Skip to main content

GoBots: Guardian Command Center


If there is one thing that gave GoBots a leg up on Transformers it was that they had playsets. They had two official, two unofficial, and one unproduced set. Playsets go a long way with me and if you've followed this blog for awhile that shouldn't be a surprise to you. Probably the most important GoBot playset was the Guardian Command Center. I never had one growing up but I did get a brand new one from Dallas Vintage Toys this week.



There is always a magical feeling when you get something brand new. It is a little bit like time travel for the emotions. Everything here was brand new but unfortunately it had water damage, as you can see in the pictures. This wasn't a huge problem but it did cause me grief in the stickers department. The entire sheet had developed a few layers of grime from dust and being in a water damaged box. I was able to clean it a little bit but some of the stickers were unusable. To compensate I ended up finding some repro stickers from various Star Wars vehicles and playsets online. I like the end result and I might work on adding some more.


The directions were in really bad shape and unsavable. I took pictures of each page before getting rid of them.







The set also included a mini comic. The story inside predates the cartoon but unlike the Masters of the Universe mini comics, this one really didn't improve on the overall story, save for the fact that it gives an explanation for why the GoBots look like Earth vehicles.


The exterior of the Command Center:


Walker mode. This guy is scaled pretty well.



Spaceship mode.




The back hatch.






One of my favorite stickers above the head.

And now the interior:


Trauma Center/Med Bay



The Interrogation Center.



The cool red screen was supposed to help identify Guardians and Renegades. It was a cool concept. The included stickers could be applied to your figures. These were some of the beyond saving stickers unfortunately.


Notice how the top row stickers became F's for Friendly and the bottom row became E's for Enemy. A pretty thoughtful add on that they didn't need to include.



The Detention Center and, yikes, De-Materializer. Guess you could only cross Leader 1 so many times.



Again, yikes, the Reprogramming Center.



Perhaps for the best, the GoBot Cafeteria sticker was damaged.
So this became a computer terminal.



The GoBot Maintenance/Refueling area


I feel like there is a lot of unused space here.
I'm going to try to find some things to add to the area. 
Maybe a maintenance lift.



The Vertical Transportation Module. Again, notice the details here. 
The sticker labels each floor of the Command Center. Pretty cool.


And finally, the Strategic Command/Strategy Center.


I still might add in some more buttons and computers.



All in all, a pretty cool toy. It really bummed me out to have the sticker sheet so dirty, especially because there are not a lot of options to replace them. No one has them scanned online and the only place selling replacements is Toy Hax but $66 is ridiculous. However, they do have Guardian and Renegade insignias that I might pick up. 

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

GoBots Leader 1, Fitor, Cy-Kill, Transformers Generations Optimus Prime, and Power Warrior Courageous

It was a busy mail day as I add on to my GoBots collection. Today I was able to add Leader 1, Cy-Kill, and Fitor. Pretty neat to get three heavy hitters in one day. They are all in pretty good condition too. Cy-Kill's wheels are a little loose but beyond that they seem great! Leader 1 He came with a hologram sticker of Turbo from the Animated Series   Jet mode comparison with one of the Aerialbots. Taking charge in the Command Center Fitor This picture doesn't do his vehicle mode justice. He's a cool ship. Cy-Kill Cy-Kill is a ridiculously expensive figure but I was lucky to find him at a reasonable price. I hope others are able to do the same because he's pretty cool. A much more harmonious relationship than Megatron and Starscream. The big three. Just need Coptur to complete the top level of the Renegades. Comparison with G2 Decepticons. Forever foes. -------...

Flash Gordon

  Flash Gordon. For many of us, seeing that name evokes the imagery, sounds, and energy of the fantastically over the top 1980 film. The bright colors. The Queen Soundtrack. Brian Blessed's Vultan's booming and jovial voice. This was my introduction to the franchise as well. It's an amazing film that still entertains as much today as it hoped to do back then. In fact, the film stuck with me so much that it pushed me to look further back into the history of Flash Gordon. "If this was the 'campy version', what was it really like?" Digging deeper, I found the 1970's Filmation series AND their hidden film. I say hidden because it has yet to be re released outside of a Japanese Laserdisc copy that some kind soul uploaded to Youtube. This was a great series that included more of the Flash Gordon world than the 1980's film. I especially love this incarnation of Thun, the Prince of the Lion Men. And of of course, Bob Ridgely's voice stands way out with...

Toy Biz Marvel Superheroes Training Center

I think I can go out on a limb and say, that in 1990, every kid had at least one Toy Biz Marvel Super Hero figure. Most likely, it was Spider-Man. And just like every kid had one figure, every kid also had that picture of a playset on the back of their toy's card. You know what I'm referring to, the Training Center. It was the playset that everyone saw but few of us actually knew someone who owned it. Now, to be completely honest, there is nothing super impressive about it. Seriously. It wasn't based on anything that we had read about in the comics or previously seen in a cartoon so it has no in-universe connection. The actual set itself doesn't really assist in "the adventures" you play out with your toys. All it really does, and honestly was intended to do, is let you utilize a lot of your toy's action features. There were pillars that Hulk could knock down, a wall that worked well with Spidey's suction cups and a hook that Daredevil could ...

Custom Kenner Super Powers/Toy Biz DC Superheroes Nuclear Man (Superman IV)

I'm an unashamed fan of Superman IV. It probably goes back to the fact that it used to air on TBS all the time when I was kid. It might also be because I'm a fan of bad movies in general (Masters of the Universe, Flash Gordon, Super Mario Bros. and Mortal Kombat, I'm looking at you). With all that in mind, I've always wanted a Nuclear Man action figure. I mean, c'mon, who doesn't want the guy who slammed Supes feet first into the moon?! As a collector of the Toy Biz DC Superheroes line, I noticed that it is decidedly empty on the Superman side when it comes to baddies. Earlier this year, I was able to pick up a custom Cyborg Superman. Well, now I am happy to say that thanks to  37 Customs  I have added Nuclear Man to my Legion of Doom! "Do you know what this means, Uncle Lex? We're parents!" - Lenny Luthor Between the Kryptonite and Nuclear man, Lex is secure in his position atop the Legion of Doom. Twice the dange...

Kre-O G.I. Joe Battle Wagon

  G.I. Joe has always had amazing vehicles for your figures to interact with. As the line grew, so did the imaginations of the creators, as each year seemed to provide us with something bigger than the one before. After the U.S.S. Flagg and the Defiant, bigger was no longer an option but that didn't stop G.I. Joe from just going big and bold with their designs.  The 1990s era of the line is not universally loved but they gave us plenty of big vehicles, including the Battle Wagon. The Battle Wagon was heavily marketed as an essential item for Joe fans of the time, especially in the DIC cartoon. Unfortunately, I never had it as a kid. It was a high price tag item and, honestly, I never remember seeing it in stores. When I was in college, my younger brother bought two of them on ebay. Being able to see them in person, I had to agree it was worth the hype that Hasbro put around it. I've now moved away from collecting traditional Joes. I'm older and I want my nephews and nieces ...