Stranger Things 85 - Gourd Horde Figure

 I finally broke down and picked up the Gourd Horde figure from the Stranger Things: Tales from '85 animated series line.

 

 

I haven't watched the show yet but it's kind of hard to pass up a weird, pumpkin-headed creature.I'm kind of on the fence about the show. Of course, I'd love more Stranger stories and this looks like a fun 80s Saturday morning show. On the other hand, it introduces at least one new kid to the gang so unless they die, it''s kind of odd they never get mentioned in the main show.

 

 Getting it out of the package was a bit of work. It's got way too many of those elastic-y things holding it in the plastic. Once I got it out, I was surprised at how much articulation they packed into this thing for a $10 3.75" figure!

 

I was just expecting a basic 5 POA, but no! The head has a good range of up/down motion and it's got articulation at the shoulders, elbows, wrists, hips, knees and ankles. And a bonus action feature: if you press down on the stem, you can make the jaws chomp.

 

 Granted, because this is designed to be a creature that lopes on all fours, you can't really use that articulation to do as much as you could with a bipedal figure but it's still cool to have options. The vines on the back kind of give it a Carnage/Venom vibe. There's also "hidden" paint that can be seen under a special flashlight (black light) that comes with one of the other toys.

 

 

These guys would make good pets or a hunting pack of minions for 6" scale figures.

 

Or downright terrors when facing off against LEGO minifigs.

 

If you're looking to start your own Gourd Horde, I believe this line is a Target exclusive as that's the only place I've come across them so far. 

Super 7 Sesame Street Blind Box Series 3

 Recently, Super 7 had a big clearance blowout and had this series of blind boxes for 50% off! Unless it's a character I really, really like, I have a hard time spending $20 (or I guess they're now $25?!) for a carded, 3.75" 5 POA figure. But for $7.50 a pop on blind boxes? I'll take my chances.

 

 Especially with a can't miss wave like this: Bert, Ernie, Guy Smiley, and Oscar. Three of the main stars plus Guy, who's also a favorite. Everyone has their favorites, but to be honest, I couldn't be upset at getting any of the Sesame Street cast.

 

 First pull was Bert who comes with a pigeon, naturally! Everyone knows Bert, from the iconic pointed head to the striped shirt, but have you ever really looked at his outfit? Take it all in. Is he wearing a long sleeved turtle neck under the stripes? I have to give him props for sticking with those shoes throughout the decades.

 

 Here's a closer look at the pigeon, which fits right in his hand. It's a good place to keep it. It tends to fall over a lot when standing on its own.

 

 Next up was Oscar and a teeny, tiny Slimey who comes in a plastic bag because he's very easy to lose! I love the design on this one. There's a vertical slider on the back so Oscar can go into the can (closing the lid) or be popped up. The lid does go straight up which I didn't notice until after I took the photo.

 

It wasn't hard to tell this was Oscar when I felt the black plastic bag so I was a little bummed at first when I opened the last one and felt another Oscar, until I opened it...

 

 and found that it was the glitter chase version of Oscar! Even Slimey has a metallic finish. It's hard to capture but Oscar is also glittery. I bet he would HATE that!

 

 There's enough difference in their coloration that they could be different characters. Maybe the glitter one is a cousin that lives in rich people's trash of Beverly Hills?

LEGO Minifigs - Series 29

 This past weekend, I swung by the LEGO store to see if they had the new series of blind boxed minifigs and got a little bonus!

 

 In my local store, there's usually a little table setup by the entrance to greet customers or show off a recent set. I wasn't really paying attention because I knew what I was there for. One of the employees said "Hey, do you want a free mini-build of the Mandalorian's N-1 ship?" Of course I said, "Heck yeah!"

 

 They also had Grogu ears but I wasn't quite feeling those.

On to the minifigs! 

 

 I can't believe they're up to series 29 with these! As usual, they had a full set on display but I didn't see the packs so I asked if they had them in store. The cashier said they're keeping them behind the counter and then pulled out a list to show me what they have in stock. Apparently a lot of people are hunting for the Bionicle figure (#3). One site that's selling individual figures has him for $15, 3x the MSRP!

 

Unfortunately for me, the Trash Monster (#6) is also quite popular due to his new parts and was sold out already, so I'll have to keep looking for him. But they did have the other ones I was looking for: Monster Hunter (#4) and Cute Witch (#10). I try to keep my minifig collecting in the monster/Halloween area.

  

Initially, I wasn't going to get this figure but seeing it in person convinced me. She's got a very Van Helsing vibe going on. Short of being an actual monster, you can't get much closer to a monster themed figure than a monster hunter! There is so much detail packed on this one! In addition to the incredible detail of her clothing, there's an assortment of vials on her right shoulder and back.

 

She's also got a double portrait: one smiling and one with a smirk. I love how they gave her a duster with the mini-cape. The gun is pretty cool too with a big knife slung under for the fighting gets up close and personal.

  

Next is Cute Witch and her cat. I've lost count of the number of witch minifigs I have! She's quite different from most of the others though with her bright colors and kitty...socks? Boots? I'm guessing they're boots. The skirt piece is a reuse of the one they had for last year's build-a-minifig witch.

 

 She's also got two portraits: winking smile and big, happy smile. I stole the cauldron from the D&D Tasha minifig and ended up counting all my witches and this one makes number seven!

 

You can get a full rundown on every figure in this series at Jay's Brick Blog.