15 Unforgettable Plush Toys from the 1980s
The ’80s had some seriously weird toys. Everyone was experimenting with new ideas – talking animals, shape-shifting creatures, dolls that smelled like food.
It was like toy companies just threw stuff at the wall to see what stuck, and honestly, most of it did. These plush toys became obsessions for millions of kids. Here’s a list of 15 that pretty much everyone remembers.
Teddy Ruxpin
You stuck a cassette in this bear’s back and his mouth moved while he told stories. The stories were usually about his adventures in some fantasy land with his buddy Grubby.
Kids would sit there mesmerized, even though the mouth barely synced up with the words half the time.
Care Bears
These bears lived in the clouds and shot rainbows from their stomachs or something. Each one represented a different emotion – there was Happy Bear, Sad Bear, Angry Bear.
Parents loved them because they were supposed to teach kids about feelings, but mostly kids just wanted the cute rainbow one.
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My Pet Monster
This thing looked like it crawled out of a horror movie with its blue fur and orange hair, but somehow that made it awesome. He wore these breakaway handcuffs that you could snap off when you wanted him to be free.
The whole concept was backwards but it worked.
Garfield
Everyone loved this fat orange cat from the comics. The plush versions usually had that half-asleep, annoyed expression that made Garfield famous.
Some of them were huge – like the size of a real cat – which was both cool and slightly creepy.
Pound Puppies
These dogs looked perpetually sad, which was the entire point. They came with little adoption certificates and the idea was that you were saving them from the pound.
Pretty heavy concept for a kids’ toy, but it worked because everyone wanted to be the hero.
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E.T.
After the movie came out, these ugly-cute aliens were everywhere. The good ones had glowing hearts or fingers, but the batteries always died within a week.
Still, having your own E.T. was worth dealing with the disappointment of non-glowing fingers.
Popples
These were brilliant – normal stuffed animals that could flip inside out and become spheres. You could throw them, catch them, then pop them back out into animal form.
The transformation never got old, even after you’d done it a thousand times.
Smurfs
Tiny blue people from some European cartoon that somehow took over American toy stores. Papa Smurf was the obvious choice since he had the red hat, but there were dozens of different ones.
Collecting them became a real thing for some kids.
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Strawberry Shortcake
The whole gimmick was that these dolls smelled like desserts. Strawberry Shortcake smelled like strawberries, Blueberry Muffin smelled like blueberries – you get it.
The smell faded pretty quick, but when they were fresh, they were amazing.
Rainbow Brite
This character was supposed to bring color to the world, which sounds like hippie nonsense but worked great for a toy line. She had this rainbow hair that tangled up something fierce and a horse named Starlite that was almost as popular.
The colors were so bright they practically glowed.
Cabbage Patch Kids
These weren’t really plush but they were soft enough. Each one was supposedly unique and came with adoption papers and a birth certificate.
The whole adoption angle was genius marketing – suddenly you weren’t buying a doll, you were gaining a family member.
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Gizmo
The cute Mogwai from Gremlins became everyone’s favorite after that movie traumatized a generation of kids. These plush versions were incredibly soft and had those big innocent eyes.
Much safer than the movie version since they couldn’t spawn evil creatures when wet.
Wuzzles
Disney tried making animals that were combinations of two different animals. Bumblelion was part bee, part lion. Eleroo was part elephant, part kangaroo.
It sounds ridiculous but kids ate it up. The cartoon didn’t last long but the toys hung around for years.
Shirt Tales
These animals wore T-shirts with messages on them that were supposed to change based on their moods. The plush versions usually came with a couple different shirts you could swap out.
It was like having a pet that could communicate through clothing, which is exactly as weird as it sounds.
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Monchichis
Little monkey creatures that sucked their thumbs and made this ‘kiki’ noise that got annoying fast. They had oversized heads and tiny bodies, which somehow made them irresistible to kids.
The thumb-sucking thing was oddly soothing, even if it looked pretty weird.
Why These Still Matter
Half of these toys have had comebacks over the years, which tells you something. The ’80s nailed the formula for toys that stick around – they weren’t just stuffed animals, they were characters with stories and personalities.
Kids formed real attachments to these things. Today’s toys are fancier and more high-tech, but there’s still something about a well-worn stuffed animal that beats any gadget. These toys proved that sometimes the simplest ideas – a talking bear, a shape-shifting creature, a monster that’s actually friendly – are the ones that last.
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