REVIEW: 71008 LEGO Collectable Minifigures Series 13

[WhiteFang]

Hello everyone,

The earlier return of the successful original design of the LEGO Collectable Minifigures Series 12 is totally out of this world. With just two to three months after the launch of Series 12, The LEGO Group (TLG) has once again taken the world by storm with this brand new equally impressive line-up of 71008: LEGO Collectable Minifigures Series 13 which is very highly elusive.

Before I begin this detailed pictorial review, I will like to give my very most sincere thank you and appreciation to TLG which consist of LEGO CEE and LEGO Collectable Minifigures Design Team for continuing to facilitate and providing me this very exclusive precious rare opportunity to gain access to this LEGO 2015 product which allow me to preview a 'very early' insight before many others could, in order for me to have adequate spare time to work, evaluate and review this absolute amazing newly minted LEGO Collectable Minifigures Series 13. As a Reviewer, this opportunity is a great honour and I am exceptionally thankful for everything that you guys have done. I cannot believe I have actually completed 15 exhaustive LEGO Pictorial reviews including this current review, solely for the coverage of the LEGO Collectable Minifigures Series / LEGO Minifigures Theme throughout the past four years plus.

I will like to thank to Eurobricks Staff/LEGO Ambassador, CopMike and my entire fellow Eurobricks Staffers for being so helpful to this 'WhiteFang' traditional LEGO Collectable Minifigures (CMFs) reviewing endeavour. I am very glad that this ongoing reviewing project is still being continued after all these years.

I must also thank my beloved wife, Kim/Belun for being there and supportive throughout this gruesome reviewing period! Seriously without the spouse support to give the blessings of doing a hobby like this that take away many weekends and sleepless nights, one must really thank and reward the wife for being so understanding and supportive. Otherwise, this review will never be make as a reality. It is important to have family and your loved ones to support the stuff that you have enjoyed doing and it also means include doing up LEGO pictorial reviews which is no easy feat.

I am truly very pleased that I am able to able to continue to share this very special reviewing achievement with all of you. I hope I have not disappointed anyone in this review, if so, I will like to offer my humble apologies and I really hope I can continue to meet your expectations for this exclusive reviewing coverage.

As the Eurobricks tradition depicts, let's do a formal re-cap for all of the past Eurobricks Collectable Minifigures polls once more. It started with a humble beginning of Series 1 followed by Series 2 in the year 2010 and it continue to spread like wildfire with another three strong waves of minifigures craze in the year 2011, putting Series 3, Series 4 and Series 5 in an excellent harvesting year. In the year 2012, we celebrated with Series 6, Series 7 and recent Series 8. With the beginning of the year 2013, we have the recent Series 9, Series 10 and Series 11. In 2014, we have seen the LEGO Movie Series, LEGO Minifigures – The LEGO Simpsons Series and Series 12. Now just before ushering in the year of 2015, I will like to invite the Eurobricks Community to cast their votes into this complete brand new LEGO Collectable Minifigures Series 13 poll statistics as well.

Name: 71008 LEGO Collectable Minifigures Series 13

Theme: LEGO System / Collectable Minifigures / Series 13

Year: 2015

Minifigs: 16 unique minifigures

Price for 1 box: USD N.A, GBP N.A, EURO N.A, SGD N.A

Price for 1 packet: USD N.A, GBP N.A, EURO N.A, SGD N.A

Resources: Brickset, BrickLink

An image of an 71008 LEGO Collectable Minifigures Series 13

The LEGO Collectable Minifigures Series 13 main colour schema return in a close resemblance lime green colour or equivalent for this entire release. It is pretty similar and resemble to the third 8803 LEGO Collectable Minifigures Series 3 colour schema and a quite close relative of this colour group, which is the 71002 LEGO Collectable Minifigures Series 11. Please excuse me for the disappointment, that I will not be showing all of the previously released boxes of the LEGO Collectable Minifigures Series for comparison, similar to this image due to inaccessible reach of these boxes at this current moment.

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What could possibly contain within these mysterious sealed packets?

The next highly anticipated of the incredible new LEGO Collectable Minifigures Series 13

The LEGO Collectable Minifigures Series 13 is slated for worldwide release on the 1st January 2015 or 1st February 2015. I do not have the official launch date with me, but I believed this is more or less to be considered an accurate range for this launch. This new Series 13 will just be an outstanding piece of decorated achievement for this very special LEGO Minifigures Theme. No doubt that it has now successfully clocked a total release of three series in the year of 2014 and this new Series 13 will be kicking off to a great start of year 2015 with an impressive line-up of originally designed minifigures which can be used together to integrate with the rest of your existing collection. Kudos to the LEGO CMFs Design Team for outdo themselves by amazed us with these 16 more new unique minifigures' designs. It is awesome to see such a traditional series and it is very encouraging to see it continued beyond Series 12. I am not very sure what holds in the future for this LEGO Minifigures Theme. One thing for sure, the LEGO CMFs Design Team will certainly continue to surprise us with great anticipation on our end.

Please do note that the naming that I have use for this review are official TLG minifigures naming for the LEGO Collectable Minifigures Series 13. So, there is absolute no doubt or misinterpretation on the naming used.

Front view comparison with Series 13 and together with all available LEGO Collectable Minifigures Series 1 to 12, LEGO Movie and Simpsons packets

By placing all of these 15 different minifigures packets altogether excluding the LEGO Team GB packet. I did not include the LEGO Team GB packet as it is not considered as part of the mainstream and I am aware that they are others who hold a different opinion. For the purpose of this review, I have decided to opt out of it. From the above image, you will see an impressive transformation from LEGO CMFs Series 1 to the new LEGO Simpsons Series, and now to the current Series 13. Isn't it wonderful to be able to view them from a helicopter view. I will certainly think that this LEGO Minifigures Theme contain a very strong product range just by seeing all of the releases since 2010.

Take a closer look at these following images. This is the front view of the LEGO Collectable Minifigures Series 13 packet, while this shows the back view of it. This is an image that shows the back view comparison for all of these packets.

To the regular readers of my traditional LEGO CMFs review, you will probably notice that this paragraph is something which I have highlight again and again, because I personally felt that it is the most effective method to acquire the highly sought minifigures without taking any drastic measures. Therefore, I am going to highlight this 'same' golden rule, which has been mentioned in my previous reviews. If you are intending to narrow the precious and hard-to-find minifigures that you are bending to collect, please continue to hone the touch and feel method. It is a useful skill set to acquire and locate the minifigures that you want without wasting additional money to randomly acquire them especially when you are intending to buy large quantities. Your sole mission is to memorise and remember the minifigures assortments for each of the specialised designs. Isolate and identify the most unique accessory or accessories that appeared for the particular minifigure. From there, eliminate the torso, head and legs away and feel for other parts. The only disadvantage of this method is much idle time will be most likely wasted if the minifigures that you are seeking for does not exist in the box or ending up having sore numb thumbs after feeling. I personally felt that this approach is the most practical that works the best for me than any other uncommon approaches.

Front view comparison between Series 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12 and 13 packets

The LEGO CMFs Series is labelled and back to the traditional numbering. Do note that the numbered 13, is now placed at the bottom left corner of the packet, instead of the usual top right hand corner or the recent placement of Series 12 at bottom right corner. At the same time, you may also notice the removal of the '16 to collect' description from the packaging. I wondered what could that means. In time to come, we will soon see how this numbering will evolve as the years goes by. Meanwhile, here is the back view comparison of all the packets. I have also purposely distinguish the The LEGO Collectable Minifigures Series 3, 11 and 13 packets and put them together since these are in a pretty similar colour grouping.

Placing Series 3 and Series 13 packets side by side

This is the similar observation which I have noticed based on Series 1 and Series 10 packaging. There is a slight difference of the green colour shade. I just find it rather interesting to see how the past released colours grouping is now being re-hashed in recent series. It also make me wondered how does the colours of the packaging are being determined as well. Time will tell, and we will see what the future colours for the subsequent series are.

Front view of the LEGO Collectable Minifigures Series 13 promotional poster

Back view of the LEGO Collectable Minifigures Series 13 promotional poster

As you flipped to the back of the LEGO Collectable Minifigures Series 13 promotional poster, you are able to view a string of random code printed at the back. This random code may require your LEGO ID account at the LEGO official website for login before you can input the random code in the LEGO.com/minifigures. As of now, this URL is invalid. I am sure the full promotional detail and the usage of this random code will be clearly explained.

If you notice carefully at the top right hand corner of the promotional poster, you will be able to notice a number 16 which I strongly believed meant that the random code that I have received is catered for the new Series 13: Galaxy Trooper minifigure. Although the Galaxy Trooper numbered 16 has appeared in other packaging, the random code given is totally unique. Thus, I have a strong gut feeling that we are somehow require to collect all 16 different minifigures with their unique code being input into this site to unlock and complete for this promotion. For certain, this marketing promotion is definitely linked to this Collect and Win participation. I am sure we can win some decent and interesting prizes by TLG by collecting these codes and input into the website to attempt to redeem something. All the more reasons, to open up your mint packaging to reveal the promotion code since there is a chance to try your luck to win something greater. This is definitely the first of its kind TLG marketing promotion which is being introduced and for all you knows. It may even appear in some places before the celebration of Christmas.

1) The valorous Classic King

The introduction of the very first Series 13 minifigure is none other than the valorous Classic King. No empire or state can survive long without a King leading and protecting the safety of his citizens. The line of kingship comes a very long way in the course of time. By doing a simple search, you will find a comprehensive listing of LEGO Kings minifigures in not so recent times. Please note that the listing which I provide is incomplete and I am very sure that there are other older generation of Kings that were not indicated there. All of these Kings have one thing in common. It is the usage of this chrome gold crown which can be easily identified of his kingship.

I personally felt that this Classic King is a class of its own and unparalleled against those mainstream Kings which have been discussed above. This Classic King has an unique royal aura of his own that dignify his nobility through his attire. The overall colour schema of utilising red, blue and white represent and symbolises royalty. Furthermore, this design is very much suitable in the medieval age where you can easily use it to showcase him as an actual king in your playing scenario display. This is a close up view of the Classic King.

Parts assortment

The parts assortment for the Classic King is excellent. It comes with a good variety of accessories, which include the newly crafted design of this two tier cloth to form the royal cape of the Classic King through the combination of white and red. The white cloth also contains white printed spots which provide plentiful of nice detail from the back view and side view. It also comes with a new golden colour for the broadsword which will make a fine piece of medieval weapon.

You can view the Classic King's true appearance without the beard on and a clearer look at his royal outfit. Next, you add the brown beard for the King to give a much stronger detail on his facial appearance, even though there are printed beard on his face. The best accessory in this minifigure design is the total revamp and complete new design of this new gold matt looking crown to represent the Classic King's kingship. You can see the obvious difference between the traditional gold crown and the new design. Personally, I felt it is about time that we have a new crown design instead of the usual run-of-the-mill design. It looks more real and nicer looking, that kind of stay true to those television dramas or movies. I really wonder if we will see this crown again in the future Kings of the LEGO Castle Theme.

The Kings of the Medieval Age

Introducing the new castle characters

We are allies that would depend on one another

You are not my match

2) The impartial Sheriff

The impartial Sheriff has a reputation of not liked to be messed around with, especially to his Sheriff's badge which is a sign of disrespect. He is a dedicated law enforcer in the old Wild West Western Town to keep the outlaws at bay. He will stop at nothing to maintain law and order in the town and to protect the safety of others. As far as I can recall, I have only seen this classic LEGO Sheriff minifigure from 1996 to 2002. It is nice to finally see a brand new redesigned of the Sheriff. Of course, please do not forget the robotic Sheriff in the LEGO Movie 2014. This newly assigned Sheriff is an excellent integrative addition to the ongoing LEGO CMFs Wild West population.

Parts assortment

The parts assortment for the Sheriff is surprisingly good. It comes with some good accessories, which include the first of its kind of the minifigure brown colour in this re-hashed moustache that can be attached from the neck up and it can also be used for other minifigures as well. Do note that the brown moustache element can be a little loose and it can easily swing away from the face to the side of it. You are able to view more of the minifigure's details through the back view and side view which revealed a brilliant printed holster at the leg. The new 2x2 printed 'WANTED' tile is a nice touch and the person in the poster kind of reminds me of someone who you will see him soon. You can also view the Sheriff's young appearance without the moustache on and a closer look at his sheriff dark brown khaki outfit which is a great improvement from yesteryears.

New LEGO Wild Wild West Series

Anyone have seen this criminal?

Both of us can assist you, Sheriff

I am going to put you in the jail

Robots versus Sheriff

3) The adorable Unicorn Girl

When my wife and I first saw this Unicorn Girl minifigure design, we knew this is going to be a crazy hit for many AFOLs and children alike. Generally, the unicorn is a mythical fantasy creature which is incredibly hard to find in deep magical enchanted forests. In this setting, this lovely girl decided to don herself with the Unicorn Character costume and became a mascot with it. Seriously, this is just like a child's dream to be able to have a chance to grasp this adorable Unicorn Girl, that is somehow can be forcefully associated with My Little Pony on a limited comparing capacity. I got a very strong feeling that this design is going to be extremely popular, similar to the Series 12 Piggy Guy, which is very very challenging to find in local shops. I also can't help but to think that this Unicorn Girl is somehow closely related to the influence of the UniKitty since Matthew Ashton, Vice President of Design (TLG) is the key person behind the original creation of the UniKitty. I do know that he has some influence over the direction of the LEGO CMFs designs. In this case, I felt it could be a case that the Unicorn Girl might just be related to UniKitty, one way or another. This is my mere conjecture though.

Parts assortment

The parts assortment for the Unicorn Girl is pretty good. Even though there is no accessory for her to hold, the key focus is the outstanding design and starry bright colour detail at the front view. You are also able to view the adorable horse headpiece which does allow us to detach the horn away and transform it into her horse, even though there is a small visible hole. From her back view and side view, you can marvel at the fine purple tail and hair through this angle pose as well. The usage of the purple tail is commendable and I am glad to see this new component being used out of the LEGO Simpson which is by far seen with Scratchy.

Common Colours

Mascot Character Costumes

Fairytale Characters

4) The mysterious Snake Charmer

Who will ever expect to see an actual LEGO Snake Charmer minifigure? I am surprised and pleased with this design. Snake charming is an art of hypnotise a snake by playing an instrument called a pungi and has lasted for many centuries since the days of ancient Egypt. I will like to take this unique minifigure to be used in my LEGO collection by placing it in my Adventurers and Prince of Persia to let him carry out his snake charming trade in the bustling market street. Take another look in this close up view of the Snake Charmer.

Parts assortment

The parts assortment is good, and the main attraction of this minifigure is ought to be the new green cobra snake. This is an excellent opportunity to introduce the new snake element which is in the form of a cobra. It has nice prints which can be seen from the back view and side view which revealed the fine details of this snake. This new green cobra snake is a worthy addition as part of the ongoing nice LEGO CMFs animals. The remaining pieces are not too interesting, including the normal looking brown stick that meant to represent a flute or pungi. Well, at least I find the white turban is nice to have which show the wrapping lines from the back view.

We will like a change of our pet snake

Stay clear from us

We are your Master

5) The nasty Goblin

The nasty Goblin is one of the most exciting minifigures for castle fans like me, who has been yearning to see an original Goblin Soldier design. In this case, this is just a perfect outcome for a Goblin minifigure ransacking and looting from others. The only recent times that we had actual Goblin Soldiers, was from the Hobbits in 2012. There were other kinds of Goblins that were produced before, but none of which are made suitable for castle setting. However, we do get his other kind of counterparts such as the orcs and trolls. Either way, this Goblin is a perfect addition to the existing warring rivalry in the LEGO Castle Theme and this design is a great choice of a foot soldier. Perhaps, one day we may just see more of his kind in the future.

Parts assortment

The parts assortment is pretty good, especially of the inclusion of a typical scimitar design even though I did hope that they can include a new weapon design for the goblin other than recycling this design. The loot bag is the same design as previous bags, as seen in Series 8 - Santa, but coated with a darker brown colour. The Goblin has a nice new designed headpiece with pointed ears that is meant for Goblin. It is not the same as the Series 11 - Holiday Elf, for example. You can see the new headpiece design from the back view and side view, including skirt printing at the side.

Castle Fantasy Characters

Stop that Goblin from coming near to that cart

New baddies in this realm

Goblins and Orcs partnership

6) The meticulous Paleontolgist

This is a surprising minifigure design and a very meaningful design to me as well. I am very glad to see this meticulous Paleontolgist being created in the form of minifigure. I would prefer it to have it as a male counterpart but I will definitely not mind having a female one instead. It is my childhood dream of wanting to be a Paleontolgist, but it is just not a viable profession in Singapore and it is not a job that is in demand in this part of the world. Well, Paleontology is a scientific study of life including the study of fossils to determine organisms' evolution and interactions with each other and their environments. Take a nice look in this close up view of the Paleontolgist in her working attire. For sure, I will tend to think this minifigure is much suitable for the very hard-to-find 21110 Research Institute set.

Parts assortment

The parts assortment for the Paleontolgist is not bad. She received a new safari hat design which can be seen clearly from her back view and side view. I am much fond of the fossil that she is holding onto. It appears to be some form of shell-liked creatures, while the other hand is just a simple white bone which may just perhaps belong to some prehistoric animals or dinosaurs. I did tell you that I am no expert in this, but thanks to our MCW Moderator, LuxorV who happened to know the origin of this fossil and it appears to be an ammonoidea. It is something which is very hard to comprehend unless you are studying or researching in this area. So, kudos to the designers for including something that is very realistic in nature instead of just doing a fictitious fossil.

Adventurous Explorers

Dangerous Recovery Expedition

Ahhhh! This is not your fossil!

Pleased to meet you, Jungle Boy

7) The fearless Alien Trooper

Space fans that enjoy the Space Police 3 theme will look forward to get their hands on this fearless Alien Trooper. This Alien Trooper appears to resemble like an organic squid looking creature but in a striking lime green tone and creepy blue eyes. This seemed to be a new faction of Alien species which is classified under trooper or soldier equivalent. Not sure of his real affiliation though, but I tend to put this Alien Trooper under the evil side, battling against the Series 7 - Galaxy Patrol. This minifigure would either make or break. It means if there is a strong urge to army build this minifigure, it will also means this person is amassing a big fleet of Alien Troopers to rally, but past historical data has proven that similar alien related space minifigures can still easily be found in the wild.

Parts assortment

The parts assortment is quite alright and the main focus for this design is the newly crafted alien head where you see the outline clearly from the side view. There is also back printing as well. The remaining accessories are rather common and they did their best effort to recycle the Dino gun to represent a space blaster instead.

Are you going to end up the same fate as I do?

Evil Space Villains

Non-Lethal Space Engagement

8) The loyal Egyptian Warrior

Am I the only person who is excited? I bet I am not the only person to be screaming for this minifigure! The loyal Egyptian Warrior is one of the highly anticipated designs ever, especially with the earlier releases of the Series 2 - Pharaoh and the Series 5 - Pharaoh Queen. With this released of this minifigure, the LEGO universe can finally amass a full pledged living Ancient Egypt Empire. It will excite many of us out there, including historical fans and army builders. You can take a close up view of the Egyptian Warrior.

Parts assortment

The parts assortment for the Egyptian Warrior is impressive. The inclusion of the pearl gold khopesh weapon and the newly inverted triangle shield design, which portray the sun and the pyramid in nice pearl gold coating. It is also very rare to see shields being held in an inverted manner. You can take a moment to view the accessories in here and also upon holding the inverted shield. The full warrior attire is just plain amazing. You can see the back printing and marvel at the newly designed headpiece from the side view. Seeing this minifigure coming to reality is truly a dream come true for many.

Ancient Egypt

One of the greatest ancient empire ever

My duty is to protect your tomb

Rid of those foul evils

The mightiest brave historical soldiers

9) The hardworking Carpenter

City fans are in for a treat as this is the very first appearance of a hardworking Carpenter who is responsible for the wood works in LEGO Town. I am pretty pleased to see a new specialised occupation in the town where he is suitable to deploy in various parts of the town to carry out his forte. Armed with his bunch of tools at his waist, you can take a closer look of how ready our Carpenter is.

Parts assortment

The parts assortment for the Carpenter is above average. Note the fine details on his working attire and I am fond of the printed detail such as the chest hair near the shirt's collar. You can also notice his hard hat with hair fringes from the back view and the sleeve printing from his side view. The most impressive thing about the Carpenter is the given accessories. The saw is a complete new tool which contains two distinct colours to differentiate the handle and the saw blade. The new 1x4 printed wooden pattern tile is brilliant. It is a useful printed tile which can be used to crave and add detail at the house exterior. I am always fond of printed wooden tiles and this new piece will fit in nicely with the existing collection of printed wooden tiles.

I have delivered your wood

Time for a good drink after work

We will like you to help with carpentry work

10) The treacherous Evil Wizard

This is a very nice addition to LEGO Castle fans. Finally, we are going to get a brand new design of the treacherous Evil Wizard. Although there are many good and bad Wizards throughout LEGO minifigures universe, but there are not many evil Wizards around to terrorise the good guys. In this case, the Evil Wizard will be a fitting arch-enemy for the Series 12 - Wizard. Judging from the Evil Wizard's scorching red appearance, he seem to be a master of dark arts and fire magic, with perhaps specialisation in necromancy.

Parts assortment

The parts assortment is pretty good. The most amazing thing about this minifigure is the complete new design of the Evil Wizard's fiery black and red cape. It is made up of two piece of fabric to form the base of the upper cap collar. The construction of the weapon is rather common and nothing too fanciful, but lots of attention was focused onto the overall appeal of his evil wizardry attire, especially to the design of his cape. I am particularly fond of his evil red eyes and the choice of black beard which was also used in the Ninjago - Evil Wu minifigure.

Good versus Evil

Evil Wizards and Sorcerers

We will abide your orders

11) The quick Fencer

LEGO City has a new sports category in town and the citizens are talking about the art of fencing. So, people are wondering what is fencing all about. In a nutshell, as provided by the quick Fencer, it is a sport of fighting with swords, especially foils, épées, or sabres, according to a set of rules, in order to score points against an opponent. Well, that is what fencing is all about. This is also an Olympic Sports and has been there since the inaugural games in 1896. I got to admit that with the fencer donning on his protective white outfit, he is definitely ready to strike and score against his opponent.

Parts assortment

The parts assortment is not too bad. I will have to complement that the fencer's attire is very nicely done. I am particularly like the mask and the logo of the rapiers. Do note that the mask is not the same design like the kendo's helmet. The design also took fine consideration of covering the master hand with white glove. You can view the whole attire from his back view and side view. The rapier weapon was recycled from previous LEGO CMFs Series.

Choose your favourite sports character

Professional Fencers

Make it count

12) The steadfast Samurai

Although traditionally in feudal Japan, it is highly uncommon to see woman being a samurai warrior, but to protect the honour of the samurai family, they choose to bear arms and fight to protect the family's honour. Seeing this minifigure coming to reality deserved another celebration, for Ninja lovers and army builders. I did not expect to see a female Samurai in the LEGO CMFs, since the last recent one that we have saw, was Nya in her "Samurai X" outfit. It is a pleasant news to me, especially after the first appearance of the Series 3 - Samurai, we have not seen much of such relevant designs.

I have always been an avid fan of LEGO Ninja theme and I have personally amassing my collection of Ninja and Samurai. Seeing this new released female Samurai, it is a great opportunity not to be missed. I am highly excited about this dual wielding Samurai and definitely be facing stiff competition from the public. Do take a closer look at the Samurai in action.

Parts assortment

The parts assortment is slightly above average. I am much interested to see what is beneath her samurai armour and thankfully, it is a printed torso with oriental flavour on it. It is much better than having a plain red torso which impedes the usage of interchangeability. So, I took the Series 3 - Samurai and refresh what is beneath his armour and showing a simple comparison between both. True enough, my hands went itchy and went around swapping the parts between both Samurai, which give a pretty positive results. I like the remaining accessories including the newly printed samurai armour, dual katanas and hairdo. With her full gear on, you can view the nice details from the back view and side view.

We have another new Samurai

The Feudal Japan

Don't let them steal the chest away

Samurai Masters

13) The energetic Disco Diva

It is back to the retro and the energetic Disco Diva is in the house. Wow, her overall attire is just strikingly purple with the very nice done-up hairdo. She moves around in her white roller skates and sings her melody through the microphone. This is going to be a fun night with her crashing into the party. It is unexpected to see such a design and I will have to said that the printed details are just plain amazing. With her bling bling shade and shiny attire, you can just take a closer look at her smile and let her dance your night away with her singing.

Parts assortment

The parts assortment is quite average with the inclusion of a new printed microphone and white roller skates. However, the main highlight is definitely her retro purple attire. There are just so much detailed printing of bubbles or circles representation as can be seen from her back view and side view including her sleeves. Her overall design is pretty amazing indeed.

Disco Fever and Dance your Night away

These hairdos are awesome

Retro Performance

Roller Skate Girls

'LIVE' musical concert in City Square Central

14) The delicious Hot Dog Man

Who is feeling hungry? Well, I can't help it but to feel my stomach growling after seeing this delicious Hot Dog, donned by this gentleman. This Hot Dog Man is certainly there to place as part of the marketing mix to promote the sales of hot dog. His suit is made up of a big sliced bun with a steamed hot dog and mustard applied onto it. This is just so amazing, and he is definitely smiling happily in his suit. I will think this is another popular minifigure among adults and children alike that could just entice many others to search for this unique and special design. I just can't believe that the designer actually thought of doing this at all. Glad to see this becoming a reality.

Parts assortment

The parts assortment is average as there are zero accessories given for the Hot Dog Man. However, the main design focus is to ensure the singular piece of hot dog suit is done accurately with just one click. The man can just take off the hot dog suit as one piece and the suit still remain like an edible looking hot dog. You can't stop to marvel the fine detail from the back view and side view.

Hot Dog Man, we are hungry...

Hot Dog and Ice Cream Cart

Vibrant City Scene

15) The fierce Lady Cyclops

This is also an unexpected female counterpart minifigure which is designed to pair up with the Series 9 - Cyclops. I just didn't expect to see this coming and the exact shaping is similar to the male design as well. At least now we know that female Cyclops come in different colour skin tone. Although she might be a female, but I do believe she can be rather fierce and temperamental. With her eyes wide awake, I wonder what she will do with her club?

Parts assortment

The parts assortment for the Lady Cyclops is average, including the common club. She comes with nice detailed back printing and the shape of the Cyclops body can be examined closer from the side view. The minifigure head comes in two different emotions, namely the half awake and the full awake. Do check out the difference of both Cyclops in their snooze mode and fully awake mode.

Can the heroic Spartan hold them off?

Let's run and get out of here!!!

16) The elite Galaxy Trooper

This is the last minifigure highlight in Series 13, and it is none other than the elite Galaxy Trooper. I am very pleased to see a new variant of the Galaxy Trooper which is tougher, monotone, highly armoured than the Series 7 - Galaxy Patrol. Suggested by the name 'trooper', I believe this Galaxy Trooper is the foot solider for the Space Defenders I am surprised that the symbol on the armour suit is not belonging to Classic Space logo. Instead, you might notice that his symbol represent his affiliation which is geared towards the recent LEGO Galaxy Squad. This is a very pleasant surprise indeed. In this case, this Galaxy Trooper is featured in his battle mode which is super battled ready and he can switch back to the non-combat mode. I will think this is another popular space army building minifigure among the collectors, including myself which also inspired me to expand my troopers as well, along with the existing ranks of Galaxy Patrols and to add it to my existing Galaxy Squad collection.

Parts assortment

The parts assortment is great, especially with the newly impressive space armour that can hold the dual space blasters securely at the back of it. You can see how the dual blasters are placed by seeing the back view. If you have observed carefully, you may also notice the same logo at the front also appearing at the back of it. The side view also reveal the fine detail of the entire minifigure. I really felt that the newly designed space armour revolutionise on how the space blasters can be stored for safe transportation, which will be shown in my simple MOC creation: Skylet Spacecraft.

Space Troopers

Specialised Space Combat Armours

Classic Space Defenders

Galaxy Trooper reporting for Skylet

Skylet Commanding Pilot

New space armour enable weapons to store nicely

General Statistics for 71008 LEGO Minifigures - The LEGO Collectable Minifigures Series 13

Below is the combination which I have received from my box,

4 Classic Kings

4 Sheriffs

3 Unicorn Girls

4 Snake Charmers

5 Goblins

3 Paleontologists

4 Alien Troopers

4 Egyptian Warriors

5 Carpenters

4 Evil Wizards

3 Fencers

3 Samurai

3 Disco Divas

3 Hot Dog Men

3 Lady Cyclops

5 Galaxy Troopers

Based on the above distribution, I have managed to achieve only three full complete sets of 16 one-of-a kind minifigures each. It means I will have 12 remaining random spares left. Read down to find out what are the remaining spares I have.

My remaining spares

1 Classic Kings

1 Sheriffs

0 Unicorn Girls

1 Snake Charmers

2 Goblins

0 Paleontologists

1 Alien Troopers

1 Egyptian Warriors

2 Carpenters

1 Evil Wizards

0 Fencers

0 Samurai

0 Disco Divas

0 Hot Dog Men

0 Lady Cyclops

2 Galaxy Troopers

Data Analysis

Given the complete new data which I have compiled and received, I have indicated my comprehensive analysis based on my individual viewpoint. By buying one full complete MISB box, it will allow you to achieve three maximum complete unique sets. Ever since the significant shift of the distribution ratio in LEGO Minifigures - The Simpsons, TLG have miraculously return to the LEGO consumers with the traditional three complete sets. The ongoing LEGO CMFs Series 13 has also continued the best ideal arrangement of having three full sets in a sealed box of 60. I am extremely pleased with this outcome which will definitely be much eventful.

I felt the appeals of these minifigures are taken into a brand new level despite giving due considerations, restrictions and limitations which the LEGO CMFs Design Team has to work with. The LEGO CMFs Design Team will have to base on their best judgement through the support of market research data and probably parts per piece count manufacturing process in order to determine the distribution ratio.

As you have noticed through the given distribution ratio, the less appealing minifigures such as the Palaeontologist, Disco Diva, Fencer and Lady Cyclops do not need to have a larger number of identical minifigures in a box and is suitable for the distribution ratio of three. However, it will be even better if the Samurai can be given a distribution ratio of four or five since it is considered to be a potential army building minifigure which would be highly sought for. While, City or Town related minifigures such as the Unicorn Girl and Hot Dog Man, it will be better if it can be given a distribution ratio of four due to the high possibility of them being popular minifigures similar to the past LEGO CMFs mascot character costumes. I am extremely pleased to see the Classic King, Evil Wizard, Egyptian Warrior, Goblin and Galaxy Troopers to be given with this current ratio since these could be highly probability of being the popular ones which are most likely to be taken out of the box first. Ultimately, I am satisfied with this distribution arrangement and I will think that they have done their best to ascertain the popularity level of these minifigures to their best knowledge and ability.

Well, I can certainly see that many popular minifigures in this series would just be the case of potential army building. What do you think? All in all, I think the LEGO CMFs Design Team did an excellent job in this distribution allocation.

What do you guys think about this round of distribution? Do you share the same sentiments as I do?

To conclude and summaries, based on the probability demonstrated by this review, as an example, here are the results,

High probability

1) Goblins

2) Carpenters

3) Galaxy Troopers

Total range: 25%

Each: 8.33%

Medium probability

1) Classic Kings

2) Sheriffs

3) Snake Charmers

4) Alien Troopers

5) Egyptian Warriors

6) Evil Wizards

Total range: 40%

Each: 6.67%

Low probability

1) Unicorn Girls

2) Palaeontologists

3) Fencers

4) Samurai

5) Disco Divas

6) Hot Dog Men

7) Lady Cyclops

Total range: 35%

Each 5%

The LEGO Collectable Minifigures Series 13 will be launching on the 1st January 2015 or 1st February 2015 (worldwide)

To conclude, the LEGO Collectable Minifigures Series 13, without any doubt, has put together an terrific and remarkable effort to introduce even more new highly desired and relevant minifigures designs into this ongoing LEGO Minifigures Series. It is no easy challenge to be able to create, design and introduce many new creative and original designs to attract to the masses. In fact, I noticed the recent Series 12 release has even attracted more fans into collecting this theme than the LEGO Movie and the LEGO Simpsons, who are not even LEGO fans. By that point, I can really see the increasing popularity of this theme and hopefully it can even retain these casual buyers and convert them into full-pledged LEGO fans. The LEGO Collectable Minifigures Series or known as LEGO Minifigures Theme is an unique commanding class of their own, which distinguish themselves from regular LEGO Theme or special releases. Instead, everything that you have seen in a single released series is all based on the 16 minifigures to reach out to fans, children, adults and collectors of LEGO. It has been a very long tradition and yet they are able to retain the charm and excitement, until today.

I will like to point out something and bring to your attention, like what I have done in my Series 12 review. I noticed the removal of the marked indent at the armpit of the minifigures which we will normally associate the production to somewhere in Mainland China, is consistent from Series 12 to Series 13. As indicated at the back of the packaging, the LEGO components in the Series 13 are 100% produced in China. I can also highlight and infer that it is no longer the same production process. I have observed that in our very own Eurobricks discussion that the quality of some Series 12 minifigures parts including the connection process of the head to the hairpiece and the torso to the legs are rather loose than normal for some minifigures. However, the overall quality for the Series 12 is still made up of high quality ABS plastic. I suspect that TLG may have changed the production process or technology for producing these minifigures. At least from what I have obtained for this review, the minifigures in Series 13 do not suffer the very obvious loose parts symptoms. The quality is better than before but until now, nothing is for certain why the removal of the marked indent and the rational of it. Nothing can be certain and based on this paragraph that I have indicated, is merely my own wild conjecture.

Now with a total of 240 minifigures released for the entire Series 1 to 12, the recent LEGO Movie Series, LEGO Simpsons Series and the current LEGO Collectable Minifigures Series 13, not including Mr. Gold which unfortunately I do not have the blessings or lucky stars to own it till this date, and the special exclusive Toy Soldier minifigure that can only be obtained through The Minifigures Character Encylopedia. At this rate that it has been releasing, I believe most of the display collectors for this LEGO Minifigures Series, will need to source and upgrade their display capabilities by creating future provision for upcoming new releases in the near future.

With this LEGO Collectable Minifigures Series 13 in the releasing schedule for the start of year 2015, what more exciting new series will TLG have for us. Only time will tell and let's be patient about it. I am confident that it is worth the wait.

Please note that the The LEGO Collectable Minifigures Series 13 do not contain the placement of LEGO spare parts/accessories. This was practiced since the start of LEGO Collectable Minifigures Series 3.

Summary review

Playability: 8/10 (Plentiful new minifigure designs that can be integrated across many new and existing themes/settings.)

Design: 8.5/10 (Excellent detailed printing with good new accessories especially the new design of the capes.)

Price: 7.5/10 (I believe pricing may remain the same for Singapore, but prices have gone up for other regions and if it remains, this will go down by one notch.)

Overall: 8/10 (Prepare yourself for this upcoming new Series 13 and hope you can get the ones that you want the most! There are at least one minifigure that will bound to attract you.)

I gave it a "5" based on my Review Score Card. What about yours?

I hope every one of you enjoyed reading this simple review of mine. Comments and Criticisms are strongly welcomed.

Pictures can be found in My Flickr.

If you are interested to read the past LEGO Collectable Minifigures Series reviews, you may find the following links below!

8683: Collectable Minifigures Series 1

8684: Collectable Minifigures Series 2

8803: Collectable Minifigures Series 3

8804: Collectable Minifigures Series 4

8805: Collectable Minifigures Series 5

8827: Collectable Minifigures Series 6

8831: Collectable Minifigures Series 7

8833: Collectable Minifigures Series 8

71000: Collectable Minifigures Series 9

71001: Collectable Minifigures Series 10

71002: Collectable Minifigures Series 11

71004: Collectable Minifigures The LEGO Movie Series

71005: Collectable Minifigures The LEGO Simpsons Series

71007: Collectable Minifigures Series 12

[WhiteFang]

An exclusive interview with the LEGO Collectable Minifigures Team with WhiteFang and Belun

Dear Eurobricks Community,

I am very honoured to feature a very special and exclusive official interview with the LEGO Collectable Minifigures Design Team. It is truly incredible to have this special feature being prepared and all of the awesome communication and back-end work with TLG to make this interview possible! I hope you will find the interview to be insightful and interesting. Without further ado, let the interview feature begin.

1) We are pleased to have you here with us and able to grant us an awesome exclusive interview with the Eurobricks Community. Could you be able to share how big is the LEGO Collectable Minifigures Design Team and who do they consist of?

The LEGO Minifigures design team consists of 3-4 element sculptors and one full-time devoted graphic designer. I, Tara, serve as the Creative Lead, which means I dole out the tasks and make sure everything ends up looking great.

2) For the past four years since its inception, what are your thoughts on the LEGO Collectable Minifigures?

The blind purchase concept for was new to us when we started the LEGO Minifigures project, so we were delighted with the reception by consumers, and we’re so happy that we have been able to continue with it for some time. This has always been a “passion project” for us LEGO designers, because we love our minifigures so much, and this project allows us to make iconic characters that we might not otherwise be able to. I’m continually surprised at how much novelty and fun and personality we can bring to these little guys and gals with just a few accessories and decorations.

3) How long does it take to finish the design process of a new series?

It takes about 3 months for the design team to develop and perfect all of the graphics and elements required to complete a full LEGO Minifigures series. But of course it takes a lot more than a team of designers to produce these figures and get them to stores near you – when I first started at the LEGO Group I was amazed at how many steps there were to the process, and how many teams and people involved, from marketing and manufacturing to storing and shipping and selling, but somehow it all comes together in the end!

4) Could you be able to share with us of the general design process of the minifigures?

First we have to figure out what the lineup of characters is going to be, which is a process inspired by many and overseen by me and Matthew Ashton, Vice President of Design. Once we have chosen 16 figures that we believe offer a good mix for everyone, we prepare design briefs for the designers. These briefs can be anything from a rough sketch to something very specific and elaborate with historical references. Then the designers get started, and we have weekly check-in meetings where they show their progress and we can all comment and critique to make sure the final results are as perfect as can be. We also have other parties involved – mechanical engineers who consult on the molding process, internal reviewers who make sure any new elements work within the whole LEGO system, product safety specialists who verify that our characters and elements are well within the safety codes, graphic design “coaches” who ensure that we are making the best decorations we can while adhering to standards, a legal team who checks that we aren’t violating any copyrights, and textile designers who develop any skirts or capes or other textile elements we need. As you can see, it’s quite involved! Then come several rounds of approvals, where the engineers start creating the new molds and decorations, and we have to verify that all of the characters and accessories are looking and behaving as we want them to. We work with our copywriters to come up with the character names and bios, and we brief our packaging designers on the bag and box design. Finally we get sample boxes to open, check that the packaging looks great and that all of the characters and elements look and feel and operate correctly. It’s always an exciting day when we see the first boxes come off the production line!

5) For this particular LEGO Collectable Minifigures Series 13, since, like the previous series, it has to do with the MMORPG (massively multi-player online role-playing game), is the design process any different?

We did consult with FunCom, the developers of LEGO Minifigures Online, to make sure that we had some good characters that they could use in the different levels of the game.

6) What sort of criteria must it fulfill in order to introduce a new part or element into a proposed series?

First and foremost, any new element must look great, and be recognizable for what it is. It must also adhere to a number of standards – design standards, safety standards, legal standards, and LEGO System standards so that it works in all the ways anyone might expect it to work with other LEGO elements.

7) What are some of your favourite LEGO Collectable Minifigures throughout the entire LEGO Collectable Minifigures theme?

For personal reasons, I love the Artist from Series 4, because he was designed to look like my husband. I also love the Bagpiper, who was inspired by my grandfather who grew up in Scotland (although the bagpipe element was by far the hardest element I’ve ever had to design!) I love the Sailor from Series 4 as well, because he is so simple and iconic. I really love the Yeti too – again, because he is so simple, just a few colors, but he just has so much character. From Series 13, I love the Snake Charmer, the Paleontologist, and the Egyptian Warrior.

8) Where do you find your inspirations for the LEGO Collectable Minifigures designs?

Years ago, when we started the project, we had a big “boost” (brainstorming session) with a number of LEGO designers in which we came up with a list of hundreds of characters. We are still using ideas from that list today! On top of that, we get inspired by trends and events that are taking place around the world, and we also look at the entire LEGO portfolio for the coming year and make sure we fill in all the gaps with characters that will not be offered anywhere else. With around 200 designers working in our product development teams, there is always someone rushing to us with a new suggestion. There seems to be no end of minifigure character ideas!

9) How is the LEGO Collectable Minifigures distribution being determined?

If you mean, how do we choose which ones are 3, 4 or 5 to a box, it’s a little complicated. We try to guess which figures will be popular with kids, so we can put more of those in the box to satisfy as many children as possible. Another factor is cost, as the production price varies from figure to figure depending on decoration or elements.

10) Any last words to share with our Eurobricks Community?

I can’t tell you how fun and exciting it is to “see” (read) your enthusiasm about the Minifigures line. We put a lot of work into these little minifigs, and a lot of thought into the details, so it’s nice to know that our hard work is appreciated (or at least noticed!) by such a supportive and passionate community. Thank you!!

I hope you have enjoyed this very much and please leave your thoughts and comments in this discussion as well. It will be great to know on how you felt about this.

WhiteFang

[WhiteFang]

Dear Eurobricks Community,

I am very pleased to present to share with all of you on my latest completed reviewing project, of the 71008 LEGO Collectable Minifigures Series 13.

This review is now officially fit for public viewing. Please feel free to leave your thoughts!

WhiteFang

[K-Nut]

You get on top of these reviews pretty fast these days! Superb review as usual, WhiteFang! Series 13 may be one of my favorites released by TLG, and your review does nothing but help that image. The interview is a very nice inclusion as well. It's very interesting to see how much thought and effort goes into these figs. Again, very nicely done!

[Slurpifier]

Cheers for the review!

Im now liking the Alien Trooper a lot more now!

[EdWebhead]

Great review! This has to be one of the best series in a while. Can't wait for them to be out!

[streifen]

Whitefang, great review again! Always whetting our appetites!!

[robuko]

Wonderful review as always Whitefang! This series is looking very promising and the distribution is really good, for the first time!

[Dorayaki]

Fast as alsways. The major thing I'm not happy with is the neglection of certain colors for the package , though it's not the main point.

The King reminds me of Poker cards in many ways, his face, torso, color paletter and etc, and it's pretty lovely.

The tail from the mascot is cute as well. It looks usefull for animal MOC designs. (Unikitty's new friend? )

The Paleontolgist just looks like a missing character from Ninjago Ideas RI, and is a must-have for those consumers. The tail looks abit similiar with many other tails-in-hat (Gail and Katherina's helmets) but perhaps TLG is runnig out ideas for this. Th fossil is just superior!

Carpenter's jeans print looks pretty useful, reminding of the Power Miner ones.

Fencer, as predicted, is not a girl sadly, and I don't think we'll see a female counterpart in this case.

I feel pretty strang that "Samurai" is an official name. Technically the former male counterpart is called "Samurai Warrior" but in Japanese it could be more accurate to call her "Bugeisha". She's not my cup of tea unfortunately, since she has both rehashing characteristics and similiarity with Samurai X (oh, so Mr Whitefang doesn't compare the girls this time?). If my memories don't go wrong she's the very first CMF lady wih swords?

Diva's general design doesn't really interest me as well, though her individual prints look usefull for MOC figs.

Galaxy Trooper displeases me in many ways. His face design makes me wonder if he is not popular in his own team. :p Galaxy Patrol is still my favorite so far.

My personal question for the Minifigures Team is the controversial (maybe) introduction of special/licensed series. I'd like to know whether they're also in charge of the special/licensed minifigures or they have to work in a matrix team? Does it affect their working period since it must take about 3 months for the team to develop and they're not allowed to go back to normal series as soon as they want?

As for the online game, does the orginial characters from the current MMO come from their design that might be in a future series?

The rest of the figures all work pretty nice so no addons. Great review and great interview. See you next time.

Great review! So happy that the king's beard is a separate piece

Remember Fisherman, sorry? Edited November 30, 2014 by Dorayaki

[Kalais]

Good article. It was nice to read. Good job on photos too :)

[just2good]

Man, WhiteFang, you never fail to impress with these reviews.

You really brought out the shine to this series. So many good ones here.

[TheBrickHitHouse]

Why do lego stiff us on the back printing? I just don't understand why a lego standard for decades now gets lost in these CMF waves. Penny pitching really annoys me.

[SirBlake]

Your reviews are always great, but this is the best ever!

Such a great series, and I'm pleased to see the distribution of figs per box is good. People will be army building goblins for sure.

[Infernum]

Great review! So happy that the king's beard is a separate piece! One of my favorite series for sure!

[Yooha]

Great review and great review.

Two notes:

I am a little disappointed that the Galaxy Trooper's torso is not printed. But since it wouldn't be visible under the armor, it is not such a big problem.

As for the Evil Wizard, in the leaflet both parts of the cape is put on in a way that the flames are both looking forward.

And I have to say, the interview is even more interesting than the review itself - no offense, WhiteFang! :) It is so great to hear about designing process.

Edited November 30, 2014 by Yooha

[Alfadas]

Nice review! Got to change my original thoughts on the female cyclops, she is waaaay cooler then I thought! Also that Galaxy trooper looks amazing! Not really into space, but that figure is very nice for sure!!! King, Wizard, Goblin and Egyptian warrior is very nice!

[Alasdair Ryan]

Great review as always fangy, your images are very clear and crisp.

The hot-dog man is my favorite.

[dr_spock]

Excellent review. I think the fencer's weapon is more like an epee. Rapiers aren't used in official FIE competitions or FIE sanctioned.

[Robert8]

Great Review.

It was more detailed and insightful than the Series 12's.

Congratulations.

So the only rubbery pieces are the King's beard and the Sheriff moustache. Great!

Not so happy to see there is just a few back printed and double faced minifigures in this series. Do the King and the Evil Wizard have back printing?

I like better the Lady Cyclops after seeing more pictures. The Galaxy Trooper disappointed me.

So, what was the big gray thing we saw in the box in the leaked picture?

Interesting to see now there are only 8 minifigures featured in the bag.

Edited November 30, 2014 by Robert8

[Itaria No Shintaku]

5 goblins?

Big bye!

Fangy you are the best

[-obelix-]

As usual, fantastic review WF, thank you very much!

Overall I am very pleased with series 13. Even tough series 12 was good, s. 13 topped it!

[Sean13114]

Excellent review! Do you think you could give us a picture of the back of the Egyptian shield? It looks like it would fit well for a knight if printed over and flipped upside down!

[AmperZand]

Fangy,

Thanks so much for another great review and fabulous set of photographs! You make taking pictures of minifigures look easy but I know from experience that it's actually pretty hard.

Can you please convey our thanks to the CMF design team for all the excellent work they do? I know we gripe and grumble quite a bit, but actually we genuinely appreciate the talent and commitment required to bring these guys to fruition. I for one hope that the CMF line never ends. As long as there are Castle/fantasy minifigures in the mix, you can bet I'll be getting them.

Amps

[Mencot]

Very awesome series, didn´t think the series could had gone this great twice in a row. But it did and it is even more great than series 12.

My favorites are the King, Goblin, Egyptian Warrior and Galaxy Warrior and I will get many of those.

Awesome review Whitefang, it is great to see that you just keep putting out these withthe same kind of eager and entusiasm as the 1st series.

Keep it up, thanks.

[kinggregus]

Fantastic Review for a fantastic line.

I think this is the first time I vote "outstanding" for a minifigure line. Each figure appeals me by one way or the other.

I also love the number allocation of these figures.