Bandai America Dragonball Evolve Checklist

This line of 5 inch figures was first announced March 2019 by ToyWiz. That's how we heard of it on DBF, at least. This is the first time we've had articulated 5 inch scale figures available in the US since Jakks Pacific lost the license to DBZ in 2005.

The figures from Series 1 were very difficult to find due to poor distribution and also poor naming online. Although the packaging labels the figures as Dragonball Evolve, most online retailers simply called them "Dragon Ball Super 5-Inch Action Figures" or whatever they wanted to call them, making them incredibly difficult to find without checking every online store with generic searches for "Dragon Ball Super". When they were first released, they were first spotted at Canadian Walmart stores in August 2019. The online retailer Entertainment Earth was also known for getting them early in mid-August 2019. Canadian EB Games stores started receiving them next. They weren't spotted in the US until September 2019 at a Target store in California, but not all Target stores sell DB figures at all, only some. Some FYE stores in the US and some Walmart stores in the US started carrying them in October 2019. Amazon did not start delivering orders of them until November (possibly December) 2019. Gamestop was not mentioned until 2020, but their release month is technically unknown to me. My nearest Gamestop in Texas never carried any of these (as of the last time I checked in March 2020), so even with Gamestop being the most reliable store for Dragon Stars (for me) in 2019 and 2020, even Gamestop failed me, by never carrying the figures at all.

The figures were greeted with mixed reviews. Collectors of Irwin and Jakks figures liked them, but disliked the missing painted details like Goku's boot lines, how Vegeta is the same size as Goku, and Broly is tiny. Newer collectors (people who started collecting in the 2010s) either like them or dislike them. They are a scale of figures modern collectors aren't used to. They are used to Star Wars size (like Shodo), 6 inch size (like Figuarts and Dragon Stars), and larger sizes like Banpresto statues. Most people who purchased these have praised them for their great articulation and low price, citing that they look superior to Dragon Stars, thanks to better articulation with joint pegs that aren't as pronounced.

With Series 2 released, most (if not all of us) are impressed that the figures seem to be 5 inch scale now, rather than simply 5 inches. We were all rightfully fearful that Golden Frieza would be bigger than Goku, thanks to the promotional image showing him as such. But it looks like Bandai America has listened to the fans, and made the line a 5 inch scaled line, rather than a 5 inch line.

Release Date: August 2019 in Canada, September 2019 in the US

Noteworthy Details: See "History" above.

Price: $9.99 to $12.99

Characters: SSB Goku, SSB Vegeta, SS Broly

Series 1 box set: "Dragon Ball Evolve Action Figures Triple Pack"
Release Date: Unknown in the US (possibly never), but July 1, 2020 in the UK
Noteworthy Details: The box set was seen at both the London Toy Fair and the Nuremberg Toy Fair (Nürnberger Spielwarenmesse) in February 2020. The figures appear to be identical to the individual releases. It might possibly be exclusive to Europe through distribution from Bandai UK and Bandai Europe. The Product Code is 85819, Barcode 3296580858194, and Package Size 5.0 x 36.0 x 22.5 cm according to NDA Toys Wholesale.

Price: The RRP (British version of MSRP) was £ 25.99 which was equal to $34.15 USD at the time of this writing (August 2020).
Characters: SSB Goku, SSB Vegeta, SS Broly

Series 2
Release Date: August 2020
Noteworthy Details: After a year since the release of Series 1, we finally have Series 2 being released. The first known local sighting of these was at a Target store in Spring Valley, CA on 8/5/20. They showed up on ebay a few days earlier from a seller in Colorado and a seller in California. I don't know where/how they found them, however. (They could own comic book/anime stores, or they may have found them at Target themselves). The release date on Amazon says August 17, 2020.

Price: $9.99 to $12.99

Characters: Final battle Jiren, Ultra Instinct Goku, Golden Frieza

Series 2 box set: "Dragon Ball Evolve Action Figures Triple Pack"

Release Date: Unknown in the US (possibly never), October 26, 2020 in the UK (according to Amazon)
Noteworthy Details: The figures appear to be identical to the individual releases. It might possibly be exclusive to Europe through distribution from Bandai UK and Bandai Europe. The Product Code is 36268, Barcode 3296580362684, and Package Size 5.0 x 36.0 x 22.5 cm according to NDA Toys Wholesale.

Price: The RRP (British version of MSRP) was £ 25.99 which was equal to $31.40 USD at the time of this writing (August 2022).

Characters: Jiren, Son Goku Ultra Instinct, Golden Frieza



Series 3

Release Date: September 2021 (however, the first I noticed any on ebay was July 8, 2021, and someone spotted them at Target on July 12, 2021. I found mine at a Target on July 25, 2021)
Noteworthy Details: Nearly a year since the release of Series 2, we finally have Series 3. The first report of this was by Entertainment Earth around May 31, 2021. EE is who stated these would be released in September 2021.
Price: $9.99 to $12.99
Characters: SSB Gogeta, SS Future Trunks, UI Sign Goku

Walmart Exclusive Super Saiyan Vegeta (gold hair)

Release Date: August 2022 (the first I noticed any on ebay was August 9, 2022, they showed up on Walmart's website the same week, and the first I saw someone find one locally was 8/21/2022).
Noteworthy Details: This is the first store-exclusive Evolve figure that Bandai has made. It was released in August 2022, so a year after the release of series 3, and series 4 has not yet shown up in stores or on ebay yet. The packaging looks (essentially) exactly like Series 1 SSB Vegeta's packaging, but with the character artwork recolored. The packaging is pink and blue like the other series 1 figures, despite being released several years later. Something else noteworthy is that the first shipments of this figure did not have the Walmart sticker on the packaging. And, like many people, I never actually saw any of these in a physical Walmart store. Walmart's distribution of Evolve figures was not good and it seemed like not every Walmart ever even sold Evolve at this point in time. I had to order mine online from Walmart.com, or I never would have gotten one.
Price: $10.97
Characters: SS Vegeta
Available on Walmart's website, but right now (8/9/22) none of the Walmarts near me say he is available for pickup... don't know if that will change... or not. 


Target Exclusive Super Saiyan Goku (gold hair)

Release Date: October 2022 (the first I heard of this was 10/5/22 and when I placed my order, it said it would arrive 10/7/22).

Noteworthy Details: This is the second store-exclusive Evolve figure that Bandai has made. It does not seem like it was advertised, as it took us all by surprise. The packaging looks (essentially) exactly like Series 1 SSB Goku's packaging, but with the character artwork recolored. The packaging is pink and blue like the other series 1 figures, despite being released several years later. This figure (at least in my experience) was not difficult to find in stores. The supply was high, and I saw him at every Target store I went to for several months. In fact, I was still seeing him in Target stores through the summer of 2023, because he only finally disappeared a couple weeks before I managed to find the Target Exclusive Ultimate Gohan. They may have made a lot of SS Goku.

Price: $10.99

Characters: SS Goku
Available on Target's website.



Series 4

Release Date: October 15, 2022 (according to Amazon)
Noteworthy Details: Over a year since the release of Series 3, we finally have Series 4. SS Goku being from the Namek Saga represents the first DBZ figure in the Evolve line. I don't know why they did that, and I don't really like that they did. The figure is nice though, except for his short neck. Beerus is extremely dainty and an amazing figure. It's extremely impressive that they scaled him so perfectly and made him so thin.
Price: $9.99 to $12.99
Characters: Beerus, SS Son Goku, SSB Vegito



Series 5

Release Date: October 2023
The Walmart exclusive SS Gohan was first found in US Walmart stores around August 9, 2023, and it is still not on Walmart's website as of 10/27/23 (but here's the link that shows up in my purchase history).
Amazon claims that Piccolo is an Amazon exclusive, however, his packaging does not indicate this. Amazon released him October 9, 2023. In the United States, we was definitely an Amazon exclusive. I'm not sure about other countries...
The Target exclusive Ultimate Gohan was first found in US Target stores on October 1, 2023. Target eventually added him to their website, but I only found him via looking up his DPCI number; he does not show up in a search for Dragon Ball Gohan, at least as of 10/27/23.
Noteworthy Details: Over a year since the release of Series 4, we will finally have Series 5. Series 5 is based on the movie Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero, and contains three store-exclusive figures. The SS Gohan is exclusive to Walmart, and the Ultimate Gohan is exclusive to Target, and Amazon claims that Piccolo is exclusive to Amazon.
Early shipments of SS Gohan definitely all have an annoying production defect: the top of his thighs bell outward and looks awkward. If I remember right, they may all look like this, throughout the production run. Many of the figures have paint issues on the chest, particularly a blurry looking transition from skin to purple clothing.
Early shipments of Ultimate Gohan had the same flared thigh problem, however, some were perfect. Later ones were more likely to be perfect than weird looking. Many of the figures have paint issues on the chest, particularly a blurry looking transition from skin to purple clothing. Since the body is identical to SS Gohan's in every color, many people (including me) bought an extra, perfect hips/thighs Ultimate Gohan and put the SS Gohan head on the body. So if you find a SS Gohan with perfect hips and it isn't in the package... somebody probably head swapped it.
Piccolo did not have any production defect problems that I am aware of... beyond one of the ones I received having half an ear missing.
Price: $9.99 to $12.99
Characters: Piccolo, Super Saiyan Son Gohan, Ultimate Gohan
Barcodes: Ultimate Gohan (045557363710), Piccolo (045557363727), SS Gohan (045557363734)
The DPCI number for Target Exclusive Ultimate Gohan is 323-08-8900. 




Series 6

Release Date: May 2024
Characters: Super Saiyan 3 Son Goku, Son Goku, Vegeta
Noteworthy info: These figures were first shown at Dragon Ball Games Battle Hour 2024 in Los Angeles, California on January 27, 2024. The first sighting of these figures in stores (that I know of) was on May 3, 2024. I found them in Texas on May 12, 2024, around 10 days before Amazon stated their release date.
Barcodes: ____
Pre-order/buy on Amazon:
SS3 Goku, Goku, and Vegeta