I don’t remember when I first saw a funko pop. Like I couldn’t tell you the store or what character it was supposed to be etc. All I can remember is that I had never had such a visceral reaction to a toy before, and never since.
I hated them.
I could feel the leeching of Japanese pop culture in the absurdly large heads, beady black soul-less eyes, and disproportionally small bodies that felt wrong.
I forgot who I was with, but they even commented on how comically disgusted I looked looking at them. Picture a baby-hating villain holding up a child and that face was probably mine at the time. I don’t think I had much to say to that. Other then luckily, it circulated among my family and friends that funkos were not going to be a well received gift if anyone dared.
But at the time, they seemed to have cornered the Western market for non-Japanese franchises – i.e. Marvel, DC, Doctor Who, etc. So I didn’t really care and it wasn’t really that big of a problem. Don’t like it? In this case as simple of a solution as don’t buy it.
Just because it’s not my aesthetic preference, didn’t mean it didn’t have an audience. I actually get why people like them so much. The cube-ish style allows for so much mixing and matching between various characters and franchises without breaking the bank. Plus they were readily acquired though various sources so who could really complain.
Aside from the occasional collector on Instagram, I rarely saw them post-moving to Japan so who cares?
But when I went to my favorite second-hand pop culture chain store in Japan and saw that Funkos of all things, were now sitting, still boxed in featured display case – I felt my hatred rekindle. Especially given that these were an imported downgrade of fandom figures (sorry when you’re right next to a pop up parade figure the quality difference is HUGE) that lined that shelve at sickenly expensive prices did not help. Plus that store had a particular uptick in Funko invading shelf space previously occupied heavily by Qposket…
I have a different, less substantial bone to pick with Qposket’s. I think they’re higher quality and less soulless. Unfortunately, I almost had a shelving unit (think 50+ figures) of them tipped on me once. The vague fear of being smacked to the ground, potentially getting a concussion by various doe-eyed Disney characters, magical girls, and the Demon Slayer cast was a very odd thing to have almost occurred. I actually had a few Qposket’s at one point but I can’t seem to find them outside of my Instagram posts. I’m sure they’re still around somewhere.
Between Qposket’s almost knocking me to the ground, and soulless invasion of fandom that Funko’s are – I’ll take a Qposket any day.
Phoenix Talks Pop Culture Japan 
Oh I have a few Qposket! A Card Captor Sakura and a Miku. They are super cute! So sorry to hear some of their brethren almost squished you, I’m sure they were very sorry! Yeah, I’m not really a fan of Funko Pop figures either, I don’t hate them, but they kind of look like they should be a free give-away in a Happy Meal
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Oh! I’ve seen a few of Cardcaptor ones! I didn’t know/haven’t seen Miku though! The Qposket’s and I were okay, so it’s all good! (And the staff fixed the shelf right away.)
That description of a Funko Pop is… amazing. Like truly that’s an A+ description I think lol.
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You’re the first person I know who has said that they hated Funko. Those Funko Pops are everywhere, so they do feel like they are invading so many spaces. I did kind of feel bad because I do own two Funko pops: Megaman (I got that for Christmas a few years ago) and Kimba the White Lion which I found on eBay. Looks like we both have something from Osamu Tezuka, if I can use some humor. Thanks for letting me know about other fandom-oriented companies with collectibles.
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Really? And here I thought this was a common opinion…
As long as you enjoy your figures that’s all that matters! And I do give you bonus points for one being a Osamu Tezuka Funko lol.
And you’re most welcome!
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I’m not sure. Maybe it’s more common than I thought since I’m not knee-deep in various fandoms, but at least in America I noticed people liking them. Maybe that’s just my perception.
No problem! I do have other fandom memorabilia of different subjects. I knew you would appreciate that about one of those examples! The Kimba one was never sold in America, and I was thankful to find one from an American seller which was convenient. Black Jack is cool, too!
Sure thing and it is good to see some opinions backed up with logic even if they could be contrary to most. I do need to be better at that when it comes to letting other people enjoy their fandoms as long as they aren’t being toxic about it, but that’s a different conversation.
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That’s a fair take. I’m so out of it that I assumed there were more detractors, but I’m also not really sure myself. They have to have an audience for them to keep making so many… for now (new came out that they’re trashing a bunch of them so… maybe not anymore)
Fandom memorabilia is always such a fun thing to talk about! I hadn’t know that there were Japan (maybe?) exclusives outside of the US either. So that’s really interesting to have found out!
And absolutely. That’s a big thing I too need to work on. It’s easy to type that sort of thing, it’s a whole other to actually practice it in real life.
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No problem. I might not be sure about some things since I’ve been slipping out of a lot of fandoms (or maybe it’s just me getting older). They are still making new ones and exclusives in different places like Target, various cons, comic book shops, etc.
Absolutely, and I don’t talk about it enough with people. I wasn’t so sure about geographically specific Pop Vinyls although I’ve had theories as to why the Kimba one didn’t show up in America (*cough* Disney *cough*), but some of these country and continental exclusives did look interesting.
Of course and I had to hold myself back at times. It didn’t help when I made a rant post a few months ago, but practicing it in real life can be just as tough.
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I think Funko pop figures are weird and creepy too. They remind me of Ghanian Akwaaba dolls (you can google them) for some reason
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You know, they really do look like the Akwaaba dolls. It it really is true that history and art are always repeating themselves in a way…
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That’s certainly true. Some things seem to be going back in time in some cases. Take fashion for instance. I was looking at an eighties outfit and it was so similar to a design I saw an Instagram fashion page for a recent collection
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I own a bunch of POPs. I picked up a lot of them on clearance for like $2-4, but I have bought sets from series I really like (Sailor Moon, Hello Kitty). Not at full price though since that’s how I roll, LOL. I like Q Poskets too, but I only have a couple. They just don’t go on sale/clearance like POPs do.
I have my POPs stacking on top of each other, and they have tipped over and bonked me a couple of times (although sometimes I was trying to defend them from falling into my dog’s water bowl). They haven’t fallen in a long time, so I hope I didn’t just jinx myself…
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As long as you like and enjoy them, that’s all that matters! And especially if they were on-sale and with a coupon so to speak lol!
And I am glad to know that various figurines falling on people is not just a me experience. Lol. Fingers crossed they remain steady!
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