FULL REVIEW: X-Plus Godzilla 1962 Vinyl Figure

​FIGURE SPECS

東宝30CMシリーズ 「ゴジラ（1962年版）
キングコング対ゴジラ」

---

​JAPAN ORIGINAL RELEASE: DECEMBER 2010

---

​JAPAN RE-ISSUE: OCTOBER 2013

---

​DIAMOND RE-ISSUE: SEPTEMBER 2014

---

​SERIES: TOHO 30CM SERIES

---

​MATERIAL: SOFT VINYL

---

FROM: “KING KONG VS. GODZILLA”, 1962
キングコング対ゴジラ

---

​HEIGHT: 12 INCHES / 30.48 CM

---

​WIDTH: 9.5 INCHES / 24.13 CM

---

​LENGTH: 18.5 INCHES / 46.99 CM

---

​ARTICULATION: NONE

---

​REVIEW AND PHOTOS: JOHN STANOWSKI

---

In 1962’s “King Kong vs. Godzilla”, the big guy breaks free from his iceberg prison with a whole new look. And X-Plus did an amazing job of capturing that look in this vinyl figure released back in 2010. It’s big and wide and long and has a lot of “presence”. But there’s not much here not to like.

​SCULPT

It’s getting really hard for me to review these things. I’ve run out of ways to say they’re “awesome”, “identical”, “dead-ringers” and that they “look like they stepped right out of the movie”. So please choose your own adjective or phrase from this list.

Okay, sorry, I can’t stop myself: this thing looks like it stepped right out the movie! Everything about it, the body, head, fins, eyes, color… they all literally mirror the suit!

X-Plus even got that goofy front head view accurate.

I sat down in front of “King Kong vs. Godzilla” with my X-Plus Godzilla 1962 on my lap to compare details for this review. And I found that these fins are insanely accurate. Not only were the ‘look’ of the fins captured, but most every spike on every fin is very close to how it was on the suit. Now that’s a bit OCD if you ask me but that’s precisely the reason why I love X-Plus.

The tree bark texture on the skin is especially deep on this figure and the light plays off it to interesting effect. This gives the figure even more of a high quality feel.

My only complaint is that most of the fingers are not individually sculpted. Hardly a dealbreaker though for this guy!

JOINTS & SEAMS

This figure comes with the tail as a separate piece which must be inserted as per usual with X-Plus Godzilla vinyls. And the tail joint is a near perfect fit; one of the best I’ve seen so far.

As for glue seals, we have them around each elbow but they are mostly invisible. A bit more noticeable are the seams around the ankles. This area also looks to be a potential weak joint considering how flat his feet are. Don’t go slamming this guy down on the table or anything like that. The only other seam I can find is behind the head where the top of the back piece which holds the fins can be detected. I really like how there are no joints at the knees for a change!

POSE

You can see for yourself from the photo above that the pose is fantastic. Every angle is so dynamic that you almost get the impression that he’s really moving.

Godzilla’s whole body is arching and forms a “c” or “u” with his upper torso twisting toward his left. His tail also curves into the same direction like he’s claiming a plot of land. This is a nice change from the mostly face front poses we’ve been getting with more recent releases. This figure looks great on the shelf facing in either direction.

PAINT JOB

The X-Plus Godzilla 1962 has a base coat of the standard light charcoal black plus a whole lot of highlights. The upper elevations of the deep skin texture is brushed with an ever so slightly lighter black. Brownish highlights can be found on the upper chest, knees, tops of the feet and on the sides of the tail. The bottom of the tail is a subtly lighter black.

The fins are painted very well all the way down to the tip. The teeth are very off white and they did an excellent job of coloring the inside of the mouth around every single tooth. The eyes look just like they did in the movie. The whites seem to have just a tinge of yellow and a clear gloss covers both orbs giving them a wet look. The claws on both the hands and feet look like they’ve hardly been touched by the painter.

SIZE COMPARISONS

The X-Plus Godzilla 1962 vinyl scales perfectly with the majority of the other figures in the 30cm series. Pictured here: Godzilla 1954, 1955, 1962 and 1964.

FOOTPRINT

At about 18.5 inches long, this figure requires some extra space. The good thing is, though, that the arched pose I mentioned earlier makes it easier to fit this guy on a shelf than most other X-Plus Godzillas. When it’s placed facing the left, the tail obediently curves back toward the wall allowing another figure to fit in beside him. If you want him to face right (also a great, great angle to view it) then it will need more room. Because of space restrictions and an overpopulated 30cm shelf, I have mine facing almost forward with his tail hugging the wall. I’m not at all happy with that as I really don’t like his view from the front. This goes for the figure and the suit itself. Hopefully someday I’ll find more room and be able to show him off properly.

EXTRAS

MORE INFORMATION

• Rich Eso’s video review of the 2013 Re-Issue.
• GodzillaFanFreaks Video Review of the X-Plus Godzilla 1962 Diamond Reissue.
• Diego Doom’s Video Review of the Godzilla 1962 Diamond Reissue.
• The Godzilla Files Reviews the 30cm Series Godzilla 1962 vinyl figure by X-Plus.

​By John Stanowski Originally posted September 13th, 2013​ on Kaiju Addicts.