The Beginner’s Guide to Bearbrick
Bearbrick is a line of designer toys made by Medicom Toy Inc. The toys come in the shape of bears and are often sold in “blind box” sets. Another well-known series from Medicom is the Kubrick, of which this design is a version. Each character looks like a chubby, bear-like person. Bearbricks have joints in their heads, waists, arms, wrists, and legs that let them move differently.
In 2001, the first Bearbrick was given away as a gift to people who attended the 12th World Character Convention in Tokyo. Not long after they were first released, Bearbricks quickly became a popular collectible in both the designer toy community and the hip-hop community. Famous people with Bearbrick collections include Pharrell Williams, DJ Khaled, and Nigo, who made BAPE.
For a new collector, Bearbrick might seem like a scary place because there are so many different kinds of designer toys. But don’t worry; this site has you covered. Keep reading to learn more about the world’s most popular designer toy.
In 2021, Bearbrick will be 20 years old, so Medicom will make a bunch of limited-edition collectibles to celebrate. The Great Wave off Kanagawa by Hokusai, scaled to 100%, 400%, and 1000%, the BAPE 28th Anniversary CAMO design, and more are some of the Bearbricks that celebrate 20 years of creativity and play.
When this was written, Series 42 was the most recent Bearbrick series that Medicom had put out. There are three different kinds of Bearbricks that might be in a drop:
Types of Bearbricks
Standard, This is probably the most common Bearbrick design. All of the Bearbricks in this series comes with a different “theme.”
- Bearbricks with one color and a letter painted in a different color on the front of their chests are the simplest. When all nine of the Basic Bearbricks in this set are lined up, they spell out “Bearbrick.” From MediCom’s point of view, they are not very common.
- Bearbricks made by visual artists are marked with the name of the artist. Usually, there are two artist figurines in each Bearbrick series. MediCom says that the chance of running into an Artist Bearbrick is 4.26% or 1.04%.
- Secret Bearbricks are unannounced designs that are usually rarer and more valuable than the Bearbricks listed above. MediCom says they are the rarest Bearbricks, as only 0.52% of people have them.
Bears With Brick Themes
Even though there are a few exceptions, the following categories cover almost all Bearbricks. The blind box shows how common each category is.
- Clear jellybeans with a solid color. Clear plastic building blocks in the shape of a bear. This item is 11.44 percent as rare as other things.
- A group makes bear bricks of artists with designs all over them, like polka dots or more abstract designs. MediCom says that only 11.4% of people have them.
- Bearbricks that are painted with the flag of a country have a 9.37% chance of being seen.
- Animal Bearbricks are 8.33% less common than regular Bearbricks and look like real animals.
- Cute Bearbricks are the perfect example of the Japanese “kawaii” style. You can expect to pay 13.54 percent more for these Bearbricks than you would for similar ones.
- Some of these Bearbricks have characters or places from old scary movies or other scary media. 9.37% of the time, things like this happen.
- In the SF (Science Fiction) category, you can find Bearbricks based on well-known Sci-Fi movies and TV shows. 9.37% of the time, you’ll only find them once.
- Hero: With a 7.29% chance of happening, Hero Theme Bearbricks are the newest member of the Bearbrick family. They look like DC Comics superheroes.
Size of a Bearbrick
The average Bearbrick is 7 centimeters high, but 100% Bearbricks are the norm. The names of the other sizes of Bearbricks all have something to do with this one. Here’s how long the different percentages are: 70% is 5 centimeters, 200% is 14.5 centimeters, 100% is 70 centimeters, 400% is 28 centimeters, 200% is 14.5 centimeters, 70% is 5 centimeters, and 50% is only 3.5 centimeters! Bearbricks are rarely sold in blind boxes, especially when they are bigger.