MAT & SPY

1976 Original Microman Series

Titan Series T40X Type - T401 Cerberus, T402 Pegasus and T403 Hercules (c.1976)

Titan Series

Microman Titan T40X Type (from left to right - T402 Pegasus, T403 Hercules & T401 Cerberus)

Takara released the first Magnemo series Microman figures called the Titan in March of 1976. The figures were retails for 650 Yen in 1976.  Magnemo was Takara toy series based on magnet and metal ball system. The first toy to employ this system was the Kotetsu Geeg, a giant robot anime with magnetic removable limbs.  Takara Geeg toys came in two size one with 8mm size metal balls and the other larger figure with 11mm metal balls. The Magnemo series was divided into two sub-series based on the size of the metal balls - Magnemo-8 and Magnemo-11.  Magnemo series was ingenious toy design by Takara using power of the magnet to form figure joints.  The body of the figure would house a magnet core and the limbs would connect to it via round magnetic ball.  The system gave the figures amazing articulation and superb interchangeability especially in Microman series where it was combine with the 5mm system.

Microman Titan Series are the 8mm size and thus put them in Magnemo-8 category.  While these Titans have magnetic ball joints and magnet block inside the body but with Microman trademarks chrome head, 5mm port and hands.  With the introduction of the Titan Series, Takara has superbly combine the two of its toys line - Microman and Magnemo.  The first series of the Titan was given T40X designation. Takara also released several companion sidekicks for Titan called Titan Dober and Magne Condor, both of which were also employed the Magnemo-8 sytem which made completely interchangeable with Titan figures.   Titan, thought a part of Microman line, was  also considered by many collectors as a part of the Magnemo line which made them also sought after by the Magnemo collectors.

Microman Titan T40X type has three members (not including the later Gum Premium figure - see below) and they would turn out to be the only Titan series with trio as the subsequence Titan series would only have two members per type.  T40X consisted of blue and white T401 Cerberus, clear green and orange T402 Pegasus, and yellow and black T403 Hercules.  Each figure comes with missile-firing (spring-loaded) Titan Cannon, Titan Wings backpack and a pair of magnemo-8 to 5mm connectors.  The wings have 5mm connector and can be separate from the backpack. The Titan Cannon can either be attach to 5mm port on the back of the figures or attach to shoulder by using the connector piece.  Each figure comes with small sticker sheet that can be use to decorate the toys.

T403 Hercules with Atom Cannon

The first series of Titans was design based in parts on all three Microman types from 1975.  The first Titans have metallic chrome chest much like M10X type, but sports big bell-bottom legs much like M12X type and come with decals to decorate the chest much like the M11X type.  T40X head however is much more robotic in comparison to the Microman figures.  T40X was design without a humanoid mouth because Titan communicated using telepathy.  The mouth-less design would become one of Titan trademark face design. While the first series of Titan resembled much of Microman, these would soon change with the introduction of the later T42X which abandon the chrome chest to the later blocky and more robotic style of Titan Command in 1977. Takara would ended Microman Titans Series in 1979 with the released of Titan Space Knight.  The series however made a brief return in 1999, Takara released several magnemo-11 toys for new Magne Power Microman line including three new Titans call Magne Titan.

Titan Story

Titans were Microman that arrived near planet Saturn.  The magnetic field of Saturn greatly influence the evolution of Microman inside the prism.   When they emerged from the crystal prism their bodies has been "magnetically" enhanced.  They then took refuge on the largest moon of Saturn - Titan where they would later adopted the name.   Titans has no mouth and are very robotic like in look.  The reason for the lack of "humanoid mouth" is because Titan communicated by the mean of telepathy.   Since they are not terrestrial the Titans were named after various celestial objects and constellation.

Microman Gum Premium Titan T400 Black Hercules

In 1976, Takara offered two mail-away premiums promotion in conjunction with Microman gum.  The first premium was an all black Microman M11X Preton (Takara, in 2001 during Microman Replica series line, designated him as M110 Preton).  The second premium figure was a black version of Titan T40X named Black Hercules. He is actually a black version of T401 Cerberus. Black Hercules comes with white Titan-wing pack and supposedly a white Atom Cannon but to date no known sample have ever surfaced.