I buy some Playmobil sets because they're awesome, and I buy others because they're cheap. The 5610 City Life Take Along was part of an obscene clearance haul a few years ago, where I had a cart filled with toys that cost me something like ten bucks out of pocket. Thank you, expiring store credit. This one was just under $3, which meets my mathematical formula of Playmobil excellence, best described thusly:
Cost of set < $2n, where n = number of figures in the box
If I see a $7 big box, and it has at least 3 or 4 figures in it, I'll buy it almost regardless of what it is - this one had some goofy Eurovision Song Contest/American Idol figures and a bunch of music stuff, the latter of which was a strong draw. I don't necessarily want these kids to be in my band, but I'm going to need drums, keyboards, and microphones if I ever hope to make a Playmobil version of Captain Beefheart and the Magic Band or Iggy Pop or Polysics.
The two kids are kids - adult-sized, 3-inch tall standard issue figures with long hair. The boy has a blue costume with an open shirt, necklace, ad big pockets. The girl has a black vest, a pink shirt, a fancy belt, and stars on her top. Oh, and sunglasses. These are clear-cut popstars. They are not the kind of people who will walk in on you taking a dump before a show at Nita's Hideaway in 2000. You know who you are, Rob.
Each figure has standard issue Playmobil articulation and compatibility, which means they're good. You can have them hold guitars, or microphones, or brooms if you have them from other sets. They can stand on the amps, pretend to play the keyboard, and sit in a chair if you have one.
The gear is why I wanted the set, because I'm old where these are kids that need to get off my lawn rather than aspirational symbols of fame, fortune, or talent. Each amp has a couple of switches on the back and the front is a sticker that must be carefully applied. The sculpted detail bits are as good as the stickers are disappointing - that's not a crack at the quality of the label, just a wish that they would be textured, sculpted, or more dimensional pieces. They can stack, meaning I want more of them so I can cause stage-diving accidents. I've seen things. I've seen things, man.
Three stands are included so you can mount a guitar or the microphones. These are handy, multi-piece affairs that are easily adjusted to fit the figure in question. There's o deco to speak of, and they're sculpted fairly simply so that you can probably find little to no fault in them as a decent accessory. They add to the set and function nicely. The guitar is sculpted very nicely, with two pieces of plastic mashed together complete with tabs for a guitar strap. You can dock the guitar on a stand, or have a figure hold it - what's really nice is that there's so much gear in the set you can add other figures to your band. The keyboard is also fancy, with black and white keys coming together to give you a decent keyboard that you can pretend is as cool as a Moog or a Korg, but isn't. Still, it's good for your band - even better if you can get tiny stickers to put on them.
The only piece that sort of worries me is the rubber band guitar strap. It's flexible and stretchy, but also has a white powder on it and I assume, with time, it might not last so well. This is by no means a reason to buy or not buy the set, but a cloth ribbon would've been cool - but I don't know if it would be durable. It's not a particularly exciting piece when you have things like fancy producted-up hair or sunglasses or amps in little baggies next to it in the box. It's tolerable, it's acceptable, and it works. But it's not cool.
For three fake dollars, this was a bargain. For three real dollars, this is a very good deal. For $13, it's not bad. The case is a simple affair with few markings. It's sturdy and can hold a few extra pieces, but it's not particularly roomy like a normal blue Playmobil box. If you have other band sets, this is a nice addition to it but the bigger sets are a lot more exciting and share some of the same pieces. If you can get this set for $10 or less I'd say it's fantastic, mostly because Specials sets are similar in scope minus the large Amp pieces (or presumably anything as big as the keyboard.) I'd recommend this set for its parts rather than its whole - the musical equipment is great, but you already likely own weirder, more exciting figures with which to forge the human component of your diabolical Malcolm McLaren-esque creation.
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