Hi folks,
Most people tend to think of Action Force as simply being the U.K. version of G.I.Joe when, in reality, it was much more. Certainly, when it came to vehicles, Palitoy did use many of Hasbro's toy library to fill out the range but when given the resources their design department was capable of producing such masterpieces as the Roboskull:  
 


This flying weapon of death incarnate (it's a vehicle for the evil "Red Shadow" terrorist organisation) is obviously inspired by the Imperial TIE Fighter, yet, features such as a duel cockpit, positional wings & suspended animation/brain washing compartment make for a unique looking toy that scores highly on the playability scale :



Unlike Star Wars, Palitoy usually included a figure with their A.F. vehicles. The pilot (Code name: Red Wolf) look is also heavily inspired by Kenners TIE Fighter Pilot:




"Sir, we have a prisoner"


"Z Force scum, put him into the brain washing device!"


Some of sharp eyed out there may spot a connection between the Roboskull & Millennium Falcon... you'll be getting no tips from me though

Even if you're not a fan of Action Force or G.I. Joe I hope sharing pictures of this (I think) magnificent toy has been of some interest.

Cheers
T'Shot

I had no idea this existed. Thanks for sharing pics. I immediately thought of the captain America bad guy, red skull, when I saw this.

Great photos and a really cool vehicle. Can see the SW references, even those two minion guys remind me a bit of 8-D8. Just got hold of a few Palitoy AF adverts from 1983 which I scanned today ready for my blog, so it's been good to see your pics

That thing is awesome! You're spot on when talking about playability.. but definitely displayability, too.

Cheers guys.

That's a cracking website you've got there Artoo  

A couple of years ago I had the great pleasure of meeting Bob Brechin, the gentleman who designed both the Roboskull & the Skeletron figure, at a convention. He was selling a limited edition print of his original design for the figure, with all proceeds going to charity, which he kindly signed for me.  



Bobs main claim to fame is that he sculpted Action-mans gripping hands.. or G.I. Joe's Kung-Fu grip as our American friends would call them. Mr Brechin gave a fascinating talk about his time at Palitoy mentioning how he'd seen Star Wars on it's U.K. premier and telling stories of the big toy fairs.. when asked about the Roboskull he said that he may of been subconsciously influenced by the Tie fighter but its resemblance wasn't  intentional .  He also told us that Skeletron was originally intended as the figure to accompany the Roboskull but when he presented the design to the marketing dept' they decided to market it as an mail-away exclusive offer.

I love the Skeletron myself, as the figure never got a file card or introduction in the comic it's a blank canvas.. is there an army of these or is it just a one-off, is it an intelligent being or a just mindless machine?, that kind of thing:




Edit:
Pleased to report that, after 30+ years, the Roboskulls glow-in-the-dark stickers still glow-in-the-dark!!!! I think the camera flash must off super charged 'em:

Thanks Tshot. That's a good story about Bob Brechin and a very cool souvenir print of the Skelatron design.
Nice job on the photo with the glow-in-dark Roboskull

I loved Action Force when I was a kid, but never had the Roboskull, I did mail away for the Skeletron figure.