MEDICOM TOY

REAL ACTION HEROES is a large-scale articulated figure line developed by MEDICOM TOY over an extended period, rendering figures and characters from live-action films, tokusatsu, anime, comics, music, and other fields at approximately 12-inch scale. It uses dedicated bodies such as the RAH301改 and is characterized by combining head parts, weapons, and wrist parts with fabric costumes, shoes, hats, and other items suited to each work. While MAFEX serves articulation and portability as a relatively compact action figure line, REAL ACTION HEROES is positioned as a premium line for collectors that emphasizes larger scale, figure likeness, and costume reproduction.

KUBRICK is a collectible figure series with a block-shaped form that has been part of MEDICOM TOY since its early days. Based on an original basic body, it has adapted subjects such as films, anime, comics, games, and artists into small three-dimensional figures. Centered on figures approximately 6 cm in size, the series has also included projects that bring together multiple characters or use bonus parts to complete a separate figure. Whereas the later BE@RBRICK expanded collaborations using a bear-shaped body, KUBRICK is positioned as a foundational series that helped shape MEDICOM TOY’s character and collectible business.

ULTRA DETAIL FIGURE, also abbreviated as UDF, is a line of small character figures that brings a wide range of subjects—including Disney, works by Fujiko F. Fujio, manga, anime, games, and films—to market in a consistent scale. The figures are generally a few centimeters to around 10 cm tall, with an emphasis on displayability that makes it easy to collect and arrange characters and scenes from different works. Compared with MAFEX and REAL ACTION HEROES, which focus on articulation, and VCD, which makes use of the larger forms suited to each subject, it is positioned as a line for small-scale display that offers a broad range of series and characters.

BE@RBRICK is MEDICOM TOY’s representative in-house collectible brand, built around a shared body that abstracts the form of a bear, and continues to collaborate with a wide range of artists, fashion brands, films, music, characters, and companies. Its defining features include size variations such as 100%, 400%, and 1000%, as well as the ability to reinterpret the same form in a wide range of ways through coloring, materials, and limited-edition projects. Unlike KUBRICK’s block-shaped figures and the articulated figures of MAFEX and REAL ACTION HEROES, it functions as MEDICOM TOY’s core brand and the broadest embodiment of its art toy character and collaborative reach.

VINYL COLLECTIBLE DOLLS, abbreviated as VCD, is a soft-vinyl character doll line that turns subjects from manga, anime, films, music, artists, fashion brands, and other fields into three-dimensional products that make use of their distinctive forms and expressions. The products vary in size and sculpting from character to character, and some combine fabric clothing with accessories. Unlike BE@RBRICK, which uses a shared bear-shaped body, UDF, which follows a uniform small-scale format, and MAFEX, which centers on articulated mechanisms, it is an independent line that foregrounds subject-specific silhouettes and a statue-like quality.

B@WBRICK is an animal-themed spin-off series that MEDICOM TOY introduced alongside its KUBRICK and BE@RBRICK lines, turning dogs, cats, robot dogs, and other subjects into small four-legged animal-shaped figures. Product records from 2002–2003 have been confirmed, and the series is characterized by adapting the block-like forms associated with KUBRICK to animal depictions. It took on subjects and silhouettes distinct from BE@RBRICK’s bear-shaped body and KUBRICK’s human form. In the current lineup, it is not a focus of new releases but is positioned as a name with strong archival significance, representing MEDICOM TOY’s early collectible offerings.

FABRICK is a textile brand developed within MEDICOM TOY LIFE Entertainment, translating original fabrics by artists and designers from around the world into everyday products such as bags, pouches, cushions, and furniture. Unlike BE@RBRICK and MAFEX, which center on figures, it brings MEDICOM TOY’s sense of playfulness into daily life through the intersection of fabric patterns and the functionality of household goods. While MLE applies pop culture broadly to apparel and miscellaneous goods, FABRICK is a line focused on textiles and product design.

MLE is a brand in the apparel and lifestyle field whose name is an abbreviation of MEDICOM TOY LIFE ENTERTAINMENT. It brings pop culture, including film, music, art, manga, and games, into everyday goods such as T-shirts, bags, cushions, rugs, and mugs. Unlike BE@RBRICK, MAFEX, and UDF, which focus on collecting and displaying figures, MLE transfers elements from characters and works into living spaces and everyday items. Positioned alongside FABRICK, which centers on textiles, and Sync., which works across collaborations with artists on works and designs, it is a line that covers a broad range of subjects and applications in everyday goods.

OriginalFake was an apparel and design brand launched in 2006 by MEDICOM TOY and artist KAWS. It developed KAWS’s characters and artwork across T-shirts, jackets, accessories, and three-dimensional works. Unlike a one-off figure collaboration, it operated as an independent brand with a store and a range of products, a key distinction from Sync. and MLE today. The brand ended on May 31, 2013, and is not an ongoing line. In the brand archive, it is positioned as an early example of MEDICOM TOY developing its relationship with an artist into a comprehensive fashion and product brand.

PROJECT BM! was a 12-inch-class articulated figure project jointly developed by Bandai and MEDICOM TOY. Centered on Kamen Rider, it rendered characters from tokusatsu, anime, and other genres as three-dimensional figures approximately 30 cm tall. Combining dedicated heads, weapons, interchangeable hands, fabric or other-material costumes, and an articulated body based on the RAH301改, the project reproduced characters from their on-screen appearances as large-scale action figures. While its specifications were similar to those of REAL ACTION HEROES, developed by MEDICOM TOY alone, it was positioned as a collaborative line that clearly established a joint development structure with Bandai for character IPs owned and developed by the company.

MAFEX is MEDICOM TOY’s flagship line in the articulated action figure category, bringing characters from comics, films, anime, games, and other media into three-dimensional form at roughly 15–20 cm in size. Its distinguishing feature is the combination of dedicated joint mechanisms with interchangeable heads and wrists, weapons, effects, and movable stands, balancing faithful sculptural reproduction with posing capabilities. In contrast to REAL ACTION HEROES, which uses larger bodies and fabric costumes, and UDF and VCD, which primarily consist of small, non-articulated display products, MAFEX occupies a position centered on everyday collectibility and action.

Sync. is a brand through which MEDICOM TOY collaborates with artists around the world, extending their artwork and designs across multiple product categories, including apparel, bags, cases, interior goods, and three-dimensional works. Rather than focusing on a particular character or a single material, it selects the form of each item according to the work, with the relationship between artists and products at its core. While MLE broadly transforms pop culture, including film and music, into everyday goods, Sync. foregrounds ongoing collaborations with artists and the origins of the designs, connecting works to products across genres.

VAG is a capsule-style soft vinyl figure series launched by MEDICOM TOY and Prestige in 2014. It has continually released original characters by sofubi artists and existing characters as small figures measuring around 6 cm. As the series number increases, it combines the capsule toy sales format with the concept-driven approach of artist sofubi. Unlike BE@RBRICK, which expands into larger formats and a wider range of materials and sizes; REAL ACTION HEROES, which uses fabric outfits; and VCD, which draws on the forms of individual works, VAG is positioned as an accessible independent line that develops new work by sofubi artists as small, sequentially numbered series.

R@BBRICK is a figure line with its own distinct name, derived from the BE@RBRICK brand family. Building on BE@RBRICK’s standard collaborative releases, it has expanded into products using different materials such as wood, larger formats, and designs that highlight the texture of their materials. In particular, collaborations with Karimoku have introduced models combining the woodworking techniques used in furniture making with forms associated with BE@RBRICK. Whereas BE@RBRICK itself encompasses a broad range of artist and brand graphics, colorways, and limited-edition projects, R@BBRICK is positioned as a derivative line that emphasizes material development, craft-based finishes, and the presence of large-scale products.

Amplifier is a music-focused apparel brand launched by MEDICOM TOY and producer Rentaro Hirakawa. It applies portraits, photographs, logos, and other imagery of artists who have supported Japan’s rock and music scenes to clothing, primarily T-shirts. While MLE covers diverse areas of pop culture, including film, manga, art, and games, and FABRICK extends into fabric products and lifestyle goods, Amplifier is clearly focused on music artists and their visual archives. Within MEDICOM TOY LIFE Entertainment, it is positioned as a specialized offshoot brand that directly connects music culture with apparel rather than figures.

NY@BRICK is a figure line centered on cat motifs, derived from the BE@RBRICK brand family. It offers limited-edition models featuring Japanese themes such as maneki-neko, as well as characters associated with cats. For products connected to the Tokyo Skytree Town Solamachi store, projects depicting maneki-neko in three dimensions at approximately 65 mm and 260 mm have continued. Whereas BE@RBRICK itself builds on a bear-shaped form and expands collaborations with artists and brands, NY@BRICK foregrounds cats, maneki-neko, and regional identity, adding a different point of entry into the same brand family.