Ghibli Cards, Menko, and Anime’s Paper Collecting Era

Today’s Random Four
Every morning we pull a handful of items from our store completely at random — and today, these four surfaced. Use code D260811FOW at checkout for an extra 15% off any of them, stacked on top of the sale prices already running. With today’s markdowns, that’s up to 30% off. Good for 3 days. New picks drop every morning, so check back — you never know what’ll turn up.

This week’s picks span four decades of Japanese anime collecting, from 1980s Saint Seiya menko cards to a Bandai wafer visual card featuring Emilia from Re:Zero. Two of the items are playing cards originally distributed through Animage magazine during Studio Ghibli’s earliest theatrical years, making this a particularly good week for fans of paper-format anime ephemera.

Emilia Re:Zero Wafer Visual Card Vol.5 (Swimsuit Variant) — Bandai

This is a Bandai wafer visual card from the Re:Zero Starting Life in Another World series, Vol.5, featuring the character Emilia in a swimsuit variant. Re:Zero is a popular isekai anime and light novel series that has maintained a devoted following in Japan and internationally since its 2016 debut.

Kiki’s Delivery Service Animage Playing Card — Diamonds 3 (1989)

This is the Three of Diamonds from a playing card set featuring artwork from Studio Ghibli’s 1989 film Kiki’s Delivery Service, originally published through Animage magazine. Animage, founded in 1978, was one of Japan’s first dedicated anime magazines, and its promotional inserts and tie-in merchandise have become collectibles in their own right.

Laputa: Castle in the Sky Animage Playing Card — Clubs J (1986 Summer)

This is the Jack of Clubs from an Animage playing card set published in the summer 1986 issue, featuring artwork from Laputa: Castle in the Sky. That film was Studio Ghibli’s first theatrical release, and items tied to its original promotional period carry particular significance for Ghibli collectors.

Vintage Saint Seiya Menko Card — 1980s

This is a vintage menko card from the 1980s featuring imagery from Saint Seiya, the manga and anime series by Masami Kurumada. Menko are small, stiff cardboard pieces rooted in a traditional Japanese children’s game that became a popular format for anime and tokusatsu tie-in collectibles throughout the Showa era.

About This Collection

These four items trace different chapters of anime merchandise history in Japan, from the menko of the Showa period to magazine-distributed playing cards and the wafer card format that continues today. Each format occupied its own place in fan culture at the time it was produced, and each has since found a second life as a paper collectible worth tracking down.