UPDATE:
one question that I get asked often when it comes to the Mini
Big Heads line is "how many super-rare
EXCLUSIVE Mini Big Heads
are there?"
Short answer: a lot.
Unlike the regular and "secret" figures which were sold in stores in blindbox
format, the
exlusive Mini Big Head figures were not-for-sale promotional
items that are much harder to come by.
Here is a list of the exclusive Mini Big Heads that you might not know about:
1. Great Muta Spider & Mechanical mailaway figures To promote the first volume of the Mini Big Heads line, the
first two Great Muta figures were available as mailaway
exclusives
for just three weeks in only three issues of
a Japanese Pro-Wrestling magazine back in September
of 2004.
The issues were: September 7th issue (No. 1277),
September 14th issue (No. 1278)
September 21st issue (No. 1279)
Sending in 400 yen shipping and handling (roughly
$10 today) with two tickets from those three issues
allowed Wrestling fans to obtain these very rare
promotional figures.
2. Jushin Thunder Liger RING SIDE exclusive figure Just before the release of Vol. 9. of the Mini Big Head
series, RING SIDE held a promotional pre-release event
back in 2007.
The first 500 customers who preordered two hobby boxes
of Vol. 9. (18 blindboxes per case), received this not-for
-sale see through exclusive clear black Jushin Thunder
Liger modelled from his original Vol. 1. and 1.5. mold.
3. Masahiro Chono exclusive 25th anniversary figureWidely considred one of the most valuable of the Mini Big Head
figures (even more so than the secret Vol. 1. Inoki), this clear
black Masahiro Chono Mini Big head is based off of Chono's original
Vol. 1./1.5. mold and was only available as a gift for fans who
purchased the Masahiro Chono 25th anniversary DVD back in
2009.
The clear-black Chono exclusive features a logo of Chono's
fashion line "Aristrist" stamped on the back of the figure
and was the last of the 4 original see-through Mini Big
head figures.
4. Antonio Inoki Jungle Fight DVD exclusive figure
Another exclusive figure that was only available
with the "Antonio Inoki - The Jungle Fight" DVD.
This Inoki Mini Big Head features a similar mold to
the Antonio Inoki Vol. 1. secret figure and comes with
a keychain strap.
With DVD included, this figure routinely sells for $80 US.
5. Keystrap figures
Removing their standard red bases and attaching keystraps,
these Mini Big Head figures also featured alternate colors
and updated packaging.
Figures in this set include:
Akira Hokuto
Kensuke Sasaki
Tiger Mask IV
Big Van Vader
Power Warrior6. Antonio Inoki Toukon Shop exclusive figureThis Vol. 4. Antonio Inoki repaint features a blue towel and was only
available at New Japan's Toukon Shop for a limited time back in 2004.
7. Ultimo Dragon 20th anniversary setIn 2007, Ultimo Dragon celebrated his 20th anniversary as a Pro-Wrestler in
Tokyo's famous Korakuen hall. To celebrate, this not-for-sale five figure set
was handed out to a limited number of participants during the event.
All five figures were exclusive repaints of the Vol. 6. Ultimo Dragon and came
in a lavish display box with a gold foil stamp.
8. Pre-release Toukon Shop exclusive repaint setIn 2003, one year before the release of the first Volume of
Mini Big Heads, Character Product created a pre-release
4 figure ring set that was only available in Tokyo's Toukon
shop.
That four figure set was also available as an exclusive, four
figure repaint set that featured:
Jushin Thunder Liger - in silver and blue
Masahiro Chono in a slightly darker gold paint
Yuji Nagata in black trunks with a moustache
and Hiroyoshi Tenzan with silver and black tights and boots
Besides this photo, I've never seen this repaint set in
the wild but have heard reports that the Liger alone
sells for about $100 US; easily making this four figure
set the rarest and most sought after set of Mini Big
Heads ever released.