The Simpsons: World of Springfield: Be-Sharps playset by Playmates, review by Andrew Lenahan
Series Overview:
The Simpsons: World of Springfield is the second major attempt to create a Simpsons action figure line. Running through 16 different series of figures and with many playsets, exclusives, and bonuses, it is one of the most extensive toy lines in action figure history. A major feature running throughout the line is "Intelli-tronic Voice Activation" whereby figures activate certain spoken phrases when placed atop compatible playsets. Although the line has been praised by critics and embraced by collectors, the increasing obscurity of some figure subjects and reliance on somewhat uninspired playsets has slowed consumer demand, with many pieces being deeply discounted and the line eventually being cancelled in 2004.
Playset Overview:
Intended to re-create a single scene from a single episode of The Simpsons, the Be-Sharps playset is a wooden platform in front of a battleship, where the Be-Sharps perform at a centennial celebration for the Statue of Liberty. The main feature of the playset is the figure it comes with: a disguised version of Police Chief Clancy Wiggum.
Playset Sculpt and Paint: 4
Wiggum is decently sculpted and painted, and is roughly on par with the other later Simpsons figures in terms of quality. His only major drawback is that (on our review figure anyway) his one eye pupil is placed slightly higher than the other, so when one eye is looking forward, the other looks up slightly. As for the playset, there's little to be said. There's little sculpted detail, although what is there is okay, especially the garland at the foot of the base. The rest is pretty dull, with the side details just being one big sticker. There's really no opportunity for play on this playset, as the four figures take up the whole floor when placed correctly, and there's nothing to move or to interact with.
Articulation and Features: 4
Wiggum moves at the same three places as virtually all Simpsons figures: Head, shoulders, waist. That's it. Nothing on the playset moves at all, not even those cannons. The Intelli-tronic voice feature is loud, clear, and strong, with excellent sound quality. If you have the four Be-Sharps figures, they sing, which is nice.
Accessories: 2
Wiggum has a hat (that won't easily stay on), a microphone, and a microphone stand. That's all you get for your $40, son. None of the accessories are painted at all, or even very well sculpted. I remember lots of stuff from the Be-Sharps episode that would've made great acessories: remember the box of crazy Be-Sharps mechandise that Homer had?
Packaging: Insane
Presented in a windowed cardboard box, the packaging seems innocent enough... until you try to open it! It's worse than twist-ties, folks... a Phillips-head screwdriver is required to extricate this thing from its packaging. Oh, how I wish I was just kidding. It's literally screwed in place. Were they afraid the figure would escape?
Overall score: 2
More of a diorama or figure stand than a playset, and an obscure one at that, there is very little to recommend this playset to casual or even hardcore fans. Possibly purchase this if you're desperate for a place to display your Be-Sharps, or if you're opening a Simpsons museum and must have every licensed item. With its $40 price tag and its very limited appeal, the Be-Sharps playset might serve best as a warning: a grim cautonary tale of what to watch out for when a toy line careens out of control to its doom.
Availability:
This was a Toys R Us exclusive, so don't bother looking for it anywhere else. The good news, though, is that if you do find it it'll likely be quite cheap: this once-$40 item has been selling as low as one dollar as a green-tag clearance item. At that price, I suppose, it isn't a bad deal.
The Simpsons: World of Springfield is the second major attempt to create a Simpsons action figure line. Running through 16 different series of figures and with many playsets, exclusives, and bonuses, it is one of the most extensive toy lines in action figure history. A major feature running throughout the line is "Intelli-tronic Voice Activation" whereby figures activate certain spoken phrases when placed atop compatible playsets. Although the line has been praised by critics and embraced by collectors, the increasing obscurity of some figure subjects and reliance on somewhat uninspired playsets has slowed consumer demand, with many pieces being deeply discounted and the line eventually being cancelled in 2004.
Playset Overview:
Intended to re-create a single scene from a single episode of The Simpsons, the Be-Sharps playset is a wooden platform in front of a battleship, where the Be-Sharps perform at a centennial celebration for the Statue of Liberty. The main feature of the playset is the figure it comes with: a disguised version of Police Chief Clancy Wiggum.
Playset Sculpt and Paint: 4
Wiggum is decently sculpted and painted, and is roughly on par with the other later Simpsons figures in terms of quality. His only major drawback is that (on our review figure anyway) his one eye pupil is placed slightly higher than the other, so when one eye is looking forward, the other looks up slightly. As for the playset, there's little to be said. There's little sculpted detail, although what is there is okay, especially the garland at the foot of the base. The rest is pretty dull, with the side details just being one big sticker. There's really no opportunity for play on this playset, as the four figures take up the whole floor when placed correctly, and there's nothing to move or to interact with.
Articulation and Features: 4
Wiggum moves at the same three places as virtually all Simpsons figures: Head, shoulders, waist. That's it. Nothing on the playset moves at all, not even those cannons. The Intelli-tronic voice feature is loud, clear, and strong, with excellent sound quality. If you have the four Be-Sharps figures, they sing, which is nice.
Accessories: 2
Wiggum has a hat (that won't easily stay on), a microphone, and a microphone stand. That's all you get for your $40, son. None of the accessories are painted at all, or even very well sculpted. I remember lots of stuff from the Be-Sharps episode that would've made great acessories: remember the box of crazy Be-Sharps mechandise that Homer had?
Packaging: Insane
Presented in a windowed cardboard box, the packaging seems innocent enough... until you try to open it! It's worse than twist-ties, folks... a Phillips-head screwdriver is required to extricate this thing from its packaging. Oh, how I wish I was just kidding. It's literally screwed in place. Were they afraid the figure would escape?
Overall score: 2
More of a diorama or figure stand than a playset, and an obscure one at that, there is very little to recommend this playset to casual or even hardcore fans. Possibly purchase this if you're desperate for a place to display your Be-Sharps, or if you're opening a Simpsons museum and must have every licensed item. With its $40 price tag and its very limited appeal, the Be-Sharps playset might serve best as a warning: a grim cautonary tale of what to watch out for when a toy line careens out of control to its doom.
Availability:
This was a Toys R Us exclusive, so don't bother looking for it anywhere else. The good news, though, is that if you do find it it'll likely be quite cheap: this once-$40 item has been selling as low as one dollar as a green-tag clearance item. At that price, I suppose, it isn't a bad deal.
posted by Andrew Lenahan at 8:55 AM
1 Comments:
I will have to agree! This one just did NOT do it for me....at all...cept for the price...and the privelege of saying we have it....and being able to see what all the other figures have to say when seated in the environment. But I give this one....two big yawns down. :-)
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