Background
From the land of Spudbottom, Puppet Heap Playthings brings to life a cast of characters that are based on the Puppet Heap Moving Picture Company short films, “Mother Hubbard” and “I Knew an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly”. Series 1 of plush puppets consists of seven different characters: Mother Hubbard, Butcher, Cabby, Constable, Doctor, Lucy, Toby. For this review, we'll be taking a look at the Constable and Toby.
A little background... The Constable maintains the rules - “we have rules for a reason” And Toby is Mother Hubbard's dog. He's often caught “sticking his nose into trouble”, oftentimes by the Constable.
The Facts
Constable and Toby
Series: Series 1 – Mother Hubbard, Among Others
Manufacturer: Puppet Heap Playthings
Material: Plush polyester fabric
Dimensions: Constable - 9” tall; Toby - 8” tall
Accessories: Toby includes a dog bone
Pricing: $19.99 - $24.99 ea.
Packaging
Each Puppet Heap puppet comes displayed in an open-front box. They're secured with plastic tags so that you can try out the puppet through a hole in the bottom. The packaging design features a box-wide picture of all of the Puppet Heap characters, with a detailed biography of the character you purchased on the back.
Our Opinion
Each Puppet Heap Playthings puppet comes with a unique code (under a scratch off panel) that unlocks a secret section of the Spudbottom website. You'll get some content exclusive to the figure you purchased, and – in the case of the Constable – get to watch an almost 3 minute short involving some of the characters. This adds a fun online interactive experience that's pretty unique.
The puppets are based on characters from Puppet Heap's short films, however, they're not all exact reproductions. For instance, the Constable in the short films has a sculpted face, while the Constable puppet is entirely made of fabric that's been printed upon. Toby the dog, though, looks very similar to the puppet used in the shorts. It has the same fur, a printed mouth and tongue, and that spiffy little tie.
For that, I think I like the Toby plush a little better than the Constable. However, I'd have to give the edge to the Constable character...as it looks like he jumped out of Mr. Rogers' Land of Make Believe. Get it? Basically, if they would have went with the sculpted face/hat/hands of the original Constable, I think most folks would have been willing to pay up to $30.00 for it.
As they are, I would have pegged these as being in the $15-$20 range. The production quality matches that price point. The transfer of the Constable's art onto the plush is well done (although there are some issue with the stitching on the back of the head lining up), and – as said before - Toby looks similar to the original.
You can purchase one at the following:
Panik's Toy Box: $24.99 each
Spudbottom.com: $19.99 each
