Food Fighters Are A Cut Above – Tantalizingly Tasty Toys

There are the mainline toys that everyone knows. GI Joe, Transformers, Ghostbusters, TMNT, Masters of the Universe and so on and so forth. These are what stand out in memory because these are what people still talk about. But there are so many toys that don’t fit into the mainstream. Those that may have only appeared for one or two years, those that were  little more obscure but just as special. Sectaurs, Inhumanoids, Barnyard Commandos, Visionaries, Army Ants, Rock Lords and their ilk. Even if some had comics and shows, they are sort of getting swallowed by antiquity and so their novelty is not lost on collector’s. Mattel’s Food Fighters fits this bill.

From 1988, Mattel’s Food Fighter series is a line of soft rubber toys based on anthropomorphized foodstuffs. They are truly a product of their time. Carded toys that pit an evenly numbered and easily recognizable “bad guys vs. good guys” with not so much a ‘gross-out’ motif as it is a wacky and gimmicky motif. Some toy lines had light piping, Food Fighters were shaped like French fries.

But despite the fact, or maybe even due to the fact that these guys are a product of their time they are inherently interesting. Their sculpts are wild and have always fascinated me. As a kid I only had one Food Fighter – Lieutenant Legg. He was a flea market find. These guy were scarce in my community, very few people had them and I don’t recall seeing them in stores. I received the filecard with Legg and so I knew what the series was and how many there were – I just wouldn’t see any in person again until now. Or else I would have certainly bought them.

Recently I won a bulk auction for 9 of the 10 Food Fighters, not counting variants. I am only missing Sergeant Scoop, the ice cream guy though I would be keen on the variants as well (if you ever wanted to be really really really nice to me you would send me a Chocolate variant Chip the Ripper 😉 ). So I am excited to be able to talk about these guys at length.

Overview

Quality: Food Fighters are soft rubber and while it seems strong enough I would advise you to beware of rips and tears. They are also hollow inside, I often see hollow toys wear out much faster so expect some wear if they are not MIB. Also, if they are uncarded expect some of the paint to have worn off.

Sculpts: Food Fighters have such incredible flavour. Each Fighter is unique and incorporates the food item into its design. They range from comical to grotesque, and the sculpts are all very appealing. I will go into each sculpt in detail. Arms and legs are shared between Food Fighters, with only a few different types. But the main bodies are original to the specific Food Fighter.

Availability: Food Fighters show up frequently on eBay. The variants are much more scarce, but the individuals show up often enough as singles or in lots. Carded figures are not uncommon, but some have been recarded so if that’s something that you don’t approve of – look at the pictures carefully.

Accessories: Food Fighters each have a gun, a pack, and a hat/helmet. The leaders have unique hats, but the others have removable hats that seem to be identical. You may find a few Fighters without hats/helmets.

Size: Food Fighters are around 3 inches tall. Some are a little more, and some are a little more stout (but often more detailed).

Kitchen Commandos

The Kitchen Commandos are the requisite “good guys.” They’ve got the green helmets and packs and are much more unified under the military motif than their nemesi are. Unlike a lot of series, I like the good guys just as much as the bad guys in some cases. I’ve got to give them props for making both factions likable!.

Burgerdier General

A take on ‘brigadier general,” Burgerdier is naturally a Hamburger. As leader of the Kitchen Commandos, he has a unique helmet in comparison to his compatriots. His sculpt is not wild, but really well done being molded all around. A stout figure, and really cool.

Major Munch

Major Munch is the donut/doughnut of the group. I love this sculpt! The open moth and lolling tongue, the furrowed brow! He must have some set of lungs on him. This guy has a variant, where he is jelly flavoured instead of chocolate.

Lieutenant Legg

This was the guy I had and he remains one of my favourites. Legg has a great sculpt for his face, and his design makes sense. Where the meat ends and the bone begins, you can almost see it as his ‘uniform.’ Really cool little guy!

Private Pizza

This happy looking guy is probably the most grotesque Kitchen Commando. I really dig the ‘melty’ look his body and face carry, and his eye patch is an interesting touch as well.

Unfotunately I don’t have Sergeant Scoop. When I decide to get one, I will create a short follow-up to this article detailing him. Scoop has a chocolate original and butterscotch variant. I’ll do the same if I ever collect the variants.

Refrigerator Rejects

The requisite ‘bad guys.’ Though I really like the Kitchen Commandos, I kind of like these guys a little more. I always found the ‘bad guys’ had cooler masks and faces in toy lines, I suppose. The Rejects have some military inspiration but they also seem to have some mobster influence as well.

Mean Weener

The leader of the Rejects, he’s a pretty ‘normal’ mold all things considered. Like the General, his troops are far more interesting than he is – but thematically he’s a decent match for a hamburger I suppose. He is the widest Food Fighter, and while he doesn’t have the level of detail as the General, he’s still a solid sculpt.

Fat Frenchy

Yeah, this guy just screams “thug.” A mean looking bugger just primed for a fight. He’s interesting as a Food Fighter for being mostly a container. He has a really well sculpted facially, though it could be hard to see. But the cheekbones and mouth really set him off.

Chip the Ripper

Far and above my favourite Food Fighter. He’s just one nasty bugger with a great sculpt and an intense face. A chocolate chip cookie, he also has a very rare chocolate macadamia nut variant that I would love to have. He’s a straightforward Food Fighter, but he’s so well done!

Short Stack

Another instant fave for me, ha ha. Short Stack is a stack of pancakes and this is where you realize that these guys are REALLY not made to a 1:1 scale ;). But he’s well done. Another ’round’ guy he doesn’t have overt details but a lot of subtleties that come together to make something special. He has a variant with purple syrup.

Taco Terror

Taco Terror is perhaps the ‘busiest’ looking Food Fighter, and a Taco is a fairly ambitious sculpt for this sort of figure. It’s trying to show all of the ingredients that presents the issue, and I think Taco does it well enough. A really interesting sculpt, and unique even among his own series.

That’s it! I plan to have some more toy reviews and walk around in the future. But for now, this is a serious payload so it should wet the whistle! And I know the real question here: Can Food Fighters battle Ninja Turtle figures?