Activators (Toy Line & Comic) FUSE character design art by Mike Zeck (1988) - Hasbro / Marvel Books / Big Looker Storybook
Artist: Mike Zeck (All)
4 Comments - 83 Views - 7 Likes
Additional Images:
Fuse turnaround designs - Mike Zeck pencils/inks
Artwork Details
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DescriptionActivators (Toy Line & Comic) FUSE designArt by Mike Zeck Marvel Books 1988 Happy belated birthday to Mike Zeck! In 1982 Marvel produced a comic book series featuring the toys for GI Joe. In 1984 they debuted the Transformers comics and US toys. A few years later they may have been looking for their next line of toys and comics with The Activators, but it never came to be. I'm excited to share this set of untold Mike Zeck and Marvel/Hasbro history. I picked up the cover pieces from a collector in France and the figure designs from a dealer in Italy. Here's what I've been able to piece together from other collectors and the little info I found online. In the late 1980's (Circa 1986-88 based on the 75cent price on the cover mockups) Mike Zeck was hired to design a new line of characters and covers for a new toyline/story called THE ACTIVATORS, which was never published. Based on these drawings the work was going to be published by Big Looker Storybooks, which Marvel Books published in the mid-to-late 80's under license from Hasbro. Marvel published some of their own licensed IP (Spider-Man) under Big Looker along side big properties like Transformers, GI Joe. The Activators felt like they may have been going for a mix of GI Joe and Transformers with soldiers wearing transformative tech. Even though these never saw the light of day, I couldn't help but pick them up as they are prime era Zeck! He was working on his iconic Punisher run and Kraven's Last Hunt story around the same time and had just come off his memorable work on Captain America and Secret Wars just a few years before. I love the logo designs and thought the character designs were super cool as well. Zeck created these design pieces on two separate boards for FUSE, one of the good guy in the Activators, in pencil and inks giving us the full figure drawing and the detailed turnaround piece. Social/Sharing |
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K Gearon 
Member Since 2011
1 - Posted on 9/7/2025
Love me some Zeck, you know, and these are no exception. Great pure illustration and energy, and some fun designs! Congrats!
Marcus Wai
Member Since 2005
Posted on 9/8/2025
Impressive! Concepts for a never produced line of toys finally unearthed! You got to figure Zeck was in high demand. I wonder if he ever worked on other lines of toys?
Tyler T
Member Since 2020
Posted on 9/8/2025
These are all so much fun! Eat your heart out Marty McFly!
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