She was blinded by the light

It's another week, which means another topic from the wonderful Pop Culture League. I have taken some time away from crafting my own life size wax Jaws figure to share my thoughts on the latest challenge:

Buying Blind: Who doesn't love gambling on a blind box or mystery package?

I have lots to say on the subject so click below to learn more!




Buying an item in a bag or box with the surprise of not knowing what is inside has long been a past time for many collectors. In fact for most of us our first introduction to the idea of a "blind bag" was more than likely a McDonald's Happy Meal. Which secret surprise would we be receiving this time? The seeds of blind bag addiction have been growing inside me ever since my first fry. I've spoken a great deal before on the joys of blind bag buying. While Happy Meals and their surprises never fade, I'd have to say that within the last six years there has been a massive jolt to the blind bag buying experience.

Ever since Lego started their insanely addictive Mini Figures line in 2010 I have been hooked into buying items with no real concept of what is inside the bag. (I'm still pissed I never found the zombie figure from the first series, but whatever.) Of course I know the various codes and methods for a variety of lines and their mystery bags. (Thank you bloggers and YouTubers.) From a blind bag historical view we all had it easy in the beginning of Lego's Mini Figures. The codes were easy to break down but as the series have gotten higher and higher in number I know I have at least relied more on the good old grope method.

I call it the grope method because I feel like after I'm done searching for my favorite mini figures, the various bags and I all need a cigarette. This is nothing new for those of you who have been reading the Diary for years now. I collect a variety of blind bagged items, like the Lego Mini Figures, Playmobil, Imaginext, My Little Pony, Care Bears, and the list goes on and on.

It becomes comical with me. Once I see new blind bags in stores I stop what I'm doing and I just grope. I grope those bags like I'm searching for life itself. I will spend upwards of 30 minutes going through every last bag on the shelf. Sometimes people stop and stare, as if to say, "What is this sad lonely old woman doing?" I'm not sad. I have a vast collection of items that have been freed from little foil bags. I'm a freakin hero.

What I really love about blind bag buying is when I'm with my friend David. We both have a very unhealthy love for blind bag buying. Together when we step foot into a toy aisle we both tackle those bags like a beast. One of us will set up a phone with images of what we are hunting. Next up we just dive in and sort our favorites out. It's very primal. I feel like a cave woman and my husband was mauled by a saber tooth tiger so I now have to be the one to hunt the food for him. That's the best way I can explain the process of blind bag hunting.

Of course the next phase of buying blind has morphed into a whole other monster. Toy companies like Funko, Kid Robot, and the Loyal Subjects have added a new layer to my addiction. They all decided that it would be best to make adorable items in bags that are housed in boxes. That is right. Groping a bag is so two years ago. Now we are expected to just buy a box with the hopes that there won't be duplicates. There are always duplicates. But darn it, those items are all so great.

Funko has essentially made everything known to human kind into a mystery mini figure. There is no escaping the onslaught of merchandise from them. There have been times that I have been lucky and grabbed a box with the desired item inside. Other times I just cheat and grab it loose from the secondary market. It takes a little fun out of the mystery and surprise element, but as a long standing fan of blind bag buying I really am after the item itself at the end of the day. Sometimes it doesn't matter how it ends up in my mess, just as long as it does.

Pretty much every major property at some point or another has had a blind item in a box or bag. Even the toy lines that are aimed for girls are getting in on things. Shopkins takes me to a whole other world. I don't know who created that line but they have something special with it. Monster High and Barbie are but a few more of the "pink" lines that are sitting pretty in collector's hands. For someone like me who collects everything, it's truly a magical time.

Oh, and to the one gentleman I tend to cross paths with in the toy aisle, thank you for always being so patient to let me grope those bags before you. That's class.

Check out what the other members of the Pop Culture League have to say,

Charles has reached a blind breaking point.
Alexis shares a love for blind items that I know all too well.
Even my dashing friend Erik takes part in the mayhem!

For more info on the Pop Culture League head over to Cool and Collected. Also below are a few of my favorite blind toy items. I wish I could share everything, but I've got to head to the set of Jaws 5. There have been some casting changes and I need to make sure I still have a part. Take care everyone!

What could be inside? Thanks to David I know!

A set of fun items next to my bed. They watch me sleep every night.

I like these Monster High items but I haven't felt the need to collect all 75+. 

My favorite! Based off the Day to Night Barbie from the 80's, she was my first ever Barbie as a kid, so you all know I had to have her Funko vinyl version. 

A few of my Shopkins. It's hard to pick a favorite because they are so cute!

Thank you Winona for starring in Edward Scissorhands and for making my summer interesting while you searched for your child on Netflix. 

Love me some Mega Man product any way I can get it. (Roll was a trade from a nice friend.)

Love her. I have become quite smitten with Steven Universe.

The ultimate Blind Box item: the McDonald's Turbo Cone!