The resounding success of Lego’s individually-sold and blind-bagged mini-figures has not gone unnoticed in the headquarters of rival company, Geobra Brandstätter GmbH & Co KG, maker of the amazing Playmobil toys.
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Brand-new individual Playmobil figures, blind-bagged and retailing at the same price point as the Lego minifigs (CAD$3.49), have just arrived in the store. (Confusingly, they are marked on the package as “Playmobil Fi?ures”, which plays havoc with the spell-checker.) There is a boys’ assortment (#5203) and a girls’ assortment (#5204), with 12 figures in each. The boys’ assortment is heavy on action figures such as knights, wrestlers, and the like, while the girls’ selection has an emphasis on princesses and fairies.
There are enough surprises to keep away accusations of outright sexism — 5304 contains a female Robin Hood-esque character as well as a tattooed singer rockin’ out with a microphone — and the characters in both assortments are not available in any other set currently on offer, as far as I am aware.
#5204
Unlike the Lego mini-figures’ foil packages, which have a coded identification system that has been cracked by collectors intent on getting their hands on particular models without having to purchase more than they need to, the Playmobil foil bags seem truly uniform, and would-be collectors of one model or another may have to resort to the time-tested method of manipulating the contents inside the bag. (“Is that a shield? It feels like a shield … It must be the Knight! Or maybe it’s the Executioner’s ax … Oh, just buy it and tear it open!)
The assortments, by the way, are marked as “Series 1″, which is a pretty good indication that Playmobil plans to follow this up with subsequent offerings. I wonder whether this spells the end for the venerable Specials, which are more expensive and contain basically the same thing — a figure and accessory?
In stock now.
