My Inspiations: Toys that Aren't Transformers.

Most of my inspirations assume that some of the theoretical readers I may have or eventually will get have some idea what I'm talking about. This may not be true here. In 1985 or so, I first got a collectible type of toy called, in this country, M.U.S.C.L.E. And that's the first and last time I'll spell it like that. These toys were tiny, pink, plastic figures based on a Japanese manga/anime/etc. about professional wrestlers. From space. Or it's something like that; I never really bothered to learn the Japanese version of the story, and the American version didn't even exist per sec.

So, as far as I was concerned, story was irrelevant, which is ironic given my earlier posts, but still. It was about seeing virtually hundreds of strange, not remotely human figures, and figuring out their powers. I gave them names, backstories, levels of powers, and even ranks. The guy with a cross on his back and an antenna was Hospitality, who could heal or resurrect the dead. The various guys with weird symbols for faces had special ranged attacks tied to the symbol. An "X" killed with a shot (like how in cartoons characters that "died" had Xs in their eyes,) or one with a triangle face created dimensional portals. And the obvious cyborg was clearly one of the best characters. Even then, there was that bit of transhumanism.

Inspiration-wise, one can’t really discount these toys, no matter how silly they are. They were, after all, one of the first inspirations that don't just inspire a creation, a setting, a genre, or a medium; they inspire me to actively create. Now, there were limits, since I had to base any powers on the actual physical bodies. But working within limits is one of the greatest tests a creative person can perform. That's infinitely more so for hopeful video game designers, who have graphical power, processing power, space limitations, and the constant battles against other designers, executives, writers, test groups, and customers struggling against your creative vision. This was sort of superhero/villain fuel, and in addition to creating characters, it makes it easy to create your own plots. Pick up a few of the tiny plastic inaction figures, pretend they fight, and you have a functioning comic book battle and such.

Unlike most of my inspirations, this is one that hasn't come up often in my life, but as creativity gristle, this was crucial for my development. Remember that, in the 20 or so years of creation, I have literally thousands of characters made. This is not an easy thing to do, especially making them all unique in at least some power, personality, or physical form/appearance. Every development of this sort requires a first step, and these little figures provided it, no matter how obscure they were. Or, for that matter, how pink they were. I have no idea why they ever thought these would sell.