(Written by William)
I intended to get this guide ready earlier for identifying the LEGO Collectible Disney Minifigures, but a couple of things got in the way. First, my wife Sarah and I just bought our first home. Between the remodeling and moving, there was no time to look for the minifigures. Second, by the time I was able to search for this series, most of the stores I depended on were completely sold out. Nevertheless I kept searching, and finally found them. It’s better later than never, so let’s take a look at how to feel for these very popular collectible minifigures within the blind baggies! 🙂
➡ LEGO Disney Minifigures Aladdin: Feeling for this minifigure is relatively simple. First find the lamp. It kind of feels like a tiny oil can. Then check to make sure that the minifig legs are the normal variety, because the Genie also has the same lamp. There are only three Aladdin minifigures in a full display-box, so he is one of the rarer characters. However I do recommend trying to find him, because he is a very useful minifigure for custom LEGO creations even outside Disney.
➡ LEGO Disney Minifigures Alice: This is another very useful minifigure that would fit well with most medieval, fantasy and even modern settings. The skirt is a good piece to feel for, but it could be a bit challenging to identify because it’s a new element. So if you are not sure how to feel for it, look for the bottle, or the 1×1 round tile. Both are easy to identify and will get you Alice. There are only three Alice minifigures in a full display-box, so this is another rare character.
➡ LEGO Disney Minifigures Toy Story Alien: I would suggest that you start by finding the short legs first to narrow down the possibilities. Then go feeling for the head. Make sure you feel around the head carefully to find the small antenna. Otherwise you may mix him up with one of the other big-headed and short-legged characters in the series. There are four Aliens in a full display-box, so you should have no problem getting one.
➡ LEGO Disney Minifigures Ariel: This is one of the easiest minifigures to identify in the series. Find the fishtail and you’re done. However that big hairpiece can really throw you off as it is a new large piece, and feels quite strange. But if you have the fishtail, you should have no doubts. (I should note here that Alice’s hair fits pretty loose on her head – not the best design.) There are only three Ariel minifigures in a full display-box, so she is one of the rarer characters.
➡ LEGO Disney Minifigures Buzz Lightyear: This is the new version of Buzz, with a regular minifigure head, instead of the specialized headpiece from the LEGO Toy Story sets a few years ago. While there are a couple of unique large pieces here, there are so many unusual large elements in this series, in my experience it’s more reliable to feel for the two small wings. They are very rectangular and flat – almost like a LEGO book piece. But you can also try to locate the helmet portion of the suit. It feels like one half of a globe element. There are only three Buzz minifigures in a full display-box, so he is one of the rarer minifigs.
➡ LEGO Disney Minifigures Captain Hook: You’ll probably locate his massive hair and hat piece first, and wonder what it is. It is a brand new, and very unusual piece that is difficult to identify without being able to compare it to anything else that we already know. The brim of the hat will have a funny knob on one side, while being smooth on the other. If you think you found a strange piece that might be the hat, try looking for the sword. It is very thin, feels like an antenna, but bendable. There are three Captain Hook minifigures in a full display-box, so he is also rare.
➡ LEGO Disney Minifigures Cheshire Cat: Star by finding the short legs to narrow down the options. Then try to see if you can find the tail. It’s rubbery so it will bend a bit and feels different than normal LEGO elements. The head is similar to that of the Alien and Stitch, and they also have short legs, so looking for the tail can really set the Cheshire Cat apart. There are three Cheshire Cats in a full display-box, making this another rare character.
➡ LEGO Disney Minifigures Daisy Duck: Start by looking for her bow. It feels a bit like a small bone piece. There are only two minifigures with a bow, Daisy and Minnie, so once you found the piece, start checking out the head. If it doesn’t have big round ears then you found Daisy. There are only three Daisy minifigures in a full display-box, so yeah, she is rare too.
➡ LEGO Disney Minifigures Donald Duck: The best piece to look for to identify this minifigure is the small hat. It feels a lot like the LEGO roller skate piece, and would set him apart from Daisy Duck, who has the same headpiece. Also, note that both Donald and Daisy has a small tail that you attach between the torso and leg-assembly. This is a small rubbery piece that is hard to identify. If you run into it and can’t tell what it is, just ignore the piece and try to find something else to identify. There are three Donald Duck minifigures in a full display-box, so match the number of Daisy Ducks.
➡ LEGO Disney Minifigures Genie: Just like with Aladdin, the best item to look for is the lamp. If you do find the lamp, check out the leg piece. If it feels normal, it is Aladdin, if it can’t move and has a little swirly section, it is the Genie. There are four Genies in a full display-box, so this minifigure is quite common – you should have no problem finding one.
➡ LEGO Disney Minifigures Maleficent: Find the dress-slope and you are done. This is one of the easiest minifigures to identify in the series, because that dress-slope is a very obvious square piece – unlike all the strange big pieces in the other packages. This minifigure comes with a beautiful headgear, but it is best to just stick with identifying the slope. There are only three Malificent minifigures in a full display-box, so she is one of the rarer ones also.
➡ LEGO Disney Minifigures Mickey Mouse: Mickey is a bit tricky. Start by locating a head with large round ears. Make sure it doesn’t have short legs, because then it could be Stitch. Finally check if there are any accessories so you don’t mix him up with Minnie. If the head is big, has large ears, the legs are normal, and there are no accessories, you found Mickey. There are four Mickey minifigures in a full display-box, so you should be able to find one.
➡ LEGO Disney Minifigures Minnie Mouse: Here, again, go for the head with large ears. Then look for her bow, which feels like a small bone element. You can further verify by finding the skirt piece to differentiate her from Mickey Mouse. There are four Minnie Mouse minifigures in a full display-box, so she should be easy to find also.
➡ LEGO Disney Minifigures Mr. Incredible: First locate the 2×2 tile. This is an easy piece to find. However Syndrome also got a 2×2 tile, so you need to be able to differentiate them. This can be done by feeling for the hairpiece. If the hair feels unusual, it is Syndrome, if it feels like a normal minifig hair, it is Mr. Incredible. There are four Mr. Incredible minifigures in a full display-box, so he is pretty common.
➡ LEGO Disney Minifigures Peter Pan: Look for the two knives. They are attached by a small bar, forming a “U” shape. This is another minifigure that is going to be very useful for medieval and fantasy settings. Unfortunately there are only three of them in a full display-box, so it’s one of the rarer minifigure in the series.
➡ LEGO Disney Minifigure Series Stitch: The big-eared head is easy to locate, but there are so many big-headed minifigures in this series, you will need to confirm that this minifigure also has short legs. The other short-legged, big-headed characters are the Cheshire Cat, and the Toy Story Alien. So make sure you don’t mix Stitch up with those. The ears should be big and longish. There are four Stitch minifigures in a full display-box, so he is plentiful and very adorable.
➡ LEGO Disney Minifigure Series Syndrome: Just like with Mr. Incredible, start with finding the 2×2 tile. Once you got that, look for the hairpiece. The hair feels very weird. Essentially, if you run across a minifigure hairpiece that feels basic, that’s Mr. Incredible. Anything else is this guy. There are four Syndrome minifigures in a full display-box, so he is also common.
➡ LEGO Disney Minifigure Series Ursula: This is a very unusual minifigure with some really strange new elements. Adding to the confusion could be all the other new large pieces in the series that are hard to differentiate. So it is best to bypass all of that, and go for the simplest piece. Find her trident and you’re done. There are three Ursula minifigures in a full display-box, so she is rare.
This series is full of many large and unusual elements that are hard to identify. There are also very few accessories that are normally easy to feel for. So you may need to take a bit more time to find the minifigures you want. It is also a good idea to have a printout of the characters with you as a reference, so you can visualize them as you are searching though the bags. On the positive side, you will further enhance your tactile skills.
Hope this guide helps with hunting for the LEGO Disney minifigures! They should still be available at some LEGO retailers, and you can also get them on BrickLink or eBay. If you have your own tips and tricks on identifying them feel free to share in the comment section below! 😉
And you might also like to check out the LEGO Minifigures section for more news, reviews and discussions, or choose from the following posts:
- Guide to Feeling for LEGO Minifigs Series 15
- Guide to Feeling for LEGO Minifigs Series 14
- Guide to Feeling for LEGO Minifigs Series 13
- Guide to Feeling for LEGO Minifigs Series 12
- Guide to Feeling for LEGO Simpsons Minifigs 2
- Guide to Feeling for LEGO Simpsons Minifigs
- Guide to Feeling for The LEGO Movie Minifigs
- Guide to Feeling for LEGO Minifigs Series 11
- Guide to Feeling for LEGO Minifigs Series 10
Congrats on your new home William! Was there money in the budget for a dedicated LEGO room?;-) Great guide as always!
William told me that he got both a dedicated LEGO room, and a LEGO display area. 😀
Nice!
Heh, as the Admin mentioned I got a really nicely insolated shed in the back for all things LEGO. Then a room in the house proper for displaying as well as original builds.
On Saturday I’ve invited a friend over to test the setup out and we’ll put together the Ghostbusters HQ.
And as a bonus he started his Twitch and Youtube channels so we may get some video along with the experience!
Yes, while the big pieces seem easy to find, as they’re new they can be confusing.
During my first try I confused Ariel’s tail for Captain Hook’s hat and Ursula’s tentacles/body for Buzz’s armor… 🙁
The smaller pieces are actually easier to recognize in most cases.
Funny you say that! I was just on the phone with someone and I said the exact same thing! 😀
Pretty even distribution of figures overall, it seems…
Yes, there are 18 minifigs in this series, so the distribution works out more evenly per box.
I found the best way – ask my daughter-in-law. Her fingers just knew each figure; fast & amazing! She scored all of them. Maybe it’s a genetic thing🙂
Yeah, some people are really good at feeling with their fingers. But you can also learn it. It just takes some practice. 🙂
I’ll second that! I was lousy at it for a long time and just made up my mind that I couldn’t do it until I got encouragement here. …including feeling them carefully at home before opening them and then looking at each piece after the bag was open to relate the feelings to the visual images while it was all fresh in my mind.
In the last series I was able to identify all of them quite reliably and easily. So, from one grandma to another, Boysgrandma, don’t be discouraged. Just take all the time you need to get an idea what you’ve got. And remember, you can buy a handful of them from many stores like ToysRUs and Target, take them home, palpate them at your leisure and return what you don’t open.
This is some of the best advice you can get.
Don’t let the figs intimidate you. I know my wife has never been too confident, but I make sure she stays involved with the list we put together. And while I’m blazing through a box for an elusive fig she will slowly work on a bag or two and now most of the time she’s right on the money.
The goal is to get confortable. Once you do that, you’ll typically get things right.
Does anyone know if you can still find the Disney minifigures in stores? My local Toys R Us already rolled out Series 16 and replaced all the Disney options.
Julie, my understanding it that they were going to be re-released with the Disney Castle, but I haven’t seen them myself either. I would suggest to wait until October to see if they show up again. If not, you may need to go the BrickLink route.