Cash
Spy

Cash is only loyal to those who keep feeding him.

Data -
Height: 3.0m
Width: 1.5m
Weight: 1.5t

Cash was one of the Spy figures issued for Convertors. The Spies range was composed of two imported groups of robots. One was Mark's self-designed Gokin Robo series, based on real-life items and clearly taking its' cues from Takara's Microchange line. Another was an unknown line, also seemingly devised by Mark. I've seen pictures of the figures boxed for a line called Playrobots, though I've no idea if this is the originator - the moulds appear to have been big with bootleggers at the time. At least five figures from this series were used for Convertors (Bandit, Cash, Spin, Tilt and Vegas) - a sixth, modelled on a dice-based amusement, was certainly made, but I've no idea if Select picked it up.

Cash sticks out compared to the other 'game' Spies, as he's not a game machine (a knockoff line using the game figures and the name Casinobots tried to pitch him as a casino cashier machine, but he's blatantly a plain old shop till). this does cut down on the gambling possibilities, but this shouldn't detract from this being a fantastic idea - like the best Convertors, it's from miles outside the box, and an effective disguise - there are more tills in the world than there are racing spec Porsche 935s or F4 Phantoms with helicopter blades, at least.

That said, Cash isn't exactly realistic, though that's part of the charm and it stops him from being dull... He's bright red and has stickers up to 11, notably a lovely 'ROBOT MARKET' one just above the drawer (complete with picture of waving robot - they did miss a trick by not making this a picture of Cash himself, though). And just because he's not a gambling machine doesn't mean there's nothing to do - a small button below the keypad causes the drawer to pop open. Sure, it's not exactly packed with features, but it is a nice little touch.

Transforming Cash to robot mode is rather nicely done. The whole till section folds up and is covered under the chest, with the cash drawer becoming the head. It's a neat, effective sequence.

The resulting robot thus has very little of the alternate form on display, but sometimes this isn't a bad thing. Standing 3.5" tall, Cash is an odd mix of the cute (the almost Wall-E like face, a couple of years before Short Circuit) and the mildly threatening (those claws don't look too friendly). I especially like that they've gone to the effort of putting additional robot mode stickers on, which breaks up the red and adds a bit of panache. Articulation is limited to the shoulders, but the sheer whimsy of the design does the real work.

If you can deal with a robot that turns into something other than a penis substitute, Cash is recommended without reservation. Both modes are very cute to look at, but well done enough to hold interest beyond the initial moments. Both the design and the mechanics are functional but effective, and he's one of the high points of the line.