Minifigures, also and commonly known as Collectible Minifigures, is a theme introduced in May2010. Each series consists of 60 polybags per box, with unique and exclusive minifigures inside. A new series is released every three to four months, with sixteen new unique and exclusive minifigures in each series (excluding the 8909 Team GB Minifigures, which includes nine minifigures and also 71001 Minifigures Series 10 which includes 17). The minifigures can be based on movies, sports, fiction, history, or just average "a-day-in-the-life" professions. Each minifigure contains new elements in the form of accessories or uniquely printed body parts.
Thirteen regular series, and three special series, have been released to date. In addition to regular series, five sets based on the theme exist, 850458 VIP Top 5 Boxed Minifigures, 850449 Minifigure Beach Accessory Pack, 850791 LEGO Minifigure Birthday Set, 850486 Rock Band, and 850487 Halloween Accessory Set and possibly more to come. There have also been some other sets released affiliated with the theme. Most of these sets contain redesigned minifigures that have been already produced and some of them are completely new, different and exclusive.
The Collectible Minifigures, or Minifigures theme was introduced in May2010. The first sneak peek of the theme was in the April2010LEGO Club Magazine, which included a poster of the minifigures. Each series, except the 8909 Team GB Minifigures and 71001 Minifigures Series 10, contains sixteen minifigures drawn from a wide range of different settings: movies, sports, history, everyday life and almost any other source imaginable. They are intended to be collected and traded, and designed so interesting new minifigures could be acquired without purchasing an entire new set.
Every minifigure features high detail including special, often purpose-made, accessories and a black display base, with the exception of 8909 Team GB Minifigures, which has a white display case. The theme features new accessories such as maracas, microphones, skirts, guitars, and other new elements such as hair styles, hats, and helmets. Series 1 and 2 include some spare accessories, but subsequent releases discontinued this practice. Many of these elements have not been produced in any subsequent sets.
The minifigures are sold in individual opaque polybags, meant to prevent buyers from identifying the contents. One way you can attempt to get a minifigure and knowing what is inside is by feeling the packaging. In the boxes, there are common (5 per box), uncommon (4 per box) and rare (3 per box) minifigures. However, barcodes on the backs of the polybags of Series 1 and 2 can be used to identify the respective minifigure, and in response, Series 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7, 8909 Team GB Minifigures and 8 use a "bump code" along the bottom of a package instead. These bump codes are designed to be much more difficult to distinguish. Each polybag contains 5-11 elements including a minifigure, accessories, a display base, and an instruction/checklist booklet. Each series is only available for a limited time, which is usually three to four months before the next series is released and will be able to replace its predecessor.
There was also a special Olympics series for London 2012. It only featured nine figures and all of them have a special stand.
The plastic used for Collectable Minifigures is different than the plastic used in other sets. Instead of ABS plastic, it is a cheaper plastic imported from China. As a result, the parts can be difficult to separate or move, such as the hands and the head which become loose quickly.
Some minifigures are very similar to other or older minifigures from other themes, such as the Ninja (similar to Bonsai) or the Cowboy (similar to the minifigures from the Western theme).
In July 2011, an e-mail was sent to V.I.P. members telling them to vote for their favourite minifigure from Series 1-3. The top 5 picked were announced in January 2012, and were revealed to be the Elf, the Fisherman, The Space Villain, the Gorilla Suit Guy, and the Mummy. A set was created featuring the chosen 5 in it, it was released in 2012, available only for V.I.P. members. However, due to the lack of the Spartan, most likely the all-time most popular figure along with the Elf, it is likely that the minifigures included were decided based on quantity of left-over figures.
Series 7 has various throwbacks and references to other characters or sets. (The Elf says that he can track down Trolls, Evil Knight lists villains, saying he's worked for them, Galaxy Patrol says that he can withstand the Alien Clinger mind control, Hippie has a quote from a T-shirt on a previous set, and Swimming Champion says that Ocean King is her biggest fan.
Additional printing, such as back and arm printing, reversible heads, and so on, was not present in the first series, but has gradually become more common as the series progressed. The Olympics Series is the only series so far to have additional printing on every minifigure, as well as being the only series with white display bases with the Olympics' logo, the words "Team GB", and the Great Britain's team's logo. The minifigures that have this exceptional printing are:
Translation: LEGO collectable figures! 16 very special LEGO Minifigures for building, playing, collecting and trading... ...and what is your favorite figure?