Star Trek TNG Mini-Figures


While I've been obsessively collecting the Playmates Star Trek: The Next Generation action figure line, I've avoided the accessories. Each figure came with a bunch of accessories of varying relevance, and it would be insanity not only try to collect all the accessories, but also to try to match up the accessories with the figures. However, I would be remiss if I don't include at least some coverage of the "mini-figures", that is, accessories that are small pack-in figures themselves. I'm not sure if I have all of the mini-figures that are relevant to TNG since I'm willfully ignorant of Trek accessories, but here's what I have so far.


Klingon Targ

Included With: Gowron (Series 1)
Episode: Where No One Has Gone Before (Season 1)


The only targ shown in TNG was in Where No One Has Gone Before, the episode in which Worf's thoughts of his childhood pet are manifested into reality. The targ in the episode was really just a wild boar with a row of spikes on its back and what looked like a fake fur coat. As such, this figure works for what it is (even if it is more than a bit abstracted)... although since it was only shown as Worf's targ, it probably should have come with him instead of Gowron.


Betazoid Gift Box

Included With: Lwaxana Troi (Series 4)
Episode: Haven (Season 1)


The Betazoid gift box was presented as a wedding gift to Deanna Troi in the episode, Haven. There are a few minor annoyances with this accessory: first, it's bright orange when the one in the show was silver; second, it came with a Lwaxana Troi figure sporting a costume that in no way resembles the one she wore in that episode; and third, the gift box in the show didn't even come from Lwaxana so it didn't make sense for her figure to come with it anyway. Oh well.

An interesting bit of trivia: my friend Jason reminded me that the gift box was played by Armin Shimmerman, who went on to portray not only a few Ferengi on TNG, but also Quark on Deep Space 9.


Simulacrum

Included With: Dr. Noonian Soong (Series 3, 4)
Episode: Brothers (Season 4)


This is an interesting little fellow. In the Season 4 episode Brothers, you get a good look at Dr. Noonian Soong's workshop. (That's Data's creator for you Trek noobs.) In the background of a few of the shots, you see this guy. It's an all-black mannequin with white lining in the "android workspace" part of the room. I'm not entirely sure what it's supposed to be. Dr. Soong's card calls it a "Simulacrum", but I don't know if it's just a empty shell of a body or a working prototypical robot. Simulacrum has such a cool, Tron-inspired look that it would have made a great full-sized figure (in fact, it looks roughly the same size as Data in the episode), but we'll have to be content with this mini-figure instead.

The Simulacrum in the episode has a caved-in chest but the figure doesn't. Otherwise, the sculpt works relatively well, as long as you can get past the size discrepancy.


Corvan Gilvo

Included With: Quark (DS9 Series 1)
Episode: New Ground (Season 5)


I had no idea this figure existed until a member of the Little Rubber Guys forums posted its picture asking for identification. I knew it had that "Playmates Trek accessory" look and after a bit of brain mashing, I recognized it as a Corvan gilvo, the endangered animals that Alexander rescues from fire in the Next Gen episode New Ground. But this accessory didn't seem to logically fit with any figures from the TNG line. It turns out that Quark had a gilvo in the DS9 episode The Nagus, and, fittingly, the Quark figure from the DS9 action figure line came with this mini-fig.

Despite the fact that this is technically a DS9 mini-figure, it fits in the TNG "universe" so it's included in this tribute. It seems to be pretty accurate to the puppet, but you never get a good look at them in the episode so it's difficult to tell one way or the other.


Alexander Rozhenko in Western Attire

Included With: Sheriff Worf (Series 5, Holodeck Multi-pack)
Episode: A Fistful of Datas (Season 6)


And finally, we see Worf's son Alexander as he appeared in his Wild West holodeck adventure from A Fistful of Datas. There were two different versions of this figure. One came with the carded Sheriff Worf figure and had disappointingly little paint variation. The one you see above with greatly improved paint apps came in a Holodeck Multi-pack along with Sheriff Worf and Data as Frank Hollander. Since the Worf in that pack also has better paint apps, I'd recommend getting the Multi-pack and skipping the carded figure altogether.


It won't like your science officer. It does like you!

Only 5 mini-figures in the Playmates TNG line? That's too bad... there's no accessory cooler than a "buddy" companion figure. These would have been all kinds of awesome:
  • Neural Parasites (Conspiracy, Season 1): Maybe a few parasites could have been included with a Lieutenant Commander Remmick figure that bursts open to reveal the mother parasite!
  • Exocomp (The Quality of Life, Season 6): This mini-fig could have been a great accessory for the basic Data figure.
  • Lapling (The Most Toys, Season 3): This was a rare species in the possession of the obsessive collector Kivas Fajo. I'm not sure who this mini-fig could have come with, unless they made a figure of Fajo himself. But that dude would have seriously warmed the pegs.


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