Pokemon

(aka Pocket Monsters)

Updated 11/10/2001

Introduction:

The Pokemon craze started with a video game for the Nintendo Game Boy, which spawned an animated series and a number of video game sequels. The popularity of  Pokemon has been phenomenal from the start, and Banpresto has produced literally hundreds of Pokemon game prizes since 1997. Plush toys, keychains, lights, figurines, jewelry, you name it. Banpresto has been producing plushes and other items every single month for the last couple of years.

Collecting Pokemon catcher toys has actually been quite tricky since the beginning. When the fad first started, there were many bootleg products coming out of Asia, and bootleggers went as far as duplicating the Banpresto hang tags on the fake products! Because of the bootleg problem, I initially stayed away from most of the Pokemon merchandise. There was a period of about two years when it was safe to collect Pokemon, and that's when I started picking up some of the plushes. Then came a time when US consumers had had enough of Pokemon, and sellers had a hard time selling anything Pokemon related. When this happened in late 2000, distributors in the US avoided Pokemon toys for fear that they'd never be able to sell them. Which leads us to the situation we have now. Go to your favorite online anime store, and you'll find they don't carry the latest Pokemon catcher toys. But on eBay, the new characters are fetching ridiculous prices.

 The items here represent just a small portion of the Pokemon catcher toys that were made. All of the following toys were produced by Banpresto.

** The following toys are here for display purposes, and are not for sale. **

As always, click on any of the thumbnail images to see a larger image.

 

pk-73.jpg (34243 bytes) 1997 This small Squirtle plush happens to be the oldest Pokemon catcher toy in my collection.
75190.jpg (56342 bytes) 1997 Pikachu - This set gave fans three versions of head poke' Pikachu. This is the complete set of 3, which measure 8 inches tall.
75462de.jpg (42714 bytes) 1998 Christmas Series - There were 6 in this series, according to the tag. Average size is just over 6 inches.
75356a.jpg (21049 bytes) 1998 Slowpoke - This one is from a series made of parachute material.
75516.jpg (29184 bytes) 1998 This DX Pikachu from is about 10 inches tall, and has a cardboard pokeball. You can turn the dial at the bottom to display different messages.
75718c.jpg (27839 bytes) 1999 Farfetch'd - 6 inches tall.
75526set.jpg (61665 bytes) 1999 Sign Series - This series featured 2 plush toys each of Pikachu, Mew & Togepy, holding signboards. The signs have suction cups so they can be hung in car windows.  

 

At this point, the plush sets changed. Instead of series of 5 or more characters, they were released in series of 3. And they were much larger than before - generally about 10 inches tall. They look like Banpresto's DX line of oversized plushes, but they were not labeled as DX toys.
75602set.jpg (57077 bytes) 1999 Pokemon Large Plush Set 1 -This is the complete set of 3. Lapras, Pikachu, and Meowth.
75623a.jpg (30925 bytes)

Pokemon Large Plush Set 2 - 1999 - Angry Pikachu, the turtle-like one on the right, and Snorlax were in this set.

75623b.jpg (26432 bytes)
75645.jpg (72598 bytes) 1999 Pokemon Large Plush Set 3 - Sleepy Pikachi, Vileplume  & Eevee.
75734.jpg (49622 bytes) 1999 Pokemon Large Plush Set 4 - Another trio measuring around 9-10 inches tall. This is the complete set of 3. Happy Pikachu, Mewtwo & Mr. Mime.
75774.jpg (62022 bytes) 1999 Pokemon Large Plush Set 5 - This time, we've got Pikachu, Snubble & Marril. (aka Pikablu)
75795.jpg (52003 bytes) 1999 Pokemon Large Plush Set 6 - This time, no Pikachu. (That's OK, we have enough already.) Elekid, Togepi and Kirehana.

 

75817.jpg (77141 bytes) Dec., 1999 Pokemon Beanie Plush Set 1 - The plush sets went back to the normal size of 6-7 inches. The bottom half of these toys are like bean bags, while the top half are pure plush. These are made with a super soft velour type material. The complete set is shown, with Rediba, Pikachu, Elekid, Hoo Hoo and Marril (aka Pikablu).
75871.jpg (86987 bytes) Jan., 2000 Pokemon Beanie Plush Set 2 - Once again, these measure about 6 -7 inches. The bottom half are bean bags, the top half are plush. The complete set of 5 is shown, with two angles of Slowbro.
75955a.jpg (32847 bytes) 75955cb.jpg (35796 bytes) 75955de.jpg (36350 bytes)
Neo Pokemon Plush Set - 2000 - Pikachu, Hinoarashi aka Cyndaquil, Chikorita, Waninoko aka Totodile, and Nuoo aka Quagsire.
Pokemon Friends DX Plush Set 1
dx1.jpg (29863 bytes) dx2.jpg (47285 bytes) dx3.jpg (26824 bytes)
Each example from this DX set is made up of two plushes sewn together. There's a 6" Pikachu resting against a 9" long Merripu, a 9" Pikachu holding a 7" Pichu, and Pikachu with Hanekko sitting atop his head. (15 inches tall)
Pokemon Pillows DX Plush Set
71225a.jpg (39408 bytes) 71225b.jpg (35770 bytes) 71225c.jpg (34173 bytes)
These plush pillows measure about 14 inches tall, and are made with a soft, terrycloth material. Each plush wears a cotton pillowcase, which can be removed. This is the complete set of 3, including Pikachu, Meowth, and Nuoo. 

I believe this was the first set of pillows, but it was not the last. There have been two other sets as well.
Talking Plush Set
71285a.jpg (42961 bytes) 71285b.jpg (39533 bytes) 71285c.jpg (38211 bytes)
These little guys have a light sensor on their heads. Set off the sensor and they'll talk. Each plush has one individual phrase. This is the complete set of 3 - Pikachu, Totodile (aka Waninoko) and Cyndaquil. (aka Hinoarashi.)
Shoulder Buddy Plushes
71248a.jpg (52787 bytes) 71248b.jpg (42910 bytes) 71248c.jpg (48587 bytes)
71248d.jpg (66105 bytes) 71248e.jpg (57588 bytes) 71248f.jpg (56626 bytes)
These little bean bag plushes have a cord with a plastic clip attached. The idea is to clip the plush to your clothing and place the plush on your shoulder. There were six in the set, including: Pikachu, Pichu, Chikorita, Waninoko, Hinoarashi and Aipom. All are shown here.
71437bde.jpg (34461 bytes) 2001 This set featured plushes made with an irredescent material. Pichu, Nuoo & Igglybuff are shown. Pikachu and Chicorita were also part of this set.
71591e.jpg (19176 bytes) 2001 Hmmm....what's this one's name....
71609b.jpg (17735 bytes)

This set featured plushes made of a soft, velvety yet furry material. Very nice! Others in the set include Pikachu, Eipo, and Chicorita. Pichu  

71609e.jpg (19364 bytes)
71712c.jpg (17764 bytes) 2001 Plushes from this set are attached to a strap with velcro. The straps are to be placed around seat belts in cars. Celebi is shown here. Pikachu, Pichu and one other were in the set.
71730b.jpg (27650 bytes) 2001 This DX Pichu measures just over 13 inches tall! There were just two in the set. The other is Pikachu. To show just how big this one is, I've included a pic of him next to other recent Pichu plushes.

 

Non-Plush Items

76263.jpg (42256 bytes) 1999 Mini Vinyl Banks - 1999. Complete set shown. Each comes packaged inside a clear plastic cylinder with a coin bank top, so really, you get two banks!
76362.jpg (77849 bytes) 2000 Pokemon Vinyl Bank Set 2 - This is the complete set of 5 mini-banks. 
76386.jpg (42182 bytes) 2000 These little guys have a velvet-like fuzzy surface, and they come packed in large red and white pokeball capsules. There was just one other in the set, which was Elekid.

 

 

[ Back to the Index Page ]    [ Back to the Main Page ]

The words and scans are © Kane, aka spooky@voicenet.com, who freely admits he spends way too much time thinking about toys. The toys shown are © Banpresto, Inc., a subsidiary of Bandai, Inc. This site is not endorsed or affiliated with Banpresto, it is just a hobby that I enjoy working on. The toys on this site are part of a personal collection, and are NOT FOR SALE. Thanks for visiting. Cheers.