MOTORIZED LION FORCE VOLTRON

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VOLTRON (LJN)

Voltron, Defender of the universe!

Just last month, Netflix launched their reboot of the Voltron franchise, which was actually really quite good. As of yet, there’s been no news about toys from this particular incarnation, so I guess the best I can do is something based on the original series. Towards the beginning of this site’s reviews, I took a look at Mattel’s most recent set of Voltron figures. Today, I’ll be going all vintage, and looking at one of the Voltrons from the time of the original show.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

The five lions that make up Voltron were released by LJN in 1984, under the “Motorized Lion Force Voltron” name. The lions were available in two different ways: they could be purchased in pairs (Red/Blue and Green/Yellow, with Black being packed on its own), or as a complete set. The actual lions were identical; only the packaging differed. The Red and Green lions are about 3 inches long and each have 16 points of articulation. The Blue and Yellow Lions are each 4 inches long, and have 15 points of articulation. Finally, the Black lion is also about 4 inches long, but is also about 3 inches wide, and it has 18 points of movement. All five of the lions also have a set of wheels at their base, which when pulled back will launch the lion forward. I don’t know why, since they didn’t do anything like this on the show, but this is where the “motorized” part of their name comes from. The four smaller lions are all pretty decent matches for their cartoon counterparts, and feature decent sculpts for the time. The Black lion is a little less accurate to the show, in order to better facilitate the Voltron combination. It’s not horribly far off, but it’s definitely a lot boxier than the show design. When the five lions are combined into Voltron, the figure stands about 8 inches tall and has 20 points of functioning articulation (there are a few other spots of movement, but they don’t really benefit the Voltron form). This version of Voltron is a lot stockier and squared off than his cartoon incarnation, but such is the sacrifice of making a Voltron that can be both Voltron and the separate lions. Some compromises need to be made. This is a figure that does, admittedly, show his age a fair bit, as later Voltron’s have managed to be a bit closer. That being said, this one isn’t bad for the scale or the time, so good on LJN for that! The various details on Voltron are handled through a combination of decals and a small bit of paint. The decals are a little aged, but they’ve held up pretty well, and add some fun details to the figure. The paint work is all pretty basic, and there’s some slop here and there, but the overall effect is pretty great.

The Ljn Defender Series

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Mattel’s more recent Voltron was my first proper Voltron, and as much as I love that one, its size makes it a little hard to manage, and also far from portable. So, I was in the market for something a little smaller that could be part of my travelling collection. I ended up finding this particular Voltron being sold as all of its individual parts at an antique store I was visiting with my family. The whole figure was about $20, which seemed reasonable enough. This is definitely a goofier Voltron than I’m used to, but he’s still pretty nifty to have, and I’m certainly happy to have a Voltron that I don’t need a crate to move around.

LJN Toys Ltd. was an American toy company and video game publisher based in New York City. Founded in 1970 by Jack Friedman, the company was acquired by MCA Inc. in 1985, sold to Acclaim Entertainment in 1990 and dissolved in 1995.

History[edit]

LJN was founded in 1970 by Jack Friedman, using funds from his former employer, Norman J. Lewis Associates.^[1] Friedman served as president of the company.^[2] On March 26, 1985, MCA Inc. agreed to acquire 63% of LJN in exchange for $39.8 million in stock.^[3][4] The deal closed with a transaction of a total of US$67 million.^[5] Following the acquisition, LJN's revenue doubled to $27 million by 1986, and continued to rise into 1987.^[5] However, a faulty paint-shooting toy gun manufactured by LJN caused MCA's profits to fall by 79.5%, to $8.1 million, in 1987's second quarter.^[6] The same year, Friedman left the company.^[1] LJN did not recover, as a result of which MCA announced on January 22, 1990, that they intended to sell the company.^[6][7] MCA agreed to sell LJN to Acclaim Entertainment, for an undisclosed sum paid in cash and stock, on March 13, 1990.^[8][9] LJN was dissolved in 1995.^[10]

Ljn Logo

Products[edit]

Toys[edit]

Video games[edit]

References[edit]

1. ^ ^abNelson, Valerie J. (May 6, 2010). 'Jack Friedman dies at 70; toy maker'. Retrieved August 26, 2018 – via LA Times.
2. ^'BUSINESS PEOPLE; HEAD OF LNJ TOYS SEES SUCCESS THROUGH 'E.T.''. nytimes.com. Retrieved August 26, 2018.
3. ^HARRIS, KATHRYN (March 27, 1985). 'MCA Agrees to Acquire L.J.N. Toys : Entertainment Firm to Exchange Up to $39.8 Million in Stock'. Retrieved August 26, 2018 – via LA Times.
4. ^'MCA Acquisition'. nytimes.com. Retrieved August 26, 2018.
5. ^ ^abFabrikant, Geraldine. 'MCA TURNS HAND TO ACQUISITIONS'. nytimes.com. Retrieved August 26, 2018.
6. ^ ^abJr, JUBE SHIVER (January 23, 1990). 'MCA to Sell LJN Toys Unit After Losses'. Retrieved August 26, 2018 – via LA Times.
7. ^'COMPANY NEWS; MCA Taking Loss In Sale of Toy Unit'. nytimes.com. Retrieved August 26, 2018.
8. ^Writer, From a Times Staff (March 13, 1990). 'MCA Agrees to Sell Ailing Toy Unit'. Retrieved August 26, 2018 – via LA Times.
9. ^'MCA in Pact With Acclaim'. nytimes.com. Retrieved August 26, 2018.
10. ^'Wow, LJN really hated kids'. Destructoid.