Are Funko Pop Figures with Errors Collectible?

A lot of people talk about funko pops with errors, and with items which are as mass produced as these vinyl figures, it is almost unavoidable that there might be some errors, and some of them are so subtle that it’s fairly easy for them to slip past quality control. A lot of people have asked whether there is an official list of Funko errors, however such a list doesn’t exist and I can see why there wouldn’t be an official one – what sort of company wants to admit to how many times they’ve messed up? However I will list below most of the more common or well known errors which I’ve been able to find documented.

A lot of people also ask whether they are more collectible or more valuable, to which most people say that it’s a categorical no. However, it’s not quite as easy as that! If you want to collect pops with errors, go ahead and do so – personally I find them interesting and quirky. For example I’ve got a Tony pop from Die Hard where the text on his jumper is upside down. It’s not very obvious but why not have one which is slightly different to most of the others? It only cost me £5 more and I like it. And with some of the more well known errors they do command a much higher price, so there is definitely a market for them!

However because there is a market this does open them up for one big danger, which is forgeries, so be careful. With my Tony figure, it is unlikely that some one would go through the trouble of removing the original writing (which is a sticker transfer but all individual letters so not easy to just peel off), and then re-do it upside down to earn a couple of pounds. But as these figures are not sealed in the box, it is far more likely that someone would change the colour of a batman symbol or a dragon being held by Daenerys to earn a few hundred extra pounds.

If you’re buying an expensive error make sure you know a little about the seller – make sure they’re reputable as forged pop figures are becoming more common as the trend in their sales continues to spiral upwards. Check out my post about fake Captain Spaulding pops finding their way on to ebay for an example.

To put the types of errors in to context and how they can maybe be faked I’ve tried to put them in a few different categories below to help you see what sore of errors there are and whether you find any of them interesting. Remember what ever YOU want to collect, is collectible to you, so if you find pop errors interesting like I do (a little) then collect them – who cares if other people think they’re not collectible. You wouldn’t stop collecting Disney pops if I didn’t like them and said that they were less collectible than something cool like Mad Max!

Types of Funko Pop Error

Misprinted Funko Pop Boxes

This is the most common type of error because of how quickly the boxes are printed and run off… Also with graphic design being part of my real world job I know how easy it is for a spelling mistake to slip by. On a small scale these are not very easy to forge which makes them a much safer bet when it comes to wanting to collect pop errors, however still not impossible. For an error which might be popular it might become worth while for someone to do a print run of their own boxes but again this is a lot more work than faking the figure itself. These errors may be as varied as spelling mistakes, having characters mislabeled, have characters missing, have color errors, or mislabel the type of product – for example stating that an item is a bobble head when it is just a standard rigid vinyl.

Misprinted or Incorrect Funko Pop Box Stickers

This is possibly one of the easiest to fake as stickers can be produced at such a low cost. There are claims of things like upside down stickers or chase stickers on exclusive boxes being an error. These are again easy to do – it is not impossible to remove a sticker and replace it or move it. So whilst there are a few genuine instances of these being errors in the spelling mistake case, they are possible to fake, and the other instances are not really true errors. The same goes for missing stickers – these can be easily removed and whilst an exclusive might come from the factory without the right exclusive sticker this isn’t worth more money – if anything most collectors would see this as less valuable.

Color or Decal Errors on Funko Pop Figures

These ones are usually the most sought after of the errors and it’s where the paint job or the decals which go on after the initial paint have been in some way done wrong or missed. So this could be from a superhero having the wrong symbol stuck on his chest, writing and symbols being upside down or missing completely. Or it could be where the colour of a pop figure has been done wrong or again not coloured at all. These are the most desirable errors and people who fake pops would know this, and they are also relatively easy to fake. I think perhaps less so with the decals as many of them are incredibly detailed and fiddly so I think many people would struggle to get them off and re-apply them or replace them with their own. The colour ones on the other hand are less than difficult. if you look for custom pops you’ll see that there are plenty of people who are very talented when it comes to making new or changing existing pop figures.

Missing / Incorrect Parts on Funko Pop Figures

This is one which you do need to be a bit dubious about. The idea is simple – there are plenty of people who find one off pops with missing parts or the wrong parts. For example it might have 2 left hands, be missing a prop, have no hand, have a back to front arm etc. These may well be factory errors, but because pops are not in sealed boxes and because they are vinyl figures, they are relatively easy to work on. It wouldn’t be too hard to purchase 2 pops and swap the parts out – especially heads. So even though they might be errors, be careful with buying them – they might be nothing at all! This is one instance where the errors really aren’t that collectible or valuable due to the ease in faking them.

Funko Pop Box Numbering Errors

This is when 2 figures from the same line (such as movies, animation, heroes etc) share the same number. Each figure in that line (unless it is a chase) should have its own assigned number. This is a rare occurrence and probably the hardest one to fake properly. Sure someone could make a new set of boxes with the wrong number, however for that number of match the actual number of the figure and run is impossible unless they hack in to the Funko system. What is not an error is if the numbers don’t run in sequence or are missing. The above (as shown by Pulp Fiction below) is the only way this can be an error.

Funko Pops Upside Down or Back to Front in the Box

Just no… This is where the pop has been inserted in to the box upside down or back to front… Again these things aren’t in sealed boxes so even though it could theoretically be relatively easy for this to happen from the factory, it can just as easily (if not more easily) be taken out of the box and put back in the wrong way (on purpose or by accident) once they arrive with the consumer. This really shouldn’t be considered as an error and if you dig the back of a pop, just buy one and turn it around.

Wrong Funko Pop Figure in the Box

Again, no… It is fairly unlikely that this would happen in the factor unless there was a problem at the end of one production run and the beginning of another. However what wouldn’t happen would be something like an old batman pop (such as number 01 from DC Universe) being in the box of a more recent one (such as Heroes 289). This is not likely an error, what has most likely happened here is that someone had an old pop without the box and was able to find a replacement box for the same character but a different version… For some people this is just to make them a bit happier with their own display and is just as easy to fake as the above. This is likely to be the least likely genuine error.

List of known / common Funko pop errors

• Anti-Venom (number 100 original pops) has Marvel Name written on the solid side rather than Anti-Venom
• Batgirl (Heroes 03) should have a yellow bat on the metallic chase edition however there is a print run which had black bat symbols – both variations are in circulation and as the yellow ones seem to be in lower numbers some people have speculated as to whether it is actually the box which is wrong and that the box should have had a black bat
• Batman (Heroes 01) should have had a plain black bat but some had a yellow and black bat symbol on their chest. The same applies to the metallic chase version of this pop
• Clyde (Games 86) from Pac-Man in some instances is missing his smile
• Daenerys should have a dragon with just red wings, but some were produced with completely red dragons
• Deadpool Black & White exclusive from Wizard World Comic Con had about 1 in 6 produced with glow in the dark heads
• Disney haunted mansion ghosts were mislabeled on the back with Gus being labeled as the one with the ball & chain and beard while Phineas had the travel bag, when it should be the other way around
• Flash was produced in some cases with a logo on his chest
• Fozzie Bear (Muppets 04) was spelled as Fozzy Bear on the box
• Goku & Flying Nimbus (animation 109) has a spelling error on the side of the box reading Goku & Flying Nimubs
• Hawkman had his name spelled Hakwman on the side of his box
• Logan (Marvel 28) was released as a normal rigid vinyl but advertised as a bobble head
• Marvel Vs Capcom double box for Sigma vs Ultron has a spelling mistake on a large print run spelling it Sigma vs Utron
• Pulp Fiction (Vincent – movies number 61 and Jules – movies number 62) and Back to the Future (Marty McFly – movies number 61 and Dr. Emmet Brown – movies number 62) share the same numbering on the front of the box
• Starwars had a run of exclusives for Walgreens with the back on many boxes spelling it as Wallgreens – what has resulted out of this is up to 3 different types of print for this pop. The first with the mistake on the back, the second with the mistake replaced by “collect them all” and the third being a sticker saying “collect them all” over the top.
• Starwars Rebels chopper has a print error on a print run of boxes where the front spells just Chopp
• The Predator range had some issues due to a licensing screw up. As such there are a limited number of predator hounds with green paint (they then got changed to an olive brownish colour), predator (number 620) which was then changed to fugitive predator and super predator (number 619) which was then changed to assassin predator.
• Wonder Woman metallic chase should be wearing all metallic clothing however on a number the bust is not metallic (just the boots, shorts and wrist cuffs)