Out of Sick Days? It’s Time to Send in 3D Printed ‘Man Flu Body Double’  

How many of you remember that episode of Seinfeld (yes, we’re playing that game!) where George has nothing to do at work–and characteristically wants nothing to do at any cost–but he discovers if he sits at his desk looking furiously annoyed all day everyone avoids coming to him because they assume he is terribly busy? That’s one way to ward off potential interaction with delegating bosses, but what if (cue in daydreaming music here), just what if…

What IF you could send a jaunty 3D printed version of yourself to the office? After all, we are living in the culture of the selfie. I can only imagine the humor that would have ensued with Seinfeld had they been texting and photobombing and snapchatting—not to mention 3D printing god knows what—but we certainly enjoyed a lot of laughs anyway. Today, we have any number of celebrities, not to mention our sister and brother and friends, producing one selfie after another from vacation photos to the most mundane daily activities.

Coming up in popularity as well is the 3D printed selfie—generally a little comical—and something we have great fun checking out on a rather continual basis. At this point, one would have thought we’d seen it all, from seasonal selfies to skiing selfies to Simon Says selfies!

But when it comes to the 3D printing industry, guess what? Guess again. Never think you’ve seen it all. That’s the magic that happens when infinite options are available for innovation, along with big marketing plans—and some hefty price tags too, as in the case of the ‘Man Flu Body Double’ created by Australia’s Keech 3D, working with Groupon there Down Under.

“Like warm beer or a broken thong, man flu is the Aussie male’s kryptonite. During winter each year, tens of thousands of blokes are struck down with flu symptoms similar to those that appear in women – only infinitely worse,” states the Groupon promo. “Runny noses, foggy heads, and a mild temperature are enough for them to spend up to four days on the couch, wasting precious sick days. Until now.”

He’s also found in the Groupon Winter Warmers catalog.  Getting your own guy on board requires a 30-minute 3D body scan and is just $59,000–all yours when you click that ‘Buy Now’ button. Once the scan has been completed, 3D MAN takes just four weeks to build and is then delivered straight to his new home with you.

We did see a similar lifesize selfie for Mother’s Day, but even that price tag of $30K for another Groupon deal paled in comparison to the cost you’ll spend to send your strapping 3D MAN off to the office for the day, where he will apparently spending a lot of time staring at the wall thinking up new ideas. Think they could put an annoyed look on his face? That might buy you any number of extra hours, George Costanza-style.

Asking yourself how much your sick day is worth—whether you have a massive Monday hangover or just a date in your best jammies with that comfy couch for the day—you can send your man double to get the job done while you fritter away the day happily. But you better have dinner waiting for him when he gets home!

Do you need this 3D Man? DIscuss over in the 3D Printed Giant Selfie forum at 3DPB.com.