Cheap Sci fi Toy Soldiers After 1980.

The last of the old school, made in the USA and made in England, sci fi toy soldiers were Timmee's Galaxy Laser Team figures from the late 1970s and Britain's Starguard and Airfix's Space Warriors from the early 1980s.   After that, just about every new or recast sci fi toy soldier has been made in Hong Kong or China.  Most of what comes out of China is just recast old USA and Europe figures, but there has been some new production.  This page is about the new figures that have come out of Asia over the last few decades that have carried on the old school tradition of unpainted (or just slightly painted) solid cast figures that are sold cheap in bags, cards and playsets. Presented in a rough chronological order.

Unknown Origin?

I am starting with my favorites, but I don't know who made them, when they were released, or what they were called. Somebody once told me that they came in header bags with some kind of space tank.  They are about 50mm.  The unpainted figures are a nice soft plastic.  The painted figures are very light but brittle hard plastic, and may be from some kind of playset. There is a good chance that some kind of playset exists for these guys, but it must be fairly rare. 

ARCO: Ro-Gun Robots

Arco put these out under a few names in the early to mid 1980s.

These are bootlegs from Mexico.

Bootlegs.

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Photo from ebay auction.

Photo from ebay auction.

Photo from ebay auction.

Hing Fat: Galaxy Cowboys

Space cowboys were a weird theme that ran through a bunch of toys and cartoons in the mid 1980s.

Toy Major: UFO Aliens

From the late 1980s or early 1990s.

Imperial Toys: Space Warriors & Aliens

Imperial was just one company that released these robots.  The big head aliens came with the Imperial release and the flat glow in the dark aliens at the bottom came with the same robots in another bagged set by some other company.  I'm not sure where the colored versions of those aliens are from.  

Larger versions of the aliens were available in a verity of packages.

Photo from ebay auction.

The robot warriors were also packaged with these glow in the dark flat aliens.  

The alien missing his arm is cool. 

Toy Major: Space War

Toy Major released these from the late 1990s deep into the 2000s, and they still are showing up in dollar stores.  They are close to 54mm and have good detail, but the aliens are a little cartoonish.

Stock Photo

Stock Photo.

Super Weird Chinabots

I don't know anything about these other than they have come in lots that included Hing Fat gray astronauts.  They seem to be copies of old Mech toys with weird smiling heads attached.  I like to imagine they are out of control robots that use fake heads to creep out humans before they attack. There are 8 poses in three colors.  They range from about 40mm to 55mm.

More China Aliens

I got these from Mexico but they were made in China and are sold in bags with armymen under a name like Alien War or Alien Battle or some such.   Poor quality but cool for being a little odd.

Blip, LLC : Robots v. Ninjas / Soldiers v. Monsters

They came out in 2014 and are about 40mm.

Street Fighter Bootlegs

Flat Figures from Thailand. 

Random Aliens.