Around The BLOCKhead

Welcome to 2008! Time to constantly scratch out the date as you make out your checks and re-write the date with the correct year. Thankfully, in this electronic age, this happens far less as automatic bill pay requires fewer checks to be written. Of course, physcially filling out checks are still about the only time I use a pen. And fewer checks mean that my handwriting deteriorates that much more. However, one must also use handwriting to fill out deposit slips and so, to that end, won't you help me with my handwriting and your rememberance of the year by writing me checks?

No? Well, it was worth a shot. I spend a lot of money on toys, after all.

Over the past few months, I've shared with you some of the various block figure toy lines out there. I have a few more lines I'll be discussing with you soon, but, unless I were to dissect the all the various franchises in the Art Asylum Minimates there aren't a lot of articles left to be written. So, with that in mind, 2008 (well, probably 2nd quarter 2008) will be a year of change. Over the next year, expect not only to be introduced to a few new lines, but also ways to make each toy line work with each other or stand out stronger.

With the various trips I've taken this holiday season (and, admittedly, a recent purchase of an XBox 360 and Rock Band), I've been slightly lax on this column. However, now that those seasons are ending, I'll have all year long to devote to nursing the hangover I plan on cultivating for the 2007/2008 New Year's Eve and to putting this column back ahead.

Admittedly, the rage of block figures has been winding down the past few years and there's not a lot of new stuff on the horizon. However, Art Asylum will be introducing some great new lines of Minimates, like classic "Battlestar Galactica" and "For a Few Dollars More." Also, though they took a bit of a hit this year due to the falling dollar and rising costs of a toy company, block figures fans can always hope that 2008 will be the first year for Creatus Maximus to formally introduce their Creat-a-Men/kockBLOCKerz line.

Though many of the lines are hard to find, they're still around and, regardless if you're just getting interested in block figures or are a long-time fan, some of my columns over this year will help you put together the collection and/or display you've been dreaming about.

See you in the month of love!

-erich

And now it's time for another blatent Attercap.Net plug. Really, you should be reading this webcomic. If only so I sleep better at night. After all, it's the least you can do after telling me you wouldn't send me a check.