Company: Takara Tomy A.R.T.S. / Tomy / T-Arts
Year: 2018+
Size: 5cm
Main distribution: Japan / Europe
These are soft vinyl figures, or sofubi in Japanese. They are distributed via Gashapon in Japan, and blind boxes / gashapon balls in Europe.
These come in various waves of 4 figures. 5 volumes are out, creating 20 figures total.
Volume 1
Release Japan: April 2018
Release Europe: 2020
Barcode: 796714679426
Volume 1 exists out of 4 figures; Kirby, Waddle Dee, Kirby (sleepy) and Waddle Doo.
I got 1/4.
Kirby (sleepy)
Kirby is wearing a sleep cap, purple with yellow dots, and has his eyes closed. He’s sitting upright but appears to be dozing off.
His branding is on his bottom and side. It reads in printed font: © Nintendo / HAL Laboratory, Inc. ©2020 TOMY MADE IN CHINA on his side and L67942A B1020LE100 TOMY UK: EX2 5AZ EU: CS70358, Archamps. FR.
This is the European version. It came in a pink Gashapon boll and was sold as a “blind box”. I was able to spot him inside through the little holes though.
Inside is the figure in clear plastic and the leaflet showing the entire line as a checklist.
It’s very basic, simply stating Kirby, figures, 4 to collect and showing the 4 images without names.
Volume 2
Release: January 2019
Volume 2 exists out of 4 figures; Kirby (inhale), Waddle Dee (headband), Metaknight and Kirby (UFO).
I got 1/4.
Kirby (inhale)
Kirby is standing with his feet firmly on the ground and his hands in the air. His mouth is open, ready to suck anything in its vicinity.
His branding is on his bottom of his left foot. It reads in printed font: © N / H T-ARTS MADE IN CHINA.
This is the Japanese version.
Volume 3
Volume 3 exists out of 4 figures; Kirby, Waddle Dee (sailor hat), Scarfy and Kirby (Canon).
I got 0/4.
Volume 4
Release: December 2020
Volume 4 exists out of 4 figures; Rick, Kirby, Kine and Coo.
I got 0/4.
Kirby 30th Anniversary
Release: 27 July 2022
Barcode: 4904790058516
This volume came out to celebrate Kirby’s 30th Anniversary. It exists out of 4 figures; Kirby’s Dreamland (Gameboy – 1992), Ripple Star (Kirby 64: The Crystal Shards – 2000), Delicious Time (Kirby Cafe – 2016) and Kirby 30th (30th Anniversary – 2022).
I got 4/4.
Each figure is Japanese and came in a Gashapon ball.
They all have a black and white leaflet with it.
Kirby’s Dreamland
This figure is to commemorate the Gameboy Game Kirby’s Dreamland from 1992. Kirby is happily walking and has his classic face design. Its pose is based on the official art:
Its branding is on the back of him. It reads in raised font: © N / H T-ARTS CHINA. It came in a red Gashapon ball.
Ripple Star
This figure is to commemorate Kirby 64: The Crystal Shards from 2000. Kirby is proudly holding a crystal shard. Its pose is based on the official art:
Its branding is on the back of him. It reads in raised font: © N / H T-ARTS CHINA. It came in a blue Gashapon ball.
Delicious Time
This figure is to commemorate the Kirby Cafe which opened in 2016. Kirby is happily walking around with a fork and spoon and wears a chef hat. Its pose is based on the official art:
Its branding is on the back of him. It reads in raised font: © N / H T-ARTS CHINA. It came in a yellow Gashapon ball.
Kirby 30th
This figure is to commemorate Kirby’s 30th Anniversary in 2022. Kirby is jumping out from behind a warp star and smiling. The star has Kirby 30th Anniversary written on it. Its pose is based on the official art:
Its branding is on the bottom of the star. It reads in raised font: © N / H T-ARTS CHINA. It came in a green Gashapon ball.
Lately I’m really into sofubi of soft vinyl figures. They feel nice and look good, and are of a decent size for a good price.
I initially found the Kirby from Vol. 2 in Amsterdam in a shop whom imports from Japan. I thought he was cute and I didn’t have a Kirby in the inhale pose yet, and figured he would look nice with food pictures.
A year later I find these pink gashapon ball blind boxes in the UK. I have no clue whether it’s a squishy or a soft vinyl or hard plastic inside, but I liked the sleepy Kirby so was trying to find him and I spotted his purple and yellow hat through the tiny holes. It wasn’t till I was home and opened it I found it to be the same series as the one I had already bought a year prior. Looking further into it, it seems Tomy is finally bringing these to Europe, so hopefully the others will appear here too, although I have yet to see them.
With Kirby’s 30th Anniversary, a lot of new goodies came out. A lot of classic Kirby as well, which I love. So when I saw this set announced, I knew I needed it, if only for the Dreamland figure. I managed to find them for cheap but only if I pre-ordered a box of 8 of them. There was no guaranty I would get a full set, but I figured if I can get Kirby Dreamland I’d be happy. I actually got 2 full sets! And they came in their gashapon balls, which I wasn’t expecting to be honest, so that was cool. I love how they are based on the official art too.
They look really good and are nice to display. They are also quite soft and can be squished a bit, but they bounce back perfectly. They remind me of kid’s bath toys.
I probably won’t collect all of them, but I’d like to add Waddle Doo, Kirby in the canon and the animal friends to my collection. We’ll see!
They retail for 300 yen in Japan, and £3.99 in the UK.
If you like Kirby and cheap, large figures these are quite nice.
If you want something that feels less “childish”, you may want to give these a miss.
If anyone would like to trade let me know.
Got any more details / information? Did I get something wrong? Do you own the same figures or the full series? Let me know in the comments below!