A guide to collecting Funko Pops
Kidsday reporter Mason Culbreath, of Nathaniel Hawthorne Middle School 74 in Bayside, and his Funko Pop collection. Credit: Culbreath family
Funko Pops are one of America’s most popular and well-known collectibles. Pops are these mini figures of characters from TV shows, movies and video games. I own around 150 of them.
A Pop's price can range from $10 to even $2,500. Now I know what you’re probably thinking: “That’s ridiculous, how could a figure that is barely 3 inches tall be worth over two grand?” Let me explain. A Pop's price can be determined by multiple things. One of the main reasons why one Pop costs more than another is that it is an exclusive. An exclusive Pop is a Pop that you can get in only a certain part of the world or from a certain store or event such as Comic Con.
You can tell that a Pop is exclusive if it has a sticker on the box saying something like: Only at Target, or Only at Walmart. An exclusive Pop from one of these stores could cost between $15 and $25. At the moment, a Toys R Us exclusive Pop is worth a lot more because the chain closed in September 2018.
A Pop could also have a high value if it was one of the first Pops made, or an “original.” Some examples of original Pops are the classic Justice League and classic Avengers. The CEO of Funko Pops, Brian Mariotti, made the first official Pop in 2013. It was Clamshell Batman and was made in many different versions.
In my opinion these collectibles are really cool, and Funko should be more POPular. (See what I did there?)
Karen Murillo's sixth-grade class, Nathaniel Hawthorne Middle School 74, Bayside
