We're officially in October! I thought what better way to celebrate the coming holiday with reviewing a spooky themed collectible! In fact, I plan to review several items this month including the Digimon Adventure: Last Evolution Kizuna Digivice (to celebrate the US Blu-Ray release), the official localization of the Kiki's Delivery Service novel (also newly released), and a video game review (I haven't decided yet which). But you've come here for Pokemon! So, let's step into the spooky world of Pokemon with the Haunted Pokemon Village Gengar House Halloween Statue, exclusive to the Pokemon Center website! I have to admit, Pokemon isn't something I actively seek out to collect. As I've grown older, I don't play the games as much and I stopped watching the show when Advanced started. I never really collected the cards once they were stolen from me as a kid. I did play the new games, but not to the enjoyable level which I haven't felt since HeartGold came out. I watched a few of the new movies and I can say, at least those are good. So I focused my collection on my favorite Pokemon, Murkrow / ヤミカラス (Yamikarasu). Fortunately he has little merchandise, so it's a nice side collection I don't worry about often. Then I saw the Pokemon Halloween Collection had a statue in my search results on the Pokemon center. (I had previously seen the Murkrow Sitting Cuties / Fit plush, which I wanted to buy before it sold out.) Murkrow may be just a tiny detail on the top of this statue, but as someone who grew up surrounded by those ceramic villages around Christmas and someone who also had disposable income just in time to buy their one, annual Halloween decoration... You see where this is going. But it was sold out. And then, I checked ebay. People wanted $200-$300 USD for a statue that retailed for $49.99 USD (before shipping and tax). My heart SUNK. Luckily, my discord group was on top of things. They gave me a ping as soon as they were back in stock and with a small warning about iffy paint jobs and possible broken parts, I took the risk. The statue sold out again within an hour! The statue arrived about a week later and I'm happy to report with no breaks. Initially, I didn't find quality control issues. It's been sitting on display for a week now and I only noticed some sloppy paint and chipped paint while taking the close ups for this review. The box itself is pretty plain with some spooky colors and a few shots of the statue. The box itself is the flimsiest cardboard imaginable, but that's typical. The house comes inside Styrofoam packing. Let me just say, it got everywhere even with a gentle touch. I've been completely spoiled by whatever Styrofoam Square Enix uses... or old statues like my Kaiyodo Rei Ayanami used... This stuff was cheap and awful and is my one gripe with the entire thing. I have to say it did do well to protect the statue, though! Also, at this price tag, I really can't complain. The statue measures about 8 inches tall. It's got a good weight to it since it's made of polyresin. It's also fairly fragile, so be careful where you display this if you're like me and got two mischievous cats or equally curious children. There's plenty of detail on all sides and lots of Pokemon to look at! I think Sobble is an odd choice, but he was my starter in SWSH, so I can't complain. I know Gengar is popular, although I wonder why it's his house? I guess he's the most qualified? (I was here when it was WRITTEN). Haunter and Murkrow being in my top 10; I'm pleased to see them here. The stained glass look on the windows is amazing and I think the only thing really holding this statue back is that it isn't open on the bottom / doesn't include a light. I think if this thing lit up it would be 10x more amazing... There is a lot of other nice touches here, not just including the Pokemon! The sign is adorable and vibrant and the little treats on the front step really bring in the feel of Trick Or Treating and Halloween! The faux holes in the roof, the antique lamps, and even the detail in the muted tone of the grass all make this piece come together! I love the mix of popular Halloween colors like purple and orange mixed with the saturated colors of the house itself and the grass. Having said that, there are some flaws. The Pikachu... treat bag (?) has a lot of chipping, Haunter has a chipped paint spot on his hand and some of the lamps and grass have a bit of over spill where it was painted. As I stated earlier, though, I didn't notice these defects until taking the pics for the review. I mostly display this with Haunter and Murkrow facing forward anyway so these aren't really noticeable. I would say if buying second hand, make sure you get good close up pics if you're finicky about little mistakes. On the bright side, I don't see any of the sloppy paint on the Pokemon themselves, which is why most people probably bought this statue. In conclusion, this statue is 100% worth the retail price. The second hand market price, though... Last one sold on Ebay was $200 at the time of writing this. I don't see any individual listings for this one, but there are plenty of sets including all four houses in the collection. I would wait for prices to drop after October or hope Pokemon Center US does another restock, as these weren't sold widely, not even in Japan. This is a lovely statue and I don't regret the purchase! I look forward to displaying this every year as not only an homage to my mother's Christmas village, but to my childhood love for Pokemon.
So, what do you think of Pokemon Center's Halloween Collection? Did you manage to snag a piece for your room / home decor? What would you like to see in the future for other Halloween merch? Let us know in the comments!
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Author: ShindoW
I am a anime and video game enthusiast living in Texas. I have been collecting since 2005. During that time I've collected a variety of merchandise and knowledge to help other collectors. Archives
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