Mid Sized Marx: Evil Space Guy and Friends

For today, I have something that might or might not turn into a feature. At the tail end of the Miniature Giants series, I introduced an unusual acquisition, a pair of Mexican-produced Marx space guys in ca 4 inch scale. About the time I made that post, I received something I didn't feel I had time to cover then, a nearly complete set of reissue figures. Here, finally, is the full story. To start with, here's the Mexican pair in the bag they came in.

For posterity, I removed the staples (which were massive) to keep the bag and card intact. The card proved identical on both sides, with readable manufacturer's information but no year. Just from the look, I estimate it's from the 1990s or possibly even early 2000's, which makes the condition of the bag unaccountable. I have seen pics of preserved bagged sets from the 1970s that looked better than the best view I could get of these figures. The bag is simply and absolutely horrible, to the point that I had no way to examine or photograph the figures without removing it, and I have fewer regrets than usual. Next up, here's the Mexican guys, aka the old man and knife guy, with their reissue counterparts.

"Let's dust off and nuke the aliens from orbit. We don't need to, but it'll be fun."

"Why am I carrying a knife when the other guys have ray guns? And why am I the only one with a sheath for one???"

Things got terrifying with the next guy, who has a laser pistol sort of thing. I may have been a bit facetious when I said the old man was evil, but this guy is absolutely the real deal. Just look at that face!

"You think just because I'm 60 years old and made of plastic, I won't pull the trigger?"

The set is rounded out by a couple more "armed" space guys, including another with a pistol. He's perhaps the most interesting of the group. The pose feels like it could be out of the spy thrillers of the 1950s and 1960s (including but not limited to James Bond), reinforcing my assessment that these were released sometime between 1960 and 1965. He also strikes me as at least a little racially ambiguous; Mr. Sulu before Star Trek?

The set would originally have included an alien figure missing from the lot I received. I didn't miss it; I've seen quite a few Marx alien/ robot figures, and none of them heave resonated with me enough to pay the prices they usually fetch. The set is rounded out with two strikingly boring specimens, because the old days were a time of extremes.

And this wouldn't be complete without a few "story" pics, with a few cameos from the Galaxy Laser Team.

"Jeez, I stepped outside for 5 damn minutes..."

"Who are you calling `retro'?"

"I knew the blue acid was a bad idea..."

That's all for now, back for more tomorrow! Or whenever.