TOY REVIEW ARCHIVE    LIVING WITH LATE FEES    FEATURES    LINKS    BIO    MISSION    EMAIL    MAIN PAGE >


Stonecutter Lenny

Que sera, sera...I can almost hear Doris Day singing. Or maybe it's just the fat lady. Either way, reviewing the last of the Stonecutter mail away figures brings on a whistful sadness.

Yep, that's right, Lenny is the last of the Stonecutters. There was a Stonecutter Wiggum planned for Wave 16, but since that's the last wave of the World of Springfield to be produced, Playmates decided it didn't make a whole lot of sense to produce a mail away to go along with it. And of course, Lenny will be so lonely without a Stonecutter Carl...

Lenny was Stonecutter #12, well down the pecking order from Number One. That gives us Number One, Homer, Moe and Lenny in this outfit, all from the classic episode Homer the Great. You could get Lenny by sending in the proof's of purchase from four wave 15 figures, along with a check for $5. You can still take advantage of the offer, if you can manage to find any wave 15 figures.




Packaging - ***1/2
I love the boxes that Playmates used for their exclusives and mail-aways. Small, with no wasted space, completely collector friendly so that you can open them and later put everything back, sturdy and easy to store. I couldn't be happier!

Okay, so there was one issue here - why the need for three twisty ties all of a sudden? Normally they are there to deter store theft, but with these never on the shelf, what real purpose do they serve?

Sculpting - ***1/2
I believe this is an all new sculpt, not just a tweaked version of the original. The hair, the eyes, the nose, even the mouth are all different. Some areas are very different, like the hair and eyes, while others have just slight changes.

I like this sculpt better than the original Lenny, mostly because of the half lidded eyes. They don't come down to the almost shut position that the original had.  I think they've managed to capture his 'essence' much better this time, and with only a few minor changes.

The body sculpt is pretty basic, but then it's a skinny guy in a red dress. There's an appropriate amount of detail, and the hands are sculpted to hold the accessories. His only problem is that while he stands fine on his own empty handed, putting accessories in his paws means you'll have to do quite a balancing act.  He's also slightly shorter than the original Lenny.

Paint - **1/2
The paint work on Lenny isn't quite as good as some of the other recent figures. The half lidded eyes had some issues with the whites, and there's a little slop around the hair line.  It's now quite as perfect as Stonecutter Moe, but the yellow skin color is brighter than the original Lenny.

Articulation - **1/2
I'm not going to be able to say this much longer - neck, shoulders, waist. If this were a new line on the market, I'd hit them harder in this category, but since the line is four years old, and I wouldn't want them to drastically alter the articulation once the line was established, I'll maintain the same score here as well.

Accessories - **1/2
Stonecutter Moe was pretty impressive in this category, because we got new accessories with a mail away figure. Lenny isn't quite as impressive. Although he has three accessories - his book, paddle and mug - they are all reused from previous figures. However, you can get him to hold them all (but you have to be pretty creative with the book).

Fun Factor - **1/2
Normally, I think the fun factor on most WOS figures is pretty high, and that kids (at least those that are into the show) will enjoy them. This Lenny may be a bit too obscure though, and his episode specific outfit may reduce the fun for kids. He's much more oriented toward collectors of the overall line.

Value - **** (if you are an opener); *1/2 (if you're a MOCer)
If you were going to open four of the wave 15 figures anyway, you got this figure for just five bucks. That's pretty impressive, even with the re-used accessories. However, if you're a MOCer who never opens anything, that means you have to buy and open four figures you don't want. That's a grand total of about $30, and that's a hefty price tag for one figure by anyone's standard.

Overall - ***
This isn't my favorite of the Stonecutters - that's still Homer. But it's great to get Lenny, and makes me all the sadder that I won't have Carl or Wiggum, or the possible Stonecutter's Hall playset that Playmates had considered producing. I'm going to miss getting new releases of the World of Springfield, and the mail-aways have been one of my favorite features.

Also, do the smart thing and pick up a Lenny now if you have any inclination. I can guarantee that these mail-aways will have the lowest runs of any single figures, and picking one up on the secondary market in the future will only cost you more.

Where to Buy - 
You have to pick up at least four of the wave 15 figures, and send in your stuff. If you're still looking for wave 15:

- Amazon.com also has them in a bundle for $35.


Figure from the collection of Michael Crawford.

This page copyright 2003, Michael Crawford. All rights reserved. Hosted by 1 Hour Hosting.com