Science Fiction -1980s
If the 1950s was science fiction's Golden Age, then the 1980's was its Silver.
The premiere of "Star Wars" in 1977 and the further success of its sequels, "The Empire Strikes Back" (1980) and "Return of the Jedi" (1983), took what had been a cult genre and launched it solidly into the commercial mainstream. Suddenly, every studio was in the science fiction business. In the movies, the resulting products ranged from the cheesy (e.g. Roger Corman's "Battle Beyond the Stars" - 1980) to the witty (e.g. Robert Zemeckis' "Back to the Future" - 1985) to the technically innovative (e.g. Nick Castle's "The Last Starfighter"- 1984) to the classic (James Cameron's "Aliens" - 1986). But regardless of these films' narrative qualities, most produced vehicle designs that would do any model collection proud.
Following the critically panned but financially successful "Star Trek: The Motion Picture," Paramount kept its franchise growing with "Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan" (1982), "Star Trek III: The Search for Spock" (1984), and the most successful sequel of them all, "Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home" (1986).
In 1987, after the studio failed to launch a "fourth network," it entered the brave new world of first-run TV syndication with "Star Trek: The Next Generation," helmed by the Great Bird of the Galaxy himself, Gene Roddenberry. With a new ship and a new crew quickly gaining audience acceptance, Paramount realized it had a cash cow that it could conceivably milk all the way to the new millennium. And fantastic model builders had a whole new lode of spacecraft designs to mine.
This same decade saw the birth of several "garage kit" companies, small operations that created and distributed limited run resin and vacuform kits based on favorite sci-fi subjects -- many of them from the 1950's and 1960's -- that had not previously been captured in miniature.
The premiere of "Star Wars" in 1977 and the further success of its sequels, "The Empire Strikes Back" (1980) and "Return of the Jedi" (1983), took what had been a cult genre and launched it solidly into the commercial mainstream. Suddenly, every studio was in the science fiction business. In the movies, the resulting products ranged from the cheesy (e.g. Roger Corman's "Battle Beyond the Stars" - 1980) to the witty (e.g. Robert Zemeckis' "Back to the Future" - 1985) to the technically innovative (e.g. Nick Castle's "The Last Starfighter"- 1984) to the classic (James Cameron's "Aliens" - 1986). But regardless of these films' narrative qualities, most produced vehicle designs that would do any model collection proud.
Following the critically panned but financially successful "Star Trek: The Motion Picture," Paramount kept its franchise growing with "Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan" (1982), "Star Trek III: The Search for Spock" (1984), and the most successful sequel of them all, "Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home" (1986).
In 1987, after the studio failed to launch a "fourth network," it entered the brave new world of first-run TV syndication with "Star Trek: The Next Generation," helmed by the Great Bird of the Galaxy himself, Gene Roddenberry. With a new ship and a new crew quickly gaining audience acceptance, Paramount realized it had a cash cow that it could conceivably milk all the way to the new millennium. And fantastic model builders had a whole new lode of spacecraft designs to mine.
This same decade saw the birth of several "garage kit" companies, small operations that created and distributed limited run resin and vacuform kits based on favorite sci-fi subjects -- many of them from the 1950's and 1960's -- that had not previously been captured in miniature.
WAR ROCKET AJAX FROM "FLASH GORDON"
(1980) Fantastic Plastic 1:144 |
NELL FROM "BATTLE BEYOND THE STARS"
(1980) Fantastic Plastic 1:144 |
TRITIUM-CLASS STARSHIP FROM "STAR TREK SPACEFLIGHT CHRONOLOGY"
(1980) Garage Kit 1:1000 |
REBEL T-47 SNOWSPEEDER FROM "STAR WARS - EPISODE V: THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK"
(1980) MPC 1:35 |
REBEL T-47 SNOWSPEEDER FROM "STAR WARS - EPISODE V: THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK"
(1980) Fantastic Plastic 1:72 |
REBEL TRANSPORT FROM "STAR WARS - EPISODE V: THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK"
(1980) MPC N/A |
ALL-TERRAIN ATTACK TRANSPORT (AT-AT) FROM "STAR WARS - EPISODE V: THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK"
(1980) MPC 1:100 |
ALL-TERRAIN SCOUT TRANSPORT (AT-ST) FROM "STAR WARS - EPISODE V: THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK"
(1980) MPC 1:48 |
IMPERIAL TIE BOMBER FROM "STAR WARS - EPISODE V: THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK"
(1980) JMJ Models "Studio Scale" |
IMPERIAL TIE BOMBER FROM "STAR WARS - EPISODE V: THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK"
(1980) Fantastic Plastic 1:72 |
SLAVE 1 FROM "STAR WARS - EPISODE V: THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK"
(1980) MPC 1:85 |
IMPERIAL SUPER STAR DESTROYER "STAR WARS - EPISODE V: THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK"
(1980) Crazy Details 1:57,000 |
U.S.S. RELIANT FROM "STAR TREK II: THE WRATH OF KHAN"
(1982) AMT/Ertl 1:535 |
REGULA 1 SPACE STATION FROM: "STAR TREK II: THE WRATH OF KHAN"
(1982) Fantastic Plastic 1:1000 |
FLYING SAUCER FROM "THE THING" (1982)
Fantastic Plastic 1:350 |
FEDERATION LOKNAR-CLASS FRIGATE FROM "STAR TREK ROLE PLAYING GAME"
(1983) Polar Lights & Starship Modeler Kit Factory 1:1000 |
BLUE THUNDER URBAN ATTACK HELICOPTER FROM "BLUE THUNDER"
(1983) Monogram 1:32 |
IMPERIAL TIE INTERCEPTOR FROM "STAR WARS - EPISODE VI: RETURN OF THE JEDI"
(1983) MPC 1:51 |
SHUTTLE TYDIRIUM FROM "STAR WARS - EPISODE VI: RETURN OF THE JEDI"
(1983) MPC 1:72 |
REBEL A-WING FIGHTER FROM "STAR WARS - EPISODE VI: RETURN OF THE JEDI"
(1983) MPC 1:48 |
REBEL A-WING FIGHTER FROM "STAR WARS - EPISODE VI: RETURN OF THE JEDI"
(1983) Fantastic Plastic 1:72 |
REBEL B-WING FIGHTER FROM "STAR WARS - EPISODE VI: RETURN OF THE JEDI"
(1983) MPC 1:144 |
REBEL B-WING FIGHTER FROM "STAR WARS - EPISODE VI: RETURN OF THE JEDI"
(1983) Fantastic Plastic 1:72 |
IMPERIAL SPEEDER BIKE & SCOUT TROOPER FROM "STAR WARS - EPISODE VI: RETURN OF THE JEDI"
(1983) MPC N/A |
MINERVA FROM "CRUSHER JOE"
(1983) Takara 1:500 |
FIGHTERS 1 & 2 FROM "CRUSHER JOE"
(1983) Hasegawa 1:72 |
SIREN FIGHTER FROM "CRUSHER JOE"
(1983) Takara 1:100 |
VISITORS' FIGHTER FROM "V"
(1983) Larson Designs 1:72 |
VISITORS' TRANSPORT FROM "V"
(1983) Larson Designs 1:72 |
AIRWOLF HELICOPTER FROM "AIRWOLF
(1984-1986) AMT/Ertl 1:48 |
BRITANNIA II FROM "LENSMAN"
(1984) Tomy 1:1000 |
NOSHA-BUCAMING TRANSPORT FROM "LENSMAN"
(1984) Tomy 1:1000 |
HARKONNEN ORNITHOPTER FROM "DUNE"
(1984) Revel 1:48 |
KLINGON B'REL-CLASS BIRD-OF-PREY FROM "STAR TREK III: THE SEARCH FOR SPOCK"
(1984) AMT/Ertl 1:650 |
U.S.S. EXCELSIOR FROM "STAR TREK III: THE SEARCH FOR SPOCK"
(1984) AMT/Ertl 1:2500 |
AERIAL HUNTER-KILLER FROM "THE TERMINATOR"
(1984) Horizon 1:35 |
T-800 ENDOSKELETON FROM "THE TERMINATOR"
(1984) Tsukuda Hobby 1:6 |
GUNSTAR FROM "THE LAST STARFIGHTER"
(1984) Fantastic Plastic 1:144 |
DELOREAN TIME MACHINE FROM "BACK TO THE FUTURE"
(1985) Aoshima 1:24 |
THE SULACO FROM "ALIENS"
(1986) Halcyon N/A |
COLONIAL MARINES DROP SHIP FROM "ALIENS"
(1986) Halcyon 1:72 |
COLONIAL MARINES DROP SHIP & APC FROM "ALIENS"
(1986) Fantastic Plastic 1:144 |
COLONIAL MARINE ARMORED PERSONNEL CARRIER (APC) FROM "ALIENS"
(1986) Halcyon 1:35 |
U.S.S. ENTERPRISE "A" FROM "STAR TREK IV: THE VOYAGE HOME"
(1986) AMT/Ertl 1:535 |
U.S.S. ENTERPRISE-D FROM "STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION"
(1987-1994) AMT/Ertl 1:1400 |
FERENGI MARAUDER FROM "STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION"
(1987-1994) Macro Trek 1:1400 |
U.S.S. STARGAZER FROM "STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION"
(1987-1994) Futura 1:7000 |
ROMULAN WARBIRD FROM "STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION"
(1987-1994) AMT/Ertl 1:3730 |
U.S.S. ENTERPRISE-C FROM "STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION"
(1987-1994) AMT/Ertl 1:1400 |
KLINGON VOR'CHA-CLASS ATTACK CRUISER FROM "STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION"
(1987-1994) AMT/Ertl 1:1400 |
TYPE 15 SHUTTLEPOD FROM "STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION"
(1987-1994) UNCL 1:32 |
FEDERATION NEBULA-CLASS STARSHIP FROM "STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION"
(1987-1994) Futura 1:7000 |
ECTO 1A FROM "GHOSTBUSTERS 2" (1989)
AMT/Ertl 1:24 |
BATWING FROM "BATMAN"
(1989) AMT/Ertl 1:25 |
BATMOBILE FROM "BATMAN"
(1989) AMT/Ertl 1:24 |