Pokemon Center Big Size Raikou Plush
TOMY 2001 Pokemon Center New York Obtained from PCNY (2003) I've had Raikou since I was was 8 years old. He is from the defunct Pokemon Center New York, and was purchased in 2003 during the RSE era. On previous visits, I was enamored with Entei and Suicune (probably from the movies). During a return trip in 2003 with a friend for a video game event/activity day, only Raikou was left...probably because it wasn't from a movie. But, as a sad child (I...did not understand the rules of the tournament because I was 8...) I wanted the big tiger. Unlike the Japanese versions, either Raikou didn't have a dust bag (possibly because he wasn't a movie star), or the ones sold in the USA simply did not come with them. I guess there's a chance I lost it as a child too, but I don't recall him ever having one. Raikou was unique out of the giant plush because it was never sold on the old Pokemoncenter.com website, making it a sort of strange in-store exclusive within the US. This contributes a bit to it's rarity--Raikou has historically been the least seen/sold giant plush, at least out of the legendary beasts. Raikou has made it through these past 20 years quite well. He was a victim of a pair of scissors at some point, but it's a barely noticeable section of fabric that got shortened a bit. His tail and cloud are detached, I re-attached the tail myself since I don't plan on parting with him. |
Pokemon Center Big Size Entei Plush
TOMY 2001 Pokemon Center Japan Obtained from Chain on LJ (2020) After having Raikou as a child and growing up to learn about how expensive the other beasts were, I never really set my sights on obtaining them. However, some stars aligned that made it possible for me to purchase this Entei (Aelius) from a fellow community member on LJ. I had found him for sale on a dated sales post; and sent a message to Chain to see if he ever sold. He didn't! Though, Chain had moved to Japan, and Entei was stored in Australia. So, I had to wait about a year before he could return from Japan to pack and ship Entei off. It was so nerve wracking when I had to pick him up from the post office. I had him delivered to my friend's house, because my local post office had a lot of trouble delivering my mail to my apartment (and not my roommates...) no matter how many times I tried to fix/complain about it. Well, long story short they refused to let my friend sign for his package because his address on his ID didn't match the residence. What? So we drove through the snow to the post office, where I strongly insisted that they fork over my expensive stuffed animal. Naturally his box was in horrible shape and I was terrified, but it turns out he was packed well and ended up okay! What a relief. Aelius came with his dust bag, and is a little sun-faded/damaged, but it's difficult to notice unless you lift up his brown mane ruff. |
Pokemon Center Big Size Suicune Plush
TOMY 2001 Pokemon Center Japan Obtained from Mercari.jp (2021) Ah, Suicune (Charlemagne). Probably my 'least favorite' of the trio, and somewhat ironically the last one I needed (huh, I got them in Pokedex order--neat)! He's far from perfect--his crest is detached from his nose. His ribbons are broken. His legs were not in good shape when I got him. Since he arrived, I've fixed his legs (you can fix most beast leg issues by gently bending them back into shape and being sure they are supported and not standing on a squishy surface) and sewn his head crest down with some assistance from a friend. I've thought about getting a Suicune in better condition, but...that feels kind of weird to do, I guess. Suicune is one of the most frequent and cheapest giant plush to find, but also one of the ones that is often in poor condition. The eyes are prone to scratches, the ribbons break, and the legs buckle and fold. For some reason the legs on it are stuffed partially with some sort of vaguely crunchy/squishy foam, which makes them curl and buckle. The beasts were very popular for children to sit on due to their size, and Suicune in particular with a graceful figure was simply not meant to handle roughhousing. The person who sold Suicune to me was kind enough to send him to a professional cleaner too, which saved me some work. He did have a weird residue feeling from it, so I did have to wash it off with a damp cloth (which took a few sessions to get all of). |
Heartland TOMY Palkia Plush
Heartland TOMY 2007 Obtained from US Mercari Palkia's Heartland plush! Often mistaken for the smaller USA Jakks plush/regular JP Tomy plush, the Heartland is noticeably larger than both of them. It can be difficult to tell the difference, but the main giveaway between the JP Tomy plush and the Heartland is the mouth tusk attached to it's jaw. On the Heartland here, it barely reaches under the black line on it's face, while on the smaller Tomy/Jakks, the tusk clearly ends closer to the eye and passes over the black line. |
1:1 Togepi TOMY Plush
Obtained from PCNY |
1:1 Pichu TOMY Plush
Obtained from Nintendo World |
Talking Celebi plush
Obtained from old PC website While not a 1:1 Celebi, this talking one is made in a similar style! It speaks and the wings move when you press a button on the hand. |
Glaceon
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Salamence
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Scizor
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Virizion
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Flareon keychain
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Fuzzy Squirtle
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Magby
Vaporeon
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Kuta kuta Glaceon
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Espeon
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