Review: Series 17, concluded
Posted by Huw,
To conclude my reviews of series 17 collectable minifigures I take a look at three contemporary figures: circus weightlifter, surfer and yuppie, and also give you my overall opinion of the series.
Circus weightlifter
I don't know if there has really been any mustachioed strongmen dressed in animal skin leotards wielding heavy dumbbells but there are certainly loads of cartoon images of them, so they must be based on something!
A nice enough figure, I guess, but one you'd only need one of. The mustache looks great at the front but more like a scarf at the back. With long hair it would not be a problem but with a bald head it looks a bit daft.
Professional surfer
I was going to start this sentence with "not another surfer... " but looking at the database there has only been two others in CMF series and the last one was in 2011, in series 4.
This is the first one to be wearing a full-body wetsuit and he certainly has the coolest decoration on his board!
No bi-coloured limbs or back printing, but he doesn't need them, he looks spot-on without.
Yuppie
For those too young to remember, the term yuppie was coined in the early 1980s and means "young upwardly-mobile professional", a fashionable young middle-class person with a well-paid job.
This figure certainly has all the traits of one: a 'brick' phone, flashy suit with rolled-up sleeves, cool shades and a smirk.
The phone comprises a standard walkie-talkie, which is rare in light grey, a printed 1x1 tile for the speaker and a printed 1x1 cheese slope for the keypad.
Overall opinion of series 17
CMF series seem to come and go so quickly that I have trouble remembering what figures we've had before, and never seem to find the time to fully examine and appreciate them. Ask me to name those in series 1 and I could probably do it, but series 14, say, I don't have a clue!
So, reviewing series 17 has enabled me to commit them to memory and also to take the time to inspect them properly.
What's immediately evident is how much care and attention the designers pour in to each and every one of them. I guess this has always been the case but advances in manufacturing techniques and printing processes have resulted in their visions being realised as miniature works of art, almost. Even the less-appealing ones like the circus weightlifter and dwarf have their redeeming features that make them must-haves.
Bi-coloured arms and legs were introduced with The Simpsons figures in 2014 but they remained relatively rare for a few years after. Now, if a figure doesn't have them, and printing on all surfaces, it's almost disappointing!
The CMF design team continues to show imagination and flair and I look forward to seeing how much longer they can continue to delight us with their miniature creations, so full of personality and character.
Later on today we'll launch a poll just for fun to find out which one you're most looking forward to, and when we are allowed to we'll review the mystery figure!
Once again, thanks to LEGO for providing the figures to review. The review is an expression of my own opinions.
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31 comments on this article
What about the mystery figure?
There's a hair on the surfer's face. At first I thought it was a scar or something but it is clearly a hair.
Will you do a review on the mystery figure (if you get one) ?
While not as interesting, I will likely pick them up still. I don't have any use for surfers, but I never know when I may need something that figure offers. The brick built walkie is a great idea. And I'll definitely get the strong man. If only he had Woody's legs and arms.
Zishe Breitbart, William Bankier & Eugen Sandow are just a few of the historical examples of weightlifters wearing the type of outfit worn by the Circus Weightlifter minifigure.
@Speedchampionsfan, Lego minifigure manufacturing has gotten so advanced their starting to add actual human hair!! That surf board looks awesome, I really want those phone pieces for the Yuppie, but strangely feel like I want something bad to happen to him... The weightlifter looks ok, but I'll buy him if I have the chance just because I'm so darned impressed he's curling 200 lbs.! Thanks for all of these reviews Huw, they have been wonderful :)
Finally a Don Johnson outfit for my Miami Vice moc!
It's pour, not pore. Not in the context that you're using it in anyway.
Sorry to have to be 'that guy'.
Ah flipus74:
Took the words out of my mouth. Definitely the Yuppie minifigure has a Miami Vice feeling written all over him.
Wow I just dated myself :)
I thought Miami Vice as well with the yuppie :) Guess I have dated myself.
^ ^^ Ya'll are not alone. There's definitely a Don Johnson vibe there.
That brick phone is cool, amaizing work on the designers part.
Detective James "Sonny" Crocket
Well spotted, yes that is a hair. They pop up frequently in my photos if you look closely thanks to my two cats jumping up onto my photography table.
That one looks like it's come from Tiggy, the white and tortoiseshell one :)
Instead of a new moulded piece for the cellphone, I'm glad they went retro with a three-piece build based on the walkie-talkie.
The surfboard strongly evokes the JAWS posters.
Love the surfer's board, I might have to get one.
That printed surf board will make a nice alternative to the stickered version in the mini VW Beetle.
@LegoSolo77: I can't wait to see what horrible things happen to that d-bag when he gets to my LEGO town.
Huw, can you confirm or deny, are the balls on the dumbbell the same size as the large technic ball joints?
Smaller.
Like the shark printed surf board, well cool, and the Luke Skywalker wig is cool too,
Poser on the old phone is cool too mainly for the phone and hair piece..
I wasn't going to, but I think I need one of each. They are all so well done.
@Huw
Could you please confirm the distribution of the figures in this series? Usually one particular reviewer always gets the series way in advance and that's not happened again. Last time round with series 16, we found the distribution of a box purchased in Billund (Europe) differed from that which had been confirmed by the fan sites that were first to review. Whilst the sites agreed, the actual contents (for Europe) did not.
The "yuppie" reminds me of the classic Dom Joly character on Trigger Happy TV - the guy with the MASSIVE phone. To those who don't know it check out: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CJezRcy2P8g
@Lego_Star
http://brickset.com/article/27419/series-17-cmf-box-distribution
Wasn't series 14 the Halloween monster series?
I like the Yuppie here, and the surfer's board. The weight lifter guy is good too, I wasn'texpecting the leaopard printing on the torso.
That Yuppie gives me Dennis Nedry vibes...
The only draw I can see for any of these is the Yuppie's phone.
Why no review on the mystery figure? I assume so as to not spoil it for anyone.
That walkie talkie looks different from the back. Is that a new piece or something?