It’s Minifigure Monday – the Captain Redbeard edition! I recently shared some of my latest LEGO® acquisitions, including the LEGO® House exclusive Minifigure Tribute set. As we all know, that set features a scaled-up version of the iconic Captain Redbeard, the original LEGO® Pirates villain. The original Minifigure debuted in 1989 and went on to feature in 14 different sets (not including re-issued sets). Since I’m reviewing the Minifigure Tribute set later this week, I thought it fitting to feature the character in this week’s Minifigure Monday as well.
Sets that included Captain Redbeard:
- 1411: Pirate’s Treasure Hunt Polybag (2001)
- 6204: Buccaneers (1997)
- 6250: Crossbones Clipper (1997)
- 6251: Pirate Minifigures (1989)
- 6252: Sea Mates (1991)
- 6267: Lagoon Lockup (1991)
- 6270: Forbidden Island (1989)
- 6273: Rock Island Refuge (1991)
- 6276: El Dorado Fortress (1989)
- 6279: Skull Island (1995)
- 6285: Black Seas Barracuda (1989)
- 6286: Skull’s Eye Schooner (1993)
- 6289: Red Beard Runner (1996)
- 21322: Pirates of Barracuda Bay (2020)
Captain Redbeard was among the first Minifigures to feature anything other than a generic smiley face. This character appeared with his namesake red beard and an eyepatch. The Minifigure also wore a skull and crossbones pirates’ hat, brown epaulettes, and had the first Minifigure pegleg and hook hand. He was a trendsetter in many ways and opened up a world of possibilities for all Minifigures that followed. From a personal perspective, he was the original LEGO® villain in my collection. Prior to Pirates, I had one Castle set with only one faction of knights and some simple town sets. The Pirates theme was my first with good guys and bad guys as it featured the battling Pirates and Imperials.
Captain Redbeard was truly a trendsetter for his time, breaking the Minifigure mold!
Interestingly, three variants of Redbeard exist. The most common featured in the vast majority of sets. He is the one I previously described. However, in 2001, there was a polybag that came as an exclusive giveaway with Quaker Oats. It was part of the defunct Studios theme and showcased the filming of a pirate movie with Redbeard as one of the characters. This version of the minifig did not have the skull and crossbones printed on his hat, nor did he wear the brown epaulettes. The final variant of Redbeard came as an aged captain in the LEGO® Ideas Pirates of Barracuda Bay set, which happens to be one of my all time favorite sets.
That’s it for this week’s Minifigure Monday – Captain Redbeard edition. Do you have any fond memories of Captain Redbeard? Perhaps you own all three versions of the character? I only have two of them myself. Let me know in the comments below or reach out on social media.
Until next time,
-Tom
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