The Story of a Mod
Posted: Tue Sep 29, 2015 10:27 am
I was born to collect. Mom says that, as a baby, I was never happy with just one Hot Wheel car but had to have one in each hand. (I suspect they were Matchbox, but have learned not to quibble such points with my mother or spouse.) As I grew, I collected all sorts of things: coins, gum wrappers, limpet shells, rubber bands -- but the only toy I actively collected were the NFL helmet buggies (thanks for that, Sears Wish Book).
I bought my first Playmobil the year that line hit the States; again, not to collect but because they were great for stop-motion animation. Over time, I became a husband, a father, a respectable member of the community and, as happens with many, I drifted away from toys. But there was always Playmobil in my life, particularly when I had kids -- "their" Playmobil collection grew exponentially, although always in the genres I enjoyed. This is where my love for minis matured -- my size threshold is pretty much "nothing bigger than Playmobil".
Then, one fateful day, as the race to survive and raise a family settled down, I got to wondering what the internet had to say about Playmobil. And that was a fateful wondering. It didn't take long for one link to lead to another and another and suddenly I was in the designer toy rabbit hole. Dunny and Qee and their like had my attention for a while, but didn't really sell me. I did fall for Rocket World's IWG mini line -- I enjoyed the aesthetic, but the story drew me in. And Minimates sucked me in: small, simple and all those licensed properties had built-in story lines. And modular. This is when I learned that I like swapping parts on my toys.
One fine day, some forum link led me to the Onell Design website. Hmm, thought I, definitely an indie toy, but somehow different from those other designer platform minis. So I ordered a couple of Pheydens and Exellis. I was happy enough with the feel of the figures I received that I placed another order, to include the most-mini of the line: the Crayboth. That order got lost and Matt Doughty was so apologetic he included the entire just-released Real Type wave as a bonus to my order. I was impressed and definitely a happy customer. But even then, how many colors of one figure does a person need, I wondered.
Then Onell Design released the Buildman wave. The whole point to Buildmen is that they're a building set disguised as a figure, this is when Glyos became a building toy. And the hook was set, the sample baggie consumed. After that, as I watched the line and the community expand, it became clear that the little Crayboth was not receiving the recognition they deserved, so I took it upon myself to champion these minis of the line. They're cute, compact, and a building challenge, what's not to love?
So here I am, playing and building with Glyos and now watching over my toy family do the same. I certainly accept my new duties with somber responsibility, but they won't eclipse my ongoing quest to nurture the Crayboth's honor. My new powers will, in fact, prove useful in this endeavor, I plan to... well, that would be telling. Instead I shall begin -- hey! What are you doing, Mr Admin? Get away from my mod control panel! Gotta go kids, I've things to get done in a hurry!
I bought my first Playmobil the year that line hit the States; again, not to collect but because they were great for stop-motion animation. Over time, I became a husband, a father, a respectable member of the community and, as happens with many, I drifted away from toys. But there was always Playmobil in my life, particularly when I had kids -- "their" Playmobil collection grew exponentially, although always in the genres I enjoyed. This is where my love for minis matured -- my size threshold is pretty much "nothing bigger than Playmobil".
Then, one fateful day, as the race to survive and raise a family settled down, I got to wondering what the internet had to say about Playmobil. And that was a fateful wondering. It didn't take long for one link to lead to another and another and suddenly I was in the designer toy rabbit hole. Dunny and Qee and their like had my attention for a while, but didn't really sell me. I did fall for Rocket World's IWG mini line -- I enjoyed the aesthetic, but the story drew me in. And Minimates sucked me in: small, simple and all those licensed properties had built-in story lines. And modular. This is when I learned that I like swapping parts on my toys.
One fine day, some forum link led me to the Onell Design website. Hmm, thought I, definitely an indie toy, but somehow different from those other designer platform minis. So I ordered a couple of Pheydens and Exellis. I was happy enough with the feel of the figures I received that I placed another order, to include the most-mini of the line: the Crayboth. That order got lost and Matt Doughty was so apologetic he included the entire just-released Real Type wave as a bonus to my order. I was impressed and definitely a happy customer. But even then, how many colors of one figure does a person need, I wondered.
Then Onell Design released the Buildman wave. The whole point to Buildmen is that they're a building set disguised as a figure, this is when Glyos became a building toy. And the hook was set, the sample baggie consumed. After that, as I watched the line and the community expand, it became clear that the little Crayboth was not receiving the recognition they deserved, so I took it upon myself to champion these minis of the line. They're cute, compact, and a building challenge, what's not to love?
So here I am, playing and building with Glyos and now watching over my toy family do the same. I certainly accept my new duties with somber responsibility, but they won't eclipse my ongoing quest to nurture the Crayboth's honor. My new powers will, in fact, prove useful in this endeavor, I plan to... well, that would be telling. Instead I shall begin -- hey! What are you doing, Mr Admin? Get away from my mod control panel! Gotta go kids, I've things to get done in a hurry!