Tuesday, February 9, 2016

It's the Brahma

Today’s (February 9th’s) sneak peek on Breyer’s BreyerFest Blog is rather obviously the Brahma Bull: http://www.breyerhorses.com/bf2016-blog

It’ll be another day or two before we see if they made some changes to the horns and ears, or just went with the mold as-is. Even if that’s the case, as we should have learned from the Croi Damsha SR Chanel last year, what we see in the prerelease promo pictures isn’t necessarily what we get.

This would be one of the rare occasions where I would actually welcome a change in the mold: the pendulous ears of the Indo-Brazilian (known within Brazil as the Indubrasil) are kinda adorable. In this case the changes would be limited in scope, as the ears and horns are separately molded anyway.

Last year we didn’t have a Special Run with a Gloss/Matte split, other than the Glosses within the Surprise SR. I think this release would be an excellent candidate for that treatment, especially since it would hearken back to the original Gray release, which came in both Gloss and Matte as well.

While the Matte variation of the Gray Brahma is much less common than the Gloss, it doesn’t necessarily command a significant amount of money or attention. If most hobbyists are going to spend big bucks on a Brahma, it’s going to be for one of the more distinctive variations of the Gloss, like the Chalky or the Black-humped.

The Brahma Bull is one of the few Bull molds where I have been able to acquire the full complement, other than the Chalky (with the prices Chalkies bring nowadays, I pin my hopes on a lucky flea market find there.) I’ll have to see the Sample at the Thursday night preview before I make the decision on the newest guy. (Droopy ears = signs point to yes!)

I’m trying, for real, to limit the spending this year, so I have to be very selective about who/what I choose to bring home.

So far most of this year’s SRs have been a little … predictable. A Desatado, a Hermosa and Corazon set, and now the Brahma. (Obvious as in if you Google “Brazilian Cattle”, the Indo-Brazilian is right up top.) They’re hinting that some of the SR mold selections may come as a surprise, on the Special Run home page:
BreyerFest 2016 is inspired by the international flair of the Rio Games. Following in the spirit of the Olympics, each of our Special Runs represent either a continent or the 'brio' of Rio! Models will be released periodically leading up to BreyerFest. Be sure to cheer on your favorite!
http://www.breyerhorses.com/bf2016-exclusive-models

Interesting. I’m also expecting/hoping for a Legionario at some point. I think he’d make a lovely selection for the Surprise SR, especially since he’s primarily come in solid colors, and Matte finishes. Lots of possibilities there! (Also, he’d be a good candidate for South America’s “Delegate”.)

Oh, and I’d like to point out that Reeves settles on most of these ideas sometime shortly after last year's BreyerFest. At this point in the game, all we're doing is making very good educated guesses, not actually influencing what gets made.

(Except maybe the glossy/matte thing. There might be some time yet to influence that decision.)

2 comments:

Leah said...

I have to say, the Brahma is pretty cute even though I'm not usually into the cattle. It's all about those droopy ears!

I'm surprised you haven't posted about Breyerwest yet! Are you attending? Any speculation about what kind of horses might show up there?

bubbasmom said...

I love the bull this year, but I'm a sucker for all the cattle. I won't get to go this year, either, sadly.

My problem is that I'm SO not a fan of that Bfest horse. It doesn't look a thing like the real horse, and it may be just me, but it looks sort of ewe-necked and parrot-mouthed. At any rate, I have to find a way to get one of those bulls :^)