Saturday, January 25, 2020

Epona

The Strapless mold has been a very popular choice as a BreyerFest Special Run: the 2005 Live Show Prize Gray Sabino, one of the 2006 Early Bird Raffle Models, the 2007 Volunteer Model Bluegrass, 2009 Raffle Model Tiramisu, 2012 Ticket Special Bees Knees, 2015 Store Special Oration, 2018 Store Special Old Ironsides, and multiple appearances in the Live Auction.

Oh, and the #1245 Appaloosa Sport Horse was a Glossed Live Show Prize in 2006, too. I always forget about that one!

I don’t know if that makes her one of the most commonly used BreyerFest molds. I’ve never gotten around to doing a chart of that, though I probably should.

Of all those Special Runs, the one I covet the most – and that I have the least hope of ever acquiring, naturally – is the 2005 Gray Sabino. So the very similar Epona definitely caught my attention:


Good job Reeves for cropping the picture tight enough to surprise most of us with this reveal. I was kind of hoping for one of the pony molds, but that’s not because of any clues I saw in the photo, but because I want more ponies.

Currently I only have two Straplesses – the 2007 Volunteer Model Bluegrass, and the 2009 Pottery Barn release in Red Bay. I’ve thought about adding a couple more, but all the ones I prefer are out of my price range, most notably the FEI World Cup Competitor’s Gift in Light Dapple Gray.  Of all the various shades of gray she’s come in over the years, that one (in my opinion) is the prettiest!

So, in short, I’m definitely considering Epona.

Her name is rather obviously based on the Celtic Goddess Epona, and something I figured they’d be using somewhere in the lineup, though not necessarily with one of the first Special Runs out of the gate.

Naturally this is already a point of contention with some hobbyists: some of whom are disappointed that she doesn’t look exactly like the horse in Legends of Zelda(!); others who are upset that she not gray or white, since the Celtic Epona is usually depicted on (or as) a White or Gray mare; and finally, the usual contingent who complain (every year!) that such-and-such model doesn’t have anything to do with the theme and is therefore a dumb and/or illogical choice.

Fortunately the complainers seem to be in the minority this year. But the year is still young.

2 comments:

Jae said...

I think she is really pretty! If the first special run they are releasing is this nice, I'm excited to see what else they have in store for us.

Anonymous said...

By my count, this release of her puts her in third place. Silver has the most at 17, the ASB has 12, Strapless has 11, and Lady Phase has 10. I included Celebration models, SRs, prize models, early birds, raffles, volunteers, and contest models. I did not include the auction.