G is for Giocadag

Whom I presume are the importer/repackager of these French figures for the Italian market? This is the third set of these Italian Starlux sets and it's probably the best - value wise - having 12 poses, two of each for 24 figures, far more than the other two sets.

The set complete, the poster-map and the sticker, I don't know how many of these sets were issued, and with neither/both the Circus and Fire Brigade sets having any 'enemy' it's hard to tell, but I think we can assume there was a set of Cowboys (probably 2 x 11 poses for 22 figures? - see coming post; above somewhere in the next few days!).

As only non-military sets have turned-up so far it may be thet the military sets being French wern't offered to the Italians in their own-language packaging...can any Italian visitor help with that?

Close-ups of the figures, the one I like the most is the guy who's found himself a Colt Peacemaker, probably stole it from one of the bodies at the Little Big Horn! The 'Chief' with blanket is also a nice piece and his 54mm version sits (actually; 'stands') well next to the Britain's one we looked at last night.

[Rivet counters please note - I don't want comments on when, where or how the Peacemaker was or wasn't issued, or to whom...they are TOYS! Just call it a 'six-gun' and sit on your hands...]

After checking the published version; you might get a Google '500 error' message when you try to enlarge the second image, keep trying and it will come-up! Here they are announcing a "...new look for April..." when they have yet to get either of the old looks right!!! Is this a slow suicide note by Google...something new and better will take their place if they're not careful....

P is for Pompier....' i!

Well I said we'd look at a couple more of the Italian sets, and this is my favourite of the three in my collection, we have looked at the Firemen before (Starlux Firemen), but I seemed to cover only a few of them so no harm if we have another look...

A close-up of the figures and the box with it's lid on, also the box from the late unpainted issues; you can just about see the fireman on the deck of the landing vessel in the background!

With this set the artwork is everything and the reason it's my favourite, I have quite a decent (not large) side-collection of 'Adult' comics and graphic novels with the work of Mobius, Milo Manara and Drillet to the fore, but as a youngster I was drawn to the cartoons of people like, Degano, Mordillo, and Serrano and this artwork is very reminiscent of some of their stuff.

If anyone can identify the unnamed illustrator I'd be very interested to know who he is, the firemen look a lot like some of the characters from the opening and closing scenes in Yellow Submarine, that seminal work of animation attached to some music by a Northern beat-combo who's name escapes me!

Sadly - Jean Giraud who's pen name was Moebius died last Saturday, at the youngish age of 73, but he's had a bloody-good innings and left a body of fine works as a memorial/testament to his passing through this world. I'd recommend him to anyone with an off-beat sense of imagination or an appreciation of the drafters art; his economy of line and the little hidden gems in the backgrounds make going back to his work a pleasure - time and again.

One of the figures missing from my loose sample is the hose-head guy (left), also; a close up of the diving team, comparison of the two rope-carriers (early version on the left) and a better/different angle on the ladder-climber.

C is for il Circo; the Circus, le Cirque

Speaking of Italians as I was the other day, Italy provides us with a nice range of own-language Starlux sets, very similar to the window-fronted boxed sets in French - contents wise - these Italian market sets have a completely transparent lid which is stapled on to an under-tray.

A couple of shots of the set with the lid still on, the contents don't really add up to a circus in my opinion, but there is play potential there for a younger owner, not least the big cats eating the other members of the cast...well; if it hasn't got tanks in, you're going to have to make your own ultra-violence aren't you?!!

Lid off; this is a delicate operation, that involves carefully opening each staple for re-use if you can't match them exactly with modern staples, a lot of old staples have a round cross-section which is impossible to match with modern domestically available ones, these were easier and a match was found - I have three staplers and about 5 different kinds of staple for exactly this purpose.

Various studies of the contents and a couple of colour variations, the dark bear with the farm/civilian pig and the paler lion with the two clowns (another old scan previously published in black and white). This is hardly a circus, with two keepers, two clowns and a compare that leaves a lion-tamer as the only 'performer'?

For added play/educational value there was a data-card (small poster) and a sticker (on the right) included in all these sets and we'll look at a couple more over the coming days.

I love the artwork on these, it's sort of the cusp between 1960's psychedelia and 70's style pop-art, all Heals or Habitat, A Clockwork Orange, the Magic Roundabout or the early packaging for Britains Detail, dating this nicely to the early 1970's...around 1971/3?