happy days.
everythingBlu have prompted some of the most opinionated comments on this site in recent years, but they are clearly improving in my view. i'm positive towards them in general and this release shows both how far they've come. and also a few areas where they can still improve. so, how does the final part of their Cornetto trilogy stack up? apologies, this is a beast of a post.
View media item 26504
for those interested in their
packaging... well, it's same as before.
still the only premium seller using foam pellets (dislike) and marking packages as fragile (like). the faux-leather eBlu matching colour logo is a nice touch, but i always forget about them immediately:
BluBox
the box packaging's improved slightly with an extra image on the base of the
j-card. it's this sort of minor additional touch that shows a bit of extra thought
:
on every collected release to date, the
Blu Box has been the stand out aspect. like lots above, i don't really like the colour
, but it does work better when not in isolation and lined up with the others. for me
Hot Fuzz was by far their best box - this is probably their weakest in comparison (but it's still quite good). the
robot blue goo aspects are the best, the
embossing insane as before. the back image is the weaker aspect for me - it's just a bit... ok. but overall, it's another great example of the mad levels of embossing seen on the previous 2 releases
:
one thing that for me still isn't right is the way their
slips fit. i know there's no movement when you move the box, i know they're in securely, but they just
look loose with that gap around the edge due to the way the cushioning in the box works. and they're still not sealed
:
the
Blu Box numbering card is simple, cleanly done, and properly embossed:
View media item 26477
Full Slip
the spot varnishing is excellent, especially the back: love the varying textures
they have used on the pub sign (similar to the variety on their
Scott Pilgrim release). on the front, the
glasses,
chairs and
necklace are all picked out with varnish, along with the
spine, nice work
:
each
numbering card for the two slips is a different image, and the same number as the BluBox - this is the one with the Full Slip:
i think their
cards have improved, also. plus
everything you get with the Full Slip:
Lenti Slip
if you haven't already, check out
@moon's
awesome shots of the lenti above. to add to his pics, i'd add that this is easily their best lenti, with
inner slip printing and a
heavily varnished back image, which reminds me of the shots from felow Ninja's of their
King Kong release. it doesn't really come up in the pics, but some of the stars are also picked out in spot varnish, which makes them twinkle (aww
):
lenti numbering card,
collector's cards and
everything you get with the lenti:
Steelbook
this is better than the preview shots suggested, and easily their best steelbook of the trilogy. yes, the juxtasposition of images is still a bit off, but the print quality is high, and it really scores with the back.
the effect they have here is quite a lot like the effect seen on
the zavvi release of Hereditary: embossing, varied texture. all of the pub signs have a different appearance:
the
artwork works well across front to back.
inside, you get the cards in a nice
embossed envelope and the
inner art is perfectly fine:
all in all, probably their most complete Cornetto release, albeit with my 3rd-ranked box:
View media item 26439
P.S. - Cornetto Trilogy
all lined up together, it reinforces the strange error that
Hot Fuzz is slightly larger than both
Shaun and
World's End. seems very odd they could not sort that properly. but it's great to finally have them all together:
View media item 26495few more shots:
many thanks, everythingBlu.