Strike/Elite Force Toy 12" Action Figures By Sunny Smile..

These figures are cheap toy action figures by 'Sunny Smile' so can't really be compared by today's modern type figures, you've got to remember they were designed in the 2000's for youngsters of the age of 4 years and upwards, so they would look pretty good through the eyes of a 4 year old. These figures were a cheap alternative to Action Man back then. They're part of 12" action figure history so they deserve attention.


















I have more of these figures, including one with a very good quality oriental/Asian head sculpt, which includes a small facial scar on the figure's lower left jaw.

Really cool Dude!

Aha! That's where they came from! I had a pair of those trousers a while ago. Picked them up at a car boot but I never knew what figure they came from. Are Strike Force slightly taller than AM? The trousers didn't fit MAM figures very well.

Thanks for posting! I'm always interested in seeing AM's competitors!

Nice figure Clive, I have never seen these guys before. Always great to see something new  

I can remember back in 1993 onwards whilst MAM was in shops, Beatties and Toys R Us used to have Strike Force outfits on card, accessory cards, deluxe figure / outfits / weapons sets as well as the Cherilea vehicles (Lorry, Tank, Jeep with / without the supply trailer and helicopter) in 3 colours - tan, jungle green and white for U.N....also they released the Patrol Boat and Armoured Scout Car Cherilea did back in the 70s / 80s with firing missles...Shops like those had this stuff by the tonne...

I also remember the improved Strike Force figure, more in line with the more posable MAM that came with those deluxe sets, Sunny Smile gave their better articulated figure a scar on the other cheek, mirroring MAM / VAM...he even had flocked hair. On the cardback to outfit / accessories there was a drawing of the figure you'd receive undressed via their mail in offer....Over time I used to see sets that were copying MAM sets like the Arctic sledge with wolf but then the articulated figure stopped being sold in favour of the type shown in these photos posted...which is a shame.

The line had a lot of British Army orientated items and were great value for what you got, also they were sold at a far cheaper price point to MAM at the time...

What puzzles me is where did all these stocks of Sunny Smiles Strike Force disappear to??? I've only ever managed to get the webbing pack set, which is pretty naff tbh as well as a brief case that opened up with a radio comms set inside with aerial, it was simply two stickers on each side of a piece of plastic but it came with an Aldiss Lamp and walkie talkie....wish I still had the packaging....only got them as Strike Force stuff was quirky in a cheaper way to MAM...

Sometimes I wish someone would bring the flocked, articulated (wrists, elbows etc) figures and outfit sets etc would come back on sale...

Do you have any more items Clivvers? Also, are the 8 you own identical i.e. they all came in a trade pack of 8 per carton to be then sold individually in shops or are they all different ones...

My late Father oddly bought one second hand, which I found in his wardrobe after he passed away... he had a black sleeveless leather style jacket and jeans on with black short ankle boots and a knife with holder on his thigh...I threw him away as I found the face sculpt and the lack of articulation off putting....I think in hindsight Dad would have thrown it away as well knowing him...just never got round to it...bless...

Stan,

I know what you mean. When I was a kid in the 70's and early 80's the stores seemed to be full of 1/6th stuff. Not just AM but the multitude of knockoff figures and carded sets. There seems to be virtually nothing these days (although Argos have just started stocking some very poor looking Star Wars figures). It would be interesting to know where all the Strike Force and others got to after they were taken off the shelves. In the days of environmentally friendliness they were probably melted down and turned into Barbies.

Stan,

Thanks for this very intresting insight into the 'Strike Force' range.  I hardly knew anything about these figures until now. All the ones I own were found at boot sales and very cheap at £0.50p-£1 each, they are loose figures and not boxed. My other ones all have the same headsculpt, they are very well made and have rock hard large heads,. I've got the articulated ones as well as some more soft rubber arms/legged ones. I know I have 1 or 2 riot police figures, a Polar Rescue set which comes with a barking rescue dog, the dog is wearing an orange doggie coat which has a badge/logo printed on it. It's a very nice set to have, I'm teaming this figure up with the MAM orange Hummer vehicle for Polar rescue.

In my boot sale finds post, there's some 'Strike Force' uniforms on MAM figures, I've never come across any carded stuff yet. All the unsold 'Strike Force' gear probably went abroad to be sold cheaply in Mexico, Brazil, and Argentina ???


Peterodgers,

I haven't stood one of these figures next to a vam/mam to compare height/size yet. The clothes on Strike Force figures are a little loose and big for them, this is probably deliberate so they can be removed from the figure more easily, and to not restrict the articulated figures movement during play. These figures are definitely worth collecting, the clothes fit MAM very well, and the way to go if you want military uniforms for your MAM's  



Thanks Dal,

I'm glad you find these figures intresting. Anything 1/6 and not very common to find these days are worth collecting



I'm glad you like this figure Brandon  

I'm hoping to post some more photos of these figures here soon

I've seen all the stuff you mentioned Clivvers.

Can you post photos of the articulated figure?

As for the outfits being 'loose' they were designed initially for the articulated dolls, hence fitting MAMs very well, nothing to do with moving with their articulation at all. Also, because this stuff was made to be used with MAM as a cheaper option, hence the cut and fit of the cloth being as such.

I think Sunny Smile went bust too.

Stan wrote:

I've seen all the stuff you mentioned Clivvers.

Can you post photos of the articulated figure?

As for the outfits being 'loose' they were designed initially for the articulated dolls, hence fitting MAMs very well, nothing to do with moving with their articulation at all. Also, because this stuff was made to be used with MAM as a cheaper option, hence the cut and fit of the cloth being as such.

I think Sunny Smile went bust too.

Re edit... I had to cut back quite a lot of text, it's Sunday  
Most 'Strike Force' (Action Figure) camo uniforms are loose on MAM too, they're probably nearer 1/5 instead of 1/6.
I will get some photos of the articulated 'Strike Force' figure up tonight, I've got to move tons of boxes to get to them. It's hard to keep track of what figure is in what box  
 
 

Cleaned up missing code.

I finally got these photos done. I've got more of these figures and some loose clothing, I may post some more photos at a later time if anyone is intrested..

I'm giving my vam/Joes a back seat for a while   

Thanks for posting those pictures. I've not really seen much on Strike Force but they look quite cool - very similar to MAM. Not too keen on the head sculpts but I might look out for some on Sunday when we go to the car boots. Might pick them up cheap as they're not AM or MAM.

Pete,

The heads on these toy action figures are a little bit larger than MAM, I had a job trying to get a non dedicated helmet to fit. These figures are definitely worth collecting, if you find any they will be dirt cheap £1-3 max, including boxed figures if you can find them. I've got a few more to post here at a later time.

Good luck at the booty, don't forget to report back with your finds

Repaired missing article (8/6/2017).

Cool Stuff Clive! I Really Like the Dogs!

Thanks Rage, I also have a really nice rescue set. I managed to find this photo today on US ebay, it'll be good for vam/Joes as well:

Great post Clivvers and great Knowledge guys.

I will start to look out for these guys at my local Car Boots:-)