Background
Even though their Major League Baseball Lubies line gets a lot of our attention, Rocket USA continues to release the non-licensed animal plushies. For this review, we have a mishmash of Lubies: the very limited White Elephant, a Moose that'll help out with Minnesota tourism and the larger size gray Elephant.
The Facts
Miscellaneous Lubies
Series: Lubies
Manufacturer: Rocket USA
Artist: Joy Michel and Michael Perry
Material: Plush
Dimensions: 5” round (Large Elephant is 8” round)
Designs: Large Elephant; White Elephant; Welcome to Minnesota Moose
Edition Size: White Elephant limited to less than 150 pieces
Tag
The Lubies line features one of our favorite swing tag design. It shows the animal's habitat (or baseball stadium) on the front. And inside, there's an illustrated version of the animal and a “Did You Know?” fun fact. Although, with the Minnesota Moose, the fact is actually about the state of Minnesota.
Our Opinion
If the regular Lubies line is softball-size, the larger Elephant is more like a soccer ball. These will likely appeal to slightly bigger kids. They're a little less collectible because of their size, but you trade that for more “huggability” and an increased “fun factor”. The pattern is the same, so it literally looks like a blown up version of the 5” Elephant Lubie.
Speaking of a 5” Elephant Lubie, the White Elephant is one of the more limited edition Lubies out there. This one was randomly shipped to retailers, so you'll need to keep your eyes open for these. Wouldn't this be the prefect gift for your holiday White Elephant Gift Exchange?
Surprisingly, my favorite of the three is the Welcome to Minnesota Moose Lubie. I'm guessing that you'll probably find these in various spots around the Land of 10,000 Lakes. I've only been to the Minneapolis-St. Paul airport, but back in 5th grade I did a big report on the state of Minnesota (if I only had this Lubie, I would have aced it). Really...I just like the Minnesota logo across the chest.
OVERALL: I'm guessing that Lubies fans will be scurrying to their local retailers to see if they can snag one of the White Elephants. Best of luck. Personally, I like that Rocket USA is doing these limited edition variants for collectors. And while I would love to see some of the Major League Baseball Lubies in the 8” size, the larger line is more of a fun toy and less of a collectible.
You can pick one up at the following:
GlammaToys.com: 8" Elephant - $19.95 ea.
Miscellaneous Lubies Grades
Plush Quality: 9/10
Stitching: 8/10
Material: 9/10
Softness: 10/10
Packaging/Tag: 9/10
Cuteness: 9/10
Fun Factor: 9/10
Value: 9/10
8" Elephant: 9.0/10
White Elephant: 9.1/10
Welcome to Minnesota Moose: 9.2/10
