Vinylmation Stories - Wild West Minnie

The reason for me buying Wild West Minnie is similar to the story behind why I bought Wild West Donald. When I look at this Minnie Vinylmation, I'm reminded of an aspect of my home state's history that I am very proud of. Minnie was designed to be a Pioneer woman, but I look at her and am reminded of Amish women. Her bonnet and apron are what make me think of the women in Amish communities, although Minnie's bonnet is pink as opposed to white or black,

Here in Oklahoma, we have two prominent Amish communities, despite many people believing that Amish communities don't exist outside of Pennsylvania. I have visited our Amish communities many times, and I enjoy my time there every trip. The Amish are a very welcoming, friendly, and kind people, and their food is delicious!

I had to add Minnie to my collection because of her beautiful design, and because of how much she makes me think of my home state, and the wonderful varied culture we have here.

Vinylmation Stories - Wild West Donald

Wild West Donald

Series: Wild West

Artist: Gerald Mendez

As it's been a year (almost to the day) since the release of Mickey's Wild West, I thought I'd share the story of how Wild West Donald joined my collection. I live in the beautiful state of Oklahoma, where we have the second highest Native American population in the country. I've attended a couple of Native American events such as Pow Wows and been to other events on Indian land. I'm very proud of our state's Native American culture.

The Wild West series completely shocked me with how surprisingly amazing it was! I still think the level of detail in the figures is unbelievable. But Donald especially blew me away: his outfit, his classic fierce Donald expression, the scenery in his ears and of course his headdress accessory. Since the state I live in is so rich in Native American history, and I loved Wild West Donald so much, he was an instant addition to my collection - breaking my Park series only rule, but for a great reason. And that's the story behind my Wild West Donald.

Vinylmation Review - Mickey's Wild West

Today I will be reviewing the recently released Mickey's Wild West series!

Released: April 22, 2013

Blind Box

I was pleasantly surprised by this series! I'm not sure why but when I first heard about this series, it didn't sound like anything special. It might even have sounded like outlet fodder. But I'm happy to say that my assumptions on this series were wrong. Where do I even begin with this series?! I'm really happy to see a DISNEY themed series for starters! All this stuff like Extreme Wrestlers, High School, Zooper Heroes... WHY?! Who thinks, "y'know, I really wish I had a Vinylmation of a koala in a super hero costume and a school bully vinyl to remember the good ol' days". Surely every vinyl collector got into it for the Disney factor on some level?

I'm also super impressed with the level of detail on these figures! The more I look at them, the more I'm blown away. I even love Clarabelle! There's a great mix of characters in there and I'm also interested to see work from Gerald Mendez and Enrique Pita since I do not have any vinyls by either of those artists.

Reasons to love this series:

• There's such a great variety of characters: the Fab Five plus new additions of Huey, Duey and Louie was a good choice in my opinion. I think there's a character there for everyone
• I just cannot get over the detail! Every little thing is covered! Minnie has bonnet strings under her chin, Clarabelle has her cow bell, each of the Duck nephews has his signature color weaved in, the wild west scenery in many of the characters ears... it goes on and on and I'm so impressed
• The unique and creative accessories: how awesome is Minnie's bonnet, Mickey's hat and Donald's war bonnet?!

Things that aren't so great:

• I do not understand the reason for Horace and Goofy's spaced out expressions. It makes them look creepy in my opinion. I do actually like both of these characters, but I'm really not a fan of these vinyls because of their weird faces
• Daisy. I hear she's stirred up quite the controversy! I don't really have a problem with her being a "saloon girl", it fits the theme and cowgirl was already taken. But honestly, I do think it's a little "risque" considering how cautious Disney usually are. My reason for saying Daisy is a not so great aspect of this series, is just because I think she looks like there's something missing... like her skirt. Just my opinion

My Verdict:

I think this is an awesome series, worthy to have been made and sold in Disney Stores! I'm hoping this is a sign that Disney is listening to vinyl collectors. As much as I love this series, I wasn't sure if I wanted to add them to my collection. I think you can appreciate and love a vinyl without wanting it for yourself. (If you've been here a while, you'll know that I exclusively collect Park Series 98% of the time). I also had a really hard time narrowing down the ones I wanted. Well, I caved! My favorites are Minnie and Donald and after debating with myself for a few weeks, I bought both of those. That however will be my limit of Mickey's Wild West vinyls, as much as I really do love this series.