Synopsis of Toy

“Moving across the landscape, overrunning all obstacles as inexorably as the Future itself, these amazing, efficient and powerful automatons have but one purpose—to serve their masters at work and play!"

With a sales pitch like that, and with the space age blasting off in popular culture, it's no wonder that Zeroids became a sought after toy. The Ideal Toy Company's line of poorly-selling Motorific Trucks were collecting dust on the factory shelves, and with Mattel's Major Matt Mason already a popular seller, the space race was on. In their infinite wisdom, Ideal thought of a way to get rid of the Motorific Trucks and get a foothold in outer space at the same time. Ideal transplanted the engines from the Trucks into the bodies of futuristic looking robots, and dreamed up a fictional background for their creations: The robots were said to have come from the planet Zero, each with a different color and a different array of capabilities. Presto! From the ashes of failure came the Zeroids.

Zeroids were released in 1968, much to the excitement of junior astronauts everywhere. Thanks to the borrowed battery-operated truck engines, a couple of treaded tires and a power switch, Zeroids moved backwards and forwards upon command. The line was dominated by otherworldly names beginning with 'Z' (Zerak, Zobor, Zintar and Zog made up the ‘Star Team'), because everyone knows that in the future, everything will start with the letter Z.

Zeroids all had colorful shiny metal parts, and interchangeable magnetic hooks or throwing hands that furnished them with the ability to perform multiple robotically-inclined tasks. The robots came packaged in their ‘control station’ (actually the box in which Zeroids were sold), which unfolded into a ramp so that the Zeroid could roll out onto the alien surface of a child's bedspread right away. Most toys just came in cardboard.

In terms of accessories and playsets, your spaciest wish was Ideal’s command: there were Solar Cycles, Sensor Stations, Missile Defense Pads and Explorer Modules. In 1970, an Alien Zeroid with, *gasp*, an Exploding Chest stomped onto the scene, and the Star Team was re-introduced as action figures with smaller Zeroid-type companions.

Accessories got lost, antennas broke off, but the ‘roids were a hit. Robot in hand, scary sci-fi program on the tube, and dad leaning back in the La-Z-Boy telling you about the latest newspaper developments in the space race…why, that was all a kid could ever want. Besides, what kid didn't want his own private automaton?

Release History of Toy

1968 - Zeroids
1970 - Alien Zeroid

Sub Categories of Toys

action figures

Toy and Game Manufacturer

Ideal

Other Toy Links