The Good: Decent sculpted details, Good balance, Collectible value, Coloring details
The Bad: No sound chip/feature (no real problems for the price!)
The Basics: The 2015 "Jiminy Cricket" ornament from Pinocchio is rightfully selling out at Hallmark Gold Crown stores due to its awesome quality and great collectible value!
Every year during Hallmark's Ornament Preview Weekend, Hallmark produces several limited edition ornaments that are geared toward the die-hard collectors. The limited edition ornaments are Hallmark's obvious attempt to get fans of their ornaments to come out in July and spend money that usually would not be spent until the fourth quarter of the year. While there are pretty obvious sell-outs almost every year from the genre ornament lines - this year it is the Star Wars Admiral Ackbar ornament (reviewed here!) - every now and then, there is a "sleeper hit," an ornament that sells out unexpectedly because it grabs its fanbase. This year's Jiminy Cricket ornament from the Disney Hallmark ornament line certainly qualifies. The limited edition Disney ornament seems to have massive crossover appeal - outside just fans of Pinocchio - and has sold out at virtually all Hallmark Gold Crown stores already!
For those unfamiliar with him, Jiminy Cricket was the magically-endowed, talking cricket sidekick in Pinocchio. Before becoming an icon for Disney, Jiminy Cricket was a character who gave advice and helped the puppet Pinocchio.
Jake Angell did an amazing sculpt for the ornament and the ornament was a real steal at the original issue price of $14.95, even if it did not have any sort of sound or light function to augment it.
Basics
The "Jiminy Cricket" ornament recreates Jiminy Cricket as he appeared in Pinocchio, though not from a specific scene or iconic moment. The ornament, released in 2015, is an entirely accurate sculpt of Jiminy Cricket the well-dressed, singing cricket with fine detailing on the gloved hands, suitcoat and umbrella. The subject of the ornament was an animated cricket who sang and danced and the sculptor did an exceptional job of capturing the energetic, animated look of Jiminy Cricket!
Measuring three and one-quarter inches tall from the bottom of the right foot to the top of the umbrella, two and one-quarter inches wide and one and a half inches deep, the "Jiminy Cricket" ornament is on-scale with most of the other Disney character ornaments. As well, it is one of the more affordable ones at only $14.95.
The Hallmark "Jiminy Cricket" ornament is made of a durable plastic and has Jiminy Cricket, arms raised, his right hand holding his umbrella, his left hand pointing. His mouth is open as if he is in the middle of singing "When You Wish Upon A Star." The ornament is sculpted accurately and gets the look of Jiminy Cricket perfectly right! This ornament is augmented by a glossy sheen on Jiminy Cricket's jacket and that contrasts beautifully the dry green color of the character's skin. One of the most impressive coloring details - I was surprised to note that Jiminy Cricket's gloves are detailed in a virtually identical way to Mickey Mouse's - is the umbrella. The maroon umbrella features yellow-orange highlights on each tip of the dome, as if it actually made of metal veins and fabric!
Features
As a Hallmark Keepsake ornament, "Jiminy Cricket" could have a sound or light function, but it does not. While fans of Pinocchio features a number of songs sung by Jiminy Cricket, the ornament does not. For the price, the ornament is fine without any additional functions.
Balance
As with all ornaments, the intent of the Hallmark Keepsake "Jiminy Cricket" ornament is to be hung on a Christmas Tree. And for those creating the ultimate Disney movie Christmas Tree, the "Jiminy Cricket" ornament is pretty much essential! The ornament has the standard steel hook loop embedded into the top center of Jiminy Cricket’s umbrella. From that position, the Jiminy Cricket ornament hangs perfectly level. The balance for this ornament is incredible and it looks like Jiminy Cricket is enthusiastically descending from the sky as if the umbrella is acting like a parachute.
Collectibility
Hallmark Keepsake began delving into the collectibles market in 1991 with Star Trek when it introduced the exceptionally limited edition original U.S.S. Enterprise ornament (reviewed here!). Within a few years, every major franchise from Star Wars to A Nightmare Before Christmas to Indiana Jones started making Hallmark ornaments. "Jiminy Cricket" is not the first Pinocchio ornament the company has released, but it is the only one this year. Predictably, the Jiminy Cricket ornament is one of several Disney ornaments on the market for 2015. This ornament has sold out at every Hallmark Gold Crown store I've been to since Ornament Preview Weekend. Disney fans have already been buying this ornament up in the secondary market and there is no reason to believe that as they become more scarce prices will continue to rise. This limited edition ornament might well reach double the original issue price before Christmas (it's more than halfway there already!) and it is not likely to be found anywhere within the next two weeks except for dealers in the secondary market.
Overview
Fans of Pinocchio, Disney, Jiminy Cricket, and Hallmark ornaments will be thrilled by this full-sized, limited edition Jiminy Cricket ornament. It is well worth the investment as it looks great, has wonderful balance and has all the potential to maintain and grow its collectible value.
For other Disney-themed Hallmark ornaments, please check out my reviews of:
2015 WALL-E
2014 Queen Elsa Frozen Limited Edition
2014 Bank On Hamm Toy Story ornament
2014 Jack's Peculiar Pet The Nightmare Before Christmas ornament
2014 The Daring Princess The Princess And The Frog ornament
2014 Rapunzel's Long Locks Tangled ornament
2014 The Little Mermaid 25th Anniversary ornament
2014 "This Is Halloween" The Nightmare Before Christmas ornament
2014 All Eyes On Belle Beauty And The Beast ornament
2014 Olaf Frozen ornament
2013 Under The Sea The Little Mermaid
2013 The Nightmare Before Christmas Jack’s Sleigh O’Scares
2013 Tiana's Party Dress The Princess And The Frog ornament
2013 Beautiful Belle Beauty And The Beast
2013 Fierce With A Frying Pan Tangled ornament
2013 Ariel's Big Dream The Little Mermaid ornament
2013 Merida The Archer Brave ornament
2012 The Circle Of Life The Lion King ornament
2012 Jack Sneaks A Peek The Nightmare Before Christmas ornament
2012 Monsters, Inc. ornament
2012 Merida Brave ornament
2012 It's All About The Hair Tangled ornament
2011 Rapunzel Tangled ornament
2011 CLU’s Light Cycle from Tron: Legacy ornament
2011 Up ornament
2011 A Snowy Surprise The Nightmare Before Christmas ornament
2011 Captain Jack Sparrow Pirates Of The Caribbean ornament
2010 Tron: Legacy Light Cycle ornament
2009 Welcome To Christmastown The Nightmare Before Christmas ornament
10/10
For other ornament reviews, please visit my Ornament Review Index Page for an organized listing!
© 2015 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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