorable mentions. Secret Wars, Battle Beasts, Gobots, Wheeled Warriors, Dungeons & Dragons, Ghostbusters, Dino Riders, Bionic Six, Commando. There are a ton more that could be dug out of my head or looked up. I can't argue with who's on your top seven; though, I did blank on Mask until you mentioned them. 1 Joe, 2 Transformers, 3 Star Wars, 4 He-man, 5 TNMT, 6 Thundercats, 7 Mask.
Oh yeah. Commando. yet another ultra violent 80's action flick that had action figures
BATTLE BEASTS!!! D&D had a cool cartoon and a few awesome figures.
No Voltron(s), no Gobots...dude? loved Sectuars and Mask.
Yeah, I can see that. Voltron is on par with Indiana Jones. What hurt Voltron was a lack of villain figures.
Fair critique, thanks for replying
@@DestroIsMySpiritAnimal I never had Transformers because of the price. I had some Gobots. They were the poor boy's Transformers, so I can understand why they wouldn't make a top 20.
I liked Gobots better than transformers. They had some cool figures like a submarine and tank.
That's a good list. I think everybody's top 3 is transformers Gi Joe and he man. I agree Voltron and l am surprised you didn't mention robotech. Robotech is arguably one of the animation cartoons in that era hands down. The eighties was the best decade for animation 82-85. I was blessed to be alive.
Yes, Robotech toys look cool. I think way were hard to get and I only had 2 or 3 figures. The cartoon was amazing
GI Joe and MOTU were the toy lines I got almost exclusively but I watched the hell out of every cartoon mentioned here.
It was a great era for cartoons. Sunbow killed it.
I agree with your ranking 100% except for one thing… TMNT should have a 5 for lore. The toys don’t really have much of a place in my heart because they were late 80s, and I was a little too old for them at that point, but the storyline has never really hit a lull with the countless ongoing comics and cartoons and movies and video games. Even heavy hitters like Star Wars and Transformers and GI Joe all had relatively long gaps where no new content was being released.
Yeah, that's a good point. There are so many incarnations of TMNT it's crazy
Loved the list! Hard disagree about the lack of innovation with Star Wars figures, though. That series created the model for the 3 3/4 inch action figure. Without that size becoming the norm, toy vehicles would have been too large and expensive to produce. Without vehicles, GI Joes wouldn't have become the juggernaut they became.
I will say, Star Wars was crazy innovative with playsets and vehicles. And you make a good point that they started it all, they just weren't the best made figures
Glad you put in the Coleco Rambo toys sir. Was a favourite of mine along with Motu,Gijoe,,Mask,Super Powers,TMNT and Motu.
Yes, The Rambo toys were solid
My personal top 5 in no particular order would be transformers,gi joe,he man,tmnt and power rangers( not from the 80s but to me just as iconic and popular)
Yeah, I'm too old to not hate Power Rangers, but I get it, I would have been sucked in if I was a kid
Fun video as always. I definitely would have ranked MOTU higher, and was really surprised not to see Real Ghostbusters, Voltron, or Jace and The Wheel Warriors listed.
Thanks! Yeah, Real Ghostbusters probably could overtake Indiana Jones. Voltron's lack of villain figures hurt it
I was born in ‘80, my brother 5 years earlier in ‘75. Safe to say, I was rocking some ‘80s toys. GI Joe and Transformers were my top two, as were most. A few of the lesser known I loved were Sectaurs, Wheeled Warriors, Sky Commanders, Robo Strux and the little pink M.U.S.C.L.E. Men.
A MUSCLE. I loved those. I dont remember ROBO Strux. I'll have to look that up
Cannot disagree with your top 2!!
Definitely the two greatest
I really enjoyed your list, it was a great childhood flashback. My top 20 would have included Voltron in the top 3.
Thanks. Yes, I can see that. Voltron was fun. One of the best cartoons
My top ten would be 1. GI Joe, 2. Star Wars, 3. He-Man, 4. Transformers, 5. Thundercats, 6. Super Powers, 7. COPS, 8. Silverhawks, 9. Visionaries, 10. Spiral Zone
Cool list. Thanks for sharing andbrin ing back some memories. My top 20 would include the Dungeons and Dragons action figures. They had great sculpts, good articulation, good weapons, shields, armor. Why they hell did they leave out the main characters from the cartoon? I would have loved to get my hands on a Dianna back in the day, and Hank was my hero. I only had two of those D&D figures because they were pricey compared to GI Joes. But the top seven: How could you leave out WWF 8" action figures led by Hulk Hogan?!!! No add-ons, zero articulation, but almost every kid I knew had at least one. They were in virtually every house that had a male member present. I didn't have any; hated WWF and couldn't understand why those figures were so popular. Now I can see it's their pure simplicity that made them innovative. And don't tell me they had no real playability. They sparked imagination! Gotta swap Mask for WWF in the top seven. Never had one and never will, but they were iconic. Last, He-Man goes to second place on my list. They had an interesting comic that ran perhaps 3 issues. It was completely different from the cartoon and dialed in the Frazetta feel. The toys themselves were as creative as any ever made. And they were backed up by their own live-action film. Then again, Transformers the cartoon movie had the balls to kill Maximus Prime. Okay, they can keep second place.
I'll have to check out the He-Man comic. I'd love to see a darker more serious version of He-Man. I agree, the figures were really innovative.
I was a wrestling fan but the wrestling figures weren't great. Yeah, D&D figures could have made this list
Decent list. Your top lines are mine too
Thanks!
Honorable mention: Chuck Norris Karate Kommandos
Oh yeah, I did love those
My friend had several of those. It was a bold move to compete with Rambo and the A-Team. Sly Stallone movies did better than Chuck Norris at the box office, and the A Team was staple TV for adolescent boys in the 80s.
For me it was Super Powers! Now, I didn't start Collecting until 1994, and I got the 1989 Toy Biz rerelease versions. But that was my start.
Oh yeah. Are you collecting the new ones that just came out? They are making some good vehicles
No, I only collect 6" scale. For the most part. That's Marvel, G.I. Joe, Black Series. I will only go up for Warhammer, I will go down to 5.5 for some MOTU. Only DC I am buying is Batman '66 and some DCUC on occasion. I will sometimes buy Dinosaurs.
My top 20 includes the GoBots and Robotech
Yeah, I never had many Robotoech, but they look awesome.
Great list, I think I would tinker with some of the order a bit. The only swap I'd make is personally I didn't know anything about Eagle Force and would swap that with Kenner's Real Ghostbusters.
Yeah, I can see that. Real Ghostbusters was fun
I had a mom and pop video store that didn't care about renting R rated movies to kids only a bike ride away from my house. I remember renting all those movies. Robocop, Rambo, Toxic Avenger. It was a great time.
Ha. Thank god for adults with no boundaries
Great video as always, good honest insight too into a lot of lines I never had as a kid - but where is Starcom!!! :) Keep up the fab content
Great list.
Thanks!
Though, you did have a really good list, am I the only one that has a bit of nostalgia for?Capain Power and the Soldiers of the Universe? Yeah it was a short-lived line, but I enjoyed watching the show and the figures were kind of cool not to mention the laser tag light vehicles
Oh yeah, I did have that. I remember it being tricky to get it to work, but it is a cool idea
I had so many plastic play guns……no way today
Yeah, now moms wont even by action figures that carry guns.
Great video. Well made and good pacing. Of course Inhumanoids goes on this list!
Thanks. Yes, I need to get a couple of the big inhumanoids.
@@DestroIsMySpiritAnimal I had them. They were so weird
A few not mentioned: Voltron, Wheeled Warriors, GoBots, Mad Balls
Mad Balls were awesome. I still have one somewhere
My list would include Gobots, Crystar, Roboforce, and Starriors.
Crystar! OMFG!!! Early 1980s and awesome. I had a few of those.
Oh yeah, Crysta was pretty cool. Marvel Legends just rebooted Crystar
I've bought more action figures in one month in just this year alone, than I had in my entire childhood.
Being an "adult" can really be special sometimes... If only 10 year old me could see us now. I bet that little shit would be sooooo jealous! 🤣
Right? Imagijne being a kid with your own money. That's what it is like being a collector today
Motu at 5 is rough… my list would have them at 1 followed by GI Joe, Transformers and then Voltron, with Star Wars maybe at 5. I think with so many great toys, it matters how old you were and the cartoons you watched.
Yes, it's all subjective, I can see any of the top five being someone's number 1.
Super powers with secret wars were so many of my introduction to those characters.
I was already a comic book fanatic. Secret Wars figures were terrible. It took decades to get good Marvel figures
@@DestroIsMySpiritAnimal it wasn't until years later I even got a hold of Secret Wars comics
Honestly thought Air Raiders would be #1. Fighting for air against the tryannts of wind....the battle rages on...
Ha, Air Raiders as number one would be a very hot take
GI Joe is the line I had the most fun playing with as a kid. Loved the story of Star Wars, but GI Joe figures are so much better for play. And agree on Transformers. Very cool design but the articulation on characters like Sideswipe... Bad. Plus Ironhide's toy looked nothing like his cartoon counterpart.
I would put He-man higher than MASK probably, but those vehicles are great. Fun list.
Thanks. Yeah, I'm feeling that msot people would agree with you and MASK and MOTU should be reversed in rank
@@DestroIsMySpiritAnimal Though the Condor rules. That is my favorite M.A.S.K. vehicle.
You only have Gi joe number one only cuz you love them haha Masters for me!
You and me both. MOTU rules
Yeah, I get it. MOTU is good. GI Joe had better lore. I'm hoping someone will do a really good Conan-like adaptation of MOTU
Life Size Zaranna Blow-Up Doll, BESTEST TOY EVERZZZZZ!!!!
Give me the Baroness
That would make a good HASLAB. It would get funded in 30 seconds
Awesome list. Spot on as usual. I was pretty fond of Starriors, they were cool toys and the Marvel comic was pretty dark.
Thanks. I forgot about Starriors until someone else here reminded me of it,
I am really loving your videos! Did you ever get any Sky Commanders? Wonder what you thought of them.
Yeah, I had like three or four. They were pretty good. Maybe could have made this list
Great video! It's time to bring back MASK. I may have to pick up one of those COPS figures someday. I never had any, but they look fun. My top 20 would definitely include Tron. Small line but the light cycles were awesome and translucent figures are always cool.
Thanks!. Yeah, MASK is due for a comeback. Tron was also great. They mixed in nicely with Star Wars figures and I love the movie
What was the cartoon that was at the same time as Bravestar but was in the tree with dwarf people? The thing about star wars that would bump them up for me was the playsets. We used those ewok trees for everything.
No WWF LJN wrestling figures or AWA wrestling figures? They were all over and selling. I loved them as a kid.
Good point. I was a wrestling fan as well.
@DestroIsMySpiritAnimal honestly they'd be in my top 5, but definitely most people's top 20.
As much as I loved WWF at the time, the toys sucked ass. They were just gummy statues.
I like Captain Power a lot. It was too bad it was such a short lived series
WTF is Eagle Force?!? To paraphrase Gandalf: “I have no memory of this toy…”
This just really reinforces the theory that when the LHC was turned on we fell through to an alternate universe.
Will you next tell me that Spiral Zone was never really a thing?
Believe it or not, Eagle Force was big enough to be getting a modern reboot
Sectaurs ahead of Super Powers is absurd in my mind.G.I.Joe is only number one because you love it the most. Transformers I'd have to put above it due to modern relevance. We're getting modern Joes, yes - but it's just us buying them. The cartoon DOES NOT hold up today - certainly not vs. Transformers, which is more or less timeless. All that said, Joe is definitely number 2 and Star Wars would be 3 on my list.
Some stuff not mentioned - Voltron, Robotech, Wheeled Warriors, Bionic Six, LJN Dungeons and Dragons (Warduke!). Tje galoob TV show stuff - Buck Rogers, Dukes of Hazzard (although...) and A-Team. There were so many, that's what made it the best time for us!
Here is my list - maybe I'll do a competing video. In the meantime here's my version.
20. Sky Commanders - derivative of MASK/Star Wars with many figures and sets that worked with strings ("ropes").
19. Robocop - sure, okay. I only wanted the basic Robocop and ED-209 for obvious reasons. I feel like this didn't hit until the 90s, but close enough.
18. C.O.P.S. - a Joe derivative and they were pretty fun, but goofy - in toy and cartoon. DiC strikes!
17. Sectaurs - cool, but not no top 10 - no way
16. Air Raiders - small figures but the vehicles launched projectiles via air tubes. Could reasonably play with Transformers - see also StarCOM.
15. Visionaries - fun concept - if they were 3 3.4 they MIGHT have lasted longer
14. Centurions- Ramen Toys are producing fake Centurions. They don't own it.
13. Princess of Power - I guess.
12. Batman - started after the 1989 movie but still the 80s. Started the whole multiple of one guy thing.
11. Inhumanoids - the EarthCorp guys were secretly in the 3 3/4 inch scale- the heads were the same size as Joes!
Below 10 are things not really directly derivative of other lines.
10. StarCOM - these things were freaking awesome, had a show, and great playability. Lasted a little more than a minute, but I've NEVER forgotten them.
9.Marvel Super Heroes Secret Wars
8. Super Powers
7. Thundercats
6. M.A.S.K. - definitely up there in terms of fun, but DiC screwed that one up, too. You forget season 2 is M.A.S.K. racing?? It also had a comic book by DC that wasn't really good.
5. TMNT - closer to the 90s, but the impact was real
4. Masters of the Universe- I didn't even really play with these all that much, but the star that shines the brightest burns twice as fast
3. Star Wars - you don't get virtually anything on this list without it, both innovatively or financially
2.G.I.Joe A Real American Hero
1. Transformers - very narrowly over 2, but probably due to the same preference you have for Joe
Good list. I forgot about Sky Commandoes. They were fun as hell
Thanks for your awesome list dude! PS Billy Joel much? (soz)
You are welcome. Glad you enjoyed.
Chips figures were awesome
I guess they were what the Hasbro guys used to pitch GI Joe.
@@DestroIsMySpiritAnimal made just like the Dukes of Hazzard figs
Wish I'd got a chance at getting into MASK. We moved overseas right when it came out.
It was really fun. I still have all of mine.
Never got into mask. The scale screwed it. They weren't compatible with all of our other figures Transformers vehicles were incredible but the robots had almost zero articulation and playability. My favorites were always the combiners. They had normal figure articulation when combined. New transformers are insane. Very cool, but near impossible to change.
Yeah, I convinced my kids they wanted transformers so I could buy them, and then after a day of not being able to Transform them I gave up. they look great though, and they are fun in robot form
@@DestroIsMySpiritAnimal my magic square stunticons are still in their boxes. I'm not an in box collector
@@LandofMert76 Yes, I can't keep anything in the box. If I buy it, I;m gonna play with it.
The only downside was there was so many different lines that came and went so fast.
Yes, so many could have been great if given another year or two. Visionaries, Sectaurs and Inhumanoids all had great potential
@@DestroIsMySpiritAnimal my favorite short lived series is Dino saucers. Man that had potential
I lived in the UK until I was 8 (‘88). The major difference in my view was the comic book scene back then. Marvel UK did a great job with Transformers producing a vastly superior product. They also had a pretty good Thundercats comic. Action Force (GI Joe) did not do as well, eventually becoming a back up strip in the Transformers. Also, the Hasbro produced Action Force was not as popular in the UK, as it was very US focused with an “international” mask. So for me, Transformers beats out GI Joe pretty easily.
Yeah, I think they can be neck and neck, and dependent on taste. But GI Joe wins out on scope.
I think this is what modern franchises are lacking, kid versions of their characters to bring young children in. Spider man has it.
Yeah, You need both a dark version and a kid-friendly. GI Joe & Transformers nailed it
@@DestroIsMySpiritAnimal there have been a bunch of kid transformer cartoon through out the years.
Honestly dude I feel the Rambo figure looks more like Robert DeNiro than Stallone.
The She-Ra line suffered imho because all the girl figures look alike. With MOTU they tried harder to differentiate the characters.
To me Inhumanoids had great villains but the heroes were bland as notebook paper. Whereas The Centurions were great hero figures but the villains stunk. If I had both I would put them against each other.
MOTU #5?! Blasphemy lol.
M.A.S.K. is a really cool concept. To me as cool as the toys for Transformers were/are they aren't as awesome as the comic books. Out of the cartoons I think G.I. JOE did the best especially since they had a few episodes that were absolutely batsh*t insane. Remember the one where Shipwreck thinks Lady Jay died and he actually was surrounded by clones?
Ha, Yeah, it does have an early DeNiro look. Yeah, It seems form most people, Mask and MOTU could be reversed in rank. I was a bigger MASK fan, but I loved them both. I agree the inumanoids heroes were lame, but those monsters are awesome
It's crazy, but we never used our gijoes as gijoes. They would have just killed each other with their guns. Instead we turned them into super heroes that looked like those characters
Truth
I made up for not having she ra as kid by getting masterverse She ra
She's even hotter
Two not on your list are Voltron and Robotech. Did they just miss the Top 20?
Yeah, I probably could have done a top 25 or maybe even 40
Damn dude no Real Ghostbusters and you didn't put Visionaries in the top 10, yeah i know its your list and its all good but ask any toy collector today what I.P. they want back and i guaranty COPS, Visionaries and MASK will be in the top 5!! My most disappointing toy line when i was a kid was She-Ra, always thought it was stupid not to use the Teela/ Evil- Lyne mold and also MASK i never understood why the figures were not 3.75 like the Joes, cause the Joes had plenty of vehicles.... during that era, everything would sell!!!
Yeah? I didn't realize Visionaries would be so high. I love them, but they are held back by how brief their stay was.
Yeah, I think Real Ghostbusters is a line I could have considered. They had some fun features. Did you actually break down and buy any She-Ra?
@@DestroIsMySpiritAnimal What do you mean "break down and buy any She-Ra".... i bought the MOTU origin version a couple of years ago, it doesn't really look like the cartoon version but its the version we should've got 40 years ago.... i would like to buy the MASTERVERSE version but i cant start buying that line i dont care how amazing they look.... i got bills to pay!!!
Don't agree with your take on Transformers0 Their articulation was fine for the most part. Engineering was amazing for their time. Should be #1. You're a GI JOE fan so it makes sense. I have Joes as #2.
Yeah, I feel like most people have GI Joe and Transformers as 1 & 2, but it is just a matter of taste as to which is your number 1, With He-Man being the third most popular. Apparently, my love of MASK was not as common.
No voltron ?! Wtf?!
Yeah, I can see that. I bet there's a bunch that didn't make the list
Where's Power Lords??
They just missed the list. If i had done 25, they would be on it
Going to be disappointed if Buck Rogers aren't on here.
Sorry. No Buck Rogers
@@DestroIsMySpiritAnimal Wasn't that a 1979 toy? Although I suppose kids were still buying those figures in 1980-81.
These are just action figure lines. No Lego Castle or Classic Space, etc.
Thundercats we're pretty but that articulation was bad
Sulverhawks was underrated, Mask overrated
Yeah? I loved Mask. Silverhawks paint always fell off.
I disagree with the inclusion of the Raiders of the Lost Ark toy line above others that were not mentioned. If the title of this video was "MY 20 Greatest Toy Lines of the 80's -- ranked!", I would have no problem as it would be readily apparent that this was a subjective ranking. However, as it was titled, "20 Greatest Toy Lines", it was implied to be a video of objectivity. And while I agree with the inclusion of most of the properties in your video, to exclude Voltron, Gobots, Advanced Dungeon & Dragons, Dinoriders, Battle Beasts, Madballs and M.U.S.C.L.E. among others yet include Raiders of the Lost Ark defeats the purpose of the "greatest" 80's toy lines...in my opinion.
Sure. I think by very nature everything on the channel is "In my opinion" . it is all subjective. I don;t think there is any other way to do it
Silver hawks cartoon was just as good as thundercats, but the figures were trash
I was all in on Joe after I discovered them. I had a couple of Eagle force (gotten before Joes), only two or three transformers (I liked them a lot but was focused on Joes, so I mainly got to play with them with friends who had em), same with He Man. I liked the idea of em, but my friend Robert had the whole first year or two of the line so I could play with them at his house. Mask looked cool, and like transformers I had one or two of the vehicles and that was it. Nice list.
Thanks, yeah, GI Joe is the GOAT
You should maybe get in touch with Rob from MySIde of the Laundry Room, he used to do a lot of list stuff, you two would be entertaining bouncing ideas off each other.
You did not know saint seiya in the us?
No. What is that?
@@DestroIsMySpiritAnimal One of the best toyline of the 80s everywhere else : ua-cam.com/video/t7yRzXy62Qw/v-deo.html&ab_channel=guioak