Does anyone still remember Popeye The Sailor Man? So many cartoon characters from the past have been revived but dear old Popeye never gets the love it deserves. Not sure if it’s the complicated licensing that has been stopping companies from bringing this cartoon series from the early era into the 21st century. But that changes recently.
Well, at least it has changed in China. Startup toymaker Pantasy, best known for its officially licensed brick-built Astro Boy set has recently revealed the first-ever brick-built Popeye set.
The Pantasy Popeye and Olive Oly building set, as it is referred to, features two buildable characters: Popeye and his girlfriend, Olive Oly. Also included is Popeye’s pet of unknown species, Eugene the Jeep, and a simple but effective diorama that includes a buildable lighthouse, a can of spinach, an anchor, and what looks like a beach base and a couple of waves.
When completed, the characters tower at 32 cm (12.6 inches) tall, and the entire set measures 29.1 cm wide, 35.6 cm deep, and 33 cm tall (11.5 x 14 x 13 inches).
The completed figures are superposable with over 10 points of articulation and each character gets one interchangeable facial expression. Speaking of expression, we heard Popeye’s chin was a special mold created just for this set and so was Olive’s face.
Moreover, there are no stickers to mess with. Everything graphics and decos you see on the set are printed on the elements.
This is no doubt a lovely set that will bring up back a lot of childhood memories for many of today’s grown-ups.
The Pantasy Popeye and Olive Oly Building Set are available from China through e-commerce retailers on Taobao.com.
The price for Popeye and Olive Oly varies from seller to seller. But it is about 450-520 RMB (around US$63-72). We are not sure if it will ever be available on Pantasy official store outside of China, though.
Images: Weibo (@拼奇积木).
