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Welcome to the first episode of "Around The BLOCKhead." I'm your host, Erich, and each month I'll be taking you through the wild world of block figures, including (but not limited to) product line overviews, reviews, history and, if we're all lucky, interviews with artists and manufacturers.
"But wait, Erich," I hear some of you cry in confused anguish, "Just what the heck is a block figure?" I'm glad you--well maybe not you, maybe it was the guy sitting behind you--asked. A block figure is a type of small action figure, made in a, well, blocky style. They range in size from one to three inches--sometimes up to four, if they eat their spinach.
Some of the most common and popular block figures include the classic LEGO minifigs, Playmobile figures, Mega Bloks mini-figures, Kubricks, Art Asylum's Minimates and the now -defunct Palisades PALz. There are many additional lines that have been produced and new lines on the horizon.
Block figures certainly aren't for everyone. Because of thier block nature and demands of mass-production, most figures are built from the same base in each product line, relying on paint jobs and different hair-pieces to distinguish one character from the next. Additionally, they're often considered "cute," as block figures are generally kitchsy and cutesy, regardless of how detailed the paint job. Despite this, or perhaps because of it, there are a number of block figure fanatics who find block figures to be amongst the best action figures on the market today. I am one of those fanatics.
I became interested in block figures in late 2005 (well into the block figure game, unfortunately) upon discovering Accoutrements' line, called simply The Cubes. As I was working in the land of corporate inopportunity at the time, I fell in love with the concept and, like the kids today with the Pokemon (and the hula-hoops), had to get 'em all. Soon after, I began to populate the cubes with block figures from other lines.
These days, the majority of my action figures are block figures; and I do have a large collection of action figures. According to my mother, I own more toys than a grown man should have. But she's not a Generation X-er, what would she know?
I digress.
It's safe to say that I like block figures and want to share that joy with you, the reader--and that guy sitting behind you who was crying earlier. We'll leave it at that for now.
Next episode, I'll get into the meat of the matter and have a little show and tell regarding Art Asylumn's Minimates, focusing on their line of DC comics figures.
-erich
Erich Arendall loves block figures so much that he uses them as his principal props in his webcomic Attercap.Net.
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