Pokémon 10 Battles [Battle for Life] – Banpresto

Set: Pokémon 10 Battles [Battle for Life] / ポケモン１０番勝負 ｢宿命の対決

Company: Banpresto

Year: 1999

Size: +/- 9cm high and base is +/- 11cm wide

Main distribution: Japan

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Banpresto released 10 battle scene diorama figures in 1999, calling it Pokémon 10 Battles [Battle for Life].

There is a Pikachu VS Meowth, Pikachu VS Raichu, Pikachu VS Charmander, Pikachu VS Mew, Pikachu VS Scyther, Zapdos VS Nidoking, Dragonite VS Blastoise, Mewtwo VS Mew, Gyarados VS Venusaur and Charizard VS Blastoise.

I got 3/10.

Pikachu VS Meowth

The figure measures up to 5 cm high to the top of Meowth. The rocky base is about 8.5 cm wide. The diorama depicts Pikachu holding Meowth by the tail and using thunder on him.

Meowth looks panicked as he can’t escape. The figures are very expressive; you can see Pikachu enjoying it almost as he is about to shock Meowth, who seems less pleased with this.

This one only really works when viewed from the front, due to Pikachu’s shocking thunder attack.

The figure comes in 4 pieces (base, Pikachu with Meowth’s tail, Meowth sans tail and thunder effect) which easily click together. They are of a soft plastic, almost rubbery like and feel quite nice. What’s interesting is, is that these figures appear to be perfectly in scale in relationship to each other. If Pokémon were real, according to the Pokédex, Meowth would be about the same size as Pikachu.

Pikachu VS Raichu

This figure is the least tall and only measures up to 4 cm high to the top of Pikachu. The rocky base is about 11 cm wide, making it the widest I have so far.

The diorama depicts Pikachu using thunder on Raichu, who seems unfazed.

The figures are very expressive; you can feel Pikachu is giving it all and Raichu seems to mock the smaller mouse and has a “come at me” attitude about him.

This one only really works when viewed from the front, due to Pikachu’s shocking thunder attack.

The figure comes in 4 pieces (base, Pikachu, Raichu and thunder effect) which easily click together. They are of a soft plastic, almost rubbery like and feel quite nice. What’s interesting is, is that these figures appear to be perfectly in scale in relationship to each other. If Pokémon were real, according to the Pokédex, Raichu would be about twice the size of Pikachu.

Pikachu VS Charmander

The figure measures up to 9 cm high all the way to the top of Pikachu’s tail and the green base is about 8 cm wide. This makes it the tallest one of the bunch.

The diorama depicts Pikachu using tackle on Charmander, hitting him hard in the back from above.

The figures are very expressive, you can feel Charmander’s pain as he screams.

What’s interesting is, is that these figures appear to be perfectly in scale in relationship to each other. If Pokémon were real, according to the Pokédex, Charmander would be about 20 cm bigger than Pikachu.

The figure comes in 3 pieces (base, Charmander and Pikachu) which easily click together. They are of a soft plastic, almost rubbery like and feel quite nice. Unlike some of the other diorama’s in this series, this one looks good from all angles.

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One of my absolute favourites in my collection. I love everything about it!
I love how it’s in scale, I love how expressive it is, I love the retro, original designs (chubby Chu!), I love the material used, I love how it looks good from all angles.

I’ve been hunting for these for a while. I’d like to get all 10 figures, but luckily I already got my favourite; Pikachu VS Charmander. I got most of the Pikachu ones in fact, whom I like the best.

I managed to get Pikachu VS Charmander by luck really, as I saw it in a background of a photo of a sales post on Facebook. I asked if that was on sale as well and it was! I’ve bought multiple times from this collector now, who is based in Hong Kong but has legit stuff from Japan.
I managed to get Pikachu VS Raichu by winning it in an auction on a Pokémon Facebook group from a retro Pokémon collector. No one bid on this, can you believe it! After chatting a bit I found out she had another one of this line, Pikachu VS Meowth, which I then also purchased.

I do hope to gain all 10 one day, although they can be quite expensive and rare due to their age and Japan exclusivity.

If you like retro Pokémon diorama’s, these are great! If you like more modern design Pokémon, you might want to give these a miss.

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Got any more details / information? Did I get something wrong? Do you own figures from this series? Do you have a favourite figure in your collection? Let me know in the comments below!