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Showing posts with label Marx Galaxy Command. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Marx Galaxy Command. Show all posts

Saturday, October 12, 2013

Marx Galaxy Command Playset - Pt 5 Conclusion

Today  we're putting the Marx Galaxy Command playset all together. Shown here in all its glory laid out on that puny playmat. Yup, puny. Even as a kid, when I had several playsets, those little playmats just seemed so insubstantial. It was as if your whole fantasy world lived in a 2' x 2' square, after which all the play pieces fell of the Earth. As nicely detailed and beautifully executed the mats were, it was almost better to set the toys up without the distracting mat and rely solely on your imagination. I think had the mats been slightly larger, not huge mind you, just a little larger, that would have been great and they still would have fit nicely into a small bedroom. Maybe something along the lines of 2 1/2' x 4' or thereabouts would have been decent. HOWEVER, that being said, as they are they do make excellent small space dioramas, perfect for the person without a lot of room for large displays. In any case, this playset, like practically everything Marx did, is a great looking set and when all the piece are in place it's an attractive display. Like other playset posts, I've gone ahead and just took a bunch of shots from different angles.Fritz & Bettina Berg Enjoy! :)









The station platform is best displayed hovering above the tower. I simply took a wire coat hangar, cut it down, bent it a little and inserted it in holes already molded into the platform and tower.







See what I mean? Galaxy exploration in a two foot square. But I still love the graphics on the mat.




Friday, October 11, 2013

Marx Galaxy Command Playset - Pt 4

There are 16 soft plastic figures in 11 poses and 2 colors, white and a bright neon orange. Unfortunately my camera just couldn't capture that vivid orange color and what you see here is the closest I could get even after editing. The figures are approx 2 1/4" (5.7cm) H. The playset being one of an exploration theme, none of these astronauts carry weapons as was so common in earlier Marx space-themed sets. No, these guys are collecting samples, installing scientific instruments, planting flags, etc. The set is rather apropos for today considering the recent - within the past couple of years - push to finally get people off of this rock and out there into the cosmos exploring again. Great stuff! Enjoy!










Some people believe the guy below is hammering a scientific instrument into the ground. me personally I think he's setting up the mailbox!



...and here comes the mailman now ;-0
























Thursday, October 10, 2013

Marx Galaxy Command Playset - Pt 3

The accessories are next in our coverage of Marx's Galaxy Command playset and like the vehicles are a re-hash of older accessories. Enjoy!

Accessory Group 1

Cast in a neon lime green soft plastic these had been around since the 1950s

The Gravity Chamber


Fuel Tanks with connecting piping

The Supply Tower
This accessory was always hilarious with its store of Atom Bombs, Rocket Repair Parts, Disintegrators, and Launching Fuel all in easily accessible drawers - kind of like a Lista Bin full of tools. LOL What a hoot!








Searchlight



Rotating Radar


Movie Camera


Disc Helical Antenna


Suppressor Spray for Rockets


Often identified simply as a telescope it is more likely a coincidence rangefinder



American soldiers using a coincidence rangefinder (courtesy Wikipedia)

German soldiers using a coincidence rangefinder (courtesy Wikipedia)

Accessory Group 2

Cast in a yellow soft plastic these too had been around for a long time before being re-purposed in the Galaxy Command playset

The instruction sheet for the playset lists this as a 'Disc Helical Radar Antenna' however, that title originally belonged to the small accessory listed above. I believe this was meant to be a weapon in the old Tom Corbett, Space Patrol sets. The Galaxy Command playset, being a product of the Flower Power '70s was a non-violent set geared towards exploration and discovery and so this was re-purposed as a non-lethal accessory.

PS, it's also the coolest looking accessory in the bunch (in my humble opinion)














(I get dizzy just watching this thing)


Space Station Tower
Originally, the platform was connected to the tower by a bent rod and there was a gear and crank mechanism in the tower, you would turn the crank and the platform would revolve around the tower.

The hole seen in the middle of the lower tower section originally would have had a crank handle sticking out of it.















Station platform




Dual-dish antenna



Escape Capsule Recovery Unit





Signal Blinker


Solar Battery



Missiles

4  missiles of two types - non-firing

Now what would missiles or rockets be doing in an otherwise non-violent themed playset? Here's my take on it. These are small and therefore short range and our intrepid explorers are on an alien planet. I think they're designed to loft satellites or probes into orbit around the alien world. Not an implausible explanation.