Note 1: This time, this is for money. Not every link in this post is a money-maker, but you’ll find the links if you try them all.

Note 2: There are various bootlegs around the ‘net, so be careful if you try obtaining one for yourself. See this page for more info.

What are Nendoroids?

Essentially, they’re small chibi handsculpted figures about 10 cm (about 4 inches for you non-metric people) tall with movable parts, handled by Good Smile Company. They’re immensely popular and, compared to some other kinds of figures, fairly easy to come by in merch terms, although apparently all Nendoroids come in limited-term runs. Normally one, when encountered around release date, costs about about 5500 JPY each, unless you find a partner shop, in which case they’d probably factor in shipping as well if necessary.

Their name is derived from nendo (clay) and android, although I ended up coining the term “Endoroid” for the…well, En (Boueibu) Nendoroid.

How do I spot one “out in the wild”?

Aside from trying to identify bootlegs (see note 2 above), you can generally identify a Nendo by their number or the standard look of their boxes, which are white with coloured details to match the character – using En Yufuin as an example, he’s no. 607, or the 607th Nendo ever produced, and his box has blue and pink details on it, including his name in Japanese and English. To my knowledge, the interior of the larger boxes can also be used like a display – En’s has the Binan High staircase on the inside – but in the smaller boxes (like Jakurai’s), they’re just a plain colour.

What’s the appeal?

There’s over 1000 individual figures in the series, including some from movies and comic books (hello, Harley Quinn!), but most of them hail from anime, manga and similar series. Some series are lucky to have an entire string of releases (e.g. Hypnosis Mic had all 12 main characters at the time have their own releases, one after the other), but others have just one (e.g. Boueibu just has En). There doesn’t seem to be much reason behind who gets what releases aside from popularity, as I’ve discussed with Infinite Zenith. Of course, with something like this, there are collectors of such things too.

Notably, the different parts mean that unlike stationary figures, you get to choose the pose you like and stick with it, although as alluded to earlier, they can suck up a bunch of your time while you’re figuring out how they work. I didn’t even realise some of the parts could be detached/attached until I closely observed where the plastic was attached, and I didn’t know the Nendo’s hands specifically could detach/reattach until I saw a post that mentioned it.

Also, it’s really fun to “window shop” Kahotan’s blog and the online store for ones you like…The online shop, furthermore, gives extra bonuses not found anywhere else.

What’s the downsides to them?

• …Welp, they’re figures, so they don’t do much aside from sitting and decorating things, practicality-wise. Wall scrolls can cover things on walls or be used to wrap things up, in comparison.

• Some of the figures are poorly thought-out (or seem poorly thought-out because you can’t pose them easily) and if you’re not careful, you might even break something or cause it to unintentionally fall apart. Notably, some Nendos don’t work without their stands – they’re too heavy – and some small parts, such as hands, are potentially easily lost. Some pegs apparently need a coat of clear nail polish to even ensure they sit properly.

• Shipping is always going to be annoying if it applies, as is finding a genuine article depending on where you’re looking (the official Good Smile website shouldn’t lead you astray, though).

… it seems you’ve caught me being reckless with my money again (yes, I call myself a “cheapskate”, but then drop heaps of money on semi-rare items or items that match what I’m looking for…thank goodness I economise so much that I can allow myself to be a spendthrift every once in a while), so here’s the full story: I was kinda-sorta awake one morning and had a dream about obtaining a Nendoroid Jakurai at 80% off. Knowing it was too good to be true (since it seemed to be on an online bookstore), I woke up that time.

I didn’t get much of a discount and he cost a bit more than En, but I was stopping by a place with a Good Smile partner store and I did indeed encounter a Nendoroid Jakurai (also Gentaro and Hifumi, which weren’t part of my dream) at one point…and, noting the fact Nendoroids are limited-run, as stated above, I snapped him up anyway.