Sid Dickens Fall 2012 Preview Review

Hi again everyone. I've been about as motivated to type up this review as Sid Dickens was to design the Fall Collection for 2012 (Collection of Curiosities), which is to say that if I can do better than mail this review in, I will have one-upped Sid. But before we get to this collection's review here are the previous ones: Spring 2012, Fall 2011 and Spring 2011.



First, I'd like to hand out some bouquets and a massive brickbat to Sid Dickens Inc. for their new approach to advertising and PR. Their use of social media (Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest) is the best it's ever been. Ever. And I'm including the time they let the inmates run the asylum with the old message board they hosted, because, to be frank, they treated it and us like a nuisance rather than as customers ... so we lived up to expectations by being a gigantic group of morons. I don't know if they made a new hire or took a course or simply got their heads out of their collective asses, but their social media policy over the past six months has been exactly what it should be. They drop in to broadcast company information, but they stick around long enough to ask and answer questions. A big bouquet for everyone at Sid Inc. for making a believable and sustained effort to interact with us (former) customers.

Unfortunately, I've got a big brickbat for whoever dreamed up the bee and cat cryptic nonsense that they used to promote the release of the Fall Collection. It was awful. Please don't ever do it again. People only feigned an interest when the company started releasing snippets of blurred images, and especially when they offered a prize. Keep the latter two ideas, but get rid of the riddles and attempts to anthropomorphize tiles. Seriously.

This came in the collector's email on Friday, but was posted via Twitter on Thursday.

Finally, a big bouquet and a hug to the social media guru who accidentally tweeted the above image one day ahead of the scheduled release. I caught it before it was pulled and I retweeted it for all to see.

It was a relief to finally see the collection and it felt like the good old days with contraband leaked images. I miss those days and the wonderful tiles from back then. Sadly, the image itself was complete frustration at the tile design (I'm serious about the cabinet though - love to have one of those). Meaning that Sid Inc lied to me a month earlier when they promised I'd enjoy a few tiles from the new collection.

Looking back, I wish I'd managed to get Sid Inc to make a friendly wager, but let's get to the pictures, which is what you all came here to see!

T277 An Angel's Message

The colours in this transfer image seem quite vibrant. If you like this type of tile, and you aren't nauseated by the repetition, then run out and get this limited edition one of a million piece. Sadly, it has every possible Sid theme I dislike: birds, flowers and angelic/messianic children. I won't be getting it. I don't even want to see it in person.

T278 Dream Weave

Another Rorschach test, except in a lovely aqua colour. Reminds me a bit of the depiction of an orgasm in a drug-induced cartoon from the 70s. Oh wait, I gave away the answer to the test ... no one better copy me!

T279 Curio

This seems to be the nicest tile of the collection. Certainly the nicest Sid has done in a while. However, am I the only one who feels like this tile is an optical illusion? Every time I try to focus on the rosy cross I find that it just keeps getting further and further out of focus and all I can see is the bisque background. Maybe if it was bigger I'd like it more?

T280 Golden Apple

A fruit tile? Ugh. Not even the fact that the apple picture was photocopied over the frontispiece to Francis Hutcheson's A System of Moral Philosophy can save this tile. Someone call up the serpent and get him to deliver this ethical exploration to Eve.

T281 Ocean's Gift

Awwww a friend for the golden bee/wasp/hornet from the spring. Cute. Maybe for the next collection release the seahorse will be the one gargling riddles instead of the cat and the bee. This block is reasonably well executed, so for those of you who jumped on the golden animals boat it looks like Sid intends to fill your arc with all the critters. Comically, for those evolution deniers out there, it looks like your arc will be filled with fossils.

T282 Pierrot

There's still a bitter taste in my mouth from the disastrous PR campaign in which this kitty featured prominently. I will gladly contribute to the purchase of one cat tile, which should then be sent to every grandmother's home to eat bird tiles and dig up flower tiles. The world would be a better place. The cat could end its tour of block-owning homes with someone who is allergic to cats, but adores them nevertheless (my father-in-law might be a suitable candidate, since he loves seeing our cats in action from the safety of Skype and iFacetime). Under no circumstances should this tile enter the home of a cat hoarder, unless there's a one-in / one-out policy (i.e. one cat tile to replace each dead or dying cat).

T283 Royal Fern

Ahhh the obligatory iron that attempts to appease the collectors who clamour for a return of classic tiles. You see what happens when you get what you ask for people? The frustrating realisation that you no longer want what you thought you did. For those who missed the original irons and chunky tiles, this might be the best you'll see without paying an arm and a leg on eBay. Without bisque, this might even compare favourably to the older tiles. Maybe.

T284 Boy

The first of the tiles that imitate the knockoffs. My initial reaction was sheer disappointment, then someone asked me what was up with the Boy King block. The light bulb dimly lit over my head and I realised what this might be. Sid's penance by creating Jesus tiles has got to be verging on idolatry at this point. This makes me think that what Sid needs more than anything else is a group hug (followed closely by a major artistic intervention).

T285 First Kiss

I swear I've seen this exact tile in one of the imitator's lines. This has to be the most disappointing tile of this collection, perhaps ever. If, for some reason, you're drawn to this tile, you can get the knockoff (which came before this) for a lot less than Sid charges. It's a sad day when the knockoffs beat Sid to a design by 10+ years.

T286 The Healer

And here is the snake to deliver the apple. Pierrot will have to stand in for Eve, since the messiah/angel child's hands are full. I'm going to be honest, at the risk of having everyone mail me this tile as a cruel joke. Snakes creep me out. Seriously. They're slimy and scaly. They've got no legs. It's the only embodiment of the devil that scares me. But you know what's worse than snakes? A bisqued tile. The sooner the snake and bisquing are retired, the better.

Final Thoughts about the Curiosities
So there you have it. The Fall 2012 Collection. Seven of the new blocks are atrocities that Sid might have found in the dumpster of his competitors. One tile might appeal to people who only recently started collecting and wish they had more of the chunky and/or iron blocks. One might float the boats of the Noahs out there. One is an optical illusion that sometimes seems like a good tile, until you try to look closely and realise the image is fleeting. That makes 81 consecutive designs (by tile number, and not including the Zodiac collection or duplicate silvers) that I haven't even considered buying ... and 82 tiles since I actually liked one. If I ever like a tile again, I'll qualify as a born-again Blockhead.


Other News and Notes
Good riddance to all the retiring tiles for 2012. T202 has the distinction of being from the same collection when Sid last made something I liked. Sad, I know.

And now it's your turn. Chime in below, or via Twitter, Facebook, or Google+. I don't do Pinterest, but feel free to pin or whatever it is that you do to procrastinate on that site.