Minimates - A complete history?

[Smashmaster12]

Hi all,

Hope yall have been doing okay. For the past few months I’ve had a video project I wanted to cook up and wasn’t sure about starting it until the news broke about DST getting dissolved. 

I used to do Minimates reviews as like, my main hobby. The brand was my entire life from when I was in middle school through the end of college. I’ve been collecting since 2008. Now I sit here, about to turn 30, I really want to do a video looking back at the history of Minimates and sort of the rise and fall of the brand in general. Video essays are huge right now and something I’ve wanted to do is slowly move my channel from my weekly toy videos to more scripted content  

I know Minimates is a *really* obscure toyline all things considered, so I’m curious - does anyone have a vague history on the line? Not like release dates, but more events that happened? Announcements, licenses that were announced but never happened (stuff like Godfather, Beverly Hills cop, the playsets), convention gimmicks (stuff like the hunt, the MMMV meetup), any big moments the line had in the public eye, stuff like that. Stories I can use to weave a timeline of where things started to today. Unfortunately most if not all of the brand’s story is probably within the walls of this forum which is why I ask. 

The video is mostly going to be my personal story with the brand and how it grew with me but I want to know: How have Minimates shaped you? Even if you don’t have insight on the lore of the line, I’d love to hear why Minimates mattered to you.

Thanks all.

-Seline

Edited June 12 by Smashmaster12

[buttheadsmate]

Great idea , go for it .

 

 

 

 

[nandoninny]

probably want to start with Digger/art asylum. 

from what digger says he moved to Asia and when he came back Art Asylum was owned by diamond and became DST and he was no longer part of it.  but early minimates were from them.  

i don't know when the change to DST happened but i think i still have some packaged early Art Asylum stuff (plus the first minimate promo they did)

[DSTZach]

Not sure if Nelson X Asencio designed the very first Minimates (Trek, CTHD, Rock), but i believe he designed the first Marvel ones. Might be interesting to get his story.  I can see a series of interviews with him, Barry Bradfield, Chuck Terceira and even Digger being very enlightening. 

[buttheadsmate]

17 hours ago, buttheadsmate said:

Great idea , go for it .

On the other hand please beware of the darker side of history 

 

Minimates mattered to me : 

On 5/17/2021 at 8:08 AM, buttheadsmate said:

Mute button !  All this time &.....who knew ?   

I'm smiling broadly as I recall several ...er..one or two incidents where I have lost my patience with Minimates, DST officials, fellow-members being pricks , fellow-members implying that I might be a prick(the very thought ?),other pricks * , Moderators (....obviously not TBT), the weather , unpainted FF characters , flavour of the day Gold promos, *Digger, occasionally myself & just about anything I fancy moaning about.

I've actually spent hours typing (with my regulatory 2 fingers),my generally, venomously witty ,often hilariously sarcastic, responses to the occasionally half-witted numpty who has rattled my cage with some inane banal drivel ................only to find it all gone AWOL the following day .  Deleted from history .   

My point ?  I wouldn't change a thing .   

buttheadsmute ? 

......& Chuck (his 12th &  last post on this forum) :

On 7/24/2013 at 12:56 AM, DSTchuck said:

Perhaps next year I will stay home from SDCC , and spend the time with my family, or do what other companies directors do and not spend any time at our booth rather than spend 12 hour days there doing my best in a long week to answer everyones questions. I certainly find that preferable to having 4 minute conversations taken out of context and splashed on forums. Or perhaps the one asking the question could spend more time with me rather than rush off to another booth and have fun speculating. I've been doing this line with my team for over 10 years now, all the others have come and for the most part gone. Absolutely we have a great team and lots of great fans but I must be doing something right. I am not perfect. Isn't it always the companies fault not the lines fault from the fans pov? Next year I will consider long and hard having free discussions with fans and maybe a few of them would prefer to talk at the next SDCC with Mike Horn about Palz or Randy about the NECA block figures. Thanks to all that came to Taste on Wed. all were invited and I was there until 12:30 talking to any fans that came over and thank to anyone that spent time at our booth or panels or took the time out to say Hi...

That particular post came from an extremely interesting thread (SDCC 2013 -Discussion ) which, for me, was a watershed moment .

Edited June 12 by buttheadsmate

[Trekker 42]

And the lighter side. The wishlisting and the customizing. Luke’s accessories  

When talking Marvel comic minimates it may well be better to list the major Marvel characters who were not made into a Minimate than trying to list all the ones who were. It is one of the most complete toylines of the Marvel universe after all. Throw in movie versions and animated series versions and you fill even more gaps (Ms Marvel, The Destroyer, and Man Thing come to mind with that)

I think of Superman’s words upon the death of the Martian Manhunter during Final Crisis here and now:

”we‘ll all miss them. And pray for a resurrection.”

[buttheadsmate]

Of course the lighter side............

On 7/22/2013 at 7:56 PM, winkerbean said:

http://i1152.photobucket.com/albums/p482/pryker1701/picsay-1374522897_zpsf0f02810.jpg

Same thread (SDCC 2013) .         

 

[cylonchaney]

I think you'd want to make mention of the Smaug of collectors (though much more generous with his hoard) and his love of puns that influences the community to this day.

[BuffaloDelorean]

Nelson Asencio says a bit about their development here:

"PREVIEWSworld: With Art Asylum you designed the Minimates body that's been used in countless characters and licenses. Tell us about that creation…

Nelson X. Asencio: If I remember correctly, it was around the year 2000. We were in the process of developing our IPs after we got some investors onboard. At the time, mini-figures such as Medicom’s Kubricks were hot, and one of the things we wanted to do was a “pre-school” line, so we created a few different items. We started our research and picked up as many different figures we could find on the market at that time. I sat down with the guys in the 2-D department and started brainstorming.

Also, in the early stages, we were using “Mimix” as a working title. One thing I knew was that I wanted it to be fully articulated since these mini-figures mainly had the basic five points of articulation. So, we hit the drawing board and started designing Minimates, playing with different points of articulations, possible ball joints, and also playing with proportions! Eventually, we came up with the body which has been used ever since!"

Edited June 12 by BuffaloDelorean

[Padrino]

7 hours ago, buttheadsmate said:

On the other hand please beware of the darker side of history 

 

Minimates mattered to me : 

......& Chuck (his 12th &  last post on this forum) :

That particular post came from an extremely interesting thread (SDCC 2013 -Discussion ) which, for me, was a watershed moment .

I had no idea NECA made a block figure line.  Was this pre-Ad Populum? I'm hoping that this may have a positive impact on minimate's future.

[buttheadsmate]

52 minutes ago, Padrino said:

I had no idea NECA made a block figure line.  Was this pre-Ad Populum? I'm hoping that this may have a positive impact on minimate's future.

I am pretty sure that DSTChuck was being ironic !  Palz & Block Buddies were defunct by 2013 . Neca produced just one Block Buddies set (as far as I know ) & that was NBX .

[Padrino]

12 minutes ago, buttheadsmate said:

I am pretty sure that DSTChuck was being ironic !  Palz & Block Buddies were defunct by 2013 . Neca produced just one Block Buddies set (as far as I know ) & that was NBX .

 

Oh the irony was very apparent in that exchange. I missed those DSTChuck conversations. I joined the following year. I don't think he was as active at that time.

It looks like NECA also made these, again which I've never seen before:

https://business.walmart.com/ip/NECA-Pulp-Fiction-Geomes-Overdose-Mini-Figure-4-Pack/47625826

I do miss Palz though. Their Buffy series was great. 

[Shanester]

Its been a wild ride.  Mind blowing designs, feast/famine, failed attempts, accidental grails, bombshells, duds, extremely shady stuff, complete rip offs and hard lessons. But I still dig the heck out of these figures. I will always be grateful that some people no longer have ANY control over the medium and this is no veiled stab at DST.  DST actually gave us stuff we would never have gotten, otherwise.

[Smashmaster12]

Thank you everyone for the insight and suggestions! I really want to do my best to show people just how special these toys were.

20 hours ago, DSTZach said:

Not sure if Nelson X Asencio designed the very first Minimates (Trek, CTHD, Rock), but i believe he designed the first Marvel ones. Might be interesting to get his story.  I can see a series of interviews with him, Barry Bradfield, Chuck Terceira and even Digger being very enlightening. 

This is an incredible idea, I didn't even think of contacting people behind the scenes. I better dust off the old LinkedIn or something...Thank you, Zach! At some point I'd love to pick your brain about your story with the line and company. 

[luke314pi]

Minijeff had a multi part Minimate history series on his blog a long time ago, but that blog is no longer online. Maybe he has copies of it saved somewhere? I remember it including some interviews.