Kenner Creates a Controversy with their Savage Mondo Blitzers Toy Line

Kenner Savage Mondo Blitzers group shot

In 1992, Kenner had a bit of a controversy on their hands.  Their Savage Mondo Blitzers toy line was doing exactly what they had hoped it would do -offend parents, teachers, and pretty much any other adult who came across a kid playing with them.

The 1.5 inch tall Savage Mondo Blitzers were small plastic figures mounted onto a four wheeled metal skateboard type base.  They were marketed toward boys and featured all of the gross, violent, offensive attributes boys tend to gravitate towards.  Think Garbage Pail Kids on wheels, but with more knifes, guns and bombs.

Kenner Savage Mondo Blitzers Gun Runner

With designs like Gun Runner, shown above, the toys certainly got the attention of many adults.  Early in 1992, teachers in Loveland, Ohio became one of the first groups to become outspoken in their opposition to the toys, and they even called for a boycott on all Kenner toys:

Teachers grossed out by new toy line
Times-News, February 28, 1992

After initially telling the teachers to lighten up, Kenner started seeing that the news was being picked up by newspapers all over the country.  Kenner decided to try and appease the complaints by changing some of the names:

Kenner says it will change toy names to which consumers objected
AP News – March 3, 1992

The compromising name change is too little and too late for the group of parents and teachers in Loveland, OH.  At this point, their protest was rolling along at full speed and they even started officially calling themselves CAMP (Citizens Against Mind Polluters)!

Parent group urges Kenner toy boycott
The Vindicator – March 20, 1992

In October of 1992, Pulitzer Prize winning editorial cartoonist Jim Borgman jumped into the fray with this cartoon published in Cincinnati Magazine:

Kenner Jim Borgman Savage Mondo Blitzers Oct 1992

By the end of 1992, Kenner’s little wheeled controversy magnets had been beaten down and ultimately discontinued:

Kenner brings back favorites for this year’s holiday sales
Sun Journal – November 20, 1992

The Savage Mondo Blitzers appeared in the 1992 Kenner Toy Fair catalog:

Kenner Savage Mondo Blitzers Toy Fair 1992

Kenner Savage Mondo Blitzers Toy Fair 1992

 

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6 Responses to Kenner Creates a Controversy with their Savage Mondo Blitzers Toy Line

  1. Mike says:

    This so awesome and skateboards were hot during those early 90’s days and the board riders are freakin’ awesome grotesque creatures on wheels boy maybe if it reached international market and I was a kid back then I’ll buy some of em’.

  2. SMB Fan says:

    there are also 12 unknown figures never(?)gone out to market..Not Brains not included,or puke shooters gang.Different ones…Does anything has any info-photo about this ?greetings from Greece!

  3. smb fan says:

    Saw the photo..ok…does anybody has them? I have greek version”puke shooters gang”and ”brains not included” .anyone sends message here and I will see it.thank you!

  4. Moose says:

    yeah those warped speeders i have never heard of before…. sooo cool looking. looks like they never got released??? i think i have counted like 12 or 13 different color variants of the regular line, all awesome looking. could be more??

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