LEGO Minifigures – The Simpsons Series (71005) Review

Last year, it was rumored that The LEGO Group was negotiating a licensing agreement with 20th Century Fox to produce sets based on The Simpsons animated cartoon series. Some people in the LEGO community applauded this move while others did not approve of this. Fast forward to this year, LEGO released The Simpsons House (71006) back in February and today, LEGO has released a line of LEGO Minifigures based on the popular TV series. The official name for this series is LEGO Minifigures – The Simpsons Series (71005).

There are 60 minifigures in a box and you can get three complete sets of minifigures from a sealed box. Each packet costs $3.99 and contains one random character although you can use our “feel guide” to help you find the character(s) you want. The packet is of a sky blue color with clouds which looks similar to the opening sequence of the show.

Homer Simpson

The first character in the minifigure series is Homer. Everybody knows who Homer is: father of the family who’s lazy and works as a safety inspector in Sector 7G at the Springfield Nuclear Power Plant. Homer comes with his normal attire with the white shirt and blue pants. His accessories include a printed 1×1 round stud donut piece and a 1×2 tile for his remote control.

Feel for 1×1 round stud and 1×2 flat tile.

Bart Simpson

Bart is the eldest child of the family and is also the most mischievous. This fan favorite is the second LEGO minifigure on the list and he looks great. He wears a solid red t-shirt with blue shorts. On the back of the torso and legs is printing for his slingshot. His accessory is a green skateboard although it looks fairly large compared to Bart’s height.

Feel for his skateboard and wheels.

Marge Simpson

Next up is Marge who is Homer’s wife and mother of the family. She usually hangs out at the house and tries to maintain order in the household. Her minifigure counterpart has her signature long blue hair which is attached to the rest of her head. Her torso is a green dress with a red pearl necklace printing. The rest of Marge’s dress is a green skirt material that fits over the legs. Her accessories include a pink purse and a copy of Donut Fancy magazine which is seen on the magazine rack at the grocery store in the opening sequence.

Feel for her hair piece.

Lisa Simpson

Lisa is the middle child of the family and is also the smartest of the bunch. She has a lot of hobbies including playing on her saxophone, riding horses, and concentrating on her studies although Bart sometimes gets in her way of doing those things. Lisa wears a red dress with a white pearl necklace with a red cloth skirt that fits over her legs. Her accessory is a saxophone which is similar to the Saxophone Player’s instrument from Series 11 but with a slightly different color.

Feel for her saxophone.

Maggie Simpson

Maggie is the youngest child in the Simpsons family. She is the least seen and heard from the family and is usually seen sucking on her pacifier. Maggie has a new torso design which creates an infant/baby look. Her accessory is a brown teddy bear that is very well worn.

Feel for her teddy bear.

Grampa Simpson

The last member of the Simpsons family in the Minifigure Series is Grampa. He lives in the Springfield Retirement Castle and is known for his random ramblings and telling stories that didn’t happen. He wears a beige-colored pullover with grey pants. His accessory is a 2×2 newspaper tile which reads “Old Man Yells at Clouds.” This headline is from the thirteenth episode of the thirteenth season where Grampa meets a woman named Zelda who moves into the retirement home.

Feel for his cone-ish head and the 2×2 tile.

Ned Flanders

Ned Flanders is the Simpsons’ religious neighbor who is a very kind-hearted person. He has a very distinct head with his glasses and mustache. Ned wears a pretty plain green sweater over a pink shirt with grey pants. His accessories include an “I Love South Paws” mug and a red toolbox labeled “Property of Ned Flanders.”

Feel for the mug.

Krusty the Clown

Here we have the clown host of the Simpsons kids’ favorite TV show, Krusty the Clown. His face is a paler skin tone than the other characters in the series. He as a very unique head piece with turqoise hair and red nose. He wears a pink shirt with a blue bowtie and green pants. He wears some white gloves which are pretty much white minifigure hands. Krusty’s accessory is a cream pie.

Feel for his head piece.

Milhouse Van Houten

Next up we have Bart’s best friend, Milhouse Van Houten. He has a very nerdy look with his thick red glasses. He has blue hair that is combed to the side and has a very large nose. Milhouse wears a lavender-colored shirt and red shorts. His accessory is a 2×2 tile copy of the Biclops comic book that was published by Lenscrafters which is about a bespectacled superhero.

Feel for the 2×2 tile and the nose on the head.

Ralph Wiggum

Ralph is the son of police Chief Wiggum and is an outcast from the rest of the kids. He has very erratic behavior and usually says some of the most memorable quotes in the show. The minifigure stays true to the cartoon with the strands on top of his head. Ralph’s torso shows him with a blue shirt and belt. He has short legs with brown pants. His accessory is a 2×2 tile which represents the “I Choo-Choo-Choose You” Valentines card that he gives to Lisa.

Feel for the 2×2 tile and his round head.

Apu Nahasapeemapetilon

Apu is the manager of the Kwik-E-Mart convenience store. His catchphrase is always, “Thank you, come again!” The minifigure has a brown head with fairly grey hair and a mustache. He wears a green sweater over a black shirt which is open to show three curled chest hairs. His legs are tan. His accessory is a Squishee cup.

Feel for the cup.

Nelson Muntz

Nelson is one of the main bullies at Springfield Elementary School. He used to bully Bart endlessly but has become one of his best friends. His head is fairly elongated with long brown hair. He wears a short-sleeved light pink shirt under a blue vest and blue shorts. His accessory is a baseball bat.

Feel for the baseball bat.

Itchy

Itchy is an anthropomorphic mouse and is one half of The Itchy & Scratchy Show. This show is unlike Tom and Jerry where the characters attempt to kill each other. He has a blue rubbery head with large ears and elongated face. He wears a short-sleeve orange vest. Itchy’s accessory is a club.

Feel for the club.

Scratchy

Scratchy is an anthropomorphic cat who tries to kill Itchy but most of the time, he usually ends up getting badly hurt or even killed. Like Itchy, Scratchy has a rubbery head which shows his cat face. One cool piece is his tail piece which sits between the torso and legs. His accessory is a wooden axe.

Feel for the axe and the curved tail.

Chief Wiggum

Chief Wiggum is the head of the Springfield Police Department and is fairly lazy and incompetent. He is also obese but the minifigure doesn’t really show it. The head is sculpted very well and includes his hat and blue hair. The torso and legs have a standard police uniform printing. Wiggum’s accessories include a loud hailer and short grey baton.

Feel for the loud hailer.

Mr. Burns

The last minifigure in The Simpsons Series is Mr. Burns. He is the owner of the Springfield Nuclear Power Plant and is one of the richest and most evil citizens of Springfield. He wears a greenish suit with a black tie. His accessories includes the mutated three-eyed orange fish, Blinky printed on a clear minifigure head which represents a fishbowl and the green inanimate carbon rod.

Feel for the minifigure head and rod.

Results

Overall, the LEGO Minifigures – The Simpsons Series (71005) was better than I expected. LEGO did a great job in getting the various details of the characters in the minifigure designs. It was good to see that these minifigures aren’t the same as the ones in the Simpsons House. LEGO stayed true to the cartoon series and the minifigures were well represented.

As mentioned before, the minifigures are now available at LEGO Brand Stores, Shop@Home, as well as other major retailers. These minifigures are a little easier to feel for than the normal Collectible Minifigures. Also, it may seem that a lot of people will be on the hunt for them in stores. I saw at least three new boxes get dismantled in less than 10 minutes while at the LEGO Store this morning. The only thing I really didn’t like about them was the increased price. It’s understandable that licensing will bump the price up but it may seem that future minifigures will have the same price point from now on.

In conclusion, pick these guys up if you can before stocks run out and let us know in the comments which character(s) are your favorite.

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