TSC special runs are here!

 Good news, readers! My Tractor Supply special runs (Merle and the Playful Pony Family set) arrived today, a day early! Huzzah! Let's take a look at Merle first: 

He's a bit darker than in the promo photos, and I was kind of hoping he'd be metallic, but doesn't really seem to be. 

It's a really handsome color nonetheless! 

His ears look bizarrely long in this photo. Must be the angle. 

Quality-wise he's pretty good; some small factory flaws, but nothing major. I'm glad I got this one, and super-glad he arrived this fast - looking at things last year, these models weren't arriving at people's houses until September or later and I was really worried I should have had them shipped to our new address. Fortunately it wasn't a problem! Now if my Adonis would show up...

I also received the Playful Pony Family! 

I didn't take the stallion out of the box because I'm hoping to resell him. 

I really like this pair! Attractive colors on both. 

I really like this color on her - she has a slight pearly sheen, but it's not nearly as noticeable as on the Stagecoach Surprises, for example. 

I was also pleasantly surprised to see the mare has tiny little eyewhites, though the stallion and foal don't. The eyes at at least neatly painted on all three, though- a lot of the recent Classics releases have had really sloppy eyes. 

Quality-wise they aren't bad - some minor flaws, like Merle, but nothing major. Guess I didn't take any separate photos of the foal, but he's pretty nice too. 

In other TSC-related news, I got a report that the TSC Flash (Applegate) isn't a flat bay, but rather has metallic undertones, so he's probably worth picking up if you're a Flash collector. In addition, the blue cow ornament may be too heavy to hang on a tree - probably cast in resin like the recent unicorn ornaments. Thanks to Sarah M.! 

That's all I have for today- maybe tomorrow we'll get an announcement about the Breyerfest leftovers sale! 

Seeing Doubles at Tractor Supply

 More exciting news, everyone - this year's TSC special runs have been revealed! They can be found here (toward the bottom of the page and on the next page). First off, one of the Traditionals - it's a new Dundee named Merle! 

What a stunning model! He's beautiful. 

Here's the other Traditonal: 

His name is Applegate, according to the box. Interesting to see he has his own blanket rather than being blue, like last year's Geronimo. I'll try not to talk about yet another bay Flash...

Next we have the Classics set: 

They're the "Playful Pony Family." I don't think the Classic Quarter Horse Stallion is, uh, a pony? I guess it doesn't matter since he's the same size as the Haflinger mare. 

Next, here's an 8-piece Stablemates box set:

Anything look familiar? Well, don't stop now, because we aren't done yet. More Horse Foal Surprise sets:

Huh, interesting. The gray Vanner is repeated from the blind bags. The palomino G2 Morgan is repeated in the box set and the Horse Foal Surprise sets, as is the Cassidy (finally a new release!) and the buckskin Indian Pony. What is going on? Are the foals repeated in the Horse Foal Surprise sets too? 

There are also new Unicorn Foal Surprise sets, but the Magnolia, Greyson, Croi and Fireheart models are all repeated from the current Sparkling Splendor Unicorn Set, and the Warmblood Mare and G2 Morgan are repeated from the Unicorn Treasures carded regular runs. 

Soooo....why are all these repeats happening all of a sudden? I can't say I'm interested in buying these unicorn family sets just to get the foals - I'll have to wait and see what they are first and hope they're on molds I don't collect. Maybe they're repeats as well? 

I hope this trend doesn't continue. Maybe they figured they could get away with it since these are all technically special runs for TSC and maybe the customer base doesn't overlap that much and no one would notice? But clearly the collectors would, so it's not like they're fooling anyone. Maybe it's a cost-saving measure...? Who knows.

There's also this other FFA-themed Stablemates set:

A lot of people are turned off by the words stamped on the sides of the horses. Maybe they're only on one side? It's kind of an odd design, but at least the colors aren't repeated from another release, eh? 

Lastly, it turns out horses aren't the only Breyer animals being shrunk - check out the FFA ornament! 

It's the Cow! I laughed when I saw it. I'm kind of tempted to get it, even though I'm not an animal collector. I'm sure I'll be in a TSC again in the near future, so maybe I'll pick one up!