Z-Bots Burger King Exclusive
Item No.: n/a Manufacturer:Galoob Includes:n/a Action Feature:Eyes, legs move Retail:$2.99 Availability: ca. 1994 Other: Not Bad
The Z-Bots toy line had names that are well worth their weight in gold. Some like Bugeye here were amazingly descriptive, while others like "Suckoid" just make me mad I don't already own that toy. In what reality could I have lived through a toy named "Suckoid" and not bought it? But I digress. Bugeye here is one of two figures in this series of Burger King toy premiums with articulated eyeballs, the other being the previously-reviewed Jawbreaker. In Bugeye's case, each eye is connected through a rod in the middle so if you rotate one up, the other goes up too. His legs are jointed separately, and truth be told this is a pretty swell little figure.
The blue and white robot doesn't quite make 2-inches tall, but he does have a surprisingly dynamic pose making the figure look like he's walking without ever losing his center of gravity. That may not sound like much, but it's significant. So many modern figure,s particularly miniature figures, tend to blow over if you bump a table or sneeze. I've never seen this guy fall over, and I appreciate that.
The bulk of the figure is cast in blue plastic, except the eyes are white. The entire figure has yellow, white, silver, and black paint to decorate it and lso help make it look more ornate than other micro figures of its (and our) day. Black paint is deployed in the carefully-sculpted figure's face to give the illusion of razor-sharp yellow teeth in an open beak-like mouth, which shows that Galoob's factories had some top-notch sculptors working for them at the time. A bunch of silver slices on the forehead break up the blue, and there's faux-diamond plating and screws to help bring it to life. There are also goofy vestigial wings and panels, but hey, I like it. How can I not? I was a pretty big Burger King fan back then too.
As kiddie meal toys go, these are some of my all-time favorites. I'm a little disappointed in myself that I didn't ever go buy more of these, but I guess that also shows just how much I liked the quintet from Burger King. Each figure is quite good and the designs were varied enough that, at the time, I was quite satisfied with what I had. I know, that's ridiculous right? There weren't many Kid's Club or Happy Meal toys I chased down after the age of 10, but these and the McDonald's Matorans from the first year of Bionicle were can't-miss and largely satisfying purchases. If you're thinking these look cool, let me assure you that they are cool and worth the couple of bucks they'll cost you on eBay.
--Adam Pawlus
Additional Images
Additional Burger King Z-Bots Paperwork Inserts Images
16bit.com is best not viewed in Apple's Safari browser, we don't know why. All material on this site copyright their respective copyright holders. All materials appear hear for informative and entertainment purposes. 16bit.com is not to be held responsible for anything, ever. Photos taken by the 16bit.com staff. Site design, graphics, writing, and whatnot credited on the credits page. Be cool-- don't steal. We know where you live and we'll break your friggin' legs.
RSS 
