Ever since Tor.com started posting up pictures of that stuffed Appa (the above cutie-pie) I have been 1.) Amazed at how adorable an enormous slobbery sky bison could be and 2.) On the hunt for what else in the science fiction/fantasy realm might be adorable-ized by turning plushy.
You could definitely consider this post something of a Black Friday shopping list. I certainly have. (Sorry friends, spoilers.) I’ve listed my own findings below, limiting myself to retail outlets and not DIY or homemade sites like Etsy. (The list would probaby be endless otherwise.)
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Hedwig the owl (Harry Potter) The first property/franchise I thought to search for was Harry Potter (apparently there’s some sort of movie version out now?). The book series doesn’t tend to a lot of cuddly things, though. Dobby comes to mind, but a stuffed Dobby, especially now, is too creepy to think about. Really, the only other creature that lends itself to this kind of thing was Hedwig. |
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Nibbler (Futurama) I started out looking for brain slugs but ended up finding Nibbler. Look at that guy! That is the guy! I know sometimes the Nibblonians worry that they’re really too cute to be taken seriously, and that? Is a totally valid worry. |
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Scott & Ramona (Scott Pilgrim) This was a random find, and while there is a certain cuteness to it (especially in their facial expressions) I’m not sure it really lends itself to the medium of…stuffed things. Still, I’m sure it’s making some Scott Pilgrim fan happy. |
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Adipose (Doctor Who) Doctor Who was another franchise I thought to search around in early on but the aesthetic on that show is predominantly tough. Lots of metal, sharp angles, wood, and plastics. Where it does get cuddly is with these season 4 monsters, the Adipose. I wasn’t a fan, but they are cute, and specifically designed to be turned into stuffed aliens. |
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Link (The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker) Link, the hero from the numerous Legend of Zelda video games isn’t really known for being cuddly…except in The Wind Waker, where the art style for the 3-D games in the series was switched up from its usual dramatic realism to a bright and expressive cartoon style. The switch ended up working very well and the saucer-eyed fellow to the left stuck around for a few more games. (He looks a lot like Scott Pilgrim, come to think of it…) |
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Everything else (ThinkGeek) I didn’t get too far in my search before stumbling over the above linked page, which offers over fifty science fiction and fantasy themed plush items. You’ve got Half Life 2 head crabs, an entire subpage of stuffed microbes, Cthulhu, Star Wars, tribbles, 20-sided die, and more. ThinkGeek has really cornered the market on cute here. I think my favorite here might be the Evolvems transforming plush toys. What was once a fish is now a tetrapod, and both are very huggable. |
I know that’s not exactly a parade of stuffed animals—at least, not until you jump onto ThinkGeek’s site—but it’s definitely a larger array of science fiction plush assortment than I knew existed before. If I’ve missed anything, definitely let me know! In the meantime, I’m going to covet that Appa. Yip yip, stuffed Appa, yip yip…
I know, Chris Greenland is a little freaked out himself.
I have to admit, I’m a little disappointed you didn’t highlight Plush Cthulhu.
http://www.logicalcreativity.com/jon/plush/01.html
:)
AAAAH thank you for that link, Tennerock. That made my morning. :D
Another thing I should add to the list: The Plush Cthulhu creator’s FAQ has a link to Manhattan Toys, which has a cool assortment of generic SFF creatures, too. (And Fraggle Rock!)
Plushie Appa is now available again from Nickelodeon, way way cheaper than that Amazon link.
We got one 2.5 years ago and, as our toddler can attest, it is very cuddly.
Ok, Chris, Appa can live in your office part time and every other weekend.
@3. Oh you’re not kidding there, Kate. Holy cow. That is an extremely achievable price.
@@.-@. I think I hear Appa groaning in approval.
there is also The Great A’tuin
I am still sad beyond measure that I never got a Plush Hound of Tindalos when they were available, or a Plush Minotaur. For my child, of course. She has a soft spot for Lovecraftian and mythological plushies.
My pre-school daughter (now 32 years old) had a much-beloved medium size Q-Bert plushie which made an oinky quacking sound when you shook it up and down. Growing up in a plushie-filled world did provide her with an extreme skill on store dragline games. She can get two or more plushies from those machines for her fifty cents or dollar quite regularly.
Hmmm, that Hedwig is rather cute isn’t it? I actually sew tons of plushies for myself (seriously, each time I start a new anime I’m on the lookout for what would make a cute plushie) so right now my favorite one is a toss up between my Toothless plushei and my (official) three foot long Appa plushie. They are both rather cute….
@6. That is great. It’s plush turtles all the way down….
@7. I bet mythological plushies could be a whole separate sub-category. Release the stuffed kraken!
There are quite a few Monty Python plushes available. I have a toy Edward Scissorhands, a Vulcan teddy bear, and some other techie / geeky stuffies.
I started watching Avatar after falling for someone’s plush Appa.