Found a great use for the random 3D glasses in my Loot Crate. Obviously they intended me to do more than read the booklet with them.
The Doctor Who kitty was feeling a little Ten-ish tonight.
The Fear Crate:
It’s month 4 of my adventures into Loot Crating, and I have to say, this month’s theme didn’t really excite me. “Fear” seemed like an opening to a lot of Zombie stuff. That’s not to say I haven’t watch my share of “The Walking Dead,” but I wasn’t interested in a box of walkers.
My hesitation going into this box was probably heightened by my concern that maybe my Loot Crate experience had peaked my first month with the Villain Crate.
For those who are unfamiliar, Loot Crate is a subscription service. For about $20 a month, you receive a box of geeky goodness. I put my items into three different categories: His, Mine, and Someone Else’s.
His: The husband called “dibs”
Mine: I called dibs
Someone Else’s: That’s going in a Christmas gift
So let’s start.
Death By Kitten T-Shirt:
The Shirt: Oh my goodness, that shirt made all of my fears about this box vanish. Cats should certainly be feared, and this shirt is a reminder. This thing is hilarious, and oddly appropriate for someone whose cats tend to end up in her Loot Crate photos. I looked up the company, Super7, and found the shirt on their website for $30. This was absolutely worth it.
Conclusion: Ours. I’m cheating. I order the shirts in a men’s size that my husband and I are both comfortable wearing. We both said “THAT’S AWESOME. I guess you can have it…” so we’re to have to see who ends up wearing it.
How to Survive a Sharknado Book:
The Book: A fun play on the movies, this book does into have to fight and survive all sorts of natural events and highly realistic months, such as Ghost Sharks (Poltersharks), Piranhacondas and Dinonami.
Conclusion: Someone Else’s. The more I look at this book, the more amused I am. Despite never having watched the movies, I find it amusing because it doesn’t have much to do with the movies. The husband has declared that he has a plan for this book though, and since I claim more of the Loot, I gotta let him have this one.
Or I’ll just put it on the bookcase when he isn’t looking.
“Oh, Brother” Super Emo Friends Print:
The Print: At first I wasn’t sure if this was a postcard or a print because it’s wrapped in plastic and plopped on a supportive piece of cardboard, which I appreciate. Anything Super Emo Friends is generally entertaining. The art is adorable, which juxtaposes nicely with the death and violence (who doesn’t love that combination?).
Conclusion: Mine. Once again, the print is going to our Nerd Room.
We’re out of room in our nerd room. We either need a bigger house, or to expand the Nerd Room into the living room.
I’m okay with that.
Dead Rising Sledgesaw Hammer Pen:
The Pen: Okay, I didn’t realize it was a pen until I looked through the handy booklet that came with my box. That makes the nice little box for this even better. I don’t play Dead Rising and neither does the husband, but he knows enough that he was able to explain to me that the game allows players to combine items into weapons.
Clearly.
This thing is amusing though, and it didn’t feel as cheap in my hand as I expected.
Conclusion: Someone Else’s. Anyone a big Dead Rising fan who wants a pen? Anyone? Don’t get me wrong, it’s amusing, but I’m not exactly sticking that on my work desk.
The Walking Dead 132 Loot Crate Variant:
The Comic: In all likelihood, a lot of Looters are either going to be comic fans or Walking Dead fans (and a lot will be both). This is the same issue you could get at a comic shop, but with an alternate cover. I’m a little disappointed that it’s a zombie wearing a Loot Crate T-Shirt. I love looking at variant covers, but if I were a Walking Dead collector, I’m not sure this one would do it for me. Regardless, it’s a free comic. And a popular comic at that. Kudos to Loot Crate for getting it.
Conclusion: Someone Else’s. Okay, it’s going on eBay. I have a bunch of comics I need to sell, so it’ll get thrown online soon. It’s not that I don’t think it’s a good item. I’m not a Walking Dead collector (I think I have the first three trade paperbacks…), and I already have enough comics.
Everything Else:
The Stuff: I figured it would be easier to toss all the misc paper-y items here at the end. This month we got temporary tattoos, something pretending not to be a War Head, a “Smite Gift Card” (unlocks Thanatos and Jack the Reaper skin), and a pair of 3D glasses to read this month’s handy-dandy book (which isn’t weird at all…).
Conclusion: Who knows? There are always a few random things in the box that don’t add much value, but they’re fun. I guess. Temporary tattoos are always fun, and ’tis the season after all. The candy is kind of sad. It’s not necessary, and I feel like the box would almost be better off without it, because it’s small size makes you feel a little ripped off, even if you aren’t. The game code… um… okay. I’m not using that.
Final Thoughts:
Overall, I’m pretty happy with this box. It seems like it has a good range of items and that most people will find something they enjoy in it. Any time we get a t-shirt that we’ll use it feels like a win. The book is fun, the comic is a great idea, the pen is funny (even if I won’t use it). I was also relieved to have been wrong about the Walking Dead thing. Sure, they got it in a couple of times, but it was an amount that felt appropriate. Good job, Loot Crate.
But you know what I miss?
The magnet.
I know it’s a small thing, but I’d rather have a magnet than the misc. stuff at the end. Loot Crate has been making our fridge far more interesting, and I’m a little sad not to have something to add this month.
Still, I feel good at Loot Crate. The husband and I get excited when we get an alert saying it’s out for delivery, and it feeds our inner geeks.
Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have some comics to sell.
When I received my first Loot Crate in July, I was convinced that it would all be downhill from there. My Villain box really couldn’t have been better. So when they announced that the August Loot Crate would be Hero-themed, I was cautiously optimistic.
For those who are unfamiliar, Loot Crate is a subscription service. For about $20 a month, you receive a box of geeky goodness. I put my items into three different categories: His, Mine, and Someone Else’s.
His: The husband called “dibs”
Mine: I called dibs
Someone Else’s: That’s going in a Christmas gift
The Hero Crate
Exclusive Funko Pop Figure
Loot Crate had sent out promotional e-mails saying that this month would include an exclusive Funko Pop figure. I was strongly considering putting whatever figure arrived on eBay to try and recoup some of the funds we spent on the crate.
Until I opened it and saw that picture you see above.
Let’s take a look at Groot:
I have a soft spot for these vinyl figures that I can’t quite explain. I mean, they’re not the highest quality. The don’t do much.
Butthey’resofreakingcuteIlovethemwhat’swrongwithme?
When I left “Guardians of the Galaxy” I immediately wanted a Groot of some sort for my desk. Now I’m really glad I didn’t buy one.
If you’re wondering about the “exclusive” part, no, Groot isn’t exclusive to Loot Crate. You can easily find him online. What appears to be exclusive is the glow-in-the-dark hand. This isn’t exactly a feature I’d actively choose to spend extra money on, but I’m okay getting it in the crate.
Conclusion: Mine. And by “mine,” I mean “ours.” We’re trying desperately to find someplace in our living room that Groot will look natural, rather than adding him to our cluttered geek room.
TMNT Sunglasses
This is by far the biggest disappointment to me in the crate. I don’t have any children who would like some play sunglasses. I’m certainly not going to wear them. And to be truthful, I watched my fair share of Ninja Turtles as a kid, but I don’t really remember it.
Conclusion: Someone else’s. I’m planning on making a box of Loot Crate goods for my family’s white-elephant inspired Christmas exchange. This along with some other items will make a couple of my cousins exceptionally happy.
TMNT Figure
I figured we’d go ahead and finish off the Turtles. It’s probably worth noting that different people appear to have gotten different figures. The booklet features Raphael, while I received Donatello. They did something similar with the glasses. That’s definitely fun, and I have to admit the size of this guy makes him pretty adorable.
I mean scary. Very intimidating turtle.
I like this figure more than the sunglasses. This makes me feel like I didn’t waste money, even if I don’t particularly want it. It’s funny how our brains do that.
Conclusion: Someone else’s. In addition to the white elephant, we adopt a family at Christmas. This might go in a kid’s stocking.
Shoe Lightning Bolts
These things are freaking adorable. Seriously. I’m a DC nerd, so anything that reminds me of Flash is going to be a win, even if I don’t really have an opportunity to use these.
Maybe I’ll pretend to take up running (I pretend this a couple times of a year) and put them on my running shoes.
Conclusion: TBD. I’m cheating here because I don’t know. I’m way more amused by these than I should be. I’m also only 1 for 3 at this point in keeping these items in my home. Since we’re pretending, I’ll pretend I’m going to keep these, but probably put them in one of those Christmas boxes instead.
Sonic Air Fresher
Like my new Ninja Turtle gear, I got Sonic here by chance. There were also two Mega Man options. I’m glad I got Sonic. That speedy freak frequently stumped me as a kid (read: once when I bought a game for my DS in college).
Plus, who wants a plain ol’ jar-shaped, flower-shaped, non-video-game-character-shaped air freshener in their car?
Conclusion: Mine. Sonic is going to hang from my mirror with pride. Well, I’m going to hang him from my mirror with pride. I doubt he’ll be very proud of his new home. Who wants to spend their life in a Chevy?
Digital Downloads
Another fun idea. We got two of these. Each has a code for a free download of “Defense Grid: The Awakening.” Who doesn’t like a good tower defense game? It also has codes to download characters in a Doctor Who game. I will probably download the “free” game… but I’m afraid I’ll play said game, enjoy it a ton, and end up paying real money for stuff in it. So far I’ve avoided paying for anything in “Free” game apps, and I’d prefer not to lead myself down that path. That would be bad. The third item… okay, I have no idea what it is.
Conclusion: His and Mine. I love that the crate came with two of these. It’s really brilliant advertising, getting people to play games they otherwise might not. So why not give people 2?
Magnet
This is apparently a Deadpool reference. I noted when we got Deadpool socks in the Villain crate (cheaters), that I don’t know much about him.
Conclusion: His. This is already on the fridge. We’ve decided to keep all of the magnets, because they’re far more interesting than the round, black things that are currently holding up coupons on our fridge.
Final Thoughts
This crate was definitely fun, but it did not live up to last month. That’s okay. A subscription service is random, and I’m happy that we’ll have uses for everything in the box.
Well, almost everything. I’m still convinced that the sunglasses are useless.
The different items options for the glasses, TMNT figure, and air freshener were definitely entertaining. I’m not sure if this is normal or not (heck, maybe it happened last month and I didn’t notice), but I like that it means the crates vary.
Also, Groot Rules.
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