The STS 2015 Animal figure of the year: COLLECTA WOODLAND CARIBOU!

Caribochiburibou !!!

@costicuba wrote:

Caribochiburibou !!!  

CHIRU !!!! CHIRU !!!!

@VASILIS wrote:

Caribou .......Ceratosaurus .......Chiru ...........or Jacob's sheep ???

Ceratosaurus ........Chiru ...........Jacob's sheep ........or Caribou???

Chiru ...........Jacob's sheep ........Caribou.........or Ceratosaurus???

Jacob's sheep ........Caribou..........Ceratosaurus..........or  Chiru???

Hard choice - and hard competition

@Roger wrote:

@VASILIS wrote:

Caribou .......Ceratosaurus .......Chiru ...........or Jacob's sheep ???

Ceratosaurus ........Chiru ...........Jacob's sheep ........or Caribou???

Chiru ...........Jacob's sheep ........Caribou.........or Ceratosaurus???

Jacob's sheep ........Caribou..........Ceratosaurus..........or  Chiru???

Try to think like this, which one would you miss more if it was not released?

Ok

Caribou .......Chiru ...........or Jacob's sheep ???

Chiru ...........Jacob's sheep ........or Caribou???

Jacob's sheep ........Caribou ...........or Chiru ???

I like the Caribou because it is a nice figure with these great andlers.........

but I also  like  the other two because they are figures of rare animals...

Especially the Jacob's sheep was a big suprise for me as I didn't know that such animal existed...

So what do our votes represent???

Do we want nice figures of well known species or figures of rare species???

I have two more days to think and decide........

Chiru versus Caribou  Both are wonderful models!
CollectA versus CollectA

I have voted but I am not saying what I voted for or giving the game away as to what is currently in the lead.

@Chris Sweetman wrote:

I have voted but I am not saying what I voted for or giving the game away as to what is currently in the lead.

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@VASILIS wrote:

Try to think like this, which one would you miss more if it was not released?

Ok

Caribou .......Chiru ...........or Jacob's sheep ???

Chiru ...........Jacob's sheep ........or Caribou???

Jacob's sheep ........Caribou ...........or Chiru ???

I like the Caribou because it is a nice figure with these great andlers.........

but I also  like  the other two because they are figures of rare animals...

Especially the Jacob's sheep was a big suprise for me as I didn't know that such animal existed...

So what do our votes represent???

Do we want nice figures of well known species or figures of rare species???

I have two more days to think and decide........

[/quote]


It is important to notice that although a caribou is not such a unusual creature as these two other CollectA, it is not just a caribou but a woodland caribou in a clear reference to a particular subspecies. It is not common to see representations of subspecies on major brands and CollectA did it clearly and in a competent way. Caribou is taking the lead again and will probably win but all others are really great figures and CollectA already deserved to win the final poll.

@Bloodrayne wrote:

I never knew the Caribou was THAT popular.

It's that impressive rack on its head!  I've seen photos of male caribou, but none with massive antlers like that.  What I'd prefer to see in a toy would be a female caribou with a small set of antlers.  Not all female caribou have antlers, but haven't seen a toy female with the small antlers.

Jennifer Pomerance

@loyalcatahoula wrote:

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I love the Jacob Sheep ram too! If I had a place out in the country, I'd have a small flock of Jacob Sheep! The are so neat-looking!!

Guess which one I voted for!

Jennifer Pomerance

It is a hard choice for me this year. As usual, nearly none of my favorites are on the final poll and I don't want to vote for the one I prefer in the batch because its price is so different from the others...

@Kikimalou wrote:

It is a hard choice for me this year. As usual, nearly none of my favorites are on the final poll  and I don't want to vote for the one I prefer in the batch because its price is so different from the others...

I see, you wanted the kiwi in the final. Naturally high priced figures are more detailed and have higher standards of quality but it is also a virtue when a company can release an excellent figure for a very affordable price. :)

Ohh, yes ! The kiwi is certainly missing

But I suppose one needs to hold her "In person" in order to see how magnificent this little beauty really is

@Roger wrote:

@Kikimalou wrote:

It is a hard choice for me this year. As usual, nearly none of my favorites are on the final poll  and I don't want to vote for the one I prefer in the batch because its price is so different from the others...

I see, you wanted the kiwi in the final. Naturally high priced figures are more detailed and have higher standards of quality but it is also a virtue when a company can release an excellent figure for a very affordable price. :)

Not only the kiwi I think that models like the Kaiyodo blue whale or the Rebor Ceratosaurus may compete in a different categorie because they are not excatly toys and their prices tell me I am right. Or the STS 2016 wildlife figure would be an African elephant than most of us will never buy...

@SUSANNE wrote:

Ohh, yes ! The kiwi is certainly missing

But I suppose one needs to hold her "In person" in order to see how magnificent this little beauty really is

I tried to do my best with a walkaround but I failed

@Kikimalou wrote:

 I think that models like the Kaiyodo blue whale or the Rebor Ceratosaurus may compete in a different categorie because they are not excatly toys and their prices tell me I am right.  

I agree with Kikimalou. The detailed dinos from Rebor and large animals from Kaiyodo, for me, are "models", not "toys".
They are beautiful, but very expensive and marketed towards adults (or very spoiled children).  
But marketed at an elite group, so to say.    

When voting for best Toy Animal of the Year, I always feel the need to take into consideration if an animal figure is easily available/affordable for everyone on this planet.

Maybe next year we can have a poll with:
"Most beautiful animal model you whish you could afford."

This is an interesting discussion and I think it is a good idea, after the end of 2015 awards, to find the most consensual possible opinion about it.
I personally disagree, some REBOR are not much more expensive than a Papo brachiosaurus, they are pvc figures, sometimes with moveable parts, only base is made of polyresin and it has prestige looking boxes. Maybe the Kaiyodo blue whale and African elephant are more disputable but they are hollow vynnyl figures (plastic), mass produced, they are only huge and very expensive but they belong to a series where we can find some characters, spaceship replicas, etc. It won't be easy to find the exact border between what should be considered a toy animal figure and a non playable replica.
So, what happens with Breyer? Well, that huge Kaiyodo elephant, entering or not in next year's contest, it won't have my vote anyway, quality/price ratio is something that I often take in consideration.

@Roger wrote:

This is an interesting discussion and I think it is a good idea, after the end of 2015 awards, to find the most consensual possible opinion about it.
I personally disagree, some REBOR are not much more expensive than a Papo brachiosaurus, they are pvc figures, sometimes with moveable parts, only base is made of polyresin and it has prestige looking boxes. Maybe the Kaiyodo blue whale and African elephant are more disputable but they are hollow vynnyl figures (plastic), mass produced, they are only huge and very expensive but they belong to a series where we can find some characters, spaceship replicas, etc. It won't be easy to find the exact border between what should be considered a toy animal figure and a non playable replica.
So, what happens with Breyer? Well, that huge Kaiyodo elephant, entering or not in next year's contest, it won't have my vote anyway, quality/price ratio is something that I often take in consideration.

Roger I have a similar view as you. This was my first voting in the STS figure of the year. The Kaiyodo Blue and Rebor Cera both won their categories as did the Jacob Sheep and Puppy ... and if the majority had voted for any one of these figures in the final they would be winners irrespective of price or affordability...In any voting format there will always be different views and disagreements but there will be one winner voted by the majority. We have to pick one !! As long as they are toy animals there should not be an issue. The Polar bear by Papo was another beautiful figure for me but it lost out, same with the chinchilla and kiwi ... as we can pick only one !
As you said , there will never be an end to finding the Border between what is a Toy animal figure and what is Not ! We have to enjoy and participate in the contest as best we can and in the Spirit !! Hopefully more members vote in the next years and doesn't matter who wins as long as we have many voters participating.

@JamesPanda wrote:

@Roger wrote:

This is an interesting discussion and I think it is a good idea, after the end of 2015 awards, to find the most consensual possible opinion about it.
I personally disagree, some REBOR are not much more expensive than a Papo brachiosaurus, they are pvc figures, sometimes with moveable parts, only base is made of polyresin and it has prestige looking boxes. Maybe the Kaiyodo blue whale and African elephant are more disputable but they are hollow vynnyl figures (plastic), mass produced, they are only huge and very expensive but they belong to a series where we can find some characters, spaceship replicas, etc. It won't be easy to find the exact border between what should be considered a toy animal figure and a non playable replica.
So, what happens with Breyer? Well, that huge Kaiyodo elephant, entering or not in next year's contest, it won't have my vote anyway, quality/price ratio is something that I often take in consideration.

Roger I have a similar view as you. This was my first voting in the STS figure of the year. The Kaiyodo Blue and Rebor Cera both won their categories as did the Jacob Sheep and Puppy ... and if the majority had voted for any one of these figures in the final they would be winners irrespective of price or affordability...In any voting format there will always be different views and disagreements but there will be one winner voted by the majority. We have to pick one !! As long as they are toy animals there should not be an issue. The Polar bear by Papo was another beautiful figure for me but it lost out, same with the chinchilla and kiwi ... as we can pick only one !
As you said , there will never be an end to finding the Border between what is a Toy animal figure and what is Not ! We have to enjoy and participate in the contest as best we can and in the Spirit !! Hopefully more members vote in the next years and doesn't matter who wins as long as we have many voters participating.

I agree this will be an interresting discussion we have to continue after the end of 2015 awards.

For me it's very simple.... I don't look at how much it cost ,or  if it was meant to be played with or not, I look at an  animal and it must have that "WOW" factor.... even if it is not the kind of animal I collect....
But it was a though one this year... lots of beauty's in this final.....

@Roger wrote:

So, what happens with Breyer?

And I'll jump in here for Breyer - to me only the RRs are toys. Premier Club models, as an example, are nearly $200 from Breyer direct and can be more expensive on the secondary market. They are sold with a fancy designed box and velvet bag. Definitely not a toy - parents won't buy a $200 plastic horse for their kid to scratch up and break! BreyerFest models sit on the border. While some kids do attend Breyerfest of course, most are adults (or at least older teens 16-18 or so). So are these toys or collector's items? Most of these are in the $65-$80 range and are limited by how many are produced for the event. And they are only available at Breyerfest. So these I do not think are toys either.

Determining where to draw the line isn't easy

The Kaiyodo Blue Whale isn't a toy either IMHO.
So maybe next time Breyers are welcome too?

@NightLioness wrote:

The Kaiyodo Blue Whale isn't a toy either IMHO.
So maybe next time Breyers are welcome too?

Traditional Valegro was actually the third place winner in the horse category this year