The M.U.S.C.L.E. Men (MUSCLE) Collectors Archive
	Created by Wolfgang Schloegl M.U.S.C.L.E. are Millions of Unusual Small Creatures Lurking Everywhere! These little wrestlers were taken from a Japanese comic book and cartoon, Kinnikuman (Muscle Man), which is about intergalactic wrestling. Originally they were produced by Bandai/Japan in the mid 80s. Mattel distributed them in the USA. M.U.S.C.L.E. figures have a "cryptic" writing on the back that reads like Y/S.N.T. Information from Ian Cranston is that this is the copyright info for the series Kinnikuman: Y = Yudetamago, the author of the manga (all 50 or so volumes of it) S = Shueisha, the publishing company of the manga (and other ones like Fist of the North Star N = NTV, the network the cartoon was broadcast on T = Toei, the animation company that did the cartoon Kinnikuman (and Fist of the North Star, Saint Seiya, etc.) M.U.S.C.L.E. men were first available in pink, later they were issued also in other colors: dark blue, light blue, red, magenta, orange, bright orange, purple, green. Five figures were also available in lavender, these came with the Mega-Match Game. On the M.U.S.C.L.E. poster 233 different figures are shown. But there are more. Men not shown on the poster are from the Japanese Kinnikuman figures line mainly. According to Bobby Beeman the difference between the US and the Japanese figure is the type of plastic. The Japanese figures were all made in a softer rubbery plastic than the US figures, which are harder. The M.U.S.C.L.E. Men Database: I have 239 different figures here in a database so far. Up to now you can get figures by numbers out of it. Later you will be able to search for different characteristics like number of arms or legs, human or alien, and so on. So you can identify your M.U.S.C.L.E. men quickly, since they have no numbers on them and it can be a pain to collate them with the numbers on the poster. #001-233 are from the poster. #234 and #235 are from the Wrestling Arena and #236-239 should be Japanese Kinnikuman figures. I was reported by Bobby Beeman that #236 was also a non-poster US figure. Check also #239, a female M.U.S.C.L.E. figure from the Japanese set. Type in the number of the M.U.S.C.L.E. figure you'd like to see. But be aware that e.g. 1 shows #001 and also #011-019 and #100-199. To get fewer hits try e.g. 001 to show only #001. Also all of the M.U.S.C.L.E. men are shown here on two large GIFs: #001-130 (154k) and #131-238 (128k), Image Use Policy A first goal for a M.U.S.C.L.E. collector might be to finish such a cool collection of all 235 pink Mattel M.U.S.C.L.E. men, mint, lain on the poster. Here are the M.U.S.C.L.E. packs: 4-Packs 4-Packs Store Display 10-Pack 10-Packs Store Display Box 28-Pack Set #1 - Thug Busters Set 28-Pack Set #2 - Cosmic Crunchers 28-Pack Set #3 - Mighty Maulers 28-Pack Set #4 - Cosmic Showdown The early 28-packs with all pink figures had an offer for the poster on the back. The later ones, with colored figures, did not have this offer, just a white space instead. Here comes the merchandising: M.U.S.C.L.E. Poster with 233 different figures M.U.S.C.L.E. Battlin' Belt M.U.S.C.L.E. Hard Knockin' Rockin' Wrestling Arena with two exclusive figures M.U.S.C.L.E. Mega-Match Game with five exclusive figures in lavender M.U.S.C.L.E. Tag Team Match Nintendo Game Here are the M.I.M.P. promotions: Nestle Quick Powder Mix with free M.U.S.C.L.E. figure M.U.S.C.L.E. Bootlegs: Other companies also released little rubber wrestlers that were more or less similar to the M.U.S.C.L.E. figures. Some copied the pink color and even the copyright on the back of the figures. Remco Mini Mashers Related Links: Raumhafen Rubber Guys Classifieds - Kleinanzeigen Italy's MUSCLE - Exogini, there are 40 different Arnold M.U.S.C.L.E.S. Collection Inventory The M.U.S.C.L.E. Preservation Society Patrick Gresham's M.U.S.C.L.E. Page Tim Drage's M.U.S.C.L.E. Page M.U.S.C.L.E. Men M.U.S.C.L.E. World by Todd Huffman Tim Drage's Kinnikuman Links Disclaimer: This page is not affiliated and/or endorsed by Mattel or Bandai. M.U.S.C.L.E. and the M.U.S.C.L.E. logo are registered trademarks and/or copyrights of Mattel or Bandai, or their respective trademark and copyright holders. All original content, both graphical and textual, is the intellectual property of Wolfgang Schloegl if no other copyrights are stated. This page is for entertainment and information purposes only.