LEGO Collectable Minifigures General Discussion

[Klay]

I don't know if it's been posted, but I found pics of series 3!

*image #1*

*image #2*

Edited September 20, 2010 by LuxorV
Removed deeplinks

[nausicaakro]

Here in switzerland, I find a shop with 15 boxes of series 2!!!!

yes 15!!!

and another with 12!

In one another, the seller was agree that I pick up all the spartans in 8 unopened box (in the stockroom)

waahhhhhhhhhh, here in Milano every shop have only 1 box, so it is hard to collect spartans.

I catch only 28 spartans for now.

Nausi

[CMP]

I don't know if it's been posted, but I found pics of series 3!

*image #1*

*image #2*

Link it man! Link it!!

[escortmad79]

Link it man! Link it!!

Deeplinking is not allowed especially with confidential items

Search on Flickr if you want to see them

[sram]

Minifig series 3 if its allowed.

[CMP]

Deeplinking is not allowed especially with confidential items

I meant normal link, not deeplink.

Pictures!!!

They look great!!! Lime quidman, some kind of cyborg, a Ranger-type guy, a samurai, trible warrior...I could go on.

[B-Lister]

I really hope with Series 3 and all future series they remove the barcode cheat, so that the distribution is TRULY random.

[B.C.]

Buy 2 get the 3rd one free at TRU this weekend. Not sure how long the sale will be. I got a few more series 2 figs toady.

[VenVoi]

The closest I've come to seeing either series around here in the middle of nowhere(VA, USA) was an empty series 2 box at Target a couple weeks ago.

I have managed to order my two favorites(the Clown and the Mime) off of eBay for decent prices at $10 and $5 respectively. I've also received three random ones from each series from Lego:

-Zombie

-two Robots(I'm displaying one with the helmet, one without)

-Mariachi Man

-Karate Master

-a second Mime(great for Joker henchmen, should I ever finally get him )

A pretty good assortment, especially since they were random. Though I'm still frustrated with how they're being distributed. My local TRU apparently has a box in stock, so I might pick up a few more of my favorites if they ever decide to set it out. They're kinda slow at stocking stuff here..

-VenVoi

[Thor Lund]

Hi all,

- SPOILER - if you enjoy surprises you may want to skip this post - SPOILER -

Please excuse my ignorance if someone else has already posted this, but I wanted to share with you a neat trick I was shown in a toystore yesterday.

I gave my five minifig bags to the girl at the register who had a quick look at each of them, handed one back to me and said "This is a double, you might want to choose another...". Boy was I surprised, and thankful :0P

Each bag has two barcodes on the back, and one can be used to identify the figure inside. At least this stayed true for my five bags.

The beginning seems to be the same and only the last 10 lines or so are unique as shown in red above.

It's not easy to tell, but at least it can help you to check for duplicates by quickly comparing your bags in the shop.

Now for identifying which figure corresponds to which code; I guess I'll just have to buy them all again and keep track of the bag this time... :0P

Here's the five I got:

From the second series I am still missing the Spartan, Swimsuit, Skier and Mexican, so if you happen to have the bag lying around post me a picture :0P

Thor

Edited September 26, 2010 by Thor Lund

[Peppermint_M]

Thanks for the info, but there has been a full list of minifigs and barcodes around since the figures were in shops.

[Zorbas]

Please excuse my ignorance if someone else has already posted this, but I wanted to share with you a neat trick I was shown in a toystore yesterday.

I can provide one more surprise for you. Go to Brickset and look at the top right corner. You'll find a complete barcode list for all the minifigs, both for Series 1 and 2.

I must admit that your enthusiasm made me smile. Kudos to the register girl too.

[squiz]

Hi all,

- SPOILER - if you enjoy surprises you may want to skip this post - SPOILER -

Please excuse my ignorance if someone else has already posted this, but I wanted to share with you a neat trick I was shown in a toystore yesterday.

I gave my five minifig bags to the girl at the register who had a quick look at each of them, handed one back to me and said "This is a double, you might want to choose another...". Boy was I surprised, and thankful :0P

Thanks for taking the time to post this thor, but this info has been around since the first series of minifigs. Here is a link to a PDF with all the barcodes on

[VenVoi]

Thor Lund, it sounds like that cashier had some skill! Also, I called TRU today and the girl said that she'd set out what they had left in the back. I wasn't expecting much, but there were two full boxes on the shelf when I went in!

I got the last 7 minifigs I wanted and only messed up on the bar codes once. I got the:

-Spartan

-Vampire

-Witch

-Disco Stu

-Weight Lifter

-Ringmaster

-Skiier

-and a dupe Karate Master(his and the Skiier's bar codes are really close, especially when squinting at them on a phone)

Overall, I really like this series. I got 10/16, but I don't care for the rest.

-VenVoi

Edited September 26, 2010 by VenVoi

[brickzone]

Well, I've now bought a lot more of series 2 compared to series 1 thanks to Argos's 3 for 2 on all toys. About €2 rather than €2.85 each. And they still had full boxes in all three local branches. Still loads at smyths toys too but they are mixing half-full boxes to keep the boxes topped up. (they are the store that fanatically ensure there are never gaps on the Lego shelves).

[Thor Lund]

I can provide one more surprise for you. Go to Brickset and look at the top right corner. You'll find a complete barcode list for all the minifigs, both for Series 1 and 2.

Thanks a lot! This is brilliant news for me. I've ended up with an army of cowboys and my argument for still needing more to get the others in the series was starting to test my wife's patience... :0P With this reference in my hand I can build an army of Spartans and swimsuits instead! I really need to find more time stay up-to-date!

Thank again

Thor

[angel1802]

I really hope with Series 3 and all future series they remove the barcode cheat, so that the distribution is TRULY random.

Like this we can all ruine ourselves ^^

So i hope not. It's saved me money, i just bought one of ech and that's it !

[CMP]

That will be a bad thing. People will buy entire boxes just to get 1 set.

[Aanchir]

Like this we can all ruine ourselves ^^

So i hope not. It's saved me money, i just bought one of ech and that's it !

When I first bought the Series 2 collectible minifigs, I used barcodes to pick up the four my brother and I were interested in-- namely, the explorer, lifeguard, surfer, and karate master.

Yesterday, though, I had a bit more patience (and more experience with what the figs feel like). By feeling the bags, my brother and I were able to pull out exactly the figs we wanted (specifically, two skiers, a mime, a bodybuilder, and a pop star). We also picked up a Spartan, just because the WalMart in question had a few of those and we figured we might someday find a use for him and wish we had picked him up. So clearly, feeling the bags is a very viable option.

The only one we've opened so far is the Spartan. I have to say I'm impressed with his quality. The printing on his helmet is perfect, as is the co-injection molding of his spear. The leg printing is also top-notch, even though I'm not a total fan of the way they printed his sandals-- just barely gets across the idea of sandals, IMO. His cape was nice and sturdy, and I'm hoping it can stay that way-- capes wearing out is one of the problems I've had with many LEGO sets over the years.

Interestingly, something stood out that's more obvious here than on the smaller trophies of the karate master. The metallic gold color is a new, brighter one, not the more brownish one seen in the Agents sets with Gold Tooth or on the Atlantis treasure rings. So people seeking to amass a lot of gold parts might be turned off by that factor. The gold parts also are essentially tan parts with a gold coating-- this can be seen on the underside of the trophies and helmet, but thankfully on the trophies at least it's clear the gold won't be wearing away from friction anytime soon. The heads of the trophies can be taken in and out of clips without any scratching or wearing away.

Haven't opened the other figs because the mime and one of the skiers are for a friend, while the other three we're saving until I get an e-mail back from my little brother telling me which ones he might want. If he wants any of those three, then I'll wait and let him open them himself. But overall, I'm increasingly satisfied with my investment in these minifigures.

[fred67]

That will be a bad thing. People will buy entire boxes just to get 1 set.

Already planning on it. I don't find blind buying "fun."

[Aanchir]

Already planning on it. I don't find blind buying "fun."

How about feeling the bags? Been an option since the start, and many people have been ignoring it.

And if the purchase isn't worth it to you, then why are you even concerned about getting a complete set? Just feel for the ones you want, get one or two of each, and skedaddle on out the store. Completion of a set isn't really all that rewarding except for bragging rights and minifig variety-- and be honest, unless you're really ambitiously creative like some of the folks here, you probably won't end up using the full set of minifigs in MOCs and vignettes.

-----

On a side note, an attribute of the "blind purchase" technique that people have been ignoring is that some of these figs might not have been marketable as themeless, clearly-marked impulse sets. After all, there's a broad range of which figs people consider "most attractive". If you happen to be part of a smaller crowd that's attracted by a particular fig, then LEGO might not even be able to sell that fig without the blind packaging-- people would instead flock to more popular options.

And that's just looking at this from an individual perspective. Suppose you look at in terms of which figs the retailers will buy. It's a lot easier to get a retailer to buy a few boxes of unmarked figs which customers will buy up like hotcakes than to get them to buy 16 different sets, which may or may not sell well based on factors the retailer does not have at their disposal. People have complained about the distribution of these figs (particularly series 1), but it might stand to be even worse if LEGO had to convince retailers to gamble on equally-priced sets with unpredictable demand.

While blind packaging might not be the most straightforward method of selling people what they want, it's one of the most reliable ways to ensure sets get bought. With other impulse sets you at least have the advantage that they're tied to a theme that LEGO can endorse as a good seller using solid financial evidence. With a random assortment of themeless minifigures, LEGO doesn't have that luxury. If a store sells half of the sets from the "minifigures" theme but half are left unpurchased on the shelves at year's end, chances are the store will opt not to restock for the next wave. With blind packaging, people will buy-- and keep buying-- minifigures from the store, and the retailer's end-of-year result is a lot more promising.

[escortmad79]

It's no secret that they're doing away with the second barcode from series 3 onwards.

Pretty sure there will be another way of telling what's in a box though without the need to buy a whole box or feel each bag.

[Peppermint_M]

I think the issue I have enountered with everyone all over is thus: "We Like To Know What We Get" blind bags are not fun for everyone and there should be a small window or what have you, to get the figures. Or TLG should sell full sets of 16.

I am a little tired of purchasing entire boxes (not to mention displeased about price) so I am stopping after series 3. I may even just get the full set and a few multiples of my favourites (100% accuracy through touch!) of series 3 onwards.

[fred67]

How about feeling the bags? Been an option since the start, and many people have been ignoring it.

I'm not ignoring it... I'm not good at it and can only reliably figure out a few of the figures.

And if the purchase isn't worth it to you, then why are you even concerned about getting a complete set?

Where did I say it's not worth it? In fact, I've mentioned I'd pay more if they weren't blind.

I want a complete set because that just how I am. In fact, I want a complete set to put on display with all my other ones AND I want extras of certain ones to make vignettes (and in the case of series 3, I want a lot of elves as I'm into the Tolkien theme).

[MrCustomizer]

Sorry for this random tidbit;

I found a HUGE rack of Series 2 at a Wal-Mart by my house (Texas) and bought 5.

I got these WITHOUT having a sheet of the barcodes handy! I just felt them through the bag.

1 Pop Star

1 Mr. Maracas

1 Surfer

2 Karate Masters

I'm SOO pleased!!

~MC