I can’t remember the specific moment I fell in love with Lego, it was certainly way back in my childhood. One of my earliest memories was getting a Lego garage for my 6th birthday and being really excited about building it. Unfortunately I had school that day so I went off feeling that it was unfair to have school on your birthday, when I returned excited about opening and building my Lego set I was dismayed to find that my older sister (who for some reason didn’t have school on my birthday – I suspect she was skiving) had ‘built it for me’.
Many years later and I can pin point the moment I fell in love with Minifigures. I had just bought my first collectible minifig pack on my lunch break, it was series 4. I took it back to the office, back to my desk and opened it. Inside was a sailor. Not my favourite figure now, nothing that special really, but it was the first time I had seen a newer minifig. I marveled at the design, the detail on the clothes and the face. I loved the little wink (or was that eye closed so he could look through his telescope). Everything about it was wonderful and I thought I’d like more.
Fortunately the pack came with a little leaflet that showed all the other figures you could get in that series, I remember buying tons of packs, having to ask for them from the lady behind the counter so I couldn’t feel (or smoosh) the packs to tell which ones I was getting. After a few weeks I had lots of spares but was still lacking the mad scientist. Eventually after much buying I got him and my first series was complete. I actually think the mad scientist is one of the better figs from that series, he’s got the cool hair, the half full flask and I identify more with a mad scientist than I do with a sailor (no offense to either Sailors or sane scientists intended).
This really did start a love of the figs, and even today when I look at my collection or open a new CMF pack or receive a figure I have bought specifically from BrinkLink I get a little tingle of excitement. look the figure over and admire all the facets of the design. I wouldn’t have thought I’d ever be so in love with a little piece of plastic that is roughly shaped like a person but I think minifigs are the best thing about Lego and Lego has a lot going for it. It is the best ‘toy’ ever made and the minifigs are the epitome of cool. I guess I’m hooked.
