Double Soldier Robot
by Takara
Our Diaclone Pre-Transformer Robot and Space Gun-Base
 In my Diaclone collecting I have found a few of the toys to be downright obscure. The Double Soldier falls into this category, in fact most robot aficionados will say Double What? Takara produced numerous toys that never reached America and then a select few of them that were never bootleged. Double Soldier is weird, ugly to some, but very rare.
Robot Toy Features
 There are three modes to Double Soldier. We can start with the main robot mode that mounts two yellow shoulder cannons for damage. The mask reminds me of a medieval knight's mask, tough enough to keep the brain safe. Each fist fires off and then each chrome leg mortar fires pointy chrome projectiles. Gotta love the vintage weapons. These days none of the features would get past the toy censors.
Next we can hinge out three vertical chest sections, flip down two mask halves, remove a headpiece, and pivot the legs in a circle to form yet another large robot. This blue form looks more humanoid. Believe it or not the legs of the old form become the chest of the new robot and the old chest becomes the new legs. I've never seen a robot toy do this before.....and may never see it again. It is a crazy-complicated hinged transformation.
 Our final mode is a gunship space cruiser. Robot legs and arms pivot down and make landing skids. The robot belly flares up to make a cockpit of sorts. Each of the four skids has its own missile launchers. One of our three robot drivers can fit inside a seat on the cannon (notice the yellow section).
Double Soldier is a perfect example of Takara's over/ perfect/ obsessive toy robot engineering. Takara took a hinged square, stuck it next to two others, and then took this concept over the top. Below are pictures from a forerunner to today's Transformers line of toys. Keep in mind this robot was produced around 1981. Its old design still holds up well and remains incredibly unique.
-Ed
|
