This model was produced in 2011. He's item #712043 and was part of a run of 150. He was produced on the ever-popular Huckleberry Bey mold.
Interestingly, this was the first web special model I was able to purchase after my return to the hobby in mid-2010. In those days, Breyer used Shopatron (now known as Kibo, apparently) for product sales. As such, the current lottery system hadn't yet been implemented, and the company had been experimenting with different distribution methods with each web special. Be Mine was offered in a first-come, first-serve method, which was and still is controversial because, well, not everyone has high-speed Internet. Fortunately, my Internet speed was fast enough to purchase one of these babies, and he's been part of my collection ever since (for the record, I'm a fan of the lottery system, as it seems to be the most fair way to distribute limited models).
2011 was a year of web special decorators; 4 out of 5 releases were decorators of some sort. As the first web special of the year, this one was a Valentine's Day-inspired design; he's red roan, but with heart-shaped dapples and star. As an aside, I really like this version of red roan (as Breyer alway seems to be switching up the roan paint job); he might not be the most realistic, but he looks like delicious candy. I love candy, so this guy is right up my alley!
Huck, of course, is usually a very popular mold with collectors, and I wouldn't be completely surprised to see him get used at this year's Breyerfest. He last appeared as a special run in 2015 and has been a tent SR at least twice prior to that, so I doubt he'd be in the special run line. But maybe he'll be a prize or raffle model? Or perhaps a store special? Doubtful, since there are already two of them, but they've done three before. Or maybe he'll get another web special release this year? I'd be okay with that.
That's all I have for today, but tune in next week for another Valentine-themed Featured Model!
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