Mondos
updated 22 November 2001
1)
The Idea
In
September/October 2000, a new collectible arrived on the scene in Australia and
New Zealand: Mondo. Made by the Mars confectionary company, Mondo is a
collectible with a difference - far from being a cute but useless toy, Mondo was created in order to encourage an interest in history.
This is achieved by combining the traditional collectible concept with the
new approaches made available by the Internet. "Mondotime",
an interactive website, was established to be used in conjunction with the
toys, and prizes were offered for collectors who completed their
collections the quickest.
1a) The Website
Perhaps the most interesting, and certainly the most innovative, feature of Mondo is the Website. Whilst the "Mondotime" site does, like most other collectible sites, include information about the product, it also offers several multimedia activities which are designed to get kids interested in history. These include:-
"MondoTalk", a chat room for collectors to discuss Mondos or any other history-related issues;
The "Epoch Games", in which the characters from the collectible series are put into their historic context. These games are based on the actual historical events of the epoch, and kids are encouraged to "play with history" by choosing the actions of each character to see where their decisions will lead; and
"
The Curse Of Pharaoh's Gold", which is a three-dimensional adventure game in the tradition of games such as Quake. You choose a team, and work with your teammates to search a pyramid for the hidden treasure whilst avoiding a variety of traps and the efforts of the opposing team.
These games are not limited in scope to information and entertainment - as you play them, you are encouraged to empathise with the characters, and acknowledge that decisions you make will have consequences not only for yourself, but for others as well.
1b) The Prizes
To increase popular interest in Mondos, prizes were offered for collectors who completed half their collection (the "50% Mondo" prizes), and the whole collection (the 100% Mondo" prizes), the quickest.
50% Mondo - those who have completed half their collection (ie, any 5 Epochs), were asked to choose from a list of prizes, ranging from Digital Cameras to Camping Sets to a Roman Warrior's Costume.
100% Mondo - the first three people to complete the entire collection (ie, all 10 Epochs), were presented with a trip for four to their choice of England, Rome, Egypt or Colorado. These prizes were won very quickly - within 6 or 8 weeks of Mondos being released.
It appears that Mondo will also offer prizes for the second series, so keep your eyes open!!
2) Series 1
The first series of Mondos come in a small blue and yellow cardboard box, and inside each box there is a lollipop (strawberry or orange) and a clear bag containing a plastic figurine and an information card. In total, there are 30 figurines and 60 information cards, which are divided into 10 Epochs (periods of history).
2a) The Epochs
The 10 Epochs covered in the first series are taken from 3,500 years of history and are as follows:-
Egypt 1500BC - The Pharaoh faces a crisis, as his people grow worried when their livelihood is threatened by the failure of the Nile to flood.
Rome 1AD - Enemies are threatening the security of Rome, despite the Emperor's best efforts to maintain peace.
England 1066 - The English king is dead, and the Normans take the opportunity to add England to their terrotory at the Battle of Hastings.
Japan 1580 - Hideyoshi attempts to re-unite Japan after a long and bloody civil war, but he must still overcome a number of challengers.
Australia 1780 - There is a meeting of cultures as the First Fleet arrives in Australia. There will be problems faced by everyone.
France 1815 - At the Battle of Waterloo, the British put an end to Napoleon's imperial ambitions in Europe.
USA 1870 - A major conflict is brewing between the two peoples of North America - natives and whites. The problem? Buffalo.
Africa 1880 - British expansion in southern Africa provokes resistance from the proud and mighty Zulu tribe.
China 1900 - The Boxers, discontent with the terms of post-Opium War treaties, are stirring up anti-foreign sentiments amongst the Chinese people.
2nd World War - Both sides are heading for a major showdown, which will occur at the Battle of The Bulge.
2b) The Figurines
Each figurine is just over 6 cm in height, is made of plastic, and is hand-painted. They also have an identity code stamped into their base or feet. This code consists of 3 letters (which identifies the Epoch) and 1 number (which identifies the figurine). The letters are an abbreviation of the Epoch:-
EGP ~ Egypt
ROM ~ Rome
ENG ~ England
JAP ~ Japan
AUS ~ Australia
FRA ~ France
USA ~ USA
AFR ~ Africa
CHI ~ China
UNI ~ Second World War
As well as the code, the figurines have names, which are given in the checklists. The figurines either represent real historical identities (for example, Napoleon), or are fictionalised versions of real people.
Most of the figurines are fairly evenly spread across the series, but there are six particular figurines which are known as "rares" because they are less common than the others. They are Pharaoh, Octavian, Matilda, Sarah Brown, Toyotomi and Napoleon.
Each figurine sometimes has differences between two examples of it - these are known as "variations". In many cases, these are very minor differences which are due to the fact that the figures are hand-painted. There are, however, two main versions (the "dark face" and "pale face") of some of the figurines, which is probably the result of two different production runs. You can see some of the variations on the photos page. Only one of these variations was intended by Mondo - this is Velvet Lincoln, who was produced with about 20% of the figurines having a black face and 80% with a white face, to express the proportion of Black and White Americans serving during World War 2.
2c) The Cards
The cards measure 7.5 x 4.5 cm, and contain information related to the epochs. On one side there is a short article which tells you a little bit about the events or circumstances of the epochs. On the other side there is a picture, which usually dates from the time of the epoch - for example, the pictures in the Egyptian epoch are taken from inside Egyptian tombs.
Also on each card is a "card code" - a six character code which is used on the website in order to play the games. The three-letter/three-number codes are
Because of the fact that there are twice as many cards as figurines, some collectors only collect the figurines and don't worry too much about the cards. However, in order to be officially acknowledged as being 100% Mondo, you will need to have all 30 figures and all 60 cards.
As mentioned previously, the cards and figurines come sealed in a small plastic bag. Collectors are divided about whether this bag should be opened and the figurine and card separated, or kept sealed. It appears that most collectors probably separate their own collections, but keep their spares sealed. It is as yet unclear whether sealed Mondos will become more valuable than separated ones.
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For collectors who keep their Mondos sealed, there is another difference - reversed cards. Tsu Hsi (on the left) is sealed with the card the usual way around, whereas Jin Hsu (on the right) is sealed with the card turned around, or "reversed". Again, it is unclear whether reversed cards are more valuable than the regular ones, but they do seem to be much less common. |
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3) Ahead... Series 2
At the moment, Series 2 is slated for release in late 2001 or early 2002. The delay was caused by a series of problems with the website, which are being dealt with, but all systems should be in order in the very near future. As well as fixing the problems on the website, plans are also underway to expand the site even further, bringing in new activities and increasing the scope of the educational material to include other areas such as mathematics.
So far, Mondo are being secretive about what will be in Series 2, but stay tuned for more information as it comes to hand!
