He is a man of action. He is a man of honor. He is a man of duty. He has a bobbling head. He is the official Dr. Tran bobblehead, featuring the Internet-famous creation of Lone Sausage Productions, and he is front and center this week, thanks to Show and Tell.

A bobblehead, even a Dr. Tran one, doesn't really seem like Show and Tell material, you might be thinking, so you're guessing there's some sort of special connection behind this particular bobblehead. If that's the case, then pat yourself on the back, because you're right: Dr. Tran helped get me a lot more interested in the offbeat and rare.

While Dr. Tran has been around since 2003, the bobblehead certainly has not. Created last year by Symbiote Studios, Dr. Tran is actually quite a bit bigger than the normal-sized bobblehead, standing a full 6" tall, thanks in part to the peanut butter square base Tran is standing on. He's also quite a bit heavier for the exact same reason, weighing in at just over 2 pounds. But then again, he's not just a bobblehead, he's a real doctor, with a Ph.D in ... actually, I can probably skip that witty Dr. Tran reference.

The pose Tran is in, with arms out to his side, mouth open wide as he argues with the loud voice-over guy over whether or not he is a real American doctor who likes eating hickory smoked horse buttholes from a cup, is not only the perfect summary of Dr. Tran's often bizarre adventures, but quite adorable, too. I know I feel sorry for the poor little boy every time I see him on my shelf. That is, before I remember some hilarious line from one of the Dr. Tran short films and begin laughing to myself.

But what makes him so special is that he's a limited edition, the first limited edition piece I bought. Each of the 250 bobbleheads is hand-numbered on the bottom of the bobblehead's base, which at least in my view, is all about bragging rights. I'd never really owned anything that was made in so few quantities before, but the overwhelming sense of pride I had when Dr. Tran arrived and I knew I was only one of a handful of people in the world to have this bobblehead was indescribable. It's like being part of a secret club, except without all the spooky initiation rites. Both the original and "Moccodity" versions of the Tran bobblehead are both sold out, so if you didn't get one back when pre-orders were open like I did, then you're out of luck.

From that day on, the limited edition collecting bug bit me and spread from just a bobblehead to the entire world of vinyl and PVC figures, whether that means a simple colorway or a hand-crafted piece of beautiful resin art. I've added a few more limited edition pieces to my ever-growing collection since then and I've got plans to try and add a few more by the end of 2009, but my Dr. Tran bobblehead will always be the first of its kind on my toy shelves. That's definitely something no one else can lay claim to.