Friends of Defenders
Bong is extremely rare, likely due to the nature of the toy and chance of it hitting the ground. The plastic isn't robust and its mode change requires two tiny, plastic hinges to take a lot of strain. These factors alone are likely why very few Yobots have survived loose.
Due to Select's habit of using a singular naming convention on cardbacks ('Mini Bot' instead of 'Mini Bots') it's difficult to know whether Bong was the only Yobot released. The tagline, 'Friends to Defenders' printed on the cardback is the only hint there may have been more Yobots or at least a plan for more.
It's unclear who the original designing company was, however it's likely Yobot(s) were contributed to Convertors by MARK in the same way most of the line was.
At least three other yo-yo robots of the same mould were released sometime after the Convertors run by Hayakawa Toys; see below. Both the Convertors and Hayakawa versions are stamped (c) Copyright Select 1984 Made in Japan. As they carry the same stamp it's fair to assume they came to Hayakawa Toys post MARK's use; or MARK in some way became or became part of Hayakawa Toys. These later releases are called, 'Convertor IV' is a possible nod to their origins. Their cardback graphics (front and back) are largely cobbled together from existing Convertors Yobot card elements.
See main Convertors index page for more general details.
Region Codes Used: JP Japan / US United States
NOTE: Location codes only shown where items were known to be released. This list is accurate yet likely to be incomplete.
Convertors Yobot US Select (white & blue)
Hayakawa Toys JP (yellow & blue)
Hayakawa Toys JP (white & blue)
Hayakawa Toys JP (blue & grey)
Hayakawa Toys JP (red and grey)
Prototype The yo-yo form photograph used on both the SELECT and Hayakawa Toys cardbacks appears to be a prototype. The red painted area has been replaced with a snap on blue plastic piece and the holes in the forearms have been removed. Additionally, the prototype does not have the finger sculpting yet that's present on the production release. The head and antenna appear to be hand painted vs. cast in those colours and the photo has also been mirrored.
