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Tokyo Stash: My TGS Souvenirs
If Tokyo is good for one thing, it’s shopping. This being my second time traveling to Tokyo for TGS, I didn’t go quite as hog-wild on random goods as I did a year ago. Instead, I put my hard-earned money into a few really cool items. I still needed a second suitcase to take everything home, but I didn’t break the bank. Check out some of the sweet stuff I scored.
(Sorry for the low-quality pictures! My point-and-shoot isn’t fantastic)
Totoro Plant Potter
Obviously, Miyazaki/Studio Ghibli gets more credit and recognition in Japan. In fact, there are stores dedicated solely to merchandise based on his properties. It was tough to decide between a Kiki’s Delivery Service lamp, a Laputa Robot bust or this little number. Eventually, after a few trips to similar stores, I settled on a My Neighbor Totoro planter in order to bring a bit of green to my desk. So far I haven’t killed the plant, a first for me. I also bought the little Kodama critters to put in the pot. A little IP cross-pollination never hurt anyone!
Watchmen Bearbrick 3-Pack
These little guys were spendy ($39.99!!!) but ultimately worth it. Broken into two packs, I chose the edition with Doctor Manhattan, Rorschach and Silk Specter. The other set included The Comedian, Night Owl and Ozymandias. It really wasn’t a hard choice. If these things weren’t so expensive, I would have bought them both. Alas, I will have to complete the collection another time.
Final Fantasy XI Chirping Chocobo
Okay, it’s easy enough to figure out why I picked this thing up. I found it at the Square Enix store in the TGS convention hall. Cheap enough to grab a few as souvenirs, the thing chirps when sitting in the palm of your hand. Very Kawaii!
Final Fantasy VI and Chrono Trigger NIB
Anyone who’s been to Akihabara has been to Super Potato, one of the best places to find rare (at least in the US) games. Here, my husband (who traveled to Tokyo with me) found Final Fantasy VI and Chrono Trigger new in box. I am glad that he had time to scour Akihabara while I was working!
Marvel Handbag
You can find some pretty cool and obscure western comic items in Japan. Last year I found some rare Image action figures. This year I found this amazing Marvel handbag. This thing is going everywhere with me from now on. My husband also found this in the same location. The cutest chibi Iron Man ever!
Knock-Off Adventure Hero Spider-Man
I also picked this up for our resident Spider-Man guru, Ben. The thing was cheap and funny as hell. Sadly, the skateboarding Spidey was the only in the series the store carried, otherwise I would have loved to have found Space, Arctic or Street Scooter Spider-Man.
We also found some poorly translated shirts in Harajuku, including one that says “Crap your hands, make some noise.” Throw $50 worth of snacks and candy and my suitcase was full. Quality prevailed over quantity this year, but I am pretty happy with my TGS haul!
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