CMF Series 8

Pitfall69

I do that all the time :)

ringleheim

I am not into minifigures at all, which makes me a good judge of these types of things--b/c I have no emotion clouding my judgment!

For what it is worth, I thought this series was really well done. As someone just casually glancing at the family of figures, there were only a few that seemed uninteresting. It looks like a very distinctive, expressive set of minifigures to me, and there are a few that I positively love.

I am all over the conquistador, peg leg pirate, the bowler hat guy, and "Shakespeare" all strike me as cool. Ditto for the deep sea diver.

Of course, if these are all re-hashes, I wouldn't be aware of it. I think a lot of the critics of this set are just jaded. You're expecting totally fresh things every time and you have now seen so many amazing minifigures, you are completely de-sensitized to them. I don't think some see these as they are. They only see a disappointment relative to their high expectations.

This set looks as good or better than the last few sets IMO.

And that is coming from someone who will likely not buy any of them. Once the "codes" on the back of the packages are out, I may hunt down a conquistador, and Peg Leg. That's it.

Pitfall69

Again, I don't mind the rehashes of previous minifigures. I think the people that mind them are people that are uninterested in the figure being redone with minor changes. I bet that if Lego included a Zombie or a Spartan with minor changes in each series, people would be jumping up and down with glee. Another Zombie? Lego is unimaginative...sigh.

I used to collect Star Wars action figures and as a collector, I had to have all of them no matter how lame the characters were. The same goes for the CMF. I will deal with the less inspiring minifigures as long as there are some gems like the Conquistador. I like the bowler hat guy because he could actually be added to a Western theme because I believe Bat Masterson wore a hat similar to that. I have to admit that the Robot is sort of lame but I saw inthe thread that someone wants a ton of them,so "what's one persons trash is another person's treasure"

Pitfall69

Bat Masterson

sidersdd

I'm wondering if the DJ's record is a printed piece. Wasn't it decided that the one in the haunted house set was stickered? We haven't seen stickers included in CMF packages yet though.

DrLegOBrick

This series looks very good, and will be buying doubles of most of them.

I plan on buying 10 Conquistadors to battle the rest of my pirate collection (after makeing a MOC from the Spanish Armarda ship Sails/hulls), 5 cheerleaders to cheer for my 56 strong fire service, 10 robots (4 for my Blacktron troops and the others for MOC fodder to make some Borg), 2 skiers to make Tin-Tin and Lady Penelope from Thunderbirds, 3 Shakespeares for pirate MOCs, 4 Manbats to terrorise my Town, 3 Pirates for various reasons, 3/4 Cowgirls to populate my Frontier Town, a few American Football players (after gaining new appretiation for the game from Quantum Leap), 2 divers (one to keep normal, the other to covert in to Action Man), and 4 Bankers (2 to use as Bankers, one to MOD into a mob boss and the other to use as target practise along with Jar-Jar for my English troops on board the Imperial Flagship. This, along with one of eack of the other figures will cost me £150 or so, and they havent even come out yet! The way im going I might as well buy a box.

@sidersdd, it looks like a different record to the one contained in the Haunted House, so I would say its printed.

phatphil55

I dont see what the problem is, they all look great to me. Maybe the american football player, cheerleader and cowgirl are in as a nod to the americans as they have in theory just missed out on a series as the team GB were UK only. Lets not forget there's been 6 series since the last cheerleader, most of the age group these are aimed at will have forgotten the previous by now and the parts will be mixed in with their main box of lego. Also the AF player not coming with a ball? nor did the soccer player. I intend on getting a zombie and spartan to complete my full collection and ill be getting these as well.

LegobrandonCP

What the heck? http://www.flickr.com/photos/gislandertrading/

LukeSkywalker

^ Nice find @LegobrandonCP! Seeing them like this, in "reality", really sells them to me actually, somehow. I liked them before, but I really really want to get my hands on them now, seeing them like this. :) the printing details look very impressive and the reused molds look great in new colours too. You gotta love the lipstick and eyelashes on the alien, and the robot's face, and the thespian's alternate dramatic face, and the simple but amazing football player. Well done TLG, you've done it again! :D

LukeSkywalker

P.S. He's selling them on his bricklink store for just over $7 each... Who's tempted? ;)
bricklink.com/store.asp?p=Bizzy78
(click on the collectible minifigures category)

andhe

Quite bizarre. The seller is based in Sweden, no idea how he got the jump on these so early!

brickupdate

Nice! Now if only this guy would get all the Comic Con exclusives and sell them on Bricklink for $7 US each!

His photos give a good look at a lot of the printing and details. Nice find!

pstrickler27

Your own first post said ...

I believe all of the one's I was expecting/hoping for missed the mark -
the diver's helmet is not up to snuff
the santa does not have a fat body
the football player does not have a football
and the female skier was an expectation not a hope or want - just filler

When the female skier is one of the best figures in the series - you know you have a problem

We should agree to disagree on this - I believe they are the worst series yet and very unimaginative - and you seem to like them - fine with me - we will both spend money on them anyway :)

Here's to speculating the next series! - find my discussion in the forum

Steve_J_OM

I think a lot of the critics of this set are just jaded. You're expecting totally fresh things every time and you have now seen so many amazing minifigures, you are completely de-sensitized to them. I don't think some see these as they are. They only see a disappointment relative to their high expectations.

As someone who's been a bit critical of this series, I take exception to the idea that it's only out of jadedness or some impossibly high expectations. I've come to expect a bit of repetition between series. They are always my least favourite minifigures in any series, but I accept that they're great for MOCers who need 3/4 skaters for their city layout, or several skiiers for their winter resort.

There has always been decent enough variety between the minifigs of the same archtypes - the last two skaters have been great little minifigures, for example. We've had two vastly different clowns; two vastly different robots (the toy robot from S6 is among my favourite minifigures); two vastly different aliens (S3 and S6) with a third to come from this series; and so on. But I can't see anything other than laziness when I look at comparisons between the S1 and S8 cheerleaders and robots respectively:





There are only the most bare, superficial differences between them. There have been plenty of varieties of the same characters in the past, but this is the first time there have been damn-near clones.

pstrickler27

^ Agreed - compared to the other 7 - I would have to say that this is the most disappointing series yet - for those that disagree - which series would you claim is worse than this one? - I'd imagine there won't be one unified answer - please argue your point

CCC

But I can't see anything other than laziness when I look at comparisons between the S1 and S8 cheerleaders and robots respectively:

Not everyone aims to have just one each of these for display only. Most kids, who they are aimed at, play with them. Some adults collect small armies / teams of a specific character. Lots of people want two opposing teams, so want at least two different (coloured) cheerleaders. In real life, the difference between cheerleaders is minimal - a different coloured shirt/kit and different coloured pompoms. And that is what Lego have given us. What would you have them do? The characteristic accessories are the pompoms, so she needs those. The hairstyles are fine. The kits are normally fairly similar. What's left? An alien head?

CCC

^ Agreed - compared to the other 7 - I would have to say that this is the most disappointing series yet - for those that disagree - which series would you claim is worse than this one? - I'd imagine there won't be one unified answer - please argue your point

For me, S4. Viking, Hazmat, Monster and Musketeer are decent ones. Sailor is just about OK. The rest do nothing for me.

But as I've noted before. It depends what you want them for. I don't religiously collect them as a series, I want them for MOCs. I can do without most of them, and get multiple of the ones I actually like.

Brewer51

I was expecting Greek when I heard Thespian, so I'm a little disappointed about that. Also holding out for some mythological heroes/creatures in the next series.

SilentMode

Right now I'd say S5 - despite having the Graduate - is my least favourite series to date, solely because there was really only one figure that interested me. The others have had at least two, even the first series.

And @CCC: sign the contract baby, sign the contract! :)

LukeSkywalker

To the naysayers, I say take a look at this image, and tell me you still don't want them. ;)

pstrickler27

^ This picture doesn't change my mind - it is still the most disappointing series IMO

khmellymel

For me, Series 4 was the most disappointing in terms of the number of minfigs I didn't care for at 7 (Kimono Girl, Punk Rocker, Surfer Girl, Street Skater, Soccer Player, Ice Skater and Artist). It's a real mixed bag for me though, because Series 4 also has the Hazmat Guy, Hockey Player and Musketeer, which are amongst my absolute faves of the sets so far.

Again in terms of numbers of figures that I don't care for, Series 8 doesn't even come close to the bottom of the list. So far the only ones I could do without are the Vampire Bat, DJ and Cow Girl. The rest I love, or at least really like!

Pitfall69

I like the series. I could always use more Pirates and Conquistadors. You have to understand that CMFs are meant to appeal to young and old...male and females from all over the world. The box doesn't say "pstricklers Collectible Minifigures" or "pitfalls Collectible Minifigures" We all wish that each series would be unique and spectacular. To call Lego unimaginative is alittle harsh. What people are saying is "the heck with people who want another cheerleader for their MOC because we don't want a cheerleader. We want another Zombie!!!" It's really not fair to be honest. My daughter was thrilled that there is another Cheerleader and a Fairy in this series. I don't mind that Lego reuses mold because it keeps costs down. With all of this said, I think it is one of the weaker series.

Steve_J_OM

What would you have them do? The characteristic accessories are the pompoms, so she needs those. The hairstyles are fine. The kits are normally fairly similar. What's left? An alien head?

Personally, I'd have them not make it at all. If there is almost nothing to differentiate a minifigure from something that we've gotten already, I'd question the need to make it at all. Granted there's more of an argument for the cheerleader than the robot for team builders, but not every minifig has to have a relation. The beauty about the theme is that you get 16 diverse, out of context characters, and that diversity means there are no limits to what we can get. Though maybe there are more army builders and MOCers out there and I'm in the minority with that sentiment. If this is the trend then I guess hockey players and soccer players identical in every way bar colour to their S4 counterparts are inevitable.

Pitfall69

You see, that's the point I'm trying to make. I know someone who would want more Hockey Players (a goalie would be great) I can see Lego making a Goalie and then reusing the mask to make a Horror Movie character. I would love more Baseball and Football Players whereas people in Europe would "balk" at that idea. I do wish the Football player came with a Lego football. They made soccer and basketballs, why not a football? Being in the US, I could have done without another soccer player.

LegobrandonCP

A hockey goalie? That would be amazing.

Pitfall69

^Yes it would. Even though I am not into hockey. I don't see why not. I can see it coming real soon.

CCC

Why can't you use a normal player as a goalie? I'm a bit ignorant here - I only ever watch hockey if drunk. Don't they just have extra leg padding? Which would be hard in lego anyway.

LegobrandonCP

Why can't you use a normal player as a goalie? I'm a bit ignorant here - I only ever watch hockey if drunk. Don't they just have extra leg padding? Which would be hard in lego anyway.

Helmet is different, sticks are too. Plus they have gloves.

Pitfall69

Yeah, they are different.

SilentMode

I almost bought the DJ and Thespian from that BrickLink store (was unfortunately too late for the Cheerleader), but stopped at the added Paypal fees.

Pitfall69

Just be patient...lol

andhe

Having looked at the picture again, I'm still surprised at the lack of female characters (compared to series 1-3 its better but 5 out of 16 still seems disproportionate). A female robot DJ would have been easy enough. And there was I hoping the 'vampire' in early descriptions would be female, or even a 'bride of frankenstein' type monster.

I'm also voting the female skier as 'ugliest CMF yet' (I think it's the googles...) though the fairy's lack of design/colour matching is also baffling.

khmellymel

^ I kinda like the female skier though, there's something wholly 80's about her get up LOL

CCC

How do you know what sex the diver, bat and robot are? If a female wore the diving suit, would you know?

SilentMode

^ They go by the presence of eyelashes and lipstick.

Leela

Series 8 already in Poland :)

CCC

^ Lucky you!

andhe

^^ I'm assuming you bought them all?!
Poland seems to get a lot of stuff accidently early! Wasn't there LOTR stuff on the shelves way before it should have been as well? Or some theme.

Is it just me, or does anyone else think of Barbecue Crisps every time they see series 8 packets?

Leela

I only grabbed one and had to run home, it seems to be a skier.
I'll go hunting tonight...
And I still don't have a single Series 7 minifigure ;)

TyoSolo

andhe said:

Is it just me, or does anyone else think of Barbecue Crisps every time they see series 8 packets?

Liquorice Allsorts for me.

Leela

Final trip to the store today and I managed to feel them all (but didn't buy all...). Santa Claus was the hardest to find, I only found one. I can't tell what's the distribution of these as they were hanging and not in a box.
There were many footballers, cheerleaders, evil robots, conquistadors, DJs and cowgirls. I had problems finding the trader (or whatever his name is).

I'm positively surprised by the fairy, her colors looked awful in the promo pics but when you hold her in your hand she looks so much better. Her wings are great and she's really cute. So is the man-bat :) Even if he's supposed to be scary I just like him so much. Especially the ears, just like mine ;)

I was a little disappointed when the first pics appeared but now I want them all again. Addiction....

iBart

Leela said:

Especially the ears, just like mine ;)

:D

Też Carrefour? Byłem w Opolu i aż się zdziwiłem
(aczkolwiek nie wywieslili całego pudełka)...

iBart

I believe that a lot of newest LEGO stuff in Poland is sooner because of our location (very close to LEGO dispatch centre [Czech border]).

:)

Sometimes we got lucky, but instead of this (new sets)
it is very hard to find promotional items, so...

CCC

iBart said:

I believe that a lot of newest LEGO stuff in Poland is sooner because of our location (very close to LEGO dispatch centre [Czech border]).

:)

Sometimes we got lucky, but instead of this (new sets)
it is very hard to find promotional items, so...

It is not just distance. It only takes a day or two to drive a truck from the Czech Rep to most parts of Europe. It is the willingness to put them out early, combined with Lego strategy (eg not putting them out when the Team GB figures are out in the UK).

Leela

We got Series 7 quite late so at least we got S8 early, that's a reward for being patient.
Before I found any S7 minifigs I saw so many pics on the net that I just couldn't find them exciting. Now, Series 8 is a different story ;) But it's already appearing in other parts of Europe.

@iBart Carrefour, a jakże :) Myślałam, że zwariowałam i widzę rzeczy, które nie istnieją ;) A poza tym bieda i posucha, nic nowego.

yys4u

Got my 3 favorite from CMF8!

Here some pics to show how they stack up to similar figs :)

Pitfall69

They are my favorite 3 as well.

andhe

@yysfu nice pictures. Is the conquistador's torso plain? And I keep thinking his face is gold, but may just be the reflection of his armour?

iBart

Yes, conq. torso is unfortunately plain.