1836: I Became a Literary Giant in Great Britain

Chapter 308 London Dominated by Blind Boxes

Indeed, Michelle's involvement in Alice in Wonderland was certainly not just about publishing the story...

In fact, this is more of a test for his mega-factory.

After all, a large part of the reason for setting up a super factory is to have control over the development of intellectual property.

Today's super factories are no longer as simple as they were originally printing plants.

In addition to various printing products, Michel also introduced many new machines and new production lines.

This greatly expanded the factory's production capacity and also opened up many new possibilities for Michelle's IP development.

This time, two other products were also released alongside Alice in Wonderland.

Inside the apartment, Michelle smiled as she looked at the two exquisite dolls.

Both are depictions of Alice, but due to differences in manufacturing processes and design, there are still considerable differences between them.

In fact, both of these originated from the Michel Gigafactory...

The first item is a figurine of Alice in Wonderland.

The second one is the Alice in Wonderland blind box.

Of course, today's production technology can never reach the level of detail, down to the finest hair, found in later commercial figurines.

Even though Michelle improved the production process at the Gigafactory, the first batch of Alice in Wonderland models were still mainly made of pulp, wood powder and glue.

Of course, it's still supported by a metal frame inside, and after hand-painting and varnishing, it becomes the final product...

This production method originated in 1828 in a factory in Auguste, France, and was originally used to make anatomical models.

Although it cannot compare to modern figurines at all, it is now a game-changer.

For British readers today, this remains an extremely interesting topic.

For the first time, the literary characters, or rather, the story characters, came to life and truly stepped out of the story.

As for blind boxes, they are made even more exquisite and compact.

Michelle included a total of 12 characters from the story in the blind boxes.

Alice, the White Rabbit, the Mad Hatter, the Cheshire Cat, the Queen of Hearts, the Dormouse, the Shamrock, the Caterpillar, the Playing Card Soldiers, and more...

The craftsmanship is also more refined than that of figurines.

Some rare or hidden editions are even more exquisitely crafted than the regular versions... they can be considered works of art.

These small and exquisite items were placed in boxes with identical packaging.

Of course, the box also features many anti-counterfeiting designs.

It's fair to say that Michelle is quite looking forward to the London readers' reaction to the figurines and blind boxes.

Before dawn, long lines had already formed at the Michel store downstairs from the New Era newspaper office.

In fact, this wasn't the only Michel store with long lines.

Thanks to the enthusiasm of readers, Michel now owns three Michel stores in London.

Without exception, long queues formed at every single one of them today.

The reason is simple: thanks to Michel's publicity campaign, readers throughout London now know about one thing.

Today, Michelle's store will be launching new Alice in Wonderland-themed products.

It's fair to say that both figurines and blind boxes are extremely interesting to the British people today.

After all, before this, who had ever seen an author directly create the characters from the world they created?

This is so much fun!

It turns out that you can connect with the characters in the book not only through imagination and illustrations.

The blind box concept reminded many readers in London of the cards from the previous "Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea" series.

Even today, the cards from "Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea" remain top-tier in London.

Although the drop rate of top-tier cards has increased significantly due to Michelle's adjustments.

However, these random gacha items are still quite popular with London readers.

Even though a considerable amount of time has passed, the popularity of "Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea" is nowhere near what it used to be. Yet, Michelle's shop still sells a significant number of "Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea" cards every day.

This shows how much London readers love this card set.

The current blind box concept is more like an upgraded version of the gacha system from "Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea"...

The London readers had no idea what the items inside the box were.

It is said that there are also rare and hidden versions.

Just think about the prices of Captain Nemo and the Unknown Deep on the secondary market; clearly, those lucky ones will make a fortune...

This has made many readers in London who enjoy gacha games extremely eager to try their luck.

Old John was also in this long queue.

A week ago, Lord Michel announced the Alice in Wonderland figurine model and plans for a blind box series.

The peaceful days in Old John's family were gone forever.

What child in London wouldn't be eager to get an Alice in Wonderland toy?

So little John started pestering and cajoling at home...

At first, she was very well-behaved and sensible.

Not only did he diligently complete the daily practice assignments, but he also pitifully begged and pleaded.

"Dad, please buy me one..."

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"From now on, I'll dress myself every day and sweep the floor for you every day..."

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To be honest, old John had already been convinced by his son.

He just wanted to see how far his son could go in this regard.

But his obedience was only temporary; little John soon revealed another side of himself.

Of course, it wasn't that the spirit pearl turned into a demon pill; rather, he took out his savings.

That's right, he used the "more money" tactic.

As the child of an accountant's family, John also has the habit of saving money.

He pulled a handful of coins from his pocket, poured them out, and they jingled and clanged.

"Dad, this is the money I've saved up for so long. I'm just a few pennies short, could you buy it for me?"

Seeing this, Old John, looking at the child's pitiful little eyes, could no longer hold back.

"Of course, no problem."

He readily agreed to John's request.

Of course, as a long-time reader of Lord Michel, he also knew how popular Lord Michel was in London whenever he came up with these new gadgets.

So early in the morning, he appeared in the queue outside Michelle's store.

Old John was somewhat understanding of Little John's actions, since he had also read "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland."

When Lord Michel announced his plan, he himself even felt a strong urge to have it.

It's important to know that the UK children's toy market is quite mature these days.

But overall, it is still an industry that relies entirely on manual labor and very small-scale industrial production.

The most common are wooden toys like rocking horses and puppets... Better quality ones include rag dolls and ceramic figurines...

But overall, it's still a long way from Lord Michel's style.

Putting aside the differences in manufacturing processes, Lord Michel's toy set has its own story... how can anyone else compare?

Even if they are the same type of rocking horse, can an ordinary rocking horse and the rocking horse that appears in Alice in Wonderland be the same thing?

Fortunately, although the line in front of Michelle's store was long, it was moving at a fairly fast pace.

Michelle also anticipated that the store would be packed that day, so he not only stocked up on plenty of goods but also increased the number of staff.

This ensured a certain level of satisfaction for readers in line.

He wouldn't do something like creating artificial scarcity or even deliberately hiring people to queue up.

Or perhaps at this stage, Michelle no longer needs to do all this.

We might sell out even if we sell normally, so why bother with all this unnecessary stuff?

Moreover, he deeply understood the London readers; if they queued all night and still couldn't buy what they wanted, they'd be furious.

So after a long wait, old John finally got to stand in front of Michelle's counter.

All the models available for public sale this time are displayed on the counter.

The models on the marble display stand gleamed under the light of the improved gas lamps.

It even gave old John the illusion that the characters from Alice in Wonderland had actually come to life.

He bought John Jr.'s favorite character, as well as his own favorite character.

The commotion nearby caught old John's attention.

Not far from another counter, someone actually started crying.

What's going on? There's plenty of stock this time, so we shouldn't be crying because we can't buy anything, right?

The staff member glanced at it, but seemed unsurprised.

"Oh, that's probably because they didn't get the blind box they wanted."

"Hey sir, you know, there are quite a few people who want to get rare and hidden models."

"But how easy is it to get these hidden and rare models? Just half an hour ago, a gentleman got 100."

I haven't gotten the hidden item from any of the blind boxes I've opened...

"If Lord Michel hadn't stipulated that each person could only buy a maximum of 100 blind boxes today, I reckon that gentleman could have bought even more..."

The staff quickly explained to Old John that it was the reaction of people opening blind boxes.

After expressing sympathy for the gentleman who had opened 100 blind boxes without getting the style he wanted, Old John was quite curious about this new way of playing.

He simply bought a few boxes of blind boxes... to see how lucky he was when he got home.

John was overjoyed when he got home.

"Great! The things from the book have come to life!"

In fact, John also had similar rabbit toys in his toy collection.

"Little John, didn't you buy a rabbit toy before?"

"That's different. That one was just a rabbit, while this one is Mr. White Rabbit."

Yes, although they are both rabbits, they are different. In Little John's eyes, the previous rabbit toy was just a rabbit, but this one is different; this is Mr. White Rabbit...

Old John felt a sense of satisfaction watching Little John having so much fun.

He certainly understood John's feelings. Just like John, when he actually got his hands on them, he felt as if the characters in those stories had come to life in real life for the first time.

Those characters are not just characters in the book, not just characters in words, but also characters in reality.

It can be placed on a desk, in the bedroom, or even shown off at school...

It's so much fun that you can actually buy a character from a story and take them home!

As expected of Lord Michel, he was able to create something like this.

Old John also started opening blind boxes, and soon he experienced the amazing charm of this brand-new way of playing.

I also understand why that gentleman cried because of it.

This stuff is seriously addictive.

Old John certainly wanted to release a hidden or rare version, but unfortunately he didn't have that luck.

What terrifies him most is that when he doesn't get any hidden or rare items from the boxes he bought, he even considers buying a few more to try his luck.

What if I win with the next box?

He knew in his heart that this was very abnormal, because the normal logic was that he should not buy anymore and should stop.

But the mechanism of the blind box designed by Lord Michel is simply toxic.

Old John had a thought that kept telling him: he'd already opened four or five, why not buy a few more? Maybe they'd be the hidden gems.

Fortunately, old John remembered the long line in front of Michelle's store.

After some deliberation, he finally managed to dispel his desire to continue smoking.

Lord Michel is truly addictive! Not only are his stories captivating, but even the toys, models, and blind boxes he creates are equally addictive...

In fact, the reason why blind boxes can be so addictive and addictive is that...

This thing truly understands the fundamental nature of humanity, perfectly blending collecting, random rewards, scarcity, and social culture...

The core mechanism is random rewards; you have absolutely no idea what you'll get in the next box.

To be honest, the excitement of knowing that you can buy an Alice figurine for just one shilling is actually quite limited.

If you spend the same amount of money and have no idea whether you'll get Alice's White Rabbit or a hidden blind box, you'll likely be very interested in the outcome next time.

From a later psychological perspective, this kind of uncertain reward is much more powerful than a fixed reward and is more effective at maintaining repetitive behaviors.

Many people only realize the truth of their mistake when they've spent all their money.

So, Michel still has some conscience. That's why he implemented a purchase limit a few days before the release.

Money can never be fully earned; let's just hope our readers in London don't get too carried away...

Otherwise, it would be too much of a waste to go bankrupt over a small blind box.

The experience of Old John's family was certainly not an isolated case...

Michelle's Alice in Wonderland figurines and blind boxes caused a huge sensation in London as soon as they were released.

The regular version became the dream toy for children all over London, while the blind box version became the favorite of parents.

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The whole family's wallets are about to be completely empty...

It could even be argued that the blind box version had a far greater impact on London.

Because it's not just children who like it, but also many gentlemen.

Not to mention, this kind of gameplay is quite exciting...

And so, a series of amusing scenes soon unfolded in London.

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