Fisher-Price Imaginext Series 11 Collectible Figures Fishbot Fisher-Price, 2018
Day #2,092: May 16, 2019
Fishbot Bob the Goldfish + Earthworm Jim?
Imaginext Series 11 Blind-Bagged Collectible Figures
Item No.: Asst. FMW53 No. FMW54 Manufacturer:Fisher-Price Includes:n/a Action Feature:n/a Retail:$2.99 Availability: June 2018 Other: Look for #56 on upper-left of the foil packet on the back
In the past year, we've seen the rapid depletion of our retail landscape. Kmart and Sears are all but gone, Toys R Us is gone, Target greatly reduced its natural Imaginext wetlands. Walmarts cut back too, but you can still find the Fishbot in some Marts of Wal as well as the odd grocery store if you look hard enough. The line seemed to have been the de facto children's action figure line for a few years, and now is being repeatedly pruned back to the point where non-licensed characters are not found in most stores. The blind bags have been filled with a mix of traditional things kids will recognize - monsters, clowns, fantasy creatures - and bizarre tributes to toys their parents might recognize. I'm not completely sure, but I assume this is a mashup of characters inspired from Playmates' departed and bizarre Earthworm Jim franchise of cartoons, toys, and video games.
Obviously, it's a delight and I expect you to buy one. Series 12 is starting to roll out, and I am on the prowl for those as we speak.
The 3-inch figure has no accessories, but does sport a lot of paint. The head is a whole fish body, painted in metallic orange with yellow eyes and an underbite to kill for. There are mechanisms keeping the gills covered from the robot suit, which also has a meter of some sort to read something. It's blocky with various rivets and joints, giving you the standard Imaginext articulation - shoulders, wrists, hips. The neck does not move on this particular figure.
For the asking price of about three dollars, you get what may well be a trickle-down effect from the fashionable part of the toy industry. This feels like it borrows slightly from the world of designer vinyl figures, with metallic paint, a whimsical design, and no royalties to pay. I'm surprised we didn't get a goldfish bowl helmet, but not at all disappointed. I find these figures to be a real joy, although I am jealous of kids who are young enough to really get in to playing with the playsets. They could use him as a Batman villain, or a space alien, or just about anything. To me, it's just another awesome figure on my small Imaginext shelf - I love it, I'll keep it as long as life allows, but I do feel a sting of the pain that it'll never go on the same kinds of adventures my Adventure People Alpha Star astronaut, robot, and alien experienced 35 years ago. This figure and indeed the whole of series 11 comes strongly recommended.
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