STAR Force Expedition Team (2000 CORPS!)
Lanard’s CORPS! line has long taken its design cues from Hasbro’s GI Joe. In the 80’s and 90’s, the figures closely resembled the popular brand. When Joe switched to a T-crotch construction and a softer plastic in the early 2000’s, Lanard followed suit. As of now, the company still has not attempted to recreate the modern Joe style of super articulated figures.
Would Lanard’s CORPS! go so far as to imitate the least articulated figure from the Real American Hero era (Deep Six), who boasted a whopping two points of articulation? Though Deep Six’s lack of flexibility was due to a play feature, beyond that he was a seldom used figure for me. I couldn’t imagine someone looking at it and thinking, “Let’s knock that one off!”
Enter STAR Force, a Lanard sub-line introduced in the late 90’s. The theme was space exploration, and thus the line was made up of figures in space suits, along with space vehicles like a space capsule, shuttle, moon rover, and a few…space horses? Most of the figures utilized the Joe style articulation, but three figures bearing a strong resemblance to Deep Six were also released. I picked up a three pack last year at Lanard’s local warehouse sale. They’re fun, if weird figures.
This particular figure is the most fanciful of the three. For me, he looks to be more a villain than a heroic space explorer. He’s definitely got a 1980’s sci-fi cartoon villain feel to him, what with the laser arm and cyborg eyes. He’s like Doc Terror meets Deep Six. In fact, I can’t tell if he’s meant to be a guy in a space suit or a cyborg. I’ll go for cyborg just because it seems cooler. Since he doesn’t have a name, I’ll give him one. He reminds me of a Lanard-esque Robo-J.O.E., so in my collection, he’s now Robo-O’G.R.A.D.Y.
He looks more machine than man, that’s for sure. What an odd figure. He reminds me of the old Fisher-Price Adventure People line.
He’s more machine now, than man. Twisted and evil.
He looks delicious, like custard or banana pudding. Though I’ve never met any banana pudding that tried to shoot me in the face.
I remember when Lanard’s Star Corps stuff was everywhere, but I never saw these figures.
I’d dropped the line auonrd two years prior, but Space Shot is one of the last cool figures I later found out about. Those (space) grenades were begging for a paint job, as was the texture of his uniform and vest. Very Star Trek II, and well worth revisiting.
Terrific thing!
He looks like a generic cross between the original Deep Six and the bulky armored Star Brigade figures.