4339 Boy's MultiSet (Knight, Viking, etc.)

[AndrewL]

Hi All,

My wife was in Germany last weekend and picked up a couple of set 4339 for me 

This is the set with one medieval figure and one horse, but a variety of accessories to dress up the figure (and his horse) to be one of four different 'characters': a knight, a viking, an archer or a king.

The first two pictures are of the front and back of the box, and then details of the new (or at least new to me) box opening Playmobil are using. I quite like this, as the perforations mean that there's much less risk of really tearing apart the box flaps. And you can close the box again and have some hope that it will stay closed.

And before anyone asks, no, the Steck walls in the background don't come in this set  (Wish they did, though!)

[AndrewL]

OK, here's all the parts still in their bags, and then a series of shots of the guy dressed up as a knight, ready for the tournament. The blazon on the shield and horse's trapper is very nice -- realistic-looking heraldry as opposed to the fantasy-oriented stuff Playmobil has produced over the past couple of years.

Note he's also got one of the new swords, without the downward-curving quillons. And the plume for his helmet is good, too. This is my favourite of the four characters.

[AndrewL]

Now here he is as the archer. The brown hood is a very nice new part, but I'm not quite sure how well it will work without some sort of shoulder covering in the same colour.

Personally, I don't that much care for the 'shoulder pads' with the lugs for quivers, wings, etc., but I'm sure there will be plenty of folks out there who will find good uses for them 

[AndrewL]

Next, we have our trusty Klicky dressed as a viking (complete with horny helmet!), and then with a ballista as well. The round shield is another of the parts I very much like. From the catalog, I thought the basic colour of the shield was going to be gold, but it's actually a sort of tan.

Quite what a viking is doing with a ballista I do not know (vikings weren't known for their skills with siege weaponry), but perhaps he's some sort of generic barbarian (from a tribe that DID go in for siege equipment!).

[AndrewL]

And here we have him as a king or nobleman. The throne is obviously cast from the original mould, but in a very dark blue. The colour of the throne in real life is not quite what I expected given the colours shown in the catalog and on the box, but then I suspect Playmobil may go in for a bit of colour-tweaking for their printed materials. (Getting printed colours to match real life, or even what's on a computer screen in notoriously difficult).

And finally, there's a shot of the Klicky, his horse, and ALL the various bits and pieces that come in this set. I hadn't expected that the two daggers shown on the back of the box (one for the archer 'character', one for the viking) would translate into two actual daggers in the package, but there were two in both boxes I got. So, some spare daggers!

Anyway, I hope folks find this useful and interesting.

Cheers,

AndrewL

[Richard]

EXCELLENT REVIEW, ANDREW !!! ...

It looks like (with this set) Geobra is trying to return to it's early Playmobil roots. A time when a Klicky could be almost anything with a quick click of a hat or other accessory.

Thanks, Andrew!

All the best,
Richard

[Tiermann]

I absolutely love this set. The heraldry and colors are great, and it's great to see the multi type sets in a historical theme.
I think this is the first time they've done paintwork on a jousting lance also.

[Martin Milner]

Congratulations on a great review Andrew, particularly on finding your camera before ripping open the box and packets! I rarely have such self control.

I like the whole concept of a single figure with multiple outfits, but not the particular colors they chose for this figure. Orange has always seemed a strange color for vikings and nights, and the pale blue is not my favorte shade. And why not make the throne wood-colored? Why must they strive to emulate Fisher Price?

I'd prefer this set with a different central figure, but I'm sure to buy a couple when they hit he US West Coast.

[AndrewL]

Hi All,

Glad you like the review -- my first attempt at such.

Martin: I'm flattered you think I have so much self-control, but it's actually not quite true: my wife brought two of this set back from Germany. The first one did get ripped open pretty much immediately. The pictures in the review are of the second of the two boxes!

I might also have picked a slightly different colour scheme, but at least this guy is better than the pink/magenta barbarians of a few years ago. Of course I do have a sizeable force of said pink barbarians, but that's a topic for another thread!

Cheers,

AndrewL

[Gepetto]

Wonderful review Andrew, this set has a lot going for it but I have to ask is this a (somewhat) reasonable $14.99 set or a $19.99 set? The difference between 2 and 20 sets purchased! 


Gepetto