Pokémon Zukan XY01 Set
Gashapon Release – ¥300 Each – February, 2014
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The Pokémon Zukan line is back in my collecting radar with the start of the XY Series! For those that don’t know, the Zukan line is a series of Gashapon (Capsule) toys made of a PVC plastic representing a variety of Pokémon. The theme of the series is that all the Pokémon are 1/40th scale according to the Pokédex entries. This makes the huge Pokémon an impressive size, and the small Pokémon VERY miniature. That doesn’t mean they lack detail. Even at ¥300 a piece in Japan, the tiniest of Pokémon still have a nice amount of detail and paint to accurately represent the Pokémon. The XY01 Set features four capsules: Xerneas, Yveltal, the Kalos Starters, and the Kanto Starters. It’s worth noting that the smaller figures don’t secure to their stands at all. I glue all my Zukan figures together (and to the stands) so I don’t lose them. Given how small some of them are, it’s easy to lose track of them! The Zukan line is really fun to collect, as all the Pokémon released are in scale with each other. The line has been going for a while, and now is just as good a time as any to start collecting. Being Gashapon toys, it’s harder to collect these than other toys, but sets are always available on Yahoo Japan Auctions, so hit up a middleman like OkinawamToySeller or a service like Shopping Mall Japan to nab yourself a set. Alternatively, Hobby Link Japan has started selling blind boxes of eight capsules starting with XY03. You’re more than likely going to get a full set through the eight capsules, so it works out to be a good deal if you don’t want to go through a middleman or shopping service. The display options and scale of this line is what makes it unique, and I really do love the line. Can’t wait to see what we end up with before it’s all done.
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CollectorShuki.com