At Flashbak: Ideal's 1977 "Revolutionary Toy Sensation" -- Electroman

This week at Flashbak, I also remembered Electroman, a seventeen inch action figure from Ideal, from the year 1977.

Here’s a snippet and the url (http://flashbak.com/remembering-electroman-ideals-revolutionary-electronic-toy-sensation-of-1977-63014/)

“In 1977, Ideal released one of the most underwhelming toys of the disco decade, a giant superhero figure called Electroman. 

Described as an “amazing electronic sentinel," Electroman wore a bright red, black, and yellow uniform with a dazzling "E" (for Electroman, we presume.) emblazoned on his barrel-sized torso.

The promotional materials hawked these items in grand terms as his “prismatic emblem” and “multi-colored uniform.”

The hero's oddest fashion statement, however, was no doubt his elaborate helmet, a clunky red affair that fired “laser beams.” By adjusting a knob on the base of Electroman's neck, you could change the settings of the laser ray from Stun, to Radar, to Guard.

Toy catalogs described the settings: "Electroman's computer brain can detect the slightest movement and sound a warning...In radar position, he sends out flickering light that changes to a steady beam when he finds an enemy position." 

The knob had a “4 position power selector” and the horrible-looking helmet featured an “electro motion sensor.”

Electroman was supposed to “protect his friends” detect his enemies and “defeat his foes with laser-like beams of light,” but he really just had a glorified flashlight on his head.

Electroman's nemesis -- a so-called “awesome enemy” -- was sold separately, a brown hulking creature ("a powerful half man/half monster") with red eyes, white fangs and a reflector embedded in his head: "Zogg The Terrible."

Zogg was described on his black box as "A Creature so awesome only Electroman or you can defeat him…"

Please continue reading at Flashbak.