How big is your Littlest Pet Shop? (2005–2012) Little Pets, BIG Personalities! (2012-2014) Who's in Your Littlest Pet Shop? (2014–2017) Unleash the Bobble! (2023-)
Littlest Pet Shop, commonly abbreviated as LPS,[1] is a toy franchise and cartoon series owned by Hasbro and currently under license with Basic Fun!.[2][3] The original toy series was produced by Kenner in the early 1990s.[4] An animated television series based on the franchise was produced in 1995 by Sunbow Productions and Jean Chalopin Creativite et Developpement.[5]
The franchise was relaunched in 2005 with over 3,000 different pet figurines produced since. Hasbro, alongside various digital media developers, has produced video games for consoles such as the Nintendo DS, Wii and PlayStation 3. A second animated television series was produced by Hasbro Studios for Discovery Family, a U.S. cable network partially owned by Hasbro. This series premiered in 2012 and concluded in 2016 after 104 episodes had aired.
In 2022, Basic Fun! made a deal with Hasbro to relaunch Littlest Pet Shop, starting in 2024, with new collectible figures, playsets and accessories alike.[6] The marketing campaign for the brand's new toy line included a video game on Roblox, launched in December 2023.[7]
History
Kenner toys (1990s)
Introduced in 1992[3][1] for children who weren't able to have real life pets,[8] each set comes with certain actions, such as a movable part. Most included magnets or simple mechanisms, such as flapping wings.[9] These toys came in small suitcase-like plastic containers with shelves and compartments.[10] A larger playset intended to simulate a pet shop was also produced, along with various kinds of licensed merchandise.[11] This line is also often known by fans and collectors as "Generation 1", as it was the first iteration of the toy line to be released. The line ceased production in 1997.[12]
Generation 2
Hasbro re-launched the Littlest Pet Shop brand in 2005 with a completely overhauled look designed by Gayle Middleton.[1] The new Littlest Pet Shop toy line had molds that looked more stylized and more cartoonish and disproportionate compared to the 1990s incarnation of the franchise. They had bobble-heads and came with a round pink or blue magnet located on the bottom of their feet. However, due to choking hazard concerns, the magnets would be removed in 2009, being replaced with holes to be used with pegs on playsets.[12] This series of sets were released as single packages, in pairs, in large packs, and alongside large playsets. Pets occasionally held exclusivity to only one store, such as Costco or Toys "R" Us. In 2010, the previously Kenner-owned Blythe dolls were introduced into the brand with the "Blythe Loves Littlest Pet Shop" series.[13] Special pets were released at San Diego Comic-Con in 2009 and 2010.[14][15]
The generation 2 pets, with a large community of adult collectors, now often sell for a premium second-hand on online platforms such as EBay,[16] especially particularly rare pets such as variants, store exclusives, mail-order, prototype and event pets.[15]
Generation 3
The line was revamped to coincide with the release of the 2012 TV series, with Blythe now as a central character. The style and design of the toys were changed significantly, such as removing the bobble-heads.[12] This incarnation of the brand had low sales and was overall unpopular among customers.[17]
Generation 4 and 5
The logo during Generation 5
Beginning in 2014, these pets have molds that more closely resemble the style of the TV series and were given names. These toys also feature "deco bits", small plastic accessories that can be used to decorate the pets.[18] Hasbro released the Pets Pawsabilities collection during this time, and in 2016, the Pets in the City collection, which more closely resembles the pets released in G2. This era features the return of the bobble-headed designs.[12]
A hamster toy released during this iteration invoked a lawsuit from Fox News anchor Harris Faulkner, due to the toy sharing her name and allegedly her likeness.[19][20] The case was quickly settled after Hasbro ceased selling the pet.[21]
Generation 6
The Littlest Pet Shop toys were revamped once again in 2017, with new molds and rounded eyes similar to the second generation pets. The pets in this line come in three sizes: teensie, mini, and classic (the largest of the three).[22][23] It was also during this time that a new show premiered on Discovery Family called Littlest Pet Shop: A World of Our Own.[24] This line featured several series of pets each with a distinct gimmick, such as galaxy-themed designs.[22]
Generation 7
Basic Fun! announced in 2022 that they had obtained the license to the brand and would be relaunching the G2 style bobble-head pets, which would release in 2024,[25] each toy pack would be accompanied by a collectible card and digital code.[26] Basic Fun! introduced new molds based on currently popular animals, such as the axolotl and capybara mold, yet still kept some original molds from G2, such as the dachshund and short hair cat. This line of toys is distributed in Europe by Bandai.[27] The brand currently markets itself to adult collectors as much as it does to children.
Other products
In 2006, Hasbro released the Littlest Pet Shop digital pet, a line of keychain attached electronic games similar to the Tamagotchi.[28][29] Various plush toys based on the franchise have also been released over the years, including a launch of 6-inch and 4-inch collectible plush in 2025,[30] as well as plushes that tied into the Littlest Pet Shop VIPs and Littlest Pet Shop Online virtual worlds. In 2010, the LPSO Dancing Dog speaker was released, which would dance to music when plugged into a computer or MP3 player,[31] similar to another Hasbro product, the iDog.
Reception
Generation 2 of Littlest Pet Shop, the most well-known generation, has primarily received positive reception. In 2007, Hasbro cited the brand as one of their top sellers.[32] The "Biggest Littlest Pet Shop" playset, released in 2006, was noted as being "basically sold out everywhere" in a TV broadcast from CNN that year. They go on to talk about the portable pets, mentioning that they "play well with the set" and that children enjoy collecting the toys.[33] However, not all reception was positive, as Alanna Bennett wrote for The Mary Sue in 2011 that the 2005 incarnation of the pets had big heads that were "uncomfortably in your face", comparing them to Bratz dolls.[9] In a 2024 article, USA Today listed Littlest Pet Shop as the most popular Christmas toy of 2008, alongside the Rubik's Revolution.[34] In 2017, the VP of Hasbro, Andrea Hopelain, told Kidscreen that fans love "the collectibility of the Littlest Pet Shop figures".[35]
The Generation 7 revival has also seen favorable reception, with a representative for the European distributor, Bandai, saying that they have been "blown away by the reception which Littlest Pet Shop has received".[30] In a review for The Toy Insider, Samantha Connell writes that the toys are "perfect for animal lovers" and that the collector cards feature "an adorable photo of the figure".[26] An article for Good Housekeeping says they are "impressed with the brand's recent relaunch", and tells readers who grew up with the toys that they can have fun playing with the new incarnation with their own kids.[36]
Community
In the 2000s, a YouTube community based around skits and web series starring the toys emerged, known as LPSTube,[37] with the first video being uploaded in 2007. Improvised and homemade props are commonly used in videos.[25] These videos often feature more mature and darker themes, acting as filmed extensions of imaginative play.[1] One of the most well-known video series in the community is SophieGTV's Littlest Pet Shop: Popular, a 2010 high school drama series following a dachshund named Savannah Reed.[25] The series had amassed over 4 million views on the platform as of 2024.[12]
An animated series based on the original Kenner incarnation of the franchise that premiered in 1995, produced by Sunbow Productions in collaboration with Jean Chalopin Creativite et Developpement.[5] It ran for a single season of 40 episodes.
An animated series that corresponded to the 2012 reboot of the franchise, focusing on the human character Blythe working at a pet shop where the animals can talk to her. The series was produced by Hasbro Studios and DHX Media and ran for four seasons on The Hub, ending in 2016.
Littlest Pet Shop VIPs (short for Virtual Interactive Pets)[39] was a toys-to-life online virtual world that launched in 2007. Similar to other sites at the time such as Webkinz, the physical VIPs plush toys came with codes that could be used to unlock the pet in game.[40] These plush toys are required in order to collect virtual pets and other items.[41] The site featured numerous minigames and an in-game virtual currency named Kibble.[42]
A video game developed by Electronic Arts based on the 2005 version of the toyline. A single version released for the Wii, and four separate versions for the Nintendo DS. Two sequels, Friends[43] and Biggest Stars,[44] were also released.
Littlest Pet Shop Online (2009)
The second virtual world based on the toyline, developed in collaboration with Electronic Arts and launched in September 2009.[45] It is commonly and officially abbreviated as LPSO.[31] Unlike VIPs, a plush toy was not required in order to play.[46] It lasted two years until its closure in 2011.
Littlest Pet Shop (2012)
A mobile game based on the 2012 cartoon series, developed by Gameloft. It was released on November 22, 2012. Toys released during this time period came bundled with tokens that could be scanned to win in-game prizes.[47]
Littlest Pet Shop: Your World (2014)
The second mobile game from Gameloft, released in 2014. This game attracted some criticism for its use of expensive microtransactions, with real money being used to purchase an in-game currency used to buy new pets.[48] Similar to the 2012 game's token system, the game utilized "zap codes", codes similar to QR codes which are printed on the pets themselves.[49]
Littlest Pet Shop on Roblox (2023)
In December 2023, a Littlest Pet Shop game was launched on Roblox, as a collaboration between Basic Fun!, Hasbro and Suit Up Games. Players are able to virtually collect the bobble-head animals using codes similar to the previous mobile games in the franchise.[50]
1 2 Erickson, Hal (2005). Television Cartoon Shows: An Illustrated Encyclopedia, 1949 Through 2003 (2nded.). McFarland & Co. p.513. ISBN978-1476665993.
↑ Bradley, Eric (2015). Picker's Pocket Guide - Toys: How to Pick Antiques Like a Pro. Iola: Penguin Publishing Group. ISBN978-1-4402-4453-7. Groups of toys and accessories from the Littlest Pet Shop are starting to appear at auction with prices ranging between $80 and $125, depending on the number of pieces.
↑ Allocca, Kevin (2018). Videocracy: how youtube is changing the world ... with double rainbows, singing foxes, and other trends we can't stop watching. New York: Bloomsbury. p.187. ISBN978-1-63286-674-5. You can find this type of passion in many of YouTube's ultra-niche enthusiast communities, like the channels dedicated to American Girl Stop Motion (#AGSM), intricate and often laborious short films made with the dolls, or LPS Tube, movies made with toys from the Littlest Pet Shop franchise.
↑ De Mesa, Alycia (2009). Brand Avatar: Translating Virtual World Branding into Real World Success. London: Palgrave Macmillan UK. pp.145–146. ISBN978-0-230-23371-3.
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