The Good: Good detail, Perfect balance, Not overly expensive
The Bad: None that I can find!
The Basics: Before the final The Hunger Games film is released, Hallmark drops the Mockingjay ornament, which is one of the year's perfect offerings.
As the Hunger Games franchise reaches its conclusion with Mockingjay, Part 2 in theaters this month, the hype about the franchise is reaching what is likely to be its final peak. Part of the hype is the merchandising surrounding the franchise and Hallmark returns to the franchise this year with the Mockingjay ornament.
For those unfamiliar with the franchise, Mockingjay is the pin in The Hunger Games (reviewed here!) and Catching Fire (reviewed here!) that Katniss Everdeen is given to wear as a symbol of her District when going to the Hunger Games as a Tribute. The tiny pin is worn by Katniss while she is in the Games. She has become the Mockingjay, symbolically, in Panem and the pin and image is where the symbology was based.
Once again fans of The Hunger Games have an ornament to be excited about. The 2015 Mockingjay ornament is perfect!
Basics
The "Mockingjay" ornament is a very simple ornament of the recognizable artifact made of solid, but surprisingly light, metal. The ornament, released in 2015, is an entirely accurate ornament which is impressive for its likeness to the prop, both in coloring and sculpt, if not its overlarge scale. The "Mockingjay" is a solid ornament that looks just like the actual prop from the movies, save that it is quite a bit bigger than the one in the film. Measuring 1" thick, 3 3/4" wide and 3 3/4" tall, "Mockingjay" has was part of the October Release Weekend and bore an original issue price of $14.95.
The Hallmark "Mockingjay" ornament is the simple bird on its own, without the ring that was part of the 2013 Mockingjay limited edition ornament (reviewed here!). It has all of the appropriate lines of texture on the front, most notably the wings and a thin line for the beak.
The Hallmark sculptors capture the Mockingjay pin symbol perfectly, though it is large. The bronze color of the Mockingjay looks quite good and captures the look of the symbol from the films amazingly well.
Features
As a Hallmark Keepsake ornament, "Mockingjay" could have a function like a sound chip or light effect, but does not. This is just an ornament, so it has both simplicity and durability going for its long term prospects. For its size, the ornament is not really overpriced, especially for the quality of the figure.
Balance
As with all ornaments, the intent of the Hallmark Keepsake "Mockingjay" ornament is to be hung on a Christmas Tree. And for those creating the ultimate fantasy Christmas Tree, the "Mockingjay" ornament is a great addition, but hardly an essential one. The ornament has a steel hook loop that comes out of the top of the head of the bird. Hung from there with a standard Christmas tree hook, this is a remarkably stable ornament that only sways when it (or the tree) is bumped. The "Mockingjay" ornament is perfectly balanced.
Collectibility
Hallmark Keepsake began delving into the collectibles market in 1991 with Star Trek when it introduced the exceptionally original U.S.S. Enterprise ornament (reviewed here!). Since then, they have delved into virtually every other collectible franchise in an attempt to cash in on every major license. The The Hunger Games series started a few years ago, but this year's Mockingjay ornament is not a limited edition one, like the prior release. Given the relative scarcity of The Hunger Games ornaments, it is likely this one will appreciate in value, though it is hard to bet the common-release ornament with a higher original price will appreciate fast or quite a bit.
Overview
Fans of The Hunger Games are likely to discover the easily-available Mockingjay ornament to be a wonderful addition to their collections!
For other fantasy ornaments, please check out my reviews of:
2015 "Yo, Rugman!" Aladdin ornament
2015 Smaug Awakens The Hobbit ornament
2015 Platform 9 3/4 Harry Potter ornament
10/10
For other ornament reviews, please visit my Ornament Review Index Page for an organized listing of all the ornaments I have reviewed!
© 2015 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
| | |
No comments:
Post a Comment