The problem with cancelling subscription box services like Nerd Block is that they’re constantly sending out hints about what’s going to be in next month’s box. Though I’d previously cancelled Nerd Block I decided to resubscribe for one month because the promotional emails were promising two vinyl figures for the October “Tricks and Treats” box. Additionally, the Nerd Block family of subscription boxes recently began this “Welcome Block” idea, where upon signing up they send you a smaller version of the boxes with random items from previous boxes. So my husband and I thought, okay, we’ll sign up for the Nerd Block for one month under his name, and get the free Welcome Block as well.
And so we come to the first unboxing of the month. This is the Nerd Block for October, along with one of the random Welcome Block boxes. To the video!
So first we have the Welcome Block. I wasn’t expecting much from this box because it hadn’t been very long since I’d actually been a full-time subscriber of Nerd Block, so I was very confident that everything in the Welcome Block would be something I’d already previously gotten. I was 100% correct, but actually even more disappointed in the box because of the particular items I received…
“Saul Goodman” Titan vinyl figure:
Normally I wouldn’t be too upset with any vinyl figure, even if it’s from a show that I never finished (don’t kill me!) but this one definitely made me twitch a little because it is not only the second one of these figures I’ve gotten…it’s the third. I received one in the Vinylpalooza box as well, which makes me seriously wonder, how damn many of these did Nerd Block buy?! They’re still trying to get rid of them a year later and in multiple boxes! What the hell?! Approximate value: $10
“Cliccors” desk toy:
We received two of this little bracelet-esque desk toys several months back, and though my daughter enjoys them I wasn’t terribly impressed to see another one because they’re probably one of the cheaper things Nerd Block could have chosen to put in the Welcome Block. Approximate value: $3
“Ghostbusters” wallet:
This one is, at least, a decent item; it’s just unfortunately that it’s both something I’ve gotten before and something that I would never have use for two of. In fact, I haven’t even used the first one because it’s just too small of a wallet for me. But there you have it. Approximate value: $10
“Coin Op Crush” CD:
And this one just made me vibrate. You guys know how I feel about CDs in my subscription boxes, so the fact that I now have two copies of this disk of video game music is just…flabbergasting. Approximate value: $5
Total approximate value of box: $28
Total cost to me: $0
So here’s the thing about the Welcome Block: I can’t really complain about it because it was free. So, considering that I paid exactly $0 for it, I have to admit that $28 worth of stuff is pretty good. It’s just unfortunate that one of the items is my THIRD copy, and another of the items is a copy of one of the worst items I’ve ever gotten (in my opinion).
So now on to the actual Nerd Block, which had a “Tricks and Treats” theme for the month of October. I subscribed specifically for the “two vinyl figures”, but I was keeping my fingers crossed for a good box overall.
“Gremlins” t-shirt:
I have found Nerd Block’s t-shirts to be hit or miss, but this is one that was a hit for me. This Gremlins shirt features a happy-looking Gizmo, who transforms into an angry-looking Spike in the dark via glow-in-the-dark paint. It’s pretty cute, if not very colorful, and definitely something I’ll be willing to wear because Gremlins is an awesome movie (which I totally have to watch again sometime soon…). Approximate value: $15
“Moe” coaster:
In my personal opinion, way too many of these boxes end up having coasters in them. I mean, how many coasters can a person use? That said, at least this one is actually a well-made coaster. Usually we get these cardboard-like things that seem like they would melt with a little moisture, but this is actually a tin-topped coaster with a cork bottom, like something you might actually find in a bar. It also commands you to “Put your mug on my mug”, which is pretty amusing. I’m not into collecting Simpsons stuff, but at least this is actually a usable item. Approximate value: this seems to be an exclusive to the box, but based on similar items I’d say it’s worth about $5
“Zombie Hunter” dog tags:
Unattached to any particular fandom, these dog tags are designed to look like they’re for a tactical zombie-fighting team. They’re pretty neat and actually seem to be quite well made. Although not really for me I can definitely appreciate them, and they won’t look too shabby hanging up with some of my other horror-and-zombie items. Approximate value: $10
“Bob’s Burgers” mad libs:
It’s been a while, so you guys might not know exactly how I feel about books of mad libs, but I’ll give you a hint: they suck. Okay, that was a bit more than a hint. Let me rephrase slightly: they don’t totally suck, but they are absolutely not the kind of thing that I want showing up in my subscription boxes. Even if they’re fandom-based, they’re still cheap little books of nonsense that seem like something you would find tons of at the Dollar Store. Approximate value: $4 (although I personally think they’re worth $1, tops)
“Jem and the Holograms” comic book:
Okay, I said this in the video, but I’ll say it again now: totally not the item I was expecting. I don’t know what I was expecting when I heard there was going to be a Jem item in this box, but it definitely wasn’t a comic. Honestly, it didn’t really matter what the item was because Jem is one of those things that was awesome in my childhood but holds little sway for me now, but regardless I will still totally wind up reading this some night. Approximate value: the regular comics are $4 each, but this seems to be one of those thicker volumes that includes a couple of issues, so we’ll say about $10.
“Alien and Ripley” vinyl figures two-pack:
Now, my feelings on this item are conflicted. One the one hand, this is an awesome little set. I LOVE the Alien, and Ripley isn’t too bad herself. They’re super-cute and the Alien in particular is really well done, plus I love that they come together as a set. However, I’m pretty annoyed with the fact that Nerd Block pumped up this box by telling us that there would be “two vinyl figures” in it. Yeah, technically these are two vinyl figures…but they’re one item, since they’re packaged together, and they’re also the miniature Titan figures rather than the full-sized ones. So, basically, it just feels like they tricked us. That said, I do still love these little guys so I’m kinda willing to overlook it, but I’m going to do so with a stern glare in Nerd Block’s general direction. Approximate value: these little guys normally go for about $10 each, so although I feel they’re not worth that for their size, I have to suck it up and say the two-pack is worth about $20
Total approximate value of box: $64
Total approximate cost to me: $40
So, as I’ve mentioned many times before, one of the big reasons that I stopped getting Nerd Block is that the value just hasn’t been worth it for what it’s been costing me since the Canadian dollar has been down. Luckily this particular box had a pretty decent value, so that wasn’t a huge issue, but I have to keep mentioning it because it does make a huge difference in whether or not it’s worthwhile to subscribe to these boxes.
For this box I was fairly happy overall. I LOVE the two little vinyl figures, even if I feel that we were tricked into expecting bigger items, and I’m quite happy with the Gremlins t-shirt as well. The other items are not big things, but they do flesh out the box a bit, and if I’m honest the only item that I genuinely do not like at all is the book of mad libs because I feel they’re silly and cheap. All around I felt that it wasn’t the greatest box, but it was decent, and good enough that I’m not disappointed that I subscribed to get it.
I will be holding on to the subscription for this coming month because literally everything that’s supposed to be in it is from a fandom that I love (yeah, yeah, they hooked me again), but after that I do plan to cancel again, based solely on the fact that it just costs way too much with the state of the dollar right now…plus I have way too many subscription boxes right now and I’ve recently subscribed to another. >.>
So there you go: that was the Nerd Block for October 2015. What did you guys think? Did you get a box for October? Did you enjoy what you got? How did you feel about the “two vinyl figures”? Will you wear those dog tags? Please share!
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