The following is an interview with Wandering Planet Toys co-founders Doc Wyatt (writer – Essentials, Star Wars Resistance, Stretch Armstrong and the Flex Fighters) and Gavin Hignight (writer – Star Wars Resistance, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles) regarding their return to Kickstarter with an all-new action figure line: The Planetoid Raiders. Fanbase Press Editor-in-Chief Barbra Dillon chats with Wyatt and Hignight about the genesis behind the sci-fi action figures, the exciting backer rewards available through the campaign, and more!
Barbra Dillon, Fanbase Press Editor-in-Chief: Wandering Planet recently returned to Kickstarter for the all-new action figure line of The Planetoid Raiders. What can you share with us about the genesis behind these sci-fi figures?
Gavin Hignight: As people who know about Wandering Planet Toys might know… both Doc and I are avid toy collectors. We’ve both been super impressed and charmed by the obscure Starroid Raiders of the late ’70s/early ’80s, and we felt like we needed to channel our love for that line and those vibes into something new… it’s an homage to the classic knock-off toys… which happen to be incredibly fun and creative.
Doc Wyatt: The Starroid Raiders by Hong Kong-based Tomland Toys were intended as an attempt to capitalize on the success of Star Wars and the demand for toys coming from it, and in one way it worked– they beat Kenner to market. But they don’t look like Star Wars toys– which is good, because they feel like their own whole candy colored universe. We wanted to pick up those vibes for Planetoids.
BD: What did you most enjoy about Kenner’s Star Wars action figures and Tomland Toys’ version of the action figures, and what was your creative process in designing these new toys in a way that both paid homage to their predecessors and modernized them?
GH: For many in our age group, Star Wars figures started it all. It was the first 1/18 scale, collectible action figure many of us were exposed to. That line was the gateway to appreciating and collecting action figures. So for many, Kenner Star Wars figures will always have a place in our collecting hearts. I, like many, was not aware of Tomland or Starroids until much later in life… they were rare and didn’t have the type of distribution that something like Star Wars had… so discovering them all these years later as a collector… they had a sort of mythic appeal. And like many knock-off toys of any era, they become incredibly hard to find… As for the process of Planetoid Raiders, we wanted something that captured the goofiness, the colors, the wild creativity but didn’t walk all over, or step on the collectibility or special memories of the original Starroids. We wanted to make a line that complemented them, celebrated them, but are fresh and different enough to appeal to those who have collected the vintage toys, but also those who might be discovering these space weirdos for the first time. It was important we did not directly copy the originals, but instead, brought more into a similar universe. Our hope is that these figures appeal to not only vintage toy folks, but also art toy and modern toy collectors.
DW: I love that Starroid Raiders were the underdogs. Nobody wanted them at the time. If you were a kid in ’78 and you saw a wrapped gift that was shaped like a Kenner Star Wars figure, but you opened it and you got a messed up-looking Starroid Raider instead, you cried. But now, on the secondary market, original Starroid Raiders go for insane prices even in beaten-up condition without any accessories. Once the underdogs, now the Starroids are now the hot thing for collectors.
BD: In addition to the figures themselves, you will also be releasing each figure in retro arcade cabinet blind box packaging. What will readers have in store with these blind boxes?
GH: So yes, thank you for asking! We’re trying something we hope is as fun to collect as it has been to make. In addition to the eight Planetoid Raider figures we are making (that are mounted on cardbacks like classic retro figures, or sold as a set in a tin lunchbox), we are also making add-on Arcade Raiders figures for the campaign. These are pre-ordered and packaged more like modern blind-box figures… and the blind box is a scale arcade cabinet that you can display along with your figures. The better this campaign does, the more Arcade Raiders are unlocked… and the more Arcade Raiders you collect, the larger your scale arcade gets from the packaging.
DW: I, myself, am jealous of the Arcade Raiders, as I have always dreamed of living inside an arcade cabinet.
BD: These new figures will be available through your upcoming Kickstarter campaign. Are there any specific backer rewards that you would like to highlight for our readers?
GH: Because we cannot make these figures without the support of Kickstarter Backers, it’s very important to us that we offer unique items that are only available to Backers. The tin lunchbox case will only be exclusive to Kickstarter, as will many of the Planetoid Raiders and Arcade Raiders figures. It’s also always the best price on the figures, so there are reasons to support beyond the fact the figures are going to be incredible. We don’t make figures with the intention of trying to make them collectible or rare… but since we utilize crowdfunding, and don’t make much more than we pre-sale during the campaign, the figures end up being highly collectible, and costly in the second hand market… as mentioned we don’t do that on purpose, it’s just one of the effects of being a small toy company that makes high quality figures in smaller quantities… As for your question… LOL I wandered a bit there, yes. I love the cardback figures, I think they will look incredible together, so the Cardback edition set is a great pledge tier… and I am so excited about The Arcade Raiders sub-line… the first one we are launching with will be a must have for toy collectors who are in the know… and I can’t wait for everyone to see it the day we launch! He’ll be an Add On available to any pledge level.
BD: Lastly, are there any other projects – Wandering Planet or beyond – that you would like to highlight for our readers?
GH: Because our bandwidth is small, being the small team we are, we try to pace ourselves very carefully. That being said, it’s an exciting time for us. The Prisoner 1/12 scale figures and The Kolchak: The Night Stalker 1/12 scale figures are speeding toward the finish line, which we are thrilled about. Those will get into the hands of backers and collectors soon. We’re developing something AMAZING for our Prisoner retro line… more on that soon! And it looks at those we are going to get to make a collectible figure of one of my creative idols… so yeah, some amazing stuff on the way. Also, Doc and I are SUPER EXCITED about Planetoid Raiders, and should wave one perform well, we have some crazy future items planned for this line as well…
DW: Outside of Wandering Planet, I hope everyone will check out Stranger Things: Tales From 85 and LEGO Ninjago: Dragons Rising – two animated TV shows that I write and produce for, both on Netflix now!
