Series: Dragonball / Dragonball Z
Company: Bandai
Release: October, 2004
Size: +/- 5 cm
Main distribution: Japan
This is a series made by Bandai called the “Mini Figure Selection Plus”. 2 series of 6 figures were made. These came in blind bags. They are great 3D representations of Akira Toriyama’s art.
These little figures came in blind bags. So it would be a surprise which one you would get. They came in pieces and you had to put them together. They also came with a little leaflet.
Series 1
Series 1 consisted out of 6 figures. I got 1/6.
#1 Son Goku & Son Gohan on bike
Goku is riding a motorcycle with Gohan on the back. It’s very mundane for the warrior.
On the bottom of the base is the branding. It reads: © B/S·T B.CHINA 21029 #01 and has the Bandai 4 dots stamp. #01 is the number of the figure.
This figure is based on artwork of Akira Toriyama:
#2 Son Goku & Son Gohan on biped
This figure is based on artwork of Akira Toriyama:
#3 Master Roshi on motorcycle
This figure is based on artwork of Akira Toriyama:
#4 Bulma and bicycle
This figure is based on artwork of Akira Toriyama:
#5 Son Gohan and Dragon / Dinosaur on hoverbike
This figure is based on artwork of Akira Toriyama:
#6 The Ginyu Force
This figure is based on artwork of Akira Toriyama:
Series 2
Series 2 also consisted out of 6 figures. I got 0/6.
#1 Son Goku & Bulma on Dinosaur
This figure is based on artwork of Akira Toriyama:
#2 Son Goku & Bulma on Dinosaur Bird
This figure is based on artwork of Akira Toriyama:
#3 Son Goku and Chi-Chi on motorcycle
This figure is based on artwork of Akira Toriyama:
#4 Son Goku on bicycle
This figure is based on artwork of Akira Toriyama:
#5 Son Goku on Dinosaur
This figure is based on artwork of Akira Toriyama:
#6 Son Goku doing a Kamehameha
This figure is based on artwork of Akira Toriyama:
This was one of the last figures I bought for Dragonball before focusing on University. I found this little guy online in Belgium or France at the time. I had never seen these before.
I really like the Dragonball characters doing mundane things. I also really love Akira Toriyama’s art, especially his dinosaurs and vehicles. This series celebrates that and creates these gorgeous 3D renditions of them. They are so detailed, and yet so tiny! And I also love small things. This is one of my absolute favourite figures.
For years I did not know if there were others of this line. I didn’t even know what it was called. I had assumed it was a gashapon, so my searches didn’t get very far with that. But now that I know, I’m keeping my eye out for the rest. I already did that of course, but they rarely pop up.
I also love the blind bags art. Instead of re-using Akira’s art, they made new art, with a nod to his’. It’s like the moment before, with Gohan still on the floor before hopping on Goku’s bike, or Bulma having a quick chat with Goku before hopping on. I thought this was really clever. As I bought mine secondhand, I never had these myself sadly.
If you like small figurines and Akira Toriyama’s art, these are so great! I know I’ll be hunting for them. If you’re more into power stances or bigger figures, these might not be up your ally.
Got any more details / information you think I should add? Or did I get something wrong? Do you own any of these figures? Which one is your fav? Do you agree or disagree with my findings? Let me know in the comments below!