Time to begin my long-awaited Power Miners set reviews. Bet you thought I’d be starting with the Stone Chopper?
Behold, the first ever Power Miners set: 4559385 Promotional Polybag, released in Poland, Sweden and Denmark to commemorate the launch of the theme. This little thing was released a few months before the other sets as an introduction to Power Miners, so let’s see how good of an introduction it is.
I usually don’t focus on packaging, but in this case it’s the only unique thing about the set, so we might as well take a look.
Up front, we’ve got a very nice render of the Thunder Driller and Mine Mech, with Doc standing proudly ahead of them, oblivious to the nearby Sulfurix in the foreground. It’s a nice and enticing piece of artwork, perfect for the advertising purpose of this set. It’s a very strange bag, and technically isn’t a polybag since it’s made of foil.
The rear of the bag shows a few pictures of then-upcoming sets, alongside Polish text reading ‘New! On sale in March’. Also note the 2008 copyright - clearly this packaging was created much earlier than anything else Power Miners related.
All that’s contained within the bag is a single Rock Monster minifigure: a Sulfurix! This polybag was a good way to get these unique new figures out early, and advertises the theme well. Lore-wise, Sulfurix is the most intelligent breed of Rock Monster. They can melt through rocks, a skill which makes them good at tunnelling so they can pop up where least expected. When exposed to intense heat, their body blackens and sets alight with a yellow flame as they turn into a Combustix.
The Sulfurix itself is made entirely of new molds. He comes pre-assembled, but his upper jaw is separable, as are his arms, although these are much harder to remove. The arms themselves attach the same way minifigure arms do, meaning they can be swapped if you want. Bar-sized pieces can be connected in the hand, while regular pieces can attach to the top and bottom of the hand, which has a stud-sized attachment point on either side.
He’s very well-detailed, with front and back printing depicting lumps of rock in his crystalline body, although this printing is known to wear off over time, likely due to being printed on uneven surfaces. His eyes are fully black with menacing red pupils.
His jaw hinges open, revealing his body to be fully hollow. This allows you to make him ‘eat’ objects by placing them inside and closing his jaw.
That’s all this set contains, so let’s take a look at the pricing.
This set was originally given out for free upon release as a way to advertise Power Miners, giving this set extremely good value at the time, containing a unique and high-quality minifigure.
However, the limited release of the set has led to it becoming quite valuable. If you want a sealed pack, the cheapest is the Danish version, which is worth about £9. The Polish version is the most expensive, valued at about £12. If you’re a collector like me, it’s a set you’ll want to obtain, but otherwise it’s not at all necessary. You’d be better off just buying a Sulfurix minifigure on its own.
Next time…
