Pokémon Bonsai Blind Box Dioramas 2022

This is a review of the Pokemon Bonsai 2 that was released by Rement in the latter part of 2022.  Like all collectable releases of figures / toys in Japan, these are limited run and no longer available unless you buy them second hand or find old stock.  These are blind box figures that can be bought in singles, or in sealed boxed sets of six that will provide you with a complete set.  When buying these individually it will be random as to what you will get.  These used to be 500 to 800 yen a box, but they have gone way up in the ten years since I first bought one of these.  The box sets were in the 4,000 to 5,000 yen range, but cost 6,000 to 7,200 yen now.  A single box is around 1000 yen which means you spend $10 to see if you are lucky, but gashapon capsules are all 500 yen or more too for more elaborate prizes.  There are are not many really good 200 yen machines left these days.

A sealed box set of Pokemon Bonsai 2.  It contains six sub-boxes.  Note the seal at the top of the box. Don't buy a box if this seal has been cut as you run the risk that is isn't complete.  I cut this one myself.

I don't buy many sets anymore as display room is now at a premium, but this bonsai set was pretty cute and it had Lugia.  Lugia was the very first five star Pokemon I caught in Pokemon Go and the first Pokemon t-shirt I ever bought in the original Pokemon Store in Shiodome back in 2009.  Just mentioning this brings back memories.  To catch the Lugia in Pokemon Go I had to drive downtown where there were plenty of people raiding and there was a big crowd as it was still in the early super-popular days of Pokemon Go that first year.  I caught it on my first raid, so that was exciting.  My visit to the first Pokemon Store happened on evening and I remember looking in the wrong place for it.  I didn't have Google Maps back in 2009 or a smart phone so navigating Tokyo wasn't as easy as it is now.  I even asked a security guard outside a parkade for directions and he phoned his wife.  I was pointed in the right direction and walked a kilometre to find it.  I remember being a little tired, ate a konbini riceball along the way, and found the store that was playing the catchy Pokemon tune from the game.  It seemed pretty fantastic at the time and there was a whole pile of merchandise.  These days, Pokemon stores are everywhere so it isn't so unique.  Here is the blog post for that first visit!

The figures in these set are palm sized and do require a little bit of simple assembly.  They come in plastic bags that are sealed with all of the components to protect them during shipping and to prevent parts from being lost.

Front of one of the individual blind boxes.

Side of the blind box showing the Pokemon you can get.

Other side of the blind box showing the last three pokemon.

The six assembled bonsai dioramas.  They were all pretty attractive.

Another view of the dioramas.

There was a sleeping Squirtle on a rock.  Probably the cutest scene out of the six dioramas.

The Lugia perched on a bonsai.  This was the one I really wanted.  It had a traditional vibe.

A Frostlass with plum blossoms.  Very atmospheric.

A Pikachu and Bonsley under the cherry blossoms.  You have to have Pikachu show up somewhere.

A Chespin with a Fletchling on an apple tree. This was also very cute with a happy Pokemon having a fruit.

A Growlith in a rock garden with fall maple leaves.  Another very traditional type display.  I like the ones that incorporate a Japanese culture theme along with the Pokemen!

This is how big the little assembled dioramas are compared to the big box.

These dioramas are pretty cute.  If you like these kinds of things, check out some of the online sites like AMIAMI or HLJ to see what current sets are available.  I missed Bonsai Set 1 myself, but these make me pretty happy.

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