Rant Review: Farm to Table 1,000 Piece Jigsaw Puzzle (Hobbry, art by Rachel Bowen)

One of the first Hobbry puzzles I found earlier this year, this farmer's market scene is perfect for this time of year. There are all sorts of treats on offer, along with a selection of disgusting vegetables. (Squash, ugh!!!) They better sell quickly, before the animals get 'em! A host of cats, mice, birds, squirrels, and even a worm are hanging out in and around the food. Hope the health department doesn't hear about this place! On the left, you can see Aquaman's ass as he rides a bicycle out of the scene. Lots of pretty (until you have to put it together) foliage rounds out the scene.

The pieces have the familiar matte texture with paper backing. Interestingly, these pieces have a slightly looser fit than the other Hobbry puzzles I've done. The difference isn't massive-- the fit is still quite snug, and the finished puzzle can be tossed around and flipped like a pancake without crumbling-- but it's noticeable after doing so many of these in a short span of time. 

Rant Review: Glacier National Park 500 Piece Jigsaw Puzzle (Ravensburger, art by Greg Paprocki)

I grabbed this one off the stacks to do as a palette cleanser between fall-themed puzzles. I've enjoyed Paprocki's national parks art for years, so this was an easy impulse buy during a recent Target sale. The art is vibrant and colorful, and the whole thing went together quickly and easily. Even the foliage didn't present any real problems! The pieces themselves had some issues, however. A fair few had bent pegs right out of the box. In this age of shrinking packaging, I've seen this happen from puzzles being crammed into boxes that don't have quite enough space. That wasn't the cause in this case, as the box was a good bit larger than necessary for a puzzle this size. A couple of pieces were beginning to delaminate. It's rather annoying to see this sort of lax quality control from a company like Ravensburger. Apart from that, the pieces were the standard modern RB pieces. The requisite half pound of dust was included, and even a small reference poster! 

Rant Review: Stoop Season 500 Piece Jigsaw Puzzle (Hobbry, art by Jessie Thiesen)

Returning to my autumn themed puzzles, we have this Hobbry that I picked up last month. It's a very nice autumnal scene with blowing leaves, pumpkins, and cats, dogs, raccoons, squirrels, and blue jays galore! It was a joy to work on, and went together very easily. I left most of the foliage for last, as per usual, and it took me about as long as the rest of the puzzle. The pieces are the same matte textured paper-backed pieces with the very snug fit that people either love or hate. There is practically no dust, and the included reference pinup is printed on nice thick paper, but isn't much larger than the image on the box, so its use is limited. Thankfully, this puzzle is easy enough that a reference poster won't be necessary for most.

 

Rant Review: The Awakened Artifacts 1,000 Piece Jigsaw Puzzle (Magic Puzzle Company, art by Kathleen Fu)

It's been a few months since my last Magic Puzzle Company puzzle, so I took a detour from my fall puzzles to dive into this one. We have a fun museum scene overrun with all sorts of mayhem, and several notes notifying us of a party. As ever, there are seemingly endless fun scenes and details. Some dislike puzzle art that is super busy, but I love it because there's something interesting to look at no matter what part of the puzzle you're working on! This one may be my favorite MPC puzzle yet, but I admit that I feel that way about every one I put together. some of my favorite bits are the mice and dog working on a puzzle, the mouse using a mystic staff to make a dog and other mice walk like Egyptians, and the two dogs on a date. 

Shifting the three sections, opening the mystery envelope, and assembling the final pieces reveals that the party is for a dinosaur, possibly an Allosaurus. (Too many fingers to be a T-Rex.) The attendees make it clear why so many of the museum's exhibits have been smashed open or abandoned! It's a very fun scene, and the reveal is well worth it. 

Thick and sturdy, with a very nice matte finish, these remain my favorite puzzle pieces to work with. The fit is not as loose as earlier MPC puzzles I've done. I was able to fold sections and lift them back into the envelope during disassembly, which simply wasn't possible with The Mystic Maze, for example. The loose fit was my only gripe with these puzzles, so this is a most welcome change! The puzzle doesn't meet its claim of no dust, but there isn't much of it. 

As usual, two posters are included in case you have a friend or family member to work on the puzzle with you, and there's a sheet with a list of things to find. I found most of these while putting the puzzle together, with only the third snoozing dog eluding me until I went looking for it. I nearly missed a nice black and metallic gold sticker in the nested envelopes that house the mystery pieces, only finding it when I was packing everything back up. It's a nice little bonus, so I'm glad I finally noticed it! 

 

Rant Review: Fall is in the Air 500 Piece Jigsaw Puzzle (Galison, art by Abbey Jacobs)

For my first post-Halloween puzzle, I decided to take it easy with a 500 piece Galison I got back in September, when I was so desperate for some actual autumn that I'd take it any way I could get it, even in puzzle form! It's a nice cozy scene, with the roaring fireplace and the view of a crisp autumn evening through the window. The pumpkins and flower arrangements add nice seasonal touches, which brings to mind how I never decorate for autumn. Not sure why I don't, as I have plenty of Halloween and Xmas decorations, but I just never feel an urge to do anything special for autumn. I admit that some of the color choices in the art kept me from enjoying it as much as I would have liked. There are many dull yellows, greens, and browns that just aren't very appealing to me. I really don't know how that didn't jump out at me before I ordered it! Still, I like the scene enough that I put it together in one sitting. There are really no challenging areas, though I did take a few minutes to get my head around the pattern on that damn quilt. Still, it's not a large area, and didn't take long once I had all the pieces for it.

The pieces are the usual thin, sturdy, paper-backed Galison pieces. These are glossy, rather than the nice matte finish I enjoyed on a couple of other recent Galisons. They snap together well, had no false fits, very little dust, and the fit is snug enough to allow me to easily lift the completed puzzle and flip it around a few times without breaking up. A good start to my November puzzling!

Rant Review: Wicked & Whimsical 1,000 Piece Jigsaw Puzzle (Werkshoppe, art by Claire Wilson)

Getting in just under the wire, my final Halloween puzzle for the year is my first from Werkshoppe. I see these pretty frequently in TJ Maxx and Home Goods, but the ones I typically see don't appeal to me too much. I liked this one enough to grab it when I saw it a couple of months ago, despite already having a puzzle featuring a Halloween shop. This was partly motivated by my wanting to try the brand, of course. I like the vivid, colorful art, and while parts of it are quite busy, there's enough variation in color and textures to keep it from really being difficult. I made it tougher than it had to be by not bothering to sort it beforehand. Just wasn't in the mood for it! I just went through a chunk of my usual Simpsons Treehouse of Horror marathon and plugged away at it. 

The pieces are on thick brown board, with a pretty standard feel. Some areas, such as the ghosts, are embossed. This is a nice touch that adds some visual and tactile pizazz. The pieces generally fit well, though there were a few times where a piece had to be forced into place. This didn't occur often enough to be a real issue. Comparing the quality to Werkshoppe's storemate Hobbry, I find that I very much prefer the feel and texture of Hobbry's pieces, but I have no doubt that the Werkshoppe will hold up better over time. While I haven't run into the problems with disassembly many have with Hobbry, seeing how widespread it is would make me hesitant to buy one secondhand. I would have no such reservations about picking up a secondhand Werkshoppe. The included poster is large enough to actually be of use, which is always a plus!

Rant Review: Halloween Adventure 500 Piece Jigsaw Puzzle (Boardwalk, art by Eden Lance)

This is my first Boardwalk puzzle. It's been on my wishlist since last year, but I never saw it for a price I liked until I finally made a Vinted account last week. Seeing one listed for $5 meant an instant purchase! It arrived quickly enough to sit next to my board while I worked my last two puzzles. I love the fun Halloween scene. The pieces are fairly thick blue board with a nice matte finish. They feel good in the hand and snap together well. I only had one false fit in the entire puzzle, and it was quickly sussed out. The pieces have Ravensburger level dust, however. I didn't think to sift them before starting, so I wound up with quite a bit of dust on my board. The Dowdle-style box with magnetic flap and slipcover make for a nice presentation, and a big reference poster and resealable bag complete the package. I really enjoyed putting this together, and I'm sure I'll be doing another Boardwalk in the near future. I'll just make sure I sift out the dust first next time!

 

Rant Review: Masters of the Universe: Battle in the Clouds 200 Piece Jigsaw Puzzle (Golden, art by Fred Carillo, 1984)

Taking a break from Halloween puzzles, I tackled this untitled vintage MOTU puzzle. (I cribbed a title from one of my favorite vintage MOTU minicomics that seemed appropriate.) Skeletor is taking his Pteranodon out for some fresh air when that jerk He-Man shows up in his Wind Raider and starts blasting. Unlike many of the other contemporary puzzles I've done, this one has both in their battle armor. The battle armor He-Man and Skeletor figures were hugely popular, and largely supplanted the original version in much of the marketing and packaging art. While the Wind Raider was well-established as one of the most iconic MOTU vehicles by this point, there were no flying vehicles branded as evil. (The Fright Fighter wouldn't come for another year or two.) A flying creature had to be invented for this aerial battle scene, and a Pteranodon fits the bill as well as anything else. (Interestingly, Pterosaurs would officially become part of MOTU toylines on two separate occasions. Small numbers of the heroic Turbodactyl trickled into stores at the tail end of the vintage MOTU line, and the mechanical Terrordactyl was one of the first mounts released for the 2002 revival. They were frequently seen on the tie-in animated show.) 

The art is by frequent MOTU illustrator Fred Carillo. We've seen his art on a few of these puzzles. Someone in production saw fit to remove his signature from the art on the box for some reason, but at least it's still present on the actual puzzle. This scene isn't quite as engaging as some of the other MOTU puzzles I've done, but Carillo imbues the scene with a nice sense of energy that keeps it interesting. The bright colors help, too. These are the same thin, loose-fitting pieces this entire line has had. I only have one vintage MOTU puzzle left, and it's a special one. (Anyone who knows anything about these puzzles will immediately guess what it is.) I'll try to put off doing it until after the holidays, but we'll see. 

 

Rant Review: Monster Mansion 500 Piece Jigsaw Puzzle (Mudpuppy/Galison, art by Stephanie Birdsong)

I picked this up on sale early this year and put it on the pile with my other Halloween-friendly puzzles. I did Welcome to Spooky Town by the same artist last year, and I enjoyed this one even more. It's a bit tougher than that one, but still well on the easy side. I focused on the rooms of the house first, treating each as a mini-puzzle. They went together pretty quickly, then I filled in the gaps between them. The tree and sky were left for last, and while tougher than the rest of the puzzle, the striations on the tree and different colored sections of the sky kept these areas from being tedious. 

My favorite little vignettes are the cats holding a seance, legally-distinct Wednesday Addams feeding treats to the ginger cousin the Kong family doesn't talk about, and the demonic cat/squirrel/Chupacabra creature barfing up slime on the front steps.   

The pieces don't have the nice matte texture I enjoyed on my last two Galisons. These are the more standard slightly glossy pieces, which are still okay. The fit was good, I experienced no false fits, and there was very little puzzle dust. I have a busy week ahead, but I'm hoping to find time to knock out two more Halloween puzzles before the 31st rolls around. 

Rant Review: Halloween Mini Jigsaw Puzzles, 40 pieces each (Made for Retail, artist uncredited)

I picked up this trio of mini puzzles at Target for $1 each a couple of weeks back. I expected these to have the same cut as the Xmas mini puzzles I got at Target last year, but they are different. After going back to check, these also have ten fewer pieces. Apart from that, piece quality is the same, with thin, glossy pieces. The elongated piece shapes are a bit more interesting than standard "H" cut puzzles. False fits are the name of the game, but the small size and colorful art make it very easy to avoid them. Nobody is expecting top-tier quality from dirt cheap puzzles like these, and they're perfectly acceptable for the price. I think the witch's cauldron is my favorite of the three, as the other two lean a bit more cutesy than I like.

Rant Review: Puzzle Within a Puzzle: Seeing Double 100 Piece Jigsaw Puzzle (Great American Puzzle Factory, art by John Speirs, 1991)

This was a thrift store find during the seemingly endless summer, which I dutifully saved for a more appropriate time. At a mere hundred pieces, it went together quickly. I remember seeing this art style quite a lot back in the late '80s and early '90s, and I enjoyed taking it all in as I put it together. Once the puzzle is done, there are fourteen differences to find between the two halves. Can you find them all? The solution is included in case you need a bit of help. 

The pieces are thin, sturdy cardboard, and have withstood the past few decades without damage apart from a minor crease in one piece. The pieces snap together well, and the completed puzzle easily passes the pickup test. The price sticker reveals that it originally cost $3.99 at K&B, so I got quite a bargain getting it for a dollar!

 

Rant Review: Spell Book Society 1,000 Piece Jigsaw Puzzle (Hobbry, art by Rachel Joanis)

With my puzzling time a bit more limited recently, I wanted to tackle something a bit easier than that Nosferatu puzzle I finished last week. I had just come across this one at TJ Maxx, and straight onto the board it went! It's a bit tougher than it may look, but not really difficult. I worked on the women and the items on the floor first, then began filling in the rug to tie the room together. From there, the fireplace, mantel, and window came together pretty quickly. (Along the way, I discovered that what had looked like a swaddled cat leaning against the fireplace on the box art was actually a teapot hovering in the air to fill a teacup! That made a bit more sense.) I next did the hovering candles and scrolls, leaving the bookshelves and spiral staircase for last. That all went together far more easily than expected. This was a fun puzzle that took me far too long simply because I had to go days at a time without working on it.

The piece quality is unchanged from the other Hobbry puzzles I've done. People either love 'em or hate 'em, and I fall firmly into the former camp. I enjoy the feel of their pieces and the snug fits, and have not encountered the difficulties disassembling the puzzles without causing damage that some have experienced. I have to jostle it around a bit more to get the pieces to separate, but any damage that may result is so minor that I have yet to notice any. I'll be tackling some smaller Halloween-themed puzzles next to get them done before the day is upon us!