Review: The Simpsons Series 2 minifigs
Posted by CapnRex101,
The Simpsons is an unusual theme, consisting of only one large set and a series of themed Collectible Minifigures each year. 71016 Kwik-E-Mart has been available for LEGO VIP members since April 15th and Brickset's review of the set will be published shortly.
Before that though we decided to do something a little different and bring you a review of the second series of The Simpsons Collectible Minifigures, which are already available a little early from some outlets. Huw has kindly photographed the full set while I will be giving my thoughts on each minifigure.
Homer and Marge both wear new outfits in this series, based on their formal attire in early episodes including Some Enchanted Evening. Although it is certainly accurate, the slight colour variation between Homer's legs and torso looks a little strange to me. He carries a heart-shaped box of chocolates printed on a 2x2 tile which are probably intended for Marge, although there can be no guarantee that they will make it that far.
I think the Marge minifigure is superb. Her orange dress looks fantastic and I love the lipstick printed on her head piece. The flower stem is quite rare, having only appeared before with the Hippie and the Bride in earlier series of the Collectible Minifigures. Her clutch bag is printed on a 1x2 tile and could certainly be a useful piece, but it is her long white gloves which catch my eye more than anything else. This is a great use of the dual-coloured arms and the design nicely represents what we see in the show.
Bart, Lisa and Maggie also have variants included in this series, with my favourite of the three being Bartman. Bart's alter ego first appeared in Three Men and a Comic Book and has since had an entire comic series themed around it! The minifigure is a superb recreation of his fairly brief appearance in the show, although it is perhaps his slingshot which is most appealing since this is a brand new piece. It is also worth noting that his torso is now orange rather than red, which is more accurate to his on screen attire.
Lisa is wearing her Sunday best here, with a bow in her hair and a pink dress. This is a fine minifigure, but Snowball II is undoubtedly the highlight. The moulding and printing is perfect, right down to the detail of her red collar. Maggie is probably the most disappointing minifigure of the series as she is identical to the figure in 71006 The Simpsons House. However, Santa's Little Helper who accompanies her is an absolute must have if you want to complete the family and again, he has been well designed with his endearingly gormless expression captured brilliantly.
Milhouse as Fallout Boy is another excellent figure, based on his brief stint as a movie star in Radioactive Man. He comes with a Buzz Cola can which is based on the coffee cup mould from last year's LEGO Movie series. I prefer the simple 1x1 round brick from the Kwik-E-Mart set, but this accessory looks great too.
The minifigure of Milhouse's classmate Martin Prince is also a good representation of the character in the show, although his accessory is a little disappointing. I don't recall ever seeing a book entitled 'Coping with a High IQ' in the show, nor can I find any reference to it online. A calculator might have been a more appropriate (and useful) inclusion. The head, torso and leg designs on the other hand are impressive, so I have no complaints there.
Comic Book Guy is a favourite character of mine and I think this minifigure does quite a good job of portraying him. I have no issue with the attempt to print his belly rather than creating a 'fat' torso component and I like his head piece very much. However, I was disappointed to find that his legs are not moulded with different colours of plastic like Milhouse's and Martin's are. Instead his shorts and shoes are printed on the front and sides of the legs, while the back is all light blue. His Squishee accessory is excellent and I like the 'Everyman' comic book referencing Homer the Whopper.
Patty and Selma are almost inseparable in the series, so it is no surprise to see them together again here. Their minifigures are quite similar, with simple pink and blue dresses and a necklace printed on both torsos. Their head pieces are as accurate as one would hope and Selma's eye chart is a great accessory. Patty's handbag is less appealing, having appeared before in the Friends line, but I can't think of any better suggestion which we might realistically expect.
Edna Krabappel is a fan-favourite character, so it is a great shame that she has been retired from the show following the death of her voice actress, Marcia Wallace. Bart the Lover is one of her best episodes in my opinion and it is therefore a fantastic choice to include a 2x2 tile with a picture of Gordie Howe printed on it, as well as a pink mug. The design of the minifigure is perfect, with even her typical expression of boredom captured well.
Hans Moleman is a strange choice for a minifigure in only the second series, but I am delighted with it as I love the character. His head is superb and it certainly lives up to Homer's description: "it's like kissing a peanut!" The torso and legs are very simple, but nevertheless look good. His driving license, which was suspended in Selma's Choice. He often appears in scenes at the DMV and has been seen struggling with the eye chart on a least two separate occasions, so he could be displayed nicely beside the Selma minifigure.
I am also a great fan of Professor Frink and am very pleased with this minifigure. The entire figure is excellent, with accurate printing on his legs and torso, as well as a nice head mould and a useful accessory in the form of a conical flask. The opaque green liquid is new, so will make a nice addition to the growing selection of colours available.
Groundskeeper Willie has been a mainstay of the Springfield Elementary School staff, although not the faculty lounge, since Principal Charming, a season two episode. His wild red hair and beard is well captured by the unique head piece, as are his overalls which are printed on the torso. Unfortunately the design does not continue onto his back, but the detail of his hairy arms more than makes up for this. Willie comes with a plunger, a rare piece which is new with this reddish brown handle. Previously it was included with the Plumber from the ninth series of the Collectible Minifigures, although there the handle was medium dark flesh in colour.
Dr Hibbert is a welcome addition to the series, although I don't think the enormous grin is very well suited to the character. He is famous for his laughter, but rarely looks quite this cheerful. The torso and legs printing is great, but even better is the printed 2x2 tile showing an X-ray of Homer's head. This even features the crayon imbedded in his brain from HOMR and a layer of protective fluid around the organ from The Homer They Fall.
The sixteenth and final minifigure is Waylon Smithers. This is one of my favourite minifigures of the series as a result of the brilliant head and torso printing, as well as his Malibu Stacy accessory, with a new hat! This is based on the season five episode: Lisa vs. Malibu Stacy, where Smithers is revealed to be an obsessive collector of the children's toy. I'm sure that no Brickset members would have any idea what that's like.
I am certainly of the opinion that this series is an improvement over the last one, where one or two minifigures simply didn't capture their on screen counterpart's appearance very well. This time every figure looks great to me, although I am struggling to pick an absolute favourite. Waylon Smithers, Edna Krabappel and Professor Frink are definite contenders.
With two series of Collectible Minifigures and a total of 27 different characters released so far (not including the pets), there are still some major cast members notable by their absence. Moe Szyslak is certainly the most controversial of these, although it seems increasingly unlikely that we will get a bartender minifigure unfortunately. Perhaps more surprising therefore is the lack of a Principal Skinner minifigure, which seems like an obvious choice. This leads me to wonder whether next year we might see a model of Springfield Elementary School, with Principal Skinner being kept exclusive for that set.
The minifigures will be generally available on May 1st, although they have already found their way into many stores worldwide. Let us know which are your favourites below.
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22 comments on this article
CANNOT WAIT FOR NEXT YEAR'S SIMPSONS BUNDLE!!! :) I mean can you relate!?
;)
and by bundle I mean mini figures series and pricey yet AWESOME set.
The book Martin is reading is from an actual episode, i recognised it before reading your blurb.
It wasn't a main feature though, just something he was holding from memory.
I will be picking all of these up for sure, just need the shops to get stock in!
Captain, this is a great review, and I may get some of these. I'm just not a huge fan of the Simpsons. However, the buildings have been amazing so far.
In unrelated news, all of Europe gets their own Bat-Pod offer, excluding South Korea. The only difference is they'd can only enter through purchase of DC Superheroes sets. Found that on The Brick Fan.
Looks like all the plungers are warped when received. Another minifigure From the previous LEGO Minifigures Series 9 (The Plumber) has this also as an accessory and I got it with the plunger slightly warped. Probably because the material is made of rubber, not the normal high quality plastic that LEGO uses in its bricks. But I guess it is a good enough move to make the plunger more realistic. Would have been great to have one with really well-formed ones.
I want Martin Prince. Just for the book.
Why make The Simpsons? Much rather have Game Of Thrones ...
@AlphaMoonWolf
I think we all would, but Game of Thrones unfortunately has some *cough* inappropriate content... However, I whole heartedly agree!
As not-Simpsons fan I will say it has some nice and usefull torsos but rest... 4/10
I'm saving the money for glorious SPOOKY series...
Selma should have came with Jub Jub (her pet iguana), and Patty could have came with the eye chart.
Snake is always seen with a gun, so I think Moe with a glass cup would be just fine
Captain, my compliments for a splendid review! Cant't wait to have my hands on and share with my boys, 25 and 27 *smile*
"...where Smithers is revealed to be an obsessive collector of the children's toy. I'm sure that no Brickset members would have any idea what that's like."
Lol :D, that made me chuckle quite a bit.
Thanks for the great review Capn. I can't wait for these to arrive in Australian stores and I'll probably end up buying all of them.
Homer have different color shade top from bottom. I find this kind of rubbish...
My favorite from this series is Comic Book Guy; it doesn't really matter though, since I'm going to be getting the whole series tomorrow!
These look amazing, so much better than the first series which was ok but a little anti-climactic. This set is much more fun
Kind of strange that all the women have bare feet.
I've had them for a week or so and they are pretty nice, I really like Bartman's head and catapult.
@AlphaManWolf: If they refuse to make the Spaceships out of LEGO from Eve Online because of questionable content they definitely aren't going to make Game Of Thrones anything.
These look like great CMF Minifigures for the second series - it's nice to get variants of most of the original family. (*cough* Maggie *cough*)
However, this set of MFs is great parts-wise - another plunger, another test-tube, some amazing torsos.
The only other thing I would have liked was if there were studs instead of printed eyes for Moleman, and then the eyes came separately in the packet. Then I could have some fun with my 1x1 printed eye tiles. :-D
Snowball and Santa's Little Helper are incredibly loose when attached to plates. Lego's quality must be going down
Just went to TRU yesterday for the Star Wars mini-ship build (May the 4th be with everyone, by the way!), and luckily, the Simpsons are in! Whoo hoo!
Even though Moe isn't the most appropriate, the Simpsons in general isn't that appropriate, Im hoping to see another series next year with Moe, Sideshow Bob and Disco Stu! Already got Selma, Smithers and Lisa, going to pick some more up on Wednesday! :)