Action Figure Overview: Buck Rogers - Twiki (Mego 1979)

Buck Rogers in the 25th Century: Twiki (Mego, 1979)

When the Kenner Star Wars figures first came out in the late 1970s, they sold so well that many other toy companies wanted in on the game.  Action figures for a wide variety of movies and TV shows started arriving at toy stores across the country with each manufacturer hoping that they had the "next big thing" on their hands.  It seemed like Science Fiction was an especially popular genre to gamble on and in 1979, when the Buck Rogers in the 25th Century movie was in the works, Mego acquired the license to manufacture the accompanying action figures

Twiki outside of the city (Mego, 1979)

The figures didn't sell terribly well and the single wave that was released only consisted of 9 figures, which actually isn't that bad when you consider how many toy lines had only around 4 characters back then!  Regardless, I thought they were pretty cool!  They had more points of articulation than Star Wars figures and several cool vehicles.  Interestingly, several Micronauts vehicles were re-packaged as "Buck Rogers" themed vehicles even though they clearly had nothing to do with the show.

The nine figures of the 'Buck Rogers' series (Mego, 1979)

One of the figures released with the series was the TV Show's comic relief, the robot: Twiki.  Even as a kid, I didn't typically like the small, comic relief type characters (Orko, Scrappy Doo, Gleek, Bat Mite, etc.).  However, Twiki didn't bother me as much as the others.  Maybe it was his sarcasm or maybe it's just because he was a robot, but whatever it was, I could tolerate him on the show.  As an action figure, I thought he was pretty cool.  He wasn't quite as articulated as the other figures in the line and he couldn't hold much of anything in his hands, but that was ok.  When I played with him, he wasn't fighting anyone, so he really didn't need to hold weapons or anything.  I used him more like a computer advisor.  In fact, I never gave him the same personality that Twiki had on the show; instead, I used him more like Dr. Theopolis, the little canteen shaped computer that Twiki carried around his neck.  He would provide the other figures with information about their surroundings or enemies or pass along messages from headquarters.

Wilma Deering, Twiki, and Buck Rogers in front of a Star Fighter

The figures of Twiki, Buck Rogers, and Tiger Man were my three favorites with the Draconian Guard coming in a close fourth.  It seems like Tiger Man was my first figure from the line.  I played with him so much that he came to an early end when his O-ring broke.  Buck has survived, but barely!  His legs are very loose, the sticker on his arm came off almost instantly, the gun which was attached to his hip fell off and was lost, and he lost so much paint that I tried to re-paint his hair, belt, and armband myself with disappointing results.  Surprisingly, Twiki is still in good shape with his Dr. Theopolis sticker looking almost new!

My childhood Twiki is still in good shape!

It seems like I rarely played with these figures in the context of "Buck Rogers."  Instead, I added them into the adventures of my other action figures (Star Wars, then later on, GI Joe).  They had the same names that they had in Buck Rogers.  They just didn't live on 25th century Earth.  It's kind of strange to think now about the adventures that I created for my toys as a kid and it's amazing to think how much these little hunks of plastic meant to me back then.  Of course, I still think toys are awesome, but it's in a very different way than all those years ago.

Twiki and Dr. Theopolis

Did you have any of the Buck Rogers action figures as a kid?  If so, did you play with them with your Star Wars figures?  Do you collect them now?  Tell me in the comments!

Also, If you collect toys, you should know about Toylanta, the best toy show in the Southeastern United States held annually in Georgia.  Visit Toylanta.com for more information.

CLICK HERE to check out the WeHadThat YouTube channel!