Back to Pre-tfs
"AP stands for ashi productions. they worked in corporation with fuji t.v. to bring you the series that aired in Japan between 1983/10/7(fri)-1984/7/6(fri). I believe it was shown once a week every friday at 4:30pm. The takatoku toys company had production rights for the toys along with orguss, batrain, macross etc... Even the pre transformer ovelon gazzette for instance you will find a AP sticker on the box, along with ashi pro. in Japanese marked on the instructions and so forth. I'm looking at my pre whirl now, and it has takatoku on one leg, ashi pro on the other in Japanese. It's the same as how sunrise has rights for a cartoon, but the toys may be made by takara or bandai depending on the toy. there will probably be rights to the animation company on the box or toy itself along with the toy manufactures name. Take G.G.G. for instance, you'll probably not only see Takara on there, but also sunrise, and Nagoya T.V.!" - Courtesy of Himawari, one of his first posts I believe :)
(...and on the subject of Beetras...)
--- In autocon@yahoogroups.com, "Himawari" wrote: K, let's get this sorted out, takatoku made both toys, but dorvack and beetras came from different studios, hence the different stickers and different company markings in Japanese on the boxes. Beetras was from ArtMic, the others which I mentioned before from that old message Maz dug up was from Asahi Pro. Thanks. -Himawari
(see also: Whirl)