Tuesday, April 30, 2013

Funko POP! Cinderella

I got a tip a while ago about the presence of a Funko POP! Cinderella figurine.  This captured my attention for three reasons.  First, Cinderella.  Second, the name: "Funko Pop" sounds cool and is fun to say.  Third, I had never heard about Funko before, and I love learning about doll and toy companies and their products.  I decided to investigate.

Funko is a 15-year-old Washington-based company that is best known for making bobbleheads.  They also make a variety of pop culture items including action figures and plush toys.  The POP! line is a series of large-headed vinyl figures that are about 3 1/4 inches tall.   These toys have the proportions of bobble heads, but their heads don't bobble.  The figures cost anywhere from $1 (used) to $800 (discontinued), but the average price is about $10.  Cinderella was $8.99 at Amazon.

To me, Cinderella toys that cost under $10 are a special kind of awesome, so this funky princess quickly found her way to my house:

Funko POP!  Cinderella, $8.99.
I didn't pay much attention to the size of this doll before I bought her.  When the box arrived, I was surprised by how big it is.  I guess I was expecting something more the size of a Tokidoki Unicorno or similar blind-box collectable.  This box is about six inches tall--a coffee cup could fit in there.


I spent quite a lot of time looking at the full range of POP! figures on the market.  The amazing thing about these little toys is the massive variety of character options.  You can find everything from Wall-E and Jack Saprrow (shown on the back of Cinderella's box) to Amy Farrah Fowler from The Big Bang Theory or any of a whole range of Walking Dead characters (I'd get Daryl...or maybe Glenn, the non-splatter varieties).


The doll is much smaller than her box, but still larger than I'd expected.  She's inserted into a clear plastic holder, but not tied down with anything.  She pops right out and could be put back in to look brand new.



The box art is colorful and uncluttered.  All of the company information is banished to the bottom of the box:


The doll's head spins around, but there are no other moving parts.  Her eyes are large round black circles with no detail except for three upper eyelashes on each side.  All of the Funko Pop characters seem to have these black eyes, except for some of the zombies.



Her hair has a very simple bun-style design and she sports the classic Cinderella headband:



Cinderella's dress is made out of blue vinyl and painted with a light blue peplum and light blue cap sleeves.  She has matching painted gloves.  


The exposed part of Cinderella's upper arms is painted, too.  The paint job is not very precise:



The dress has a flat bottom with no details other than the company's information and the Disney copyright:



I rounded up all of the other small dolls I could find so that you can get a better idea of how large this girl is.  Her body is about the same size as a Cabbage Patch mini, but her head dwarfs all of the other little dolls I could find:


Bottom line?  This is a cute doll.  She's a little pricey for a small doll with some sloppy painting and almost no articulation.  To understand her $9 price tag, you have to look at her as part of a huge stylized collectable empire.  This doll's value lies mostly in the fun of adding her to a whole collection of Funko POP! characters.  Personally, I always enjoy having another Cinderella in the house, and this one definitely adds a new flavor.

Besides, the girl can dance:



19 comments:

  1. Lol, the video at the end reminded me of the Excerisit movie for a second. Very nice review!!! I love Wall-E and Eve sooo cute!

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  2. I have mixed feelings about her. I do like little figurines, but her beady black eyes and no mouth makes her look creepy and a bit zombie-like. Like she would stare on you...

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  3. I have to agree with you COMPLETELY about the sloppy painting. I found these little critters SO charming in their online photos that I ordered two of them to start with - and looked forward to getting more. After seeing how... well, CHEAP... they seem for such a high price tag, I decided not to purchase any more of them. I wish I'd only bought one to start with. Even where painting isn't an issue, the vinyl on one of mine has color inconsistencies that make it look dirty. I've bought some other collectable vinyl toys and been pleased with them and felt they warranted the higher prices such toys tend to cost. Funko Pops, sadly, didn't leave me with the same feeling. It's such a disappointment, because I find the idea of a whole set of stylized cuties really appealing. I just wish they'd followed through with the QUALITY :(

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    1. I prefer the keychain sized ones, myself. The level of detail seems much more suited to the smaller size, and they're the perfect scale to be collectibles for my 1/3 and 1/4 scaled dolls in diaromas.

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  4. This video made my day. Thank you XD

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  5. ahahhahaha,spinning head was awesome!!!thanks for this!

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  6. Oh WOW, I love these. I have not seen them before although I think I might be familiar with bobbleheads. I had a brief look at their website and wouldn't even know which to pick first. They have certainly covered all bases. I love them, my kids would love them and my husband would love them. I like the She-ra (a lot!), He-Man, Tinkerbell, Evil Queen, Batgirl......My boys (and husband!!) would love all of the Star Wars, Marvel type ones.

    I think that I will get some to sit on top of my kids next birthday cakes. They tend to choose a theme and I find some surprise inexpensive toy to fit the theme. That said, I think that they are overpriced for what they are. I'll send you a picture of the next birthday cake I make :)

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    1. Oh, and that video was hilarious. You make me smile a lot Emily :D

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  7. I think I saw these a couple of times on flickr. It surprises me how many characters exist! After reading the review alone I already have 5 figurines I like, Wall-E is one of my favorite movies, as is The Nightmare Before Christmas! Couldn't believe I saw the Mayor and the Oogie Boogie man on the back of that box!
    My mom and I also really enjoy watching The Big Bang Theory (she's actually watching it right now) and I thinks it's hilarious they also made an Amy Farrah Fowler figurine :D
    I'll definitely be looking at more of these, I just love coming across familiar characters.
    Also, that video made me laugh so hard, it was hilarious! The Lalaloopsy animals and dolls actually fit the funko pop! figurines quite well, don't they?
    That large horse in your video is still one of my most favorite Lalaloopsy animals ^^

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  8. Another great review-I have a couple of questions for anyone to answer.
    Is this toy similar to the vinylmation? I'm learning about it.
    Is this a hard or soft type of vinyl?
    The littlest toys are always so fun and I have my eye on Disneys Wild West.
    Thank you Emily, always a treat. Tina

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  9. She's cute! Do you return the dolls that don't satisfy you after you do the review?

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  10. They should make a Monster High version of those action figures!

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  11. I love Funko POP! figures, but they're dangerous - they're super-cute and I am always tempted to buy them, but have to hold myself back because I KNOW they'll just sit on a shelf with all the other OMGCUTE knickknacks I've collected over the years.(I did give in on the Stitch figure though, because, well, Stitch!) I like them more to look at than to own, if that makes any sense!

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  12. I have one of these figures I got on clearance,and the quality wan't what I expected.Still,she was a good deal!
    A good place to look for nendoroids is Mandarake,as they have nendoroids for very cheap if you look at the not opened and box damaged ones.Mandrake is mostly bootleg free,but some bootlegs are out there.
    mandarake.co.jp
    Search up nendoroid(in English)and there will be a nice amount of nendoroids to see.Paypal is the best method however,because I had a bad experience with the bank accusing mandarake of fraud payment.
    Also,Cinderella has rocking moves!

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  13. Hey have you heard of Maru and friends?

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  14. i was wondering what pics you will show for this doll, Always surprise :)) love this blog!!!

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