Johnny Lightning Playing Mantis Diecast Lost in Space Robot B-5 (1998)

My Johnny Lightning Lost in Space collecting was always a hit-or-miss affair. I would buy a piece or two, then loose or sell it, then re-buy it. For reasons I can't explain, it just never gelled. I liked certain aspects of the Johnny Lightning series while not being crazy about the others. In addition, all of my initial collecting thrust was done while the blog was in its infancy and I had yet to settle into a photo-routine. That means a lot of the packaging never got photographed or scanned, and at times I never took measurements. As the series doesn't have all that many items in it, I may have to re-engage my collecting efforts! Somewhere out in The Cave I have the Moebius Space Pod from Lost in Space - now to find it!

The iconic B-5 robot has had so much written about it that I'm not going to re-hash any of it here, , but needless to say it's a must have for space toy collector's. Like Robby the Robot from Forbidden Planet, one day I'd like to get a larger tin or plastic toy version of this. But that's a purchase for another year!

This B-5 is 2.5" (63mm) and is shown here with a Tim-Mee Galaxy Laser Team figure for comparison.

Johnny Lightning B-5 meets M.S. Oliver Robby the Robot 

Masudaya Robot YM-3

Lost in Space aired on CBS from 1965 to 1968 for a total of 83 episodes. It was a mild success during its run, reaching as high as 32nd place in the ratings as compared to Star Trek which actually fared poorly in the ratings and never got higher than 52nd place. We're not going to delve into the history of the show which is fascinating on many levels, from its set designs, to cast, to cult following status, because there's simply too much to cover. Clearly the stars of the show were the sets, notably the Jupiter 2 space craft and the Robot B-9. Unfortunately the show suffered the same script problems as other television sci-fi attempts of the 1960s like Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea or Time Tunnel. They all started with a bang but degenerated into 'man in rubber monster suit' farces. On a personal level I, like many others, loved the space ship and the robot and the cool special effects. However, even as a kid I could not stand the whiny, snivelling, screechy, stupid Dr. Smith character. He annoyed me to the point where I would only watch the show if there was nothing else playing on TV. It's a shame too because I had seen the actor, Johnathan Harris, play in other shows of the period and he was capable of so much more. 

Okay, that being said, let's move on to the toy. Robot B-9 was a classic design by Robert Kinoshita, who also designed Forbidden Planet's Robby the Robot. It was performed by Bob May who 'wore' the robot as a prop suit. In regards to toys, there have been many knock-offs and copies sold as something other than 'Robot B-9' perhaps because of copyright infringement. Today's featured toy by Masudaya is clearly Robot B-9 but is labeled 'Robot YM-3'. This could be a result of English to Japanese translation or...? In any case it's a cool toy, and judging by the prices it commands on eBay, is quite popular. It has a wind-up motor in the base, and as you will see in the video, has a pretty good running time. Without further ado, on to the toy. Enjoy! Opa Fritz and Oma Bettina

Insert

On the left is the Johnny Lightning Robot B-9. Masudaya's is on the right

Okay, it's silly but you can see it it in operation here. :-)