Colouring Book Theatre: Battlestar Galactica

Colouring Book Theatre: Battlestar Galactica

Battlestar Galactica: Adventure Activiy Book by Grosset and Dunlap

I stumbled on this book over the holidays and that’s good because i didn’t know it even existed prior to that.


The artwork is credited to Tony Tallarico, a busy guy in comics and coloring books in the 60s and 70s (most famously for drawing those Dell “monsters as superheroes” comics which I am a fan of) who is quite capable of good work.



I’m really not sure what happened here but I have several theories.


Grab your crayons and still suit and join me after the jump








Dune coloring book


Theory #1 Nobody had any reference material. 


The book is a rather uninspired collection of the usual activities mingled with some hard to see photographs  that look like the worst photocopies ever. I wasn’t surprised to find that whomever owned this as a kid, never once graced it with a crayon.

Dune coloring book


Theory #2: Tallorico didn’t like drawing spaceships. The Galactica appears twice in the book, the vipers maybe three times.

The majority of this book is a generic “Member of the crew” wrestling an off model Cylon on some easy to draw barren world. 


Dune coloring book

And for the centerfold, more Cylon fighting some guy!



Dune coloring book

Oh wait, here’s an Ovion, I think?  I’m beginning to wonder if somebody just described the movie poster to the artist.



Dune coloring book

Theory #3: He was given a couple of hours to do this. Even by colouring book standards, this is a real phoned in affair. The lack of care is obvious and suggests a rush job, it’s just pages of Greco-Cylon wrestling, which I’m sure is somebody’s fetish…

About The Author

Mantooth
AKA Brian Heiler author of "Rack Toys: Cheap, Crazed Playthings" and co-editor of "Toy-Ventures Magazine". Co-Host of the "Pod Stallions" podcast. Host of the Brick Mantooth Youtube channel, painter, designer, writer, mental health advocate, toy collector, Mego, and Mego Knock-Off enthusiast. I have large feet, ADHD and I live in Canada. Talk toys, not others.

8 Comments

  • Alan on January 4, 2015

    This is 100% pure awesome. Well, awesome in its badness.

  • Anonymous on January 4, 2015

    Color this MEMEMBER of the crew.

    Wow- a hand lettered typo. Groovy.

  • Shlomo Ben Hungstien on January 4, 2015

    all you need is a little know how in that Captain Kirk space judo and you're ready to take on a Cylon in hand to hand combat.

  • BC Dailey on January 4, 2015

    The Cylon in the background in that second to last pic looks like a discarded toy.

  • Anonymous on January 4, 2015

    That memember has some pretty bad camel toe

  • Unknown on January 6, 2015

    Punching a Cylon in the head. Yeah, smart. They should give those memembers weapons or something.

  • Anonymous on January 7, 2015

    If you want to find out about other forgotten Battlestar merchandise, check out http://www.colonialfleets.com

  • Tom S on April 23, 2023

    I had seen this when you originally posted it. Not long ago I found a copy at my local collectible shop. I had forgotten I had seen this and what the actual contents were m. It was cheap at least!

    Completely untouched too. Tempted to color some pages to make it recognizable as Galatica and not so generic.

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