the novelties german catalouge 2008/2009 !

[LHAAP]

I must say that I really like the new Specials I think I need more than one of each

[Sir Gareth]

Thanks for the pictures Andi 

It looks like a cheap year for me , just a few specials to collect.

I'm not into ghost Pirates at all but these new sets do have a few nice parts with them and the ship being used just as a wreck would work OK.

I might buy the wolf Knights, some of the figures look alright and they are only small sets and shouldn't add up to much.

After seeing the Egyptians that will be available soon, I thought Playmobil was moving in the right direction with it's historical themes, so I am a bit sad to see all of these fantasy type sets.

[Richard]

OMG OMG OMG!

Yay!!! They finally did it! 
After all these years we finally get some MERCHILDREN!

The new sea serpent looks awesome too. It is 3-headed, right?
Or is it only shown that way to convey movement?

I like the whole look of that new Ghost Pirate theme.

Thank you navygirl001 and Andi for all of the pics!

My sentiments exactly, Sylvia!

WOW! ... 

I read that not everyone is happy with the new sets, but I love them !!!

I am just thrilled to see more new fantasy themes. Especially when they are as well thought out as the new Ghost Pirates and the Mer-People!

Finally, the real beginning of an Atlantis theme!

And, some really great Specials!

The Masai warrior is brilliant. I'm happy to see another cossack to join the earlier Special.

It would appear that Playmobil's designers really are listening.

Thank you Andi and Inga for sharing these wonderful images.

Inga also scanned the 2008-2009 cover, which I've attached for any Playmo-cover collectors.

All the best,
Richard

see attachment

[cachalote]

i invite you to take a look at 2 of mega-blocks' pages.
the 24 "pyrates": http://www.megabrands.com/en/products/index.php?Brands+-+Pyrates%26trade%3B&brand_id=25
and the 23 "pirates of the caribbean" - http://www.megabrands.com/en/products/index.php?Brands+-+Pirates+of+the+Caribbean&brand_id=35

  many of the ideas for these sets are identical with the playmobil ones.
i like to believe that playmobil came up wih the islands and boat sets first but there are also a lot of details that seem to appear first on mega-blocks:
- the obsessive presence of skulls; 
- ghost-pirates, skeletons and ghost-ships; 
- extra-large arthropods (sorpion v. crab), sea-serpents and multi-headed sea-monsters. 

these things are all the things i don´t like in the new way playmobil is taking the pirate family. 

not only they seem "ugly" to me (like mega-blocks sets do) but now, they also seem un-original.
i have to say i am sad about this. 

[cachalote]

extra-large arthropods (sorpion v. crab), sea-serpents and multi-headed sea-monsters...
i can see no smiles...   

[cachalote]

... i was forgetting one thing: to be fair i kind-of like the sperm-whale skeleton. 
the teeth are too agressive, though.
and the skeleton is missing a lot of vertebrae and all of fin bones.
and there are eyes where there should be holes.
and it glows, so it is probably a bit radioactive.
... actually, on second thought, i hate it! 

[Rasputin]

Isn't Mega Blocks some kind of pathetic imitation to Legos ?

Maybe playmobil wanted to put a little distance between the Pirate movie and the releases of these sets to avoid any legal action . If the copyright holder has already exhausted his merchandise sales it would not make sense to spend a lot of legal funds to stop larger companies at this point ( especially if it is a long shot to begin with )

It would also make it appear that playmobil is less of a trend follower if you are so far behind you might actually think you are ahead  

[cachalote]

some motorcycle racers have the same logic, rasputin.
they get sacked after one season... 

[Gustavo]

"Pirates of the Caribbean" franchise was polemical ... There are those who like it (them), there are those who like the first one, and hate the other two ... There are those who like the first, dislike the second, and didn't even get the work of taking a look at the third. There are those who like the second better than the first but dislike the third. There are those who like the third better than the other two ...

I don't think Playmobil had any kind of thought about connecting themes: Playmobil toy continues free of characters. It's good that they didn't do a Jack Sparrow!: I wan't to give names to my characters.

But I do happen to like PotC series. I have them all here, at home, and I watch them now and again ... Good series, to me.

One thing that it (the series) changed in the concept of piracy is that BEFORE PotC[,] pirates were "the bad guys", no matter what, even in the spirit of "Treasure Island". PotC brought a concept that pirates can be "good guys", and created enemies for pirates: ghosts.

So, Playmobil isn't producing PotC, but reproducing a new concept that has spread, since PotC, that has to do with modern life's morals, and changes ...

History is one thing. Fantasy is another. Playmobil is toy. I (adult) like its historical features, and it's what I use. Children will LOVE ghost pirates, because French versus English is adult talk: nowadays, French and English (and others) to be alike IS educational, if we give a better thought.

We will (I will) wait for more XVIIIth century historical Playmobil (as well as XVIIth, XVIth, XVth, XIVth, & Venice ...), but this toy is according to some needs of our days, I think.

It isn't [a line meant] to me, though. (I mean, I don't play PotC ..., nor will I.) It's for children. & They will love it. & It will sell. A lot, I believe.

---

I dislike the knights, but it has everything to do with role-playing game generation. (It's ridiculous to me, too, a catapult pulled by wolves and not only ridiculous ... It's sad, because I seem to have absolutely no interest in it.) But there's this Narnya talk[ * ], as well, that makes me understand that children will get it, and possibly love it as well ...


Gus



[Ps. * Not to talk about wargs ... Maybe if the wolves were GIANT, it'd be fun even for us ... But, c'mon!: a catapult pulled by oxes in "Peter Jackson's LotR era"??!! You've got to be kidding! Children don't ~buy~ anything pulled by oxes! ...]

[Parents would buy more happily, though, if they were pulled by either wargs or minotaurs ... But, well, parents will buy whatever their children ~buy~.]

[Gustavo]

Besides all this, if you pay attention at Youtube, you'll see that there are MANY playmobil adaptations of PotC made by children playing. I'ts because, like it the critics or not, PotC is good stuff, at least to children (and some big guys ...)


Playmobil only lacks a(/some) good science fiction & super heroes line(s), to allow children to follow cinema closer, according to recent production. (At least on super heroes ...) But I think that, in this, Lego will give the bit that Playmobil doens't wish get to work about.

But I'd like to see some realistic Playmobil astronauts. However, according to something Leonard Neemoy said, in a documentary made for the Star Trek IV (1980-something? ...), "the Space Programs are in crises" ... However, we will have a new Star Trek, in the end of this year, that may come out as polemic as PotC (...).


Gus