Bandai’s latest release of Godzilla action figures in their S.H. Monsterarts has Godzilla Junior all growed up. A while back I reviewed his small self (oof need to check those pics again…) and I also reviewed Godzilla 2000 not too long ago. This time we’ll tackle the grown-up version of Junior, before he mutates once again under a relaunch. In September we’ll tackle Gareth Edward’s version too! It’s like a Godzillapalooza!
I have not gotten the predecessors of this Godzilla — you know, the Heisei Godzilla proper. Heisei refers to the era of giant monster movies in Japan from 1980 through 1998, for Godzilla this was 1984 through 1995. In more general terms, Heisei refers to the current “political/social” period in Japan that started in 1989 when Emperor Akihito took the reigns. Interesting, no? If you are true Godzilla or Tokosatsu follower, then these dates are interesting. And for us it is a clear difference between the Showa Godzilla era, where the special effects were even cheasier!
This Godzilla is from Godzilla vs Destroyah (1995) and stands 7 inches tall. The figure is a another beautiful sculpt from Bandai and is a load of fun to play with. In fact, I like him better than Godzilla 2000, whom I thought would be my quintessential Godzilla. I was wrong. This one is. Luckily for me, I buy these for my son who loves them all and has them displayed on his window sill looking outside. It’s kinda sad actually, they look like they want to go outside and play sitting there, and are being kept from it.
Godzilla is another fantastic sculpt. It’s really difficult to fault Bandai on their work with these monsters; they capture the skin details perfectly. But what they capture the best is the faces. The emotion that’s inherit in these figures is simply majestic, and I can stare the face sculpts for hours. When he’s standing next to 2000, I find myself enjoying the aesthetics of the Heisei Godzilla more; there’s something about the musculature and proportions of the chest and upper body that really pop in this sculpt.
The articulation isn’t something to complain about either! This guy is loaded, and, unlike his little brother and successor, he can pose like it’s going out of style! Total fun to pose this guy in different positions. I had some tight hip joints,but I solved with a zap of some silicone spray. Here’s the breakdown (if I overcounted or missed any spots, I’ll update the article):
Hinged feet
Ball ankles
Hinged ankles
Double knees
Swivel thigh
Double ball hips
Ball waist
Ball abs
Ball neck 1 x4
Hinged jaw
Double ball shoulders
Swivel bicep
Double hinged elbows
Swivel forearm
Swivel wrist
Ball wrist
Swivel hand
Ball tail x25
I mentioned that I liked the face sculpt, and part of the reason that this sculpt is so great is the paint. It’s skillfully painted. Bandai really captures the colors in the eyes; it’s like the movie coming to life in my hands. The rest of the figure colors are also sharp.
Godzilla comes with a flame base, an articulated stick, and some atomic fire. Atomic fire. Or vomit. My son posed him the other day looking straight down with the fire standing on the table top and coming out of his mouth. I think he was making a statement about my hangover… The fire is a ton of fun to play with and you don’t have to limit that fun to Godzilla! You can use it on your open-mouthed Marvel Legends!
If you have the money and the desire, I’d recommend picking up this figure today. Sadly, AmiAmi and Hobby Search are sold out. But you can preorder/buy the figure today at:
