Toy OTD: Trendmasters Lost In Space Robot B9 (1997)

Remember when the Lost In Space movie came out? Trendmasters made a lot of spin-off toys, but they wisely added a parallel line inspired by the original TV series. The B9 robot was the best of it all, and it's still a kick-ass toy!

It's motorized, but doesn't have a corded remote control to mess up the design, or an unnecessary radio control. The arms can be locked in the retracted position, or can be popped out at the push of a button. The sound chip features the original voice actor speaking a few nifty phrases, and the toy can be switched from standard talking mode to room guard mode if desired. It even pivots about the waist and lights up when activated! Cool. Plus, it's dead-on-model, which hasn't happened in an affordable version of the character until this point.

There's three versions of the Trendmasters B9 that I'm aware of - a two-foot-tall RC version, a smaller talking version (pictured), and a smaller-still version (I'm not sure what features - if any - that it had). I think the version I bought is a great size-to-features compromise. I can't remember how much it cost, exactly - I think it was around twenty-five dollars.

These toys are long gone from stores, but there's one for sale on eBay for $55.00 + $23.45 (!) shipping - yikes. There's cheaper auctions online, but just make sure you're getting the version that you want - I'm sure that sometimes the smaller robots are getting foisted off on unsuspecting bidders as the larger model.