Megahouse Figures Guide: Blind-Box Displays, Variable Action Heroes and G.M.G. Explained

Megahouse is the Japanese figure maker behind some of the most useful shelf-fillers in anime collecting. At one end there are palm-sized blind-box minis you can line up along a monitor; at the other, posable One Piece pirates and Gundam soldiers. If you've ever opened a little box and found a cat dressed as an Akatsuki ninja looking back at you, that was Megahouse.

The brand's big selling point is the blind-box display, and it's also where people waste the most money. So this guide covers the ranges, explains how displays work, when buying the whole box beats buying singles, and what Variable Action Heroes and G.M.G. are if you'd rather your figures had elbows.

ChimiMega: Naruto ShippudenOchatomo: One PieceMega Cat Project: My Hero Academia

Who are Megahouse?

Megahouse is part of the Bandai group. The company was formed in July 1997, when three Bandai group companies, Kaken, Angel and B-I, merged into MegaHouse Corporation. Its headquarters are in Taito, Tokyo.

In the figure world, Megahouse is best known for Portrait.Of.Pirates, its flagship One Piece figure series, and for a long run of small, collectable character lines: Chokorin Mascot, Mega Cat Project, Petitrama and more. It's the sort of brand where you go in for one character and come out with the whole Straw Hat crew.

The ranges, explained in plain English

• Chokorin Mascot / Chokorin Collection: tiny deformed (chibi) figures about 5cm long, often sitting or lying down. Sold as blind boxes, usually six characters per series. At the time of writing our Jujutsu Kaisen display (6) is £40.99 and Detective Conan (6) is £42.99, which is under £7.50 a figure.
• Mega Cat Project: anime characters reimagined as cats. It launched around 2020, and the core figures are tiny, about 3cm. Ours include Naruto Akatsuki (8) at £95.99 and My Hero Academia (8) at £101.99.
• ChimiMega: slightly bigger chibi mascots, about 6.5cm on a base, with a ball-jointed head so you can tilt it. Our Naruto display (6) is £76.99.
• Yuracolle: palm-sized mascots that wobble back and forth. Our Dragon Ball Z Collection display (6) is £85.99, with Goku on the Flying Nimbus among the line-up.
• Ochatomo: roughly 4.5cm figures designed to perch on the rim of a cup. Teatime with pirates. Ours are One Piece (8) at £60.99 and My Hero Academia (6) at £43.99.
• Mega Egg Figure: about 7.5cm figures sleeping inside a clear eggshell. Our Digimon display (8) is £101.99.
• Petitrama: small PVC mini statues. Our One Piece Egghead set (4) is £47.99, and there's a Godzilla Petitrama EX set at £82.99.
• Other smalls: Pac-Man Inside Fantasy (4) is £50.99, and there's also a Honda Super Cub kit (Kaitanics) at £57.99.
• Variable Action Heroes: Megahouse's posable action figure line, about 18cm for One Piece characters, with hidden joints and swappable faces. Portgas D. Ace (repeat) is £79.99 and Trafalgar Law (repeat) is £84.99.
• G.M.G. (Gundam Military Generation): fully painted, articulated figures about 10cm tall, focused on the soldiers, pilots and kit of the Gundam universe. Singles are £27.99–£29.99, and the G.M.G. EX 2-pack is £76.99.

Yuracolle: Dragon Ball ZMega Egg: DigimonPetitrama: One Piece Egghead

Blind-box displays: how they work and whether to buy the whole box

This is the most important part of buying Megahouse minis, so here it is properly.

What a "display" actually is

• A display is the outer box the blind boxes ship in. Each figure comes in its own small sealed box, so you can't see which character is inside. Several of those small boxes are packed into one display box, and the number in brackets on our listings, such as "(6)" or "(8)", is how many are inside.
• The number usually matches the series. Chokorin Mascot series typically have six characters and come six to a box. Mega Cat Project and Mega Egg sets often come eight to a box. Petitrama and Inside Fantasy come four to a box.

Do you get every character in a display?

Often, but don't assume it. Plenty of Megahouse displays are made so that one box gives you one of each character. Japanese retailers list some Chokorin boxes as "all six types" in a six-piece box. But not every product works that way:

• Some boxes include a doubled character. The One Piece Ochatomo "Pirates' Tea Time" box, for example, holds eight figures covering seven characters, so you get all seven plus one repeat.
• Some are packed to a ratio. Japanese stockists note on some products that figures are packed to the manufacturer's ratios, so the number you need for a full set varies.
• Rule of thumb: check the product page and the box art. If a full set is what you're after, buy the display rather than gambling on singles, because it's by far the most reliable route.

Full display vs singles: the arithmetic

• Buy the display if you want the set. Picking up singles to "see how you get on" is how people end up with three Kakashis and no Itachi. Buying blind singles until you happen to complete a set nearly always costs more than the box did.
• Buy the display if you want one specific character. Counter-intuitive, but true. If you're after one particular character, a display that contains a full line-up guarantees them. Then give the others away as gifts, swap with friends, or start a shelf you didn't know you needed.
• Buy a single only if you'd be happy with any of them. A blind box is a lovely surprise when every character in the series would make you smile. Twelve blind boxes in the hope of one particular cat-ninja is a terrible plan and always has been.
• Per figure, displays are cheap. The Jujutsu Kaisen Chokorin display works out at under £7 a figure. It's hard to find another licensed anime figure for that.

Keeping the set nice

• Open over a table, as some minis have tiny separate bits.
• Keep the display box. It's the neatest way to store spares, and complete boxed sets are easier to sell on or pass along later.

Chokorin: Jujutsu Kaisen (6)Chokorin: Detective Conan (6)

Variable Action Heroes and G.M.G.: the posable side of Megahouse

Variable Action Heroes

• What it is: Megahouse's articulated action figures, with joints built into the sculpt so you can recreate signature poses without obvious mechanical bits ruining the look.
• The One Piece figures: about 18cm, with swappable faces and character accessories. Trafalgar Law Ver. 2, for example, comes with five face plates, his Gamma Knife and heart parts.
• "Repeat" means re-run. Our Ace and Law are re-releases of figures that sold out the first time round, which is your chance to get them at the normal price instead of the resale price.
• Who it's for: One Piece fans who want to pose their pirates, not just look at them. More in our One Piece collection.

G.M.G. (Gundam Military Generation)

• What it is: a series about the people of the Gundam universe rather than the giant robots: soldiers, pilots, their weapons and gear.
• The figures: about 10cm, fully painted and articulated, with swappable hands and accessories, sold in collector-friendly blister packs. The first Amuro Ray release, for example, came with his Operation V file and a Haro.
• Who it's for: Gundam fans who already own the Mobile Suits and fancy the humans to go with them. They sit nicely alongside your Gundam collection.

Variable Action Heroes: LawVariable Action Heroes: AceG.M.G.: Lalah Sune

So which one should you buy?

If it's your first Megahouse

• A Chokorin display. The Jujutsu Kaisen box (£40.99) or Detective Conan (£42.99) gets you a little crew for about the price of one bigger figure.

If it's a gift

• A full display is a brilliant present: lots of opening, lots of surprise, and with luck no awkward duplicates. One Piece Ochatomo (£60.99) is particularly good for anyone who drinks tea and has opinions about Zoro's sense of direction.
• Split a display into stocking fillers. Six presents from one box is very satisfying maths.

If you want a shelf centrepiece

• Variable Action Heroes Trafalgar Law (£84.99) or Portgas D. Ace (£79.99), posed mid-fight.
• The Godzilla Petitrama EX set (£82.99) for something more monstrous.

If you're a Naruto fan

• Mega Cat Project Akatsuki (£95.99) to collect the whole villainous organisation as cats. They're not more threatening, just more likely to knock a pen off your desk.
• The ChimiMega display (£76.99) for slightly bigger mascots with tilting heads.

Shown: Naruto Shippuden Mega Cat Project Mini Figures Good Night Nyaruto! Gathering Akatsuki Edition Vol. 1 6 cm Blind Box Display (8)

If you're a Gundam fan

• G.M.G. singles (£27.99–£29.99) to give your Gunpla some pilots, or the EX 2-pack (£76.99).

If you're on a budget

• Chokorin, under £7 a figure in a full display. Nothing else in the range comes close on price per character.

How ordering works with us

Most of our Megahouse range is listed as pre-orders we bring in especially for you. You order, we order it in from our European distributor, and it ships to you when it lands. New releases are genuine pre-orders with release windows. "Repeat" editions like our Variable Action Heroes are periodic re-runs of popular figures. Check each product page for its availability and timing.

Blind-box series in particular are made in batches and don't always come back, so ordering while a set is listed is the easiest way to avoid paying silly money for it later. See everything we can bring in under Pre-Order On Demand and Collectibles Pre-Orders.

The honest bit: what we'd swerve

• Chasing one character with singles. We've said it, but it bears repeating. If you want a specific character, the display is usually cheaper than the gamble.
• Assuming every box is a full set. Most are built that way, some aren't. Check the listing.
• Paying resale prices for a single "rare" mini. Before you pay a premium for one character, check whether a full display is still available. Buying the whole box often costs less than one "rare" single.
• Opened-and-resealed blind boxes from unknown sellers. If someone's selling "unopened" blind boxes cheaply after a set has sold out, ask yourself why they know which ones to sell.
• Losing tiny figures to the vacuum. A 3cm cat doesn't stand a chance against the hoover. Small shelves, shadow boxes or a tray keep a collection together, and out of direct sunlight to stop the paint fading.

The short version

• Megahouse: part of the Bandai group, formed in 1997, home of Portrait.Of.Pirates.
• Blind-box minis: Chokorin (about 5cm), Mega Cat Project (about 3cm), ChimiMega, Yuracolle, Ochatomo, Mega Egg and Petitrama.
• Displays: the number in brackets is how many boxes come inside. Many give one of each character, but check the listing.
• Display vs singles: buy the display for a full set or a specific character, and a single only if any character would do.
• Variable Action Heroes: about 18cm posable One Piece figures with swappable faces.
• G.M.G.: about 10cm articulated Gundam soldiers and pilots.

Browse the full Megahouse collection, the rest of our One Piece range, or everything in Dragon Ball Z. If cute chibi mascots are your thing, our Sega Fuwa Petit guide is worth a look too.

Final thought: Megahouse minis are one of the best-value corners of anime collecting, as long as you buy them like an adult rather than a gambler. Get the display, enjoy opening every box, and give away the spares. The person who bought fourteen blind boxes for one particular cat is still looking for it.

Further reading: see which anime Pops are on the way in Anime Funko Pop Release Dates UK, or check the next One Piece drops in One Piece Funko Pop Release Dates UK.