This new Pokémon 30th anniversary merch is a genius idea

The Pokémon Company is celebrating the franchise’s 30th anniversary in all sorts of ways, from special card sets to a Game Boy music player. Many of these celebratory items are cool, but not particularly surprising. In late June, the pocket monster company added some unexpected products to its anniversary lineup: carry-on bags.

Functionally, the bags work as you’d expect. They come in three colors, each corresponding to the basic starter elements. A nice touch here is that the outer shells depict 30 years’ worth of starters — the red one has Charmander and Litten, while the blue one has Squirtle and Popplio, and so on. The soft inner portion of the bags, which come with dividers to sort your belongings, depict full-color versions of the same starters. The zipper ends are shaped like Poké Balls, and there’s a side hook where you can attach small items.

These details would be enough to tempt many Pokémon fans, but they’re not even the best part. The real selling point is that all the bags have a small window near the top that is meant to show off your favorite plushies. It’s truly the most kawaii way to travel.

The Pokémon Center has an incredible number of plushies to choose from, including a new set of Pokopia-themed stuffies. The Sitting Pokémon Cuties line is a particularly great fit for these bags.

Here’s the sad part: so far, The Pokémon Company has only announced availability for these bags in Japan. As per usual, Japan gets the best Pokémon merch. Even if you’re not about to import a brand-new bag from overseas, these products are so outstanding that any Pokémon fan will appreciate them. Or, you know, seethe in jealousy.

At least we’ll get to pay scalpers for those nice 30th-anniversary Pokémon cards?