Japanese Newborn Plushies- Do they exist?

[MintyMyndi]

Okay, I haven't been here in forever. I think my last post was from when I was seventeen! I'm doing well; I just have a tendency to disappear.

     I will obsess over small things off and on and kind of go wherever the metaphorical wind takes me. Pony has been front-and-center in my life all this time, but the Arena was a thing that came and went. I probably won't be too active on here after this, but this is burning me up inside! So I should probably get to the point.

    Firstly, many of the aforementioned small details that I obsess over are pony-related. I will just get in the mood where I have to know everything there is to know about, say, the G3 CDs released with a mixture of original songs, songs from movies, and classic kids' songs. In this state, I end up falling down rabbit holes and sometimes finding information that I deem irrelevant in the moment but never truly forget. That's what happened at some unknown point a few years ago when I SWEAR I saw something that I've yet to find again. I'm only bringing this up now that I absolutely need to document every G3.5 plush pony ever released and can find no mention or images of this thing I remember so clearly.

    As the title suggests, they're Japanese UFO Catcher plushies using the newborn pony design from late G3. I don't even know if these ARE G3.5, but what's more important now is that I prove they exist. I believe the photo was on a blog that existed during G3 and at least a little bit into G3.5. If so, I was reading these posts from the perspective of someone who watched these things unfold to get useless fascinating info such as how these things were received by them specifically (it'll prove useful later on, I'm sure) and just stumbled upon the pic in question. It was of the plushies in a machine, looking eager to be won.

    As for the plushies themselves, I don't remember which characters were featured, but I DO know they had an attached box of tissues (which I remember thinking was quite bizarre) in their hands. They may have been Valentine's Day themed, or perhaps another holiday. And they were all plush, unlike So Softs with their vinyl heads, but were in the same sitting-up pose. There were four of them in the machine, I think. It's fuzzy. They have many factors contributing to potential scarcity, so it doesn't surprise me that info is hard to come by. I'm just surprised I can't find any at all!

   Does anybody have these or evidence that can prove to me I didn't hallucinate them, perhaps even the very image I saw? I'm losing my mind here! (Also I will apologize for the novel; brevity is not my strong suit!)

TL;DR: Japanese Newborn Tissue Box Plushies- Real or Hallucination?

[MintyMyndi]

I hate to double-post, but I do have something vaguely relevant to add.  I had remembered the G3 pegasus plushies and that I'd only seen pictures of Aurora Mist, but not Daisy May, whose name I'd only seen mentioned. I decided to go spelunking again to see if I could rectify this. I stumbled upon an old Trading Post thread which had a great list of Nanco plushies and their European look-alikes.

https://www.mlptp.net/index.php?threads/nanco-plushies-how-many-are-there.82345/

It revealed to me that there was a third pegasus, Royal Rose. But that's not why I'm here. At the very bottom you can see something I've yet to see documented elsewhere...

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v138/manga_mayhem/100_3135.jpg

A Newborn plush! And she's HUGE! According to them, Pinkie Pie was available in addition to Rainbow Dash, which makes sense as the only Newborns out at the time were probably that first set of So Softs containing just those two. I wonder if the hair color on Pinkie Pie is dark pink like the So Soft or light pink like Pinkie's hair is normally...

The tags unfortunately aren't legible in the photos, so I don't know who made them, but I feel it's likely it's the same as the aforementioned pegasi. I don't know whether they came in other sizes, but I think it's likely.

These obviously not what I initially posted about, due to being from the UK, lacking tissues, and being massive (I imagine the possibly-hallucinated Sega Prize girls were probably similar in size to the other two Sega Prize plush sets, so around 4" or so); but I'd never heard of them nor seen them before this discovery. Perhaps it's because the Newborn style is less popular? Makes me wonder how many undocumented plushies are running around...

Any information on these girls would be greatly appreciated, especially more pics. I'm still holding out hope that somebody's also seen the tissue-holding plushies, but would be content with being bombarded with pics of these two. I'm a sucker for the G3.5 style, and while I know these are G3s (and pre-Core 7 at that), the Newborns barely changed and are, therefore, just as appealing to me.

[halicabi]

Wow, that was 10 years ago??? My how time flies.  I'm surprised the images still appear, as I deleted my photobucket account years ago!

Anyway, I can't help much with your question, although I do have some saved images. Whether they were actually produced, I don't know.

Disclaimer: These are NOT my photos.  I have them cited as "posted by Arena member Sora".  The search feature isn't working for me, and I don't remember the context in which they were posted, or how long ago.

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In my same album of G3's needed/Japanese Plush, I have these images.
Disclaimer: These are NOT my photos.  I have them cited as "from Taobao". I'm not sure if I downloaded it from someone's post, or directly from Taobao.

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And this one:
Disclaimer: This is NOT my photo.  I have it cited as "from eBay". I'm not sure if I downloaded it from someone's post, or directly from eBay.

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As for the Pegasus Plush, I actually have photos of Aurora Mist and her tag:
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I'd check the others, but they are inaccessible at the moment.

I have no information about the newborn plush, although I saved that same image!

halicabi

[MintyMyndi]

Pretty girls
I'm so jealous of Aurora. She's one of my favorites!

Looks like my comprehensive list of G3.5 plushies is going to need some major updates- I've never seen nor heard of many of these, and the laying plushies seem to be updated from an earlier design! I believe the pics of the tissue box girls may be the one I've seen before. It's crazy how much your brain can change when trying to remember things! They don't really look like Newborns to me now, just sitting-up variations of the other designs.

As for what was actually produced, there at least are the standing girls as seen on Strawberry Reef, the sitting ones, and the heart-holding ones, assuming the ones that were for sale aren't just prototypes.

Thanks for the info! Now, if you don't mind, I've got a Word document to furiously edit...

[banditpony]

Oooh. I remember these now! I wish the archive worked so I could dig up the post.


I tried looking for them on Japanese sale sites but didn't come up with any results. I only found G3 plushies.  (I believe the big pinkie pie has a hole in her back for tissues).
https://imgur.com/a/Nw3Lnlx

[halicabi]

If you're looking for more G3.5 Plush, here's what I have in my imgur account:

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Australia
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I'll have to check on these, but I *think* I got them off eBay from a seller in Italy:
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Looks like I did manage to find some:
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After G3, my record keeping and photo taking seem to have waned a bit.  Real life has a tendency to get in the way...

I'd go into the basement and try to take more photos, but my daughter is down there with her laptop and an on-line Zoom class.

halicabi

[Barnacle_lady]

I really like those pictured plushies Some are on my plush wish list after seeing them.
As for the G3 pegasus. Aurora Mist and Daisy May are known to be sold. I have Daisy May and still hoping to find Aurora Mist one day.
 

[MintyMyndi]

Ah, the Hasbro plushies. They probably have the best overall pattern, but the eyes are a bit small.

The possibly-Italian ones are made by PMS International and, from what I can tell, were released in many European countries. The information on my list was obtained from pics of the tush tags on UK eBay listings.

Do you own the Australian girls? Can you confirm the presence of a zipper compartment, as well as manufacturer and the year on the tag? There's a Sweetie Belle on eBay currently for pretty cheap, but the shipping price to the US is... daunting, to say the least. I asked the seller for this info, but they haven't gotten back to me yet.

I do have an Animated Storyteller on her way. She's due pretty soon, and I'm excited for her! In my opinion, she has the best-looking face, even with her dead expression due to her moving mouth.

Here's my full list, if anybody's curious:

Spoiler

Hasbro Plush

Faux fur hair, toy style eyes, floppy standing pose. 18 inches tall. Marked 2009.
•   Pinkie Pie
•   Rainbow Dash

Midwood Brands Plush (“Kissy Face” Pinkie Pie)

Brushable hair, artwork style eyes, standing pose. ~8” tall. Marked 2011 (with G4 logo).
•   Pinkie Pie

Big W Plush (manufacturer unknown)

Faux fur hair, toy style eyes, floppy standing pose with zipper compartment. 22 inches tall. Released 2010. AUSTRALIAN EXCLUSIVE.
•   Pinkie Pie
•   Cheerilee
•   Sweetie Belle

Sega Prize Plush (UFO Catcher)

STANDING
Faux fur hair, toy style eyes, standing pose. 4 inches tall. Loop on head. Year unconfirmed. JAPANESE EXCLUSIVE.   
•   Pinkie Pie
•   Rainbow Dash
•   StarSong
•   Sweetie Belle

LAYING 1
Faux fur hair, artwork style eyes, laying pose. 7 inches long. Year unconfirmed (2010?). Release currently unconfirmed (no in-hand photos found; potentially prototypes of version 2). JAPANESE EXCLUSIVE.
•   Pinkie Pie
•   Rainbow Dash
•   StarSong
•   Sweetie Belle

LAYING 2
Faux fur hair, toy style eyes, laying pose. Size unconfirmed. Year unconfirmed. Release currently unconfirmed (no in-hand photos found). JAPANESE EXCLUSIVE.
•   Pinkie Pie
•   Rainbow Dash
•   StarSong
•   Sweetie Belle

LARGE LAYING
Faux fur hair, toy style eyes, laying pose. Size unconfirmed. Year unconfirmed. Release currently unconfirmed (no in-hand photos found). JAPANESE EXCLUSIVE.
•   Pinkie Pie

SITTING 1
Faux fur hair, toy style eyes, sitting pose. Size unconfirmed. Loop on head. Year unconfirmed. JAPANESE EXCLUSIVE.
•   Pinkie Pie
•   Cheerilee
•   Rainbow Dash
•   StarSong
•   Sweetie Belle
•   Scootaloo
•   Toola-Roola

SITTING 2
Faux fur hair, toy style eyes, sitting pose holding a heart. Size unconfirmed. Loop on head. Year unconfirmed. Release currently unconfirmed. JAPANESE EXCLUSIVE.
•   Pinkie Pie
•   Rainbow Dash
•   StarSong
•   Sweetie Belle

SITTING 3
Faux fur hair, toy style eyes, sitting pose holding box of tissues. Size unconfirmed. Year unconfirmed. Release currently unconfirmed (no in-hand photos found). JAPANESE EXCLUSIVE.
•   Pinkie Pie
•   StarSong

Kiddesigns Animated Storyteller

Faux fur hair, toy style eyes, standing pose. 12 inches tall. Marked 2010. Electronic talking feature- mouth moves while speaking, singing, or reading included books.
•   Pinkie Pie

PMS International Prize Plush

Fabric shaped hair (matches artwork hairstyles), toy style eyes (iron-on on 9” [and smaller?], embroidered on 12” and larger; also applies to Cutie Mark), standing pose. Various sizes, including 9, 12, and 18 inches tall (full range of sizes unconfirmed). Marked 2011. EUROPEAN EXCLUSIVE.
•   Pinkie Pie
•   Rainbow Dash
•   Scootaloo
•   Toola-Roola

So Soft Newborn (Hasbro)

10” tall baby dolls with vinyl heads. They were subtly changed from the G3 Newborns- Cutie Marks now match Newborn Cuties toy instead of adult pony, and the G3.5 logo replaces the G3 logo.

STANDARD NEWBORN
Faux fur hair (no tail) and electronic talking feature. Attached dress. Marked 2009. Came with bottle.
•   Pinkie Pie

SLEEP AND TWINKLE
Faux fur hair (different texture) and electronic talking and light-up features. “Changeable” diaper (opens with Velcro at the front) and sleepy eyes that close when doll is lying down. Marked 2008. Came with bowl, spoon, pacifier, bottle, and blanket.
•   StarSong

CHEER ME UP
Brushable hair (no tail) and electronic talking feature. Marked 2009. Came with stethoscope, thermometer, and medicine spoon.
•   Cheerilee

BATH TIME
Molded hair and removable diaper. Made of water-resistant fabric. Ribbon loop on head for hanging to dry. Marked 2008. Came with diaper, duck and washcloth.
•   Rainbow Dash (blue tail)
•   Rainbow Dash (pink tail)

[Ponybookworm]

I actually HAVE Australian G3.5 Cheerilee & Sweetiebelle, & can confirm zipped compartments, as well as their "we-don't-stand-up" nature.
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[Taffeta]

This is a really interesting thread!

I tried doing a search for you in Japanese using a variety of terms as well, but came up with nothing. Just G4 plush. Even putting in the company name didn't help on the grabber toys, so that's a bit of a dead end. I guess it was too long ago.

I would've thought the zip compartments on the Aussie ones suggested pyjama cases? Or are they not big enough for that? They look amusingly floppy, like the G1 PJ cases, so I wondered.

[MintyMyndi]

According to my super-scientific calculations (making the pony her actual height in PowerPoint and then measuring just her body), the body is about 6x8.67 inches, so you could store a pair of child's pajamas in there if you were determined to, but it doesn't seem to be made for that. They were just advertised as a plush with a zipper compartment, as far as I know.

[halicabi]

Okay, took some digging, but managed to find *most* of the above plush.
Warning, lots of pictures!!!!!

Australian Sweetie Belle
hang tag
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tush tag
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zipper closed
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zipper open
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I was able to fit an adult mens xl t-shirt in there, but not my son's thinnest pair of adult mens XL pajama bottoms.  As my daughter is 19 and my son will be 17 this month, they no longer wear "child sized" clothing!

As for the G3 pegasus. Aurora Mist and Daisy May are known to be sold. I have Daisy May and still hoping to find Aurora Mist one day.

All three were made, as I have them!
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As I've already posted Aurora Mists's hanging tag above, I won't re-post it.  Also, of the 3, she's the only one who still had it.
Here are the tush tags (just ignore my fingers!)
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I'm sure that the one I bought from Italy had a wider distribution.  It's that I was able to get all 4 in those 3 sizes from the same seller!
Rainbow Dash's hang tag
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tush tag
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I haven't been able to locate my 6 Japanese plush.  They're in a box somewhere down there.  But I did find these two:
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That's all I have for now.

halicabi

[Esbayne]

Omg Aurora Mist is gorgeous, I never knew there were plush of any MLP other than the super popular characters!! <3

I *neeed* her eventually!

[BlushingBlue]

As soon as I read the title, I thought "I bet halicabi knows" and sure enough Always love seeing pictures of your magnificent G3 plush collection! And I love that Twinkle Twirl's mascot plush's tag calls her "Tinkle Twirl" Thanks so much for sharing!

I'd never seen those newborn-style plushes before, but the question reminded me of this Japanese plushie which is also a tissue box holder.

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Even though I'm not generally a fan of the Newborn Cuties, I have to admit that the NBC version is less creepy than pulling your tissues from the depths of Pinkie Pie's torso.

[MintyMyndi]

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zipper open
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So that thing in the pics on the eBay listing was the zipper pull! I thought it might be, but it kinda looked like just some loose threads in the pics.

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According to her tag, your Aurora Mist was born on June 8, 2007. Sorry, I couldn't resist! I'm a bit obsessed with those manufacturing date codes.
(First digit is last digit of year, next three are day of year out of 365/366, and last digit is always one. Interesting to see how long things were produced. If I remember correctly, my G4 So Soft walking Pinkie Pie is from 2014, and my Flower Fillies are from as late as 2015, quite a few years later than they were first released!)