Looking At: 2021 Matchbox Collectors Series Mix 1

Alright everyone, welcome to another edition of Looking At. Matchbox has recently created a new Collectors Series for us to collect, and I was able to find all four of the vehicles from the first mix. I'm not entirely sure if it is, but I'm assuming this new series is going to take the place of the Superfast. Similar to those, this Collectors Series features models with and without moving parts. It also features models with premium wheels from Mattel's other diecast brand. That was one of the things that I liked about the Superfast releases. So I'm glad to see a continued use of them. Anyway, I decided that I'd talk about the one without a moving part last. So with that said, let's begin.

The 2016 BMW I8 has finally made another appearance. I was starting to think they wouldn't release anymore of these. As you know, Matchbox has two I8 castings, and both of them haven't been seen since 2019. On a side note, I do hope they release more of the other one. 

I must say, the I8 looks fantastic finished in orange, and the Matchbox designers chose a great shade of it. At this point, I no longer have a favorite release of this particular casting. Blue might be my favorite color, but that doesn't mean I won't like, or prefer a car that's finished in a different color. And that just so happens to be the case with this release.

This release was given the same lace wheels as the first one. They are honestly not a bad looking wheel for this car, and I'm just happy to finally have another one of these. So I don't care too much for the wheel choice.

This release obviously has details on it's front and rear like the first one, however, there is one detail that I feel should have been different. "BMW I8" was placed within a white rectangle on it license plate section. Some might think this is fine, but I feel they should have made an actual plate instead. I don't know about you, but these little cars look cool with license plates. They look even cooler when the designers create vanity plates.

I'm sure you all will love this next release a whole lot. The 1963 Chevy C10 Pickup is the second one from this mix. Unlike the first three releases of this casting that are plain, this one features a theme. And it's one that's perfect for this kind of truck. The very popular Mooneyes theme, is what the designers chose to use. 

Now, unlike some of the other Mattel made Mooneyes releases, this one has more of a subtle appearance. So basically, it doesn't feature any type of deign. Instead, they chose to simply give it two decals. Personally, not every single Mooneyes themed release has to have stripes or scallops. So I feel there's nothing wrong with solely using the company's decals. 

Unlike the I8, this one was not given the same wheels as it's last premium release. For a classic truck like this, you could never go wrong with the RR5SPs, or as I like to call them, the Torq Thrust wheels.

The front and rear of this release were left plain like the other three releases of this truck. I know this isn't a major issue, but it would have been nice to finally see one with detailed headlights.

 At the end of the day, this release is going to be a favorite among many collectors. And it's definitely a great addition to any Mooneyes collection.  

Throughout the years, both of Mattel's diecast brands have given us many Land Rover vehicles to collect. And now, the 1965 Land Rover Gen II Pickup is making it's debut in this mix. Overall, this casting is pretty cool. It features opening doors, and a hood mounted spare. Aside from it's features, there's a specific reason as to why this debut release is awesome.

As is the case with many diecast releases, I took to the internet to see if this was based on anything. And as it turns out, this release is. The back half features a tampo detail that says Cool&vintage. Well... this is actually the name of a company in Lisbon, Portugal that restores older Land Rovers. From what I can gather, this release is a replica of one that was built by them in collaboration with Deus Ex Machina to haul motorcycles. 

I'm glad they based this debut release on the Cool&vintage X Deuse Ex Machina Land Rover. Doing so, gave us a very nice looking model without a design on it. As I've said in a past post, I like to have at least one plain release of my favorite vehicles, and this is that one. 

This release also appears to be the debut of some new Matchbox premium wheels. I not sure what they are called, since I'm not in the know. But what I do know, is that they are a good looking wheel for this casting.

It's always nice to see a diecast model with small additional details. So that brings me to the next I like about this release. The driver side of the front end, features a black diamond that's actually based on a sticker they have for sale.

I'm not being paid, but I figured I'd add a link to their shop anyway. https://www.coolnvintage.com/shop

Alright, as I said in the intro, I will talk about the one without moving parts last. That model is the 1969 BMW 2002. This is actually the first premium release of this casting, and it's the fourth one in total. I still very much like this casting due to it being a stock version of the car. As such, I don't have an issue with it being used in this series. 

The Matchbox designers created a livery that actually looks okay, and it's great how it's not the typical BMW Motorsports styled design. I don't have no problem with this decision, since there are currently two nice releases of this casting that are plain. I should also mention, that the design doesn't stop on the sides. Being a premium, means that the design can cover more of a models surface. On this release, that surface is the front and rear.

Now, I do have one minor issue with this release. Basically, I don't like how it features no additional sponsor decals. I know Hot Wheels has released their racing version of this car with some. But, since Matchbox was going for a racing look, I feel they should have at least added a tire sponsor. I would have even preferred fantasy decals. 

The wheels picked for this release are great, and I like how they decided to use ones that match the exterior color. There are many good looking exterior/wheel color combinations, and white with white wheels, is definitely one of them. 

Remember how I said these little cars look even cooler with vanity plates? Well... that's one of the things I like about this release. It'll be a little hard to read in my picture, but the plate on this release says "flash back."

After seeing these first four, I think we can all agree that this series is off to a good start. I, for one, can't wait to see what the future has in store for this series. 

So collectors, what do you think about these first four? Go ahead and let me know down in the comments section. Alright, that's all for this edition of Looking At. Until next time, thanks for reading, and happy collecting.