Dabi’s Rubber Strap from Ichiban Kuji, Explained

Dabi Ichiban Kuji Rubber Strap Mascot No. 02

What Is an Ichiban Kuji Rubber Strap Mascot?

A rubber strap mascot is a flat PVC character charm produced in chibi style — figures with exaggerated proportions that distill a character’s key visual traits into a compact, slightly cartoonish silhouette. A silver ball chain is attached, allowing the piece to clip to a bag zipper, key ring, or similar anchor. The format is lightweight and durable, so it functions both as shelf display and as a practical everyday accessory.

The “Ichiban Kuji” designation explains this item’s origins. Ichiban Kuji is a lottery-style merchandise program run by Bandai Spirits, the hobby and collectibles arm of the Bandai group. Tickets are sold at Lawson and FamilyMart convenience stores and at specialty shops such as Animate, with each draw awarding a single item from a preset roster — typically a mix of figures, towels, acrylic stands, and rubber straps. The number “02” identifies Dabi’s position within the strap subset of the specific campaign he appears in. Ichiban Kuji operates exclusively through Japan’s domestic retail network, so individual pieces reach international collectors through Japanese resellers rather than any official overseas channel.

The Character: Dabi and the My Hero Academia Story

My Hero Academia is a shonen manga by Kohei Horikoshi, published in Weekly Shonen Jump from 2014 onward. Studio BONES adapted it into an anime series beginning in 2016, which has continued across multiple seasons and theatrical films. The premise centers on a society where the majority of the population possesses individual superhuman abilities called Quirks, and follows Izuku Midoriya — born without one — as he pursues a career as a professional hero.

Dabi functions as a senior antagonist within the League of Villains and, later, the Paranormal Liberation Front. His Quirk produces blue-white flames of exceptional intensity — powerful enough that prolonged use burns his own skin, resulting in the series of purple staple-like scars across his face and arms that define his appearance. White disheveled hair and a long dark coat complete a look that stands out even within a cast of unusually designed characters. The chibi format of this rubber strap condenses those details into a smaller, exaggerated form while keeping the essential visual cues intact.

Chapter 290 of the manga, published in 2020, disclosed Dabi’s real name: Touya Todoroki, the eldest son of the pro hero Endeavor and the older brother of Shoto Todoroki. This revelation resolved one of the series’ most discussed open questions and prompted considerable reaction from fans in Japan and internationally.

Rubber Straps, Japanese Merchandise Culture, and a Global Fandom

Rubber strap mascots became a fixture of Japanese character merchandise in the early 2000s, originally as mobile phone charms, and have continued as a collecting format since. My Hero Academia is distributed internationally through Crunchyroll, with a large viewership across North America and Europe. Among the series’ villains, Dabi draws particular interest — his design is immediately distinctive, and the Todoroki backstory adds a narrative complexity uncommon for an antagonist. The “02” designation also indicates that additional character straps were issued in the same Ichiban Kuji campaign, relevant context for collectors who pursue complete sets from a single run.