Dear Lego,

[Athos]

... SUCKS. And sucks big time.

I've been playing with Lego for 25+ years and recently had a daughter, who got her first Duplo set (we'll have to save it until she gets older, but the point is, I have been a loyal customer for a long time and am hoping to continue in the same and new ways) and I spend upwards of USD $1,000 every year on Lego. I stuck it out through the grey & brown colors changing and the mismatched purple from the Knight's Bus set.

I recently got a complete set of these figures. I was very excited... until I opened the first few bags...

I was horribly disappointed with the quality of the plastic in these figures. I haven't been one to complain about the figure quality in the past (I thought people were overreacting) but these figures are the worst quality I have ever encountered. The legs feel loose, like they're going to break off if I move them at all. The plastic also isn't up to your usual standards; if I didn't know better, I'd think I'd been swindled into buying a cheap knock-off brand from China (shifty-bricks, anyone?). The color looks wrong too...

The cowboy hat looks nearly transparent in places. As does Robin Hood's cap. The bow and quiver feel cheap and poorly made.

For paying $2 per figure, I am very disappointed. This is a horrible step in the complete wrong direction for Lego. I loved the idea of this line and loved the design of the figures and was very excited about the whole line. But now I am very very disappointed. I was seeking multiples of many of the figures, but think I'll have to pass, given their poor quality. I hope this issue can be resolved before the 2nd wave of these figures, or I may, regretably, have to pass on those too. I can only hope this shoddy work doesn't spread to the usual sets.

Thank you,

Steve

P.S. Please everyone, don't just respond; email Lego about this as well... People with blogs, take up this issue too! Let's innundate Lego customer service with complaint calls, letters and emails!

[hawkyboy4]

I can see where you're coming from, and I agree, although I can't personally participate. When I purchased my minifigs, they may have been discoloured, but only in the slightest, and when compared with the other minifigs, they are almost the same. I do agree with the quality issues; they are not the best, if it is ABS, then they are definitely the spawn of chinese factories. If anyone does plan to send this, add more about the value of customers, and how they are letting them down.

[Corvus]

I certainly agree.

Since I couldn't find any in my local stores, so I ordered two off of S@H, and received the spaceman and the clown. The quality is meh. The plastic is too soft, and next to a normal fig, it just doesn't match.

I loved the idea of the figures- all the new parts and prints were amazing. With this new plastic, though, I just don't want to use it. It seems like they're taking advantage of our obsession with new minifig stuff. They expect us not to care about the quality as long as we get new hairpieces or face printing. But what's so great about new parts that don't fit in with the old ones?

[vexorian]

I agree.

However, it is not a step in any direction. They have been doing this with minifig-only sets since long ago.

[RileyC]

I only really have a problem with the legs. They hang considerably lower on the hip the normal minifigs and their legs dont grip while you move them they kinda swing and are easily manipulated. The prints are amazing though and its sad to see them go to waste on sub par plastic.

[KimT]

... if it is ABS, ....

You are aware that only a few of TLG's elements are made solely of ABS?

TLG uses several different types of plastic when making bricks and the "good old days" when everything was made from ABS has been over for more than a decade.

I do agree though that these figs are of inferior quality as is the Vintage Minifig Collections - which is a contradiction if I ever saw one.

[CP5670]

This has been going on for ages now, and is certainly not limited to these minifigs. In a way I actually prefer these collectible minifigs over most of the other low quality parts. They are at least unique pieces and don't "contaminate" Bricklink like normal bricks or the vintage minifig collections do, so you always know what you're getting.

TLG has long since realized that their post-2006 quality reductions have largely gone unnoticed, and we will be continuing to see them in the forseeable future. I have just learned to live with it these days, and have simply become more picky about the prices I pay on sets and parts.

This thread also illustrates how people can have very different standards on Lego quality. When these collectible figures first came out, there were a number of people saying that the quality was identical to the minifigs in normal sets.

[CMP]

The indian's hair is like...soft. I agree, these figs are funky.

[The Green Brick Giant]

Glad to hear that they screwed up the minifigures themselves too. They were supposed to be out for 6 weeks, it was less than three and no one was able to find them. It was a huge mess, and the minigifures themselves seem to be a huge mess too, so the whole thing is fitting.

[The Legonater]

That's wierd- there's nothing wrong with my collectably mfs. In fact- they're perfect, and match completely with my others.

[blueandwhite]

This thread also illustrates how people can have very different standards on Lego quality. When these collectible figures first came out, there were a number of people saying that the quality was identical to the minifigs in normal sets.

Indeed...

That's wierd- there's nothing wrong with my collectably mfs. In fact- they're perfect, and match completely with my others.

Honestly, I'm certainly irritated by this shift in quality. Still, I don't feel that the collectable figures are truly rubbish or anything. My real concern is that this trend towards cheaper plastics will only get worse as time goes by. The fact that many fans, both young and old really haven't paid any mind to this change suggests to me that at some point in the future all mini figures will be of this quality or lower. It is certainly annoying watching the price of LEGO climb while the quality of the product seems to drop. It still hasn't turned me off the newer stuff completely but I am growing more concerned as LEGO is seemingly ignoring their motto of 'only the best is good enough' for a greater profit margin. Sooner or later, new LEGO may not be good enough for some fans.

[MrTools]

I agree with everything you said. When the figures first came out i did hear others mention how the quality was not up to standards, but some of the figures were thing i felt like i could not pass up. The very first bag i opened was the cowboy, i was impressed by its deign but when saw the fedora i was very disappointed and was afraid that all the others i bought would be just as bad. Luckily the quality wasn't absolutely horrible but it is something i would like to see fixed very soon.

[Athos]

The indian's hair is like...soft.

I think it was originally softer than the usual parts.

Steve

[CopMike]

I agree that the quality of the series as whole isn´t up there with the regular sets. But at the same time I think it´s good enough for the product that it it - collectible minifigs. I guess that if TLG would have made them themself and not outsourced them, we wouldn´t have seen this because it would have been to expensive and the production capacity wouldn´t have been availiable. So I rather have these at this level of quality than not. To me they´re a really really cool product that I can use for so much stuff.

This thread also illustrates how people can have very different standards on Lego quality. When these collectible figures first came out, there were a number of people saying that the quality was identical to the minifigs in normal sets.

Yes and no maybe ?! I was one of them, maybe the first, to report about the figs and getting questions about the quality. I then had the Spaceman, Cheerleader and Crash Test Dummy. I then wrote:

Any words about quality?

On this one, good´ol TLG quality.

To me the quality of them ARE Lego quality (ok, the raygun looks different but so does the fish from Medieval Market Village).

Athos, I will pass this on to TLG !

[brickzone]

I don't quite agree with the OP. Perhaps the quality differs in US vs. Europe (although I wouldn't have thought so if both came from China). Anyway, my opinion is that they are very close to Lego quality. I can differentiate them from ordinary Lego minifigs (duller plastic, more pointed edges), but they don't especially seem poor quality. They seem better than the vintage minifigure collections.

Mind you my opinion isn't clouded by other issues - series one is still freely available here in Ireland, both Argos and Art & Hobby have restocked multiple times, and I think Smyths Toys still have them too (still in the online catalogue).

Edited June 28, 2010 by brickzone

[hawkyboy4]

You are aware that only a few of TLG's elements are made solely of ABS?

I know, but the torsoes are, right? If not, oh well

[TheCrimsonTrooper]

I feel as though I should complain about the minifigs' legs, too. The legs on the new collectable minifigs just seemed to me as if they where going to break if I moved them a lot, not to mention you could not separate the legs from the hips either, unless the minifig had been soaking up the sun for a while. Yes, you heard me correctly, I let one one my Crash Test Dummie minifigs sit n the sun awhile, and when I went to pick him up it almost felt as if he were 'softer' for the lack of a better word.

[Marckeyh]

I agree as well.

* The plastic of the bodys and legs looks lot duller than the heads.

* Some legs are a bit shorter then the other.

* The hands and heads have a different colour yellow.

We pay good money for these, so we expect good quality!

[The Legonater]

I'm wondering if this poor qulity is due to shipping, because- again- I've never gotten this.

[Aanchir]

People should bear in mind that often times, when there's poor quality stuff, the problem isn't one of overall quality but one of variability. Thus, it's not that the plastic that went into the molds is cheap, but rather that some sub-par figs made it past quality control. It's a consequence of mass production, and that means some figs may be normal quality and some may not be.

Chinese production isn't the reason behind this, although it may be a factor. Fact is, though, that LEGO can only do so much to control what comes out of their factories, and that's been the case since long before Chinese production started. So some bad stuff is inevitably going to crop up from time to time, and be assured that LEGO like any good company will do all they can to make up for such errors.

That said, I don't see the point of this topic. There are already topics on this subject, and while this one has a somewhat unique purpose (asking people to speak up), this is an online AFOL community, and people who get cruddy figs are almost without question going to do that whether you ask them to or not. I don't blame you for complaining-- what you and others have reported is a legitimate problem-- but creating this topic doesn't seem to accomplish anything with respect to this matter.

[WhiteFang]

Back in my earlier 8683 Review, I mentioned this.

Just to let you guys know that the minifig printing for all 16 minifigs are involved at the front of the torsos and some leg parts. There is no back printing for all minifigs. The quality of these minifigs printing are much better than the poor printed minifigs coming from the Vintage Minifigs Volumes, Pirates Tic Tae Toe and etc. However, these minifigs are not "exactly" similar from our regular minifigs coming from the boxed sets. I don't know how to describe them, but it appears to be "in between". Nevertheless, I am still satisfied with these new minifigs. I supposed its the crazy excitement that everyone is experiencing now.

Till now, I still stand by my statement. In fact, I will rather see this minifigs series than not seeing it released in the market. Although the quality is "matt" finishing, but it's definitely a much better improvement from the previous encounters and leaving some room for improvement to make it even better in the next round.

[ironjaw]

Well, I have checked all my 16 minifigures and I don't see an "degradation". They are actually really sturdy and shiny, no problems here. Maybe it is because I am in Denmark?

Edited June 29, 2010 by ironjaw

[blueandwhite]

Well, I have checked all my 16 minifigures and I don't see an "degradation". They are actually really sturdy and shiny, no problems here. Maybe it is because I am in Denmark?

I don't think being in Denmark plays a role in things considering the figures themselves were made in China. Some people are simply a bit more fussy about these things. They are likely noticing things about their figures that you simply haven't payed close attention to. As mentioned by several others; it's not like these figures are rubbish. They just aren't quite up to LEGO's normal standards. The plastic is slightly translucent at the edges and the finish is a bit softer when compared to your standard minifig. The differences are quite minor so many fans may not notice it but it is definitely there. If you don't notice the difference, don't let it bother you. I suspect LEGO is banking on the fact that most people won't be able to see any difference between these figures and the standard minifig. In a few years I figure all figures will be like these.

[Svelte]

I agree that the quality is not of the highest standard - matt finish, translucent edges - and this does take the 'shine' off the collection as a whole (pun intended!), especially since all the official computer-generated pictures released look like they've been splattered with personal lubricant, they're so glistening and light-reflecting!

There is one area where the factory is doing better than its regular counterparts - and that's in the printing. Unlike the regular factories, none of the minifigs I've had suffer from overprinting or blur, whereas its extremely rare to find an official fig these days where colours don't stray from their borders or look washed out (pink-torsoed Kingdoms knights are but one example). Every so often I open a pre 2006 set and it's always a shock to see sharp, highly crisp faces and shields that don't have melted icecream edges

[brickzone]

That's a good point Svelte. I've had a number of minifigs from recent sets with imperfections in the face printing in particular (very noticeable area for any misalignment or blurring) including a female face where rather than lipstick, it's a red moustache.

Whereas I would agree that the printing is spot on for these collectable minifigs.