Matchbox Monday basically begins batch B of Matchbox

Somebody, who will remain nameless, forgot to take a line-up photo of this group of Matchbox models. There is a routine I have for starting my reports, and usually it begins with a picture of all the models in a line. Well, this person has had a good stern telling off. They have promised to not do it again. We will see. Ha ha! Anyway, I am back to the basic range models. With a set of 125 to put out during the year, along with 4 chases, and (up to) 6 Target Red models, splitting them between 12 batches does mean some will be larger than others. Batch B (not including any Target) only has 10 models in it. With my rule of not doing double digits in 1 go, it means I have split it again. Last week saw me doing a Walmart set, which only has 5 anyway, so doing another set of 5 does make sense. Of course, Working Rigs does shrink further. This means some reports will be longer than others. This will be another one on the shorter side. Which is why I am waffling on now. What? You just want me talking about models? Fine. It's a good job all the rest of the photos were done. As was the case with batch A, these are mainly consisting of numbers following on from those in batch A (there are a few stragglers at the end, which will be in the next half of this batch), but for the first half, it appears we are running in a consistent order. Now, we finished with MB13 last time, so....

Yep, that's MB14. It is the return of the MB1219 '19 Mazda 3, which appears this year in black.

Mazda simply calls it Jet Black. Nothing fancy. I do love seeing models in black. I don't know why. They just look so cool. However, I have to admit, when it is in a blister, sitting on a peg or in a dump bin, it doesn't really stand out. Which is a shame, because once it is out and loose, I think it looks amazing. It is actually a metallic black, not a solid black. As we have seen with previous issues, this model simply comes with front and rear tampo prints. 

And that is about the only thing that breaks up the blackness. After all, the interior is black, the wheel hubs are black, even the base is black (you can make out the edges).  The windows are totally clear. I think that was a necessary decision, as if they had tinted those as well, I think it would have looked a lot worse. It is a shame it is not standing out in packages, as I think this is the nicest one they have released of this casting to date. I am giving it a 10. Mazda does not exactly have bright colours for this vehicle. And I believe they are staying fairly close to real colours. 

However, their 2020 debut (which actually turned up in late 2021) is quite a lot duller in red shade than Mazda currently do. They now have a Soul Red Crystal, which is a much brighter metallic look. I think they could revisit red for a future issue. 

Next up was 2022, and Machine Grey. A metallic grey shade, which I did see a little shading on. 

Mazda only has 1 blue shade for this, and Deep Crystal Blue was covered in the 2023 basic range issue. 

With 2024 going for a champagne colour, which is fairly close to Zircon Sand, an official Mazda option. 

While the 2024 MBX Japan Cruisers 5-pack gave us a white one. Weirdly, Mazda has 3 whites. Arctic (brighter), Ceramic (duller) and Snowflake (metallic) White. I think they were going for the Arctic. 

And with no 2025 release of this one, this makes the black one version 6. As I said, the current red look is much brighter than before, so I think they can go back to it. But, beyond that, there is not a lot of real options for them to explore. Will Mazda let them do a yellow one? i would like to see a yellow one, for fun. Even better, make it a taxi. Taipai, in Taiwan uses yellow Mazda 3 taxis. There's something unusual to mimic. Go on, I dare them. 

The MB1435 '23 Toyota GR Supra has had quite a flurry of activity over the last half a year or so. Garry Gopinath created this one, and it debuted in the 2024 range, and in 2025 saw a trio. It is back already in the 2026 range, coming in blue as MB15. 

Toyota calls this Dawn Blue. It is one of 3 different blue options that they have on the GR Supra. See Mazda, they know how to give us more variety! I think this is a really nice colour. This does pop on the pegs or in dump bins. It looks stunning. Again, we get front and rear tampos, and black wheel hubs. A grey interior though, along with a mild tint to the window. This is a beauty. 

The GR Supra is a really cool looking car, and this particular colour is really helping it to stand out. The rear license plate simply states Supra Mk5. The GR Supra is the 5th generation. The first generation, from way back in 1978, was known as Celica XX in Japan, and was simply an offshoot of the Celica. The second generation in 1981 still was linked to the Celica, but the 3rd generation in 1985 was branched out into a unique vehicle. The 4th generation arrive in 1993, and after limping on until 2002 in the last few markets, was quietly dropped, and this waited 17 years to pop back up. However, this will stop production in real life during this year. There is no 2027 Supra. However Toyota have stated there are ideas for a 6th gen. They also keep teasing a new MR2. It is exciting to be a Toyota fan at the moment. Talking of which, I am with this one. I am scoring this a perfect 10 again. 

I am seeing some mild shading on it. Nothing major. Not like last year's basic. Talking of which, another dive back. 

As I said, this debuted in the 2023 basic range. It came in Metallic White, which was also good for a bit of shading. 

Nothing like the huge shades found on the 2024 Lightning Yellow basic release. I had a lot of fun with that one. 

But, as I said, it has been a busy period for the car. The yellow was fairly late in 2024's basics, and had shortly followed a Target Red issue, and was immediately followed up by a Collectors release in red & black with Advan logos. 

This blue is the tail end of a busy spell. But, just because the real one will not be with us by the end of the year, I do hope that they continue with the Matchbox one for a while longer. I do want a black one. Plus, Moearki Grey. Just so I can say Moearki Grey! What a name for a medium grey look. This model has so far been the opposite of the Mazda 3. While that has seen understated muted colours, this one has gone nuts with vibrant hues. Time to flip the switch!

Next up logically is MB16. This falls on the MB1503 '70 Citroën 2CV, which returns for a second outing in red. 

Citroën calls this Corsaire Red. A genuine 1970 colour option on the 2CV. Well, toe be honest, the 2CV has a lot of colour options. Matchbox has a massive array to choose from. I am hoping for many more of these over coming years. Abe Lugo created a gorgeous little casting, and I am not seeing many of these hanging around near me. The debut was tough to spot, and this one is similarly disappearing very quickly. We get simple front and rear tampo prints again. To be honest, on cars, I think they are the best option. Matchbox is all about the realism, and nothing says real more than making them completely stock. 

Sure, we didn't get a chrome base this year. However, I think grey does work well enough. It doesn't look out of place on this one. Again, we have a clear window, and the disc wheels really suit this one. They could have been printed red instead of chrome. It wasn't important. But, I know sometimes real ones do have coloured wheel hubs. I cannot fault this. Another 10. They are knocking these things out of the park at the moment. 

It really goes well with the yellow that debuted last year. I was lucky in finding a second, and discovering it was a different shade. But, with a lack of finding red ones to compare, I am still only at 1. 

There are 2 things I would love to see from this one. Firstly, a premium outing with side design and wheel arches in a different colour. It has to be done at least once. Plus, it may be jumt me, but I would love to see a hippy look done. It is the sort of vehicle, outside of the VW Beetle and T2 Vans, really does lend itself to be given a hippy makeover. Flower power, peace sign, etc. I hope we get to see one. 

We are now up to MB17 in the 2026 range, and this is the MB1178 International TerraStar Ambulance. For the newest issue, we see it in orange. 

This is cool. In 2024, the MB994 '63 Cadillac Ambulance was given this same look in the Coffee Cruisers V 5-pack. Which means this is a repated scheme. Yes! One more, and it becomes recurring. Fingers crossed for the MB1310 '19 Ram Ambulance in the Moving Parts series seeing this in the near future. Because this is a really nice look. I love seeing it in orange. Orange is not exactly the most common colour for Ambulances. But, it works very well. And the white stripe (love stripes) with Medi-Vac on it, it just works so well. I do wonder if the A-2 is a little nod to being the 2nd Medi-Vac release. Ooh, and there is a new Mercedes-Benz Sprinter Ambulance coming later this year. Another possibility of seeing this look again. But, I am jumping ahead here. 

Abe Lugo created a lovely casting. Sure, it is plastic body over metal base, but i am not overly fussed with that scenario. I know some do prefer metal bodies. Plus, this is only a 3-piece build. No interior. But, it still looks realistic, and when you give us fantastic looking designs like this one, especially being repeated ones, I am going to be scoring this another 10. Boy, the 10s are running rampant lately. 

It had a slow-ish start in 2019. Debuting in red with an El Segundo Fire & EMS logo on the side was a great start. 

And Everett Marshall chose this casting to be his annual fundraiser that year. It was given 2 colours. Red for the Burns Foundation, and pink for Breast Cancer. 

But, after that, it took 2020 off, before returning in 2021 in 2 looks. The red one was actually a model you could order in 2020, if you lived in the USA, but was not made until 2021. During the pandemic, they set up a Thank You Heroes pack featuring a variety of vehicles for trades that had to keep going. Ambulance crews being one. We also saw a white Boone County design, in an all-Boone County MBX Recue 5-pack. Yes, Recue. They mis-spelled it. 

And that helped to kick start things properly, as we have seen it every year since. 2022 saw a Peel Regional Services real livery in the basic range. 

While 2023's basic range saw a yellow MBX County EMS look, and a red Matchbox Fire Dept look was part of the Convoy series. 

For 2024, we saw 2 again. The red Boeing Fire Ambulance is another real vehicle, and of course, who could ignore the National Parks recurring theme, which popped up as a 9-pack exclusive. 

With 2025 giving us a simple white Paramedic look in the basic range. 

I admit, when it first appeared, and then disappeared, I wondered whether we would see many at all. But, lately, they have been upping usage on this one. Great stuff. With the Mercedes-Benz Sprinter arriving later this year, I do not think this casting's time in the basic range should be up. We have space for 2. Especially as they both are more prominent for different continents. The Merc is more of a Euro feel, to this North American feel. Sure, they are found in each other's zones, but I think they will work well together. The Renault Master, though? Will we see much more of that?

Whch brings me to the last model to review this week. Taking the MB18 slot in the 2026 range is the MB970 '15 Ford F-150 Contractor Truck. It comes in a lovely yellow look this year. 

This Matchbox City look is another recurring theme. How can I argue a recurring theme? Spoiler, I can't! The actual Matchbox City logo itself has been around for a number of years now. If you scroll back up, you will see it was prominently featured on the Thank You heroes TerraStar Ambulance. The thing is, this is another of those recurring themes where the colours are not the main identifier. INC is blue, grey and yellow. Matchbox Construction is orangey yellow and grey. Ranec is white and orange. National Parks is (for the majority) mint. But, some of them, like Matchbox City and GarGo, they have a variety of colours Lyons Bros is another that might not see the same colour for every release, but has the logo in the artwork. And I do like that they don't just do every recurring theme in a standard colour. For Matchbox City, it is a whole kaleidoscope of vehicles all coming together under one umbrella. and this one looks fantastic. Yes, we have seen yellow with orange plastic parts before. I am not saying every one is different. Just that not all are the same. And I like the tampo. Black stripes (you know me), and a simple Street Light Services print on the door. Simple, to the point, and understated. I think it works so well. Many real vehicles like this will feature fairly simple designs. Again, this is all about the realism, which I think this one has in spades. 

Miguel López was the person who created this casting back in 2015. Like the Ambulance, it was not the fastest at getting going, but has really picked up the pace recently. Plus, when it comes to these types of utility vehicles, I do think licensed ones are a game changer. A construction vehicle will often be more commonly known by what it is. But, when you have something that is basically a pickup truck with something added, it should still be a real pickup truck. And you can't go wrong with the Ford F-series. So, a full sweep again. A 5th 10 out of 10 out of 5. The Matchbox guys are seriously nailing these models. We have some awesome vehicles in the range. 

But, before I finish this week's blog, time for one final dive. As I said, we began in 2015, where it was given the recurring Ranec theme. White and orange. An instant standout. There are 2 shades, but you tend to notice them better from the front. I wanted to show off the Ranec design, which was unusually just assigned to the rear. Unique. 

For 2016, it was given a yellow look in the basic range. This was also one for shades. 

With 2017's olive green outing the final one for a few years. I did notice that the Lochner tampo printing was the shady part!

3 years on, and then 3 years off. It returned in the 2021 basic range in white with a Suny Solar side design. 

Then, in 2022, it was part of the MBX Road Crew II 5-pack in the recurring INC design. 

Then, that was 2 years on, it took another 2 years off. 2025 saw it return yet again, but not just once. We had the recurring Agave Acres design in the basic range. 

But also the recurring Matchbox Construction look as an 8-pack exclusive. The first time it has been used more than once in a year. 

So, on it's 12th year, the model is now up to 8 outings. It does feel like it is starting to pick up momentum. Maybe due to having 2 outings in a year for the first time last year. And with 5 of the 8 being recurring themes, I think it is definitely feeling a bit more included nowadays. 

And that does bring me to the end for another week. We had 2 utility vehicles from 2010s that are finally feeling like they are getting action nowadays. 

And 3 really cool cars. 1 French classic and 2 Japanese modern. 

As these head off, I take a week to look at the premium stuff again next week. Until then, I hope everybody has a safe and happy week.