The Squirtle Coo’nuts Figure and Japan’s Food Toy Tradition

Squirtle Coo'nuts Figure by Bandai

A Food Toy That Wobbles and Self-Rights

The Squirtle Coo’nuts is a shokugan — a Japanese food toy — produced by Bandai under their Coo’nuts Pokemon collaboration line. In Japan, shokugan are small collectible figures sold alongside a piece of candy or gum, a format that has been part of Japanese retail culture since the 1970s and 1980s. What distinguishes Coo’nuts from ordinary figurines is the shape: each piece has a rounded, egg-like base designed to rock back and forth and return upright when tipped — a behavior rooted in the same principle as Japan’s traditional okiagari-koboshi roly-poly dolls. This Squirtle comes fully painted in hard, glossy plastic, in the character’s signature light blue upper body, cream-yellow underbelly and shell, red eyes with white highlights, and a pink curved smile.

Squirtle’s Place in the Pokemon Story

Squirtle — known in Japan as Zenigame, meaning roughly “small coin turtle” — is Pokedex entry No. 007 and a Water-type Pokemon. It is one of the three original starter Pokemon players could choose in the 1996 Game Boy titles Pokemon Red and Green, the games that launched what has since grown into one of the largest entertainment franchises in history. The English name blends “squirrel” and “turtle.” Beyond the games, Squirtle gained its own mythology through the animated series, most memorably through a renegade group of sunglasses-wearing Squirtles known as the Squirtle Squad — a storyline remembered warmly by fans who grew up with the anime in the late 1990s. That combination of game legacy and animated personality has kept the character a touchstone across generations of Pokemon fans worldwide.

Bandai’s Coo’nuts and the Shokugan Collector Market

Bandai is one of Japan’s leading toy and character goods manufacturers, with official licensing across major franchises including Gundam, Dragon Ball, and Kamen Rider. The Coo’nuts line — whose name references the donut-like rounded silhouette of each piece — has partnered with multiple properties beyond Pokemon, including One Piece and Sanrio characters. Shokugan has evolved considerably since its origins as a simple candy-store impulse purchase; Bandai now produces fully painted, officially licensed pieces with a level of finish that places them squarely in the collector category.

Pokemon Coo’nuts were sold through Japan’s domestic retail channels — convenience stores, toy shops, and general merchandise chains — and are not formally distributed outside Japan. The specific release year for this Squirtle figure cannot be confirmed from available information, though the Coo’nuts line is a contemporary Bandai product rather than a vintage or discontinued one. Pokemon merchandise output was particularly active around the franchise’s 25th anniversary in 2021, though whether this piece dates from that period is uncertain. The series covers multiple characters, giving each release a natural set-completion dimension for collectors. For buyers outside Japan, the combination of a first-generation starter character, a roly-poly format distinct from standard Western figures, and official Bandai licensing places this piece at a clear intersection of nostalgia and Japanese toy culture.