INTRODUCTION

By Mattel

1980's

This page was last updated 26/04/2008

Although my Muscle men, as far as I know, do not originate from the Nestle Quick promotion this is what started my interest in them.

 Nestle and Mattel teamed up in the eighties, and did a cross promotion which included One free M.U.S.C.L.E. in specially marked cans of Quik, but apparently to push the promotion even further, Nestle went around to various schools giving away Nestle' quick, as well as promotional tubes of M.U.S.C.L.E. to the kids.

There are 235 M.U.S.C.L.E. men plus the Satan Cross (4-armed Gladiator) figure that is often counted as number 236.

Muscles were sold in the UK and USA by Mattel in the 1980's and were based on the Kinnikuman toys of Japan. Kinnikuman was and still is a popular cartoon and comic strip featuring weird wrestlers with superhuman powers.

M.U.S.C.L.E. are made of a hardish rubber, originally only in pink but later in 9 different colours. (originally in Pink (flesh tone) & then in Salmon, Orange, Magenta, Red, Purple, Dark Blue, Light Blue & a really cool Neon Green.)

They were never given names, No story line.

Items available were:-

 Hard Knocking Ring

Championship Belt

1 Board Game, and a couple of video games.

All genuine  M.U.S.C.L.E. are identified by markings on their backs, "Y/S.N.T". 

Y=Yudetamago, the author of the manga (all 50 or so volumes of it)
S=Shueisha, the publishing company of the manga 
N=NTV, the network the cartoon was broadcast on
T=Toei, the animation company that did the cartoon Kinnikuman

 Yowiemaggi.com 2002