Captain Tsubasa by DAICHO (2001)

Around 2001, a new Captain Tsubasa anime was on air.  Series title was just "Captain Tsubasa" but most people and fans call it "Road to 2002" since that was the manga subtitle on which this anime was based around the time.

It's one of the rarest plush sets I've seen. The reason is that during this almost 8 years I've collecting UFO plushes, I've just found one character from the set and the keychain mini plushes set alone. Just one time and that's it. Maybe the reason is that the company that launched this is a not very known one (from DAICHO I've only seen some RC cars on eBay)

Here's the picture of the Forever Alone plush and his keychain companions:

I'm not a fan of plush keychains since as you can see, the character proportions are more deformed than the normal plush ones.

And the tags with important info:

Aside from DAICHO logo, Howdy International seems to be a subsidiary from AVEX Inc, which is a well-known japanese media company.

 

 

Captain Tsubasa by Banpresto (1993)

Captain Tsubasa is the quintessential soccer manga. It started in 1982 and as today, the manga is still publishing by the same author, Yoichi Takahashi

Latin American and European countries are known for their love towards soccer, so this anime/manga was and still is one of the most popular among general audience when it aired on TV years ago.

Banpresto launched this plushes set for the series of OVAs "Shin Captain Tsubasa" where Japan played in an U-16 World Cup.

It's a little odd that shorts are made of a different fabric than the rest of the plush but it's also that kind of fabric which really used in sport uniforms back then.

Tsubasa Ohzora - Our main protagonist. He's captain of Japan Jr. Team and he only thinks on soccer, all the time.

His best friend is the soccer ball. No, I mean it, he always says that!

Taro Misaki - He's Tsubasa's best friend (second after the ball, that is) and plays as MF.

Kojiro Hyuga - He's Tsubasa's rival during Elementary School tournament and Japan's best FW.

He's not angry. He's just more serious about soccer than... all other characters.

Karl Heinz Schneider - He's captain of Germany U-16 National Team and plays the final versus Japan.

I really think he's just basically a Super-Saiyan version of Tsubasa.

And now... the Soccer Ball. Well, it is Tsubasa's best friend so, why not?

Finally, the tags:

Allright, you put other characters in the tag but not into plush!

Did you really need to put a picture of the ball?

Kuroko no Basket - Hand cushions by Bandai (2014)

Kuroko no Basket is not a 90's anime but is the most popular after Slam Dunk around this sport, so I checked it and became a fan of the series.

The Generation of Miracles has a lot to carry over their shoulders...

In 2014 Bandai launched a series of plushes based on the series with an interesting twist: These are meant to be used as hand cushions under your wrist while using a mouse, in order to get more comfortable using it. This can be seen in the back of the tag:

I've never seen so much information in the back of an UFO plush! Most of these are just indications on how to take care of the plush and not to give it to children under 15...

There were 4 different sets from the series but since they were launched almost around the same time, I'll put all them in this same post:

You can identify the set by looking at the character tag:


Tetsuya Kuroko - Our main protagonist. He was the Phantom Sixth Player of the Generation of Miracles at Teikō Junior High. He specialises in misdirection and passes. He now plays as a regular with Seirin with the goal of bringing the team and Taiga Kagami to the top of Japan.

Taiga Kagami: The ace player of Seirin High. Kagami has exceptional basketball talents and has been called "The Miracle who did not become one of the Miracles".

Ryota Kise - Ace of Kaijo High. He is well known for his copying abilities, as he can copy any techniques he sees, often with more power than the original. He also works as a model.

Aomine Daiki - He currently plays as the ace and power forward of Tōō Academy. He and Kagami are sworn rivals after their clashes in the Interhigh preliminaries and in the Winter Cup

Now to the second set:

Shintaro Midorima - Shooting guard of Shutoku High. He specializes in 3-point shooting.

Takao Kuzanari - is Shutoku's first year point guard. He is Kuroko's natural enemy, as he has the Hawk Eye and is able to see Kuroko even if he uses his misdirection.

Yukio Kasamatsu - Kaijō's third year Point guard and Captain.

Shoichi Imayoshi - He is Tōō's third year point guard and captain

Third Set:


Atsushi Murasakibara - He was the Generation of Miracles' center. He now plays for Yōsen High.

As a side note, this plush is larger than all other ones since the character is the tallest in the series.

Tatsuya Himuro - He is Yōsen's second year shooting guard. He was Kagami's brother figure back in the States.

Junpei Hyuga - He is Seirin's captain and shooting guard. He is a clutch-player and mainly excels at shooting.

Teppei Kiyoshi - He is Seirin's founder and its previous ace. He is known as Iron Heart  and is one of the Uncrowned Kings.

And the fourth and final set only has 2 characters, which I only have one...

Seijuro Akashi - He was the captain of Generation of Miracles. He is the only person that the Generation of Miracles knuckles under. He is now the point guard and captain of Rakuzan High.

Makoto Hanamiya - is the coach and captain of Kirisaki Daīchi High and is one of the Uncrowned Kings. He is known for his foul and underhanded play and the cause of Kiyoshi's knee injury last year.

Image taken from Google.

*All character descriptions were taken from Kuroko no Basuke Wiki

Slam Dunk - Other UFO prizes by Banpresto

I have some other Slam Dunk UFO prizes that are not complete sets but are worth mentioning:


Here are 2 items from something more "interactive" plushes than the others I posted. In this case, you can write your name or something like that in the cardboard ball and hang them in your door.

This collection is named "Message Plush" in the tag.

Looking at them you can be sure what Ruwaka is thinking about Sakuragi when he says he's a genious XD

We can see in the back of the paper tag that there are other usable plushes like those doorknobs hangers!

Although I'm not pretty sure what are those Mitsui and Ryota for...

Tag says "Message Plush" so you can understand what this set is about.

Next, here's a little Rukawa made of taffeta. He's the only one I have from the complete set, which you can see in the tag photo.