This month, LEGO released a collection of minifigures for The Simpsons’ 25th anniversary. LEGO has done well by some of Springfield’s famous residents, capturing the essence of 16 characters through an incredible attention to detail. FreakSugar takes a look at a few of the Simpsons minifigures we managed to get our hands on – after hunting feverishly for them for what seemed like an eternity.
We’ve created a gallery of the new figures below. Follow along and see what we thought of them.
Cowabunga, dude! (Bart still says that, right? *hangs head in shame*)
1. Ned Flanders
LEGO has managed to do the seemingly impossible: they’ve capture Ned Flanders’ creepy mustache in all of perfectly manicured glory. I halfway expect him to get coffee stuck in his “I
2. C. Montgomery “Monty” Burns
LEGO has molded the perfect frail, Mephistophelian nuclear mogul in its Monty Burns miniature. His pointed nose and protruding, rounded teeth make Monty appear that he’s ready to pierce our world and unleash three-eyed trout upon us! Speaking of mutated fish, I can’t think of a better toy accessory that I’d want in my collection than the fishbowl containing the nuclear-irradiated monstrosity that once cost Monty a stab at public office.
3. Milhouse Van Houten
The LEGO miniature Milhouse’s plastic comic book reminded me: Why hasn’t Lens Crafters gotten on the ball and made a Biclops comic book? Biclops is the hero we deserve, but maybe not the hero we need. Beyond the comic book, LEGO did a magnificent job molding Milhouse’s cowlick and glasses, glasses through which the erstwhile Fall Out Boy stares longingly at LEGO Lisa Simpson, a love to forever be unrequited.
[Editor’s Note: It’s kind of a blessing that we are so endeared to Bart’s friend/flunky since we seemed to keep getting him over and over! Anybody need a Milhouse? We’ll trade for an Itchy. Or anyone, really. We have to many Milhouse. Milhouses? Milhousi? Whatever.]
4. Nelson Muntz
If only Nelson’s LEGO mini came with a hammer instead of a bat so I could recreate my favorite Nelson moment on The Simpsons. (During a class presentation on The Grapes of Wrath, Nelson smashes a bunch of grapes, exclaiming, “Here’s the grapes, and here’s the wrath!” Genius.) The bat is the next best thing, however, as I can easily imagine Nelson roughing up Springfield’s nerds to fill the hole in his life as big as the holes in the walls of his crumbling house. The eyes of the miniature are spaced perfectly close together to glare into the abyss, and his scruffy plastic hair has been molded in such a way to suggest that his mom hasn’t made enough money at Hooters to pay for his haircut yet.
5. Scratchy
Poor Scratchy’s LEGO miniature face expresses a glee and earnestness rarely seen in LEGO figure — or any toy, for that matter. His tongue is hanging out in anticipation of making a kill that will never come. He can only hope his death at LEGO Itchy’s death will not be too protracted… but somehow I imagine that Scratchy’s axe will be involved somehow.
6. Abraham “Abe” Simpson
I needed this LEGO figure in my collection for no other reason than the headline to the plastic newspaper he’s clutching in his little hand: “OLD MAN YELLS AT CLOUD”. The font of the Springfield Gazette is even the same as it is on the television series! I wouldn’t have thought LEGO could encapsulate 25 years of a character in a tiny ball of plastic, but somehow they have created Abe Simpson’s avatar. No one does “irrationally angry, senile curmudgeon” like The Simpsons. I want to carry LEGO Abe Simpson in my pocket, pulling him out and brandishing him at anyone who steps on my last nerves. “LOOK AT ABE! LOOK AT HIM!” I want Abe nearby so I can channel his crazy and grump – which LEGO has nailed perfectly.
If you want to get your hands on these representations of Springfield’s four-fingered citizens, there are more possibilities than Homer’s had jobs. Check out Toys R Us online and in Walmart and Target stores. Don’t have a cow, man! You’ll be able to get these minifigures somewhere! (Bart doesn’t say “Don’t have a cow, man” anymore, either, does he? Sigh.)