The Might Orbots lawsuit

[Brekkie]

I remember seeing this show as a kid. I really looked forward to watching this every saturday morning on ABC.

According to wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mighty_Orbots#Series_history) it was cancelled because Tonka claimed it was a rip off of the Gobots which it wasn't. I wonder why Tonka did not go after Hasbro, Sunbow and Marvel for the Transformers.

The final episode of the Might Orbots makes more sense to me now because the premise was like the final episode of the series. I suspect the producers decided to play it safe and end the series that tied up all the loose ends.

[Beat]

It was over the name, but rather than going to court, the plug was pulled on the show.

It's a result of trying to make some kid friendly show with designs from another show instead of just bringing over Godmars (the show and mecha that Orbots steals the design from for its titular robot). They invested a lot and got no return (no toys were ever made) so there was no point in defending the show in court.

[Brekkie]

It was over the name, but rather than going to court, the plug was pulled on the show.

It's a result of trying to make some kid friendly show with designs from another show instead of just bringing over Godmars (the show and mecha that Orbots steals the design from for its titular robot). They invested a lot and got no return (no toys were ever made) so there was no point in defending the show in court.

That reminds me of another lawsuit over a name, regarding Jim Shooter's first title from his now defunct Defiant lineup. It was called Plasm, then Marvel sued them for over Plasm because they had another and obscure title called Plasmer.

It was obvious even to the judge that the lawsuit was meant to kneecap Shooter's company since it had no merit and was thrown out. The damage was already done since Shooter had to blow all his cash for lawyers.

Apparently that lawsuit also put an end to a deal to sell action figures based on the Plasm. If that deal had closed, Defiant may have lasted alot longer.

[hobbyfan]

I remember seeing this show as a kid. I really looked forward to watching this every saturday morning on ABC.

According to wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mighty_Orbots#Series_history) it was cancelled because Tonka claimed it was a rip off of the Gobots which it wasn't. I wonder why Tonka did not go after Hasbro, Sunbow and Marvel for the Transformers.

The final episode of the Might Orbots makes more sense to me now because the premise was like the final episode of the series. I suspect the producers decided to play it safe and end the series that tied up all the loose ends.

IIRC, Mighty Orbots preceded Hanna-Barbera's Challenge of the Gobots to the air by at least a year. If anything, Orbots might've been derivative of Voltron, which made its US debut around '83.

[zimbach]

IIRC, Mighty Orbots preceded Hanna-Barbera's Challenge of the Gobots to the air by at least a year. If anything, Orbots might've been derivative of Voltron, which made its US debut around '83.
That may be the case, but Tonka had GoBots in the stores for at least a year or two prior. Voltron toys were marketed in the US by Matchbox at that time.

The concept of a giant humanoid robot assembling from multiple independent modules had extensive prior art at the time, so it is difficult to say what is derivative of what.

[Beat]

The original design is taken from another show deemed unsuitable for the US audience. The funny thing is, had Godmars and not Orbots reached US shores, there may have been quite a different ending to that story.