10 reasons to buy vinylmation!

1. They're super cute.

-Take one look at the S'more Vinyl from Cutesters Too, and tell me it's not adorable and funny.  Cute happy fire roasting the poor marshmallow to his death.  Tee hee. 

2.To show off you true Disney fandom by explaining the obscure reference painted on the vinyl.

-I remember SMRT-1.  Do you?  Well, I would be happy to explain it to you...take pride in that you know that vinylmation is from Mosanto's Journey to Inner Space.

3.  Interesting desk accessories

-Desks are boring.  Vinylmation are awesome.  Enough said.

4.  Cheaper than pins

-Ok, not strictly true, but pins come in such a wild amount of prices it's so hard to keep track of.  Sure, the price of vinyls might fluctuate a few dollars here and there, you know what you're getting for what price.  Plus, I'm sure it's just us, but we feel like you get more for your money with vinyls. 

5. Become a trading master
-Nothing beats taking a step back and look at the massive collection you have gathered due to your hard work.  Staying up all hours for Disneystore.com, getting up early for the condiment set, each collection has the sweat blood and tears of the collector in it.  Be proud, fellow vinylmites.

6.  Make new friends with a relationship based on trading. 
-Trading is a wonderful thing, and there is nothing better then making new friends and meeting new people all through a shared hobby.

7.  To get others to buy vinyls so that if they get one you want, you can convince them how wonderful trading is!
-I've done this.  It's fun!  Try it sometime.  Just not on us.  We already know about trading.

8. That moment when you open the packaging and find out it's the one you've been waiting for.
-Oh, this is sweet.  I love this feeling, there's nothing like it.  I remember opening one of my first Urban and finding the gold chaser.  Or, the Epcot from Park 4.  It's the feeling of victory. 

9.  That awkward moment when you realize it's the one you hate and you've gotten for the 3rd time.
-You know the time, when you get so angry you want to scream.  Yet, honestly, when you look at the five Urban copies you have in front of you, you can't help but smile at the cosmic joke.

10.  There's a vinyl for everyone. 
-If you love the parks, you'll love the many and varied park designs.  Love the Muppets?  Got them too.  And the Urban series is varied enough for everyone!  No matter if you're causal or hardcore, or what area of Disney you love, Vinylmation is the perfect souvenir for you. 

Scott & Amanda

My Take: Urban 6

As my beloved has weighed in on Urban 6, I felt I could take this opporunity as well to give my opinion on the newly released Urban 6 vinylmation so people can see how we are the same and how we differ.  Without further ado, here goes:

The Keepers:
CACTUS:  Maria Clapsis does it again.  I love this design.  Not only does the layout work, what with the body as the cactus and the feet as the pot, it has an owl peeking out of his hole in the back.  Owls are cute and awesome and great. 
L33T SPEAK:  I know Amanda doesn't like this one, but I think the idea is cute and the placement of the various codes is clever.  That being said, I do enjoy the clear variant much better.  Either way, I'd keep it.
SUNDAE:  I'm a big fan of the food vinyls.  Ice cream, cheese, pop corn, they work and are very fun.
ZIPPER:  I don't like it as much as the rest of the Urban 6 I think are keepers, but...they're something cool in this simple design.  I like the shiny silver on black.  It really stands out.  I would still trade it if I found something from a Park series, but if I had an extra I wouldn't be too upset.
BEE:  Weird.  It is weird.  However, the composition is very creative and that wins points in my book.  The clear arms as the wings is truly inspired. 
GRIFFON:  Man I love this thing.  Not only does it fit the Mickey shape perfectly, but it uses the Mushu tail from animation.  Not to mention it looks like a baby griffon from World of Warcraft.  Cute cool and original. 

So those are the ones I like.  Sure, the Cactus and Griffon are the only ones I would actually consider big wants, but there are good qualities about half the series.  That being said-

Get rid of them:
CRY BABY:  ugh.  This one doesn't look horrible, but it's very plain and something about it annoys me.  Maybe it's my own hatred of children.
NATURE CYCLE:  Just...just boring.  Maybe it's me and I don't get it, but nothing stands out on this piece. 
SIDE MOUSE:  I...What?  What is this?  What was the artist going for?  All i see is a face haphazardly thrown on a figure and it looks as grotesque as those horrible big eyes.  The artist might have had something great in mind, but the final result just doesn't look right.
SUMO:  the placement on the Mickey works, but the face is just hideous.  I actually might have liked this one if the face looked different. 
SUNNY DAY:  This one just doesn't do it for me.  A little too cutesy, and not in the cool stylized way of the Cutesters, Too.  Kinda bland when you compare it to the awesome SMORE figure from that set. 
GREEN THUMB:  This figure looks like it was severed, left to grow gangrene and disgusting, and sent to you by a mafia boss.  Opening the box and seeing this is like waking up with a horse's head in your bed.

So, that's my take.

-Scott

Urban 6 to keep or not to keep.

With the new release of urban 6 the analyzer in me went a bit crazy.  Now, that is not saying that this series is awful, I have bought many and sadly have not received all the ones I wanted yet but, I have many questions regarding this set.  So here is my review of vinylmation urban 6.  Unfortunately my “to be traded box” is much larger in this series.

To be traded: 

• The sideways Mickey face.  I’m sure the designer had a wonderful creative idea in store for this vinyl but it is not for me.  It is out of the entire set, in my opinion the worst.
• The computer speak vinyl.  I can see the appeal by many but I personally HATE this one and everything about it including the color.
• The zipper.  I think the idea is great and creative, but I also think its pretty unimpressive.
• The sumo wrestler.  Design wise, he is great.  I feel the face has the right placement, but sorry to sound girlish, but it’s just ugly.
• The green thumb.  I just, I feel that there is all of this space to be utilized and to just leave the arms and ears blank, I just see it as a waste.
• The cycle.  Personally I just find it boring.  No real problems, I just feel it lacks creativity.

The Keepers!

• The cry baby.
• Spring
• The cactus
• The sundae
• The angry queen bee
• The chaser

As a whole based on other urban series, I think that this one is more enjoyable.  I think more detail went into the design of each of these vinyls instead of just throwing colorful designs and shapes on a Mickey as done in previous urban series.

*Amanda

The Times Square New York Exclusive

As many of you know, I am from New York and moving to Florida.  If not those terms, I probably would not have picked up this silly tourist vinylmation, but I’m glad I did.  Of course the Statue of Liberty is considered a New York landmark so it is a perfect fit for an exclusive.  Plus the empire state building, I don’t see that design fitting well on a little Mickey figure.  But the point is, you would only buy this if you were a Disney fan visiting New York.  Fans would have bought it regardless of how it looked, but lucky for us it looks great!  The vinyl of course wins with face placement because it’s Minnie’s face (or just a female face but I like to think its Minnie).  If they messed this up I would have to slap them!  But the face is not what makes this vinylmation as special as it is.  The paint is glossy, the colors all compliment each other and it even has its own torch! The face is adorable and lady liberty’s dress is drawn on perfectly.  But, there is a hidden treasure on this vinylmation, on the figures left hand, is the plaque that says July 4^th in roman numerals.  First, second, third glance you may not see it but the artists’ attention to detail makes this vinyl rank high on my list.  Sentimental value aside, this is a great vinyl and a wonderful souvenir for any Disney fan visiting the wonderful New York City.

-Amanda 

Three Inch Theater- Half Marathon 2011

I've run the Walt Disney World half Marathon three times.  A grueling experience, and it hurts a lot.  But I'd be lying if I didn't admit that it's an accomplishment, and I felt proud after each time I crossed the finish line.  But enough of that bunk, what about Vinylmation???  That's what I care about, not some medal, right???  Well, not exactly, but vinylmation are awesome, and they go with an accomplishment like the marathon, and it's even better.  First year was right when Vinylmation came out.  And by that I mean Park one,  which also means sold out.  Boo.  Second year, it was in full swing and marathon weekend had there own vinyls!  I'll get to those another time, so I won't offer my opinion on those just yet.  Instead, today I'm going to talk about a vinyl that came out not with the 2010 weekend, but the 2011 one!  Specifically, the Donald half marathon vinylmation, since that's the one I purchased in celebration of Amanda and I crossing that finish line together.  Let's raise the curtain-

This was my first vinyl with a window box.  It's glorious.  While cumbersome to display with my other vinyls (since they themselves lack the boxes) the packaging itself is slick and cool.  It's made of sturdy card board, and the window gives a clear look at the vinyl.  But the best part of it is, with the half marathon vinyl, you can simply cut the tape that connects the bottom of the box to the top.  You can remove the figure to enjoy at your leisure, free from the box.  And when you're done, you can simply slip it back in the plastic and restore the box.  Have your cake and eat it too!   The box yourself is decked out in nice yellow and blue, the half marathon colors.  They are striped on the outside of the box, and reveresed on the inside.  An excellent visually striking contrast.  Medals are draped on the side, proclaiming the size of the vinyl (three inches, obviously).  And my favorite detail is on the back, the symbols of the Magic Kingdom and Epcot, the three parks you run through.  It's an excellent box, and as my first one, I perfer it over the tins. 

The figure itself is simple, but nice.  The body of Mickey is the same blue and yellow stripes as the box.  It continues on the ears, and I like that a lot.  It's a great way to use the ears, keeping the round shape of the medal contained on the head, so the medal portion itself doesn't look misshapen.  I like it.  Not much else to say about the body, the real meat of the figure is on the head.  Mickey's head bears the half marathon medal, which is Donald's face.  It works very nicely, though I wish the medal image was moved higher up on the face, so Mickey's nose wasn't warping Donald's face and less of Donald's mouth would have to be separated by the neck joint.  The Mickey and Goofy vinyls don't have this problem.  It still looks very nice, especially framed by the colors and the fact it's mostly contained to the head, but it would've been nice to find a way around this.  I think what works best is that the year of the marathon, the dangly bit of the medal, is draped right across the center of the Mickey body.  So it's a good/bad situation.  Donald's face is a bit warped, but it centers the year.  Still, a visually striking and special piece. 

Certainly more interesting and cool then last years vinyl.  Again, I'll get to that later.  But the one thing I prefer about last year is that you could put your race number and time clearly on the back and front of the figure.  With this one, you can put the time on the back of the head.  What's nice is that's the same as the real medal.  What's not is it's harder to write on the round head then the flat back, and there is no place for your number. 
It's still a superior figure, but I do miss the customization.

In conclusion, the figure is very striking, and perfect for an event like the half marathon.  It feels special, and captures the sense of accomplishment.  It's not without its small nitpicks, especially when compared to the others from the year, but it's an excellent addition to any collection and I'm glad I bought it.  If you want to add it to yours, here's the link!
http://www.disneystore.com/disney-store-official-site-for-disney-merchandise-vinylmation-2011-walt-disney-world-half-marathon-3-figure/mp/1280087/1000284/?Nr=pPublished:1&D=vinylmation&Ntk=All_Shopping&Nu=pProductID&Ntt=vinylmation&Dr=pPublished:1&Ntx=mode%20matchallpartial&Dx=

Pros- Captures the medal well, great colors, visually striking
Cons- no place for running number, Donald's face seperated by neck joint slightly.

Rating- Three and a half Carnotaurs (out of five)
Scott

The Villains.

The Vinylmation Villains set is one many including myself were very excited about seeing.  As a whole, I think the set was very good with a few small problems.  But I am extremely picky and hard to please in the vinylmation design department, so here are my thoughts.  

In the order of the picture we have Steam Boat Pete. As far as design I think he is done fairly well. The placement of his character on the mickey in my opinion was done extremely well. The biggest flaw is the placement of his mouth. On the picture it looks fine, but in person I feel its oddly placed. Overall, I wouldn't trade it if I got it, but I could care less about it.

The next one is Prince John from Robin Hood. I love this one. I love the crazy eyes, the crazy face, the coloring, everything about it. I feel the placements are perfect. Granted it is a lot easier to place a tiger on mouse given the animal features but not all vinyls have pulled this off. The fact is the design on this vinylmation fits the characters design and personality perfectly. By far my favorite in the pack.

Next is the Old Hag, who I call the Wicked Queen because they are the same person. The vinylmation is too ugly for me to enjoy but that is also its charm. The fact is she is supposed to be a scary old witch and that is exactly what this design is. There are some slight flaws but as a whole its not terrible. But what I think really makes this design stand out is the apple on the Mickey foot. The bright red draws the eye to the apple and away from the dark colors on the rest of the figure. Putting the apple in that position was a brilliant idea. It is almost as though we the viewer are in the same position as Snow White, being drawn to that bright shiny red apple on this dark scary figure. Perfection.

Then there is Ratcliffe from Pocahontas who I think is the worst design of the set. The face is misplaced and in person looks just terrible. I can see where the design was trying to go with this figure, with the large evil grin etc, but to be honest it just didn't work. This figure was placed in the box that says "to be traded" and will never be looked at again.

Mad Madam Mim is hard for me to review. On one hand it is one of the few Disney Animated movies that I have not seen so it is hard for me to really know if the design describes the character correctly. With some research it seems the fact of her changing forms so much they just made her a puff of smoke with a head. Personally I find it creative, but as I said it is one of the few movies I haven't seen so in that respect I can't comment. But as a design that is aesthetically pleasing, I would say YES! The design itself is very enjoyable to look at. It is placed on the Mickey figure perfectly and gives a slightly different feel then just another body and a head. But this too is a "to be traded" vinyl for me.

Kaa from the Jungle Book. Well first off, I don't think he deserved to be a villain in the series. As a character I found him wishy washy and annoying, not really scary or villainous. I think there was a scarier villains. OK yes I believe he almost ate Mowgli a couple times, but its just my opinion there was scarier villains in the movie. Moving on, I appreciate the fact that the artist didn't bother trying to make Kaa fit on a Mickey. I feel there are way too many designs that fail because of that factor. Yes, there is some dead space, but its a snake on a Mickey figure, what else were you going to do. I think this vinyl is a keeper. Yes, I disagree with the character choice but again the design really fits with the character and on the figure.

Moving onto Cruella de Vil. I think there is a sizing problem in the design on this figure. The face is too small and it looks strange. The chin being on the nose works, but the face is squished in her hood to the point where it looks unrealistic to the size of her lower half. This is my only problem with the figure, but its a huge one for me. Sorry Cruella, not only do you stand against everything I believe in, you too go in the "to be traded" box.

Shan Yu from Mulan. This figure looks great. I really love how the artist used the dead space to put symbols instead of trying to fit in on the figure. This is a very common theme throughout the vinyls but I really feel this and Kaa are the two that it works best. Yes, the big chin is a bit too big on the figure, but I don't think that it takes away from the design. Still I personally don't care for it, but my fiancé loves it, so it doesn't get traded.

Banzai from the Lion King another animal placed on a Mickey that looks great. Why Banzai out of the trio? I don't really know, they were more comedic relief characters with Scar as the main villain. But as we know, he will most likely be released in a second series. The point is, since he is an animal it was easier to place on the figure which gives the design a more flawless and likable appeal. I wouldn't go looking for this one, but if I got it I'd keep it.

Stromboli. I have so many words and none of them are pleasant so I'll keep it short. The point is, the character is ugly the face looks strange on the Mickey. What really kills this design is the mouth. It looks awful! OK, I know there was no place else to put this or do it but, it KILLS it. I look at it and all I see is the mouth. This is the second worst in the set for me. This is a must be traded. Luckily, I haven't gotten him yet.

Ursula from The Little Mermaid is one of my favorite villains. When I heard she was being made I was pretty excited. There are plenty of flaws on this figure, but I think it came out decent. Again the main problem is the mouth but even still I feel how it was placed gives a creepy evil smile effect which too fits the character. The hair being split in the middle makes me feel like she is wearing pig tails which takes away from the scariness of the rest of the figure, but its doable. This one is already a keeper.

The last is the chaser. I was not going to give it away, but its Jafar and he was done perfectly! Jafar was the chaser is a perfect villain but one very hard to place on a cheerful Mickey figure. The detail and placement was flawless and I am glad we found it. What my fiance and I enjoy the most though is not the front of the figure, its the detail of the snake staff on the back. Just a little something extra to add that makes the figure worth looking for. A success!

So, as a whole the set was pretty decent. The ability to place the character on the Mickey was one of the best I've seen. The colors went well, most of the designs matched the character perfectly and other then a small few, none of them looked scary and strange. There have been many vinylmations that I have looked at and cringed, and that didn't happen for the majority of this set. For someone as picky as me, that is a really good sign!

To sum up this is my list for this set;

Keepers: Prince John, Ursula, Pete, The Old Hag (wicked queen), Bonzai, Kaa, Jafar,
"To be traded": Cruella de Vil, Mad Madame Mim, Ratcliffe, Shan Yu, Stromboli

-Amanda