​東宝30CMシリーズ
「ゴジラ（1955版） 」

​JAPAN ORIGINAL RELEASE: 2011

​RE-ISSUED IN COLOR SET WITH ANGUIRUS: 2011

​DIAMOND REISSUE: DECEMBER 2014

BANDAI RE-ISSUE: MAY 2015

SERIES: TOHO 30CM SERIES

MATERIAL: SOFT VINYL

FROM: “GODZILLA RAIDS AGAIN”, 1955
ゴジラの逆襲

​HEIGHT: 12 INCHES / 30.4 CM

​WIDTH: 7.5 INCHES / 19 CM

​LENGTH: 17.5 INCHES / 44.4 CM

​REVIEW AND PHOTOS: JOHN STANOWSKI

The 1955 suit is probably very near the low end of most collectors’ and fans’ favorite design list, including mine. But I don’t regret getting this figure at all. Godzilla Raids Again was the second ever Godzilla film. It was still dark and serious like its predecessor and featured the first ever kaiju battle.

Godzilla 1955 may not be the best-looking Godzilla but I’m glad the X-Plus version is in my collection. It’s a reasonably good likeness (from some angles, at least) and it helps complete my Godzilla lineage on the shelf.

The X-Plus Toho 30cm Series Godzilla 1955, 東宝30cmシリーズ 「ゴジラ（1955版） 」, was originally released in 2011 with a monochome paint job to match the black and white film it’s based on. It was re-issued later that year (in color) in a set along with Anguirus 1955.

This figure was re-issued for the North American market through Diamond Distributors in December 2014.

​The figure comes in a standard X-Plus Toho 30cm Series box: plain, with art on the front. If you are hunting this one down, this is the box you’re looking for. The figure comes in two pieces (main body and tail) twist-tied in a plastic shell.

LIKENESS
If you compare this figure to photos from Godzilla Raids Again you’d probably find quite a few that seem to prove that this figure is off. On the other hand, other photos will reveal freakishly accurate likenesses captured in the sculpt. I might attribute that back-and-forth, yes-and-no to the lanky and loose-fitting suit which could produce many “looks” depending on how the rubber skin fell onto Mr. Nakajima’s frame. So, the accuracy of this sculpt depends on your point of view, or which photos you compare it to.

I’m pleased with it for the most part and attribute any negative feelings toward it to the pose which makes the hips bulge out more. But more on that under the Pose Heading.

HEAD
I want to say that the sculpt of the head looks good, but it’s like I wrote earlier: it depends which photos you look at. I think the front view is especially well done. The 1955 fangs are present and the human-shaped eyes are dead on. The sweeping suit wrinkles that drape from the back of the head and down the neck are captured especially well. My only little complaint is that the ridge on the top of the head is tad larger than it should be.

​The texture all over the body is awesome and un-toylike. It’s tree bark grooves are deep and comes with suit wrinkles on the neck, arms and chest. Just awesome. The 1955 dorsal fins had more texture than most other suits and the X-Plus follows… suit. A potential letdown might be the webbed fingers. Many X-Plus Godzilla figures have individually sculpted fingers, but not, alas, this guy. They clump together after the first knuckle. The good news for accuracy freaks is that it appears the suit was the same way. So, stop complaining! 😛

The bulges and dips of the original suit are faithfully reproduced in the figure. A really nice touch in the sculpt of the legs is the zig-zag fold around both knees. This features looks like sloppy work, but it’s totally accurate and can be easily seen in the movie.

Note: the toes on the right foot of my figure are curled up. While making this review I realized that this is wrong. Both feet should lie flat on the ground. After asking around I realized that this is a one off problem with just my figure and can be easily fixed.

​The only joint is the tail which matches up very well. As for seams, both arms have visible lines below the elbow. The only other lines you’ll find are below the jaw and around the ankles, but you have to look for them to see them. For a vinyl figure, this is great work!

​The pose. Okay. Well. It sort of reminds me of an uninspired, old fashioned boxing pose. I’m sure they must have grabbed this stance from the movie since many other figures of the ’55 have the same look, but I can’t recall which scene it may have come from. Other than the arms, though, it seems pretty standard and is great for the shelf. Plus, it looks like he’s ready to grapple with Anguirus.

The paint job on the X-Plus Toho 30cm Series Godzilla 1955, though monochrome, is one of my favorites. There is a TON of frosty highlights all over the figure which fits in well with his icy appearance in the movie and makes this figure pop! I wish more X-Plus figures had highlights like this one does.

The eyes, fins, teeth and claws are a stark, off white which stands out more than on other figures, perhaps to mimic the high contrast of the black and white movie.

The X-Plus Godzilla 1955 vinyl sizes up well with most of the Toho 30cm Series buddies, especially his early-Showa pals: Godzilla 1954, 1962 and 1964.

It’s also a perfect size match with Godzilla Raids Again co-star, Anguirus 1955.

The X-Plus Godzilla 1955 has a tail reaching almost straight back. The figure is, overall, 17.5 inches from nose to tail, but only 15.5 inches from toes to tail. Godzilla’s body is curved slightly to his left so you’ll probably want to place him on the shelf facing your left.

If you also have the X-Plus Toho 30cm Series Anguirus 1955 you’ll be pleased to know that you have the option of interlocking it with the Godzilla ’55. I don’t know if it was planned this way or not, but these two figures actually fit pretty damn closely together. Anguirus’ head fits in between Godzilla’s outstretched arms like he’s going for the throat! And Godzilla’s and Anguirus’ arms are all at different heights so they allow for a really close fight!

This kind of set-up is probably only for diehard Godzilla Raids Again fans since it takes up three feet of shelf space.

​By John Stanowski Originally posted February 6th, 2014 on Kaiju Addicts.

​エクスプラス ギガンティックシリーズ 「ゴジラ（2001年版）」

​JAPAN RELEASE: DECEMBER 2013

​JAPAN BLUE FINS RE-ISSUE: LATE 2016

​NORTH AMERICAN (DIAMOND) RE-ISSUE: JANUARY 2018

​SERIES: GIGANTIC SERIES

​MATERIAL: SOFT VINYL (TONGUE: PUR)

FROM: “GODZILLA, MOTHRA AND KING GHIDORAH: GIANT MONSTERS ALL-OUT ATTACK”, 2001
ゴジラ・モスラ・キングギドラ 大怪獣総攻撃

​HEIGHT: 15.5 INCHES / 39 CM

​WIDTH: 16 INCHES (TOE TO TOE) / 40.6 CM

​LENGTH: ABOUT 31 INCHES / 78.7 CM

​ARTICULATION: NONE

​REVIEW AND PHOTOS: JOHN STANOWSKI

​In October 2013, X-Plus caught collectors off guard and announced the Gigantic Series: a new line of ‘gigantic’ vinyl figures. First up was Godzilla 2001 (GMK). X-Plus had previously released a Large Monster Series GMK as well as a Toho 30cm Series GMK, but this new figure would tower over both.

​The box is so large that they only come one to a case. The case is something you don’t usually see. And in this case, your seller will likely just slap the shipping label directly onto it and ship it to you just like that. It’s 25 inches tall (63.5 cm) and will cost you extra to have it shipped to you. EMS was charging something like $105 to ship from Japan to the U.S. FedEx is even more expensive.

Inside the case is a simple brown box with simple Ric Boy-style black art on the front. Since the figure is so heavy, it’s packaged into two pieces of thick styrofoam to make sure it reaches you safe and sound.

The X-Plus Gigantic Series Godzilla 2001 comes in two pieces: the main body and the tail. The hefty 20-inch tail is so big that it does not have the usual flanged (suction cup-looking) opening but instead has a thick rim to better support its weight. To attach it you need to soften the vinyl around Godzilla’s butt with a hair dryer so that it’s flexible enough to accept the tail. The vinyl on this guy is thicker than other X-Plus figures and so will take more time to get it to become soft. Don’t heat up the tail; leave it firm. If you are putting this together in the summer you may need to pop the tail into the refrigerator to firm it up. When the body is soft enough, just shove it in. Mine went in surprisingly easily.

THE BASE
Included with this figure is a “base” sculpted to look like a chunk of battle damaged concrete. It’s meant to go under the tail to help support its weight.

It’s hard to tell from the photo above, but there’s a slight depression across the top of the base that’s as wide as the tail. When I first saw it, I had the impression that the tail should fit into this depression completely from one end to the other. But the tail actually only needs to rest on about half of it. If you push the base too far under the tail’s lower curve, it will be pushing the figure up off its heels.

The figure stands fine without the base since it’s lower legs are filled with solid resin to help him keep balanced. But I would suggest using the base anyway to prevent gravity from pulling the tail down and possibly opening a crack in the top of the seam.

Okay, let’s get a couple of things out of the way first:

ARTISTIC LICENSE
The new X-Plus Gigantic Series Godzilla 2001 strays from the norm of uber realistic sculpts and offers a powerful, dynamic, stylized interpretation instead. If you’re looking for movie-suit-accuracy, save your money for the March figures. On the other hand, if you’d like a powerful, dynamic, stylized behemoth of a Godzilla figure, this one’s for you.

IT’S BIG
This figure is the first in the aptly named “Gigantic Series” and it’s not just big… it’s literally gigantic. It’s head really is in the sky. It’s 30 inches of awesome. It’s so humonganoid that you’re going to find yourself wondering where the hell you can put it. Only the bravest, widest and sturdiest of shelves can hold him. Better idea: get him his own table.

LIKENESS
I’ve seen stylized sculpts that were waaaay out there, but this one isn’t so bad. It obviously looks like GMK. His characteristic fat, feline head, unique dorsal plates and white eyes are all present, just with more flair.

GAIT
This figure has larger legs, clearly more muscular and spread wider than the suit could ever manage. The upper torso is far too thin for GMK, but this can only be seen directly from the front, and looking up from a low angle.

FINS
Gigantic GMK’s dorsal plates are much larger. All three rows of fins also fan outward at a more extreme angle. This is mostly visible only from a rear or overhead view of the figure. Their stylized characterics are visible from most angles yet at others the fins can look better and more suit-accurate than those on the X-Plus 30cm Series Godzilla 2001.

TEXTURE
The X-Plus Gigantic Series Godzilla 2001 has awesome texture. While all the skin patterns mimic the suit in all the right places, they are stylized in that their texture is so exaggerated and deep. Be prepared for your tactile sensors to go on overload while handling this thing.

The claws on the hands and, especially, the feet are also super detailed with deep ridges.

TONGUE
A really small detail worth mentioning is the tongue. The only polyurethane part on the figure, it’s covered in a super-fine, bumpy texture that really sticks out. (Oh, what the hell. Pun intended.)

Collector Rich Eso brought to my attention the detail on the roof of the mouth. I didn’t even notice it at first. Its gooey, red ridges are second only to the 30cm Gameras. It’s nice to know that should you choose to explore this figure closely that there’s plenty to discover.

There are no non-glued joints except for the tail which butts up against the butt pretty well.

The only obvious glue-seams are below both knees. They’re filled in well, but the deep, bumpy texture on the leg does not traverse it, thus making them noticeable.

There are glue-seams at the top of both legs. The seam above the figure’s right leg is filled in very well, but not as much care was taken with the left leg, no doubt because it will be facing the wall. If you want to find a line where the lower jaw meets the body, you can, but it’s really not obvious. All of the individual dorsal fins have visible lines where they meet the back but they are very well obscured by other fins and ridges. Overall, there aren’t very many panty lines on this figure which is a huge plus for me.

​The X-Plus Gigantic Series GMK is posed hunched over in mid-roar, his body arced in a turning pose. And it looks awesome from almost every angle.

Click on the photos below for gigantic, hi-res versions!

The X-Plus Gigantic Series Godzilla 2001 is covered is standard, asphalt black which seems even darker with the addition of tiny shadows from its deep texture. The skin’s higher elevations are gently highlighted with a subtle, lighter shade. (I wish they painted the 30cm Series version this color!). The light in the room plays on the figure’s coarse skin for even more visual variation.

BONE WHITE
The boney protrusions of the claws and dorsal fins are painting in a wildly, stark white. If this figure didn’t have as much detail as it does, I’d say it was toyishly white. But as it is, it seems just another embellishment in this figures stylized design. I have to say, though, it’s mighty bold and seems to demand your attention.

DEMONIC EYES
Godzilla’s possessed eyes of white aren’t fully painted, but instead are airbrushed near the front which gradiates to black in the rear. Another paint stylization which tries to keep the look of the suit while making these souless eyes look like they’re aimed forward. Nice touch.

KAIJU BREATH
The teeth start out white but feather into a saturated yellowy-orange which, to me, seems to be calling for attention much the same way a bright stripe on a racing car does. I think this could have been toned down to more of a tan or brown. But it is nice to know the teeth are so big that there’s room for paint detail.

NOTHING COMPARES
Not many other X-Plus figures can compare to this. The Large Monster Series Viras beats it in height by half an inch, but keep in mind that Godzilla is slouching. The only figure that even comes close to the Gigantic GMK as far as overall size and mass is the Large Monster Series Biollante, but even that giant of a figure gets dwarfed. (I have her boxed up right now else I’d pair them up for you.)

(Pictured above: 30cm Series GMK on the left, Large Monster Series on the right. I believe you know the one in the middle.)

​It’s almost 16 inches tall, 16 inches wide and a whopping 31 inches long. Many of you, myself included, won’t even have a shelf capable of supporting this beast. But if you do, its curved pose makes it easy to display on the right end and leaves plenty of room on the left for other figures to creep in beside it if you don’t mind them getting hugged by GMK’s huge tail.

Like I said earlier: you might consider just getting it its own table. Or if you really, really love it… a pedestal.

STILL BEATING HEART
Well, isn’t this lovely? The Ric Boy version of this figure comes with a reproduction of GMK’s ejected heart as it was seen at the end of the movie, still beating at the bottom of the bay. I don’t have the Ric Boy version so please enjoy this slimey production photo from X-Plus.

Kyle Yount (KaijuCast) was at X-Plus headquarters in Osaka, Japan Friday (in 2013) where he got to hold the new Gigantic Series Godzilla 2001. Who knows what other wonders he got to lay his eyes on while there? To find out click on the video link above from the Kaijucast Youtube Channel.

​By John Stanowski Originally posted January 18th, 2014​ on Kaiju Addicts.

​夏 東宝30CMシリーズ 「サンダ＆ガイラ」

​JAPAN KIT RELEASE: 2007

​JAPAN FIGURE RELEASE: 2008

​JAPAN WONDER FEST RE-ISSUE: 2011

​DIAMOND REISSUE: 2014

​SERIES: TOHO 30CM SERIES

​MATERIAL: SOFT VINYL

FROM: “THE WAR OF THE GARGANTUAS”, 1966
フランケンシュタインの怪獣 サンダ対ガイラ

​HEIGHT: (SANDA) 12 INCHES / 30.4 CM, (GAIRA) 10.5 INCHES / 26.6 CM

​ARTICULATION: SHOULDERS, WRISTS, KNEES, ANKLES

​REVIEW AND PHOTOS: JOHN STANOWSKI

DISCLAIMER: When I was five years old I got angry every time these guys came on TV. One reason was that they weren’t Godzilla and they were taking up Godzilla’s slot on Creature Double Feature. Another reason was they weren’t even proper monsters; just “regular guys in leaf suits” as my five-year-old self called them. Because of this, I’m no Gargantua expert. I only recently started appreciating the movie and now think that it is one of the best―even though it still doesn’t have Godzilla in it. I’m not sure how qualified I am to do a review on these figures. I may not have the same sensibilities you longtime Gargantua lovers do, but I’ll do my best.

A sequel to “Frankenstein Conquers The World” (1965), “War of the Gargantuas” (1966) features a double dose of mayhem. Apparently, Frankenstein had survived his fall into the fiery earth and continued to grow in size while hiding in the mountains. At some point some of his live cells broke away and traveled down the river to the sea where they, naturally, grew into a watery clone in the completely and utterly plausible way in which anyone would expect.

After growing nearly as tall as his brother, Gaira discovers a taste for humans and ventures out of the sea in search of more. This leads him, of course, back to the mountains where the Japanese Defense Force nearly kill him with masers and an electrified lake. (Take a good look. This is probably the only time you’ll see the army so effective against a kaiju!) The army’s deathblow was interrupted by the surprise arrival of Sanda, the original Frankenstein. He saves the life of his younger “brother” and nurses him back to health, only to discover that being an older brother isn’t so easy.

Sanda and Gaira were first put out by X-Plus as vinyl kits back in 2007 and have since enjoyed three more incarnations. The latest is a two-figure set licenced for North America and circulated by Diamond Comic Distributors. This set was released early in January of 2014. The original Japanese releases are very hard to come by and have the appropriate higher price tags. If you ever wanted the X-Plus Gargantuas, the time to get them is right now.

​Both figures come bundled in a standard X-Plus 30cm Series Box: plain cardboard with art on the front. This set is the Diamond re-issue. You can identify it by the “PX Previews Exclusive” logo on the front.

Both figures are wrapped loosely in plastic and kept in place by a single wire twist tie each.

THEY STAND FINE
Once you free your Gargantuas from the box, you should adjust some limbs. Knees and ankles were twisted out of position so that they would fit into the package better. Also, Gaira’s arms were pushed down to his belly. Be sure to raise them up as they’re an important part of his balance. Consult the photos here in this review and tweak the joints until both figures are able to stand on their own. If you lightly poke a figure and it wobbles too much, you have more tweaking to do. It’s completely possible to get both of them into a fairly balanced and sturdy stance.

LIKENESS
To my untrained Gargantua eye, these figures are awesome representations of the suits. To doublecheck, I revisited the movie last night with both of these guys on my lap. I must have hit the pause button 50 times to compare the figures to what was on the screen. I really couldn’t find anything wrong with the sculpts except for one thing: both of their torsos seem really wide when viewed from the front or back. Sorry if I got that wrong, but it bugged me enough to want to mention it.

FACES: I’m really impressed with both faces. To me, not only did they get all of the features down, they also seem to capture each creature’s personality. I may just be imagining it, but Sanda seems wiser while Gaira looks a touch childlike and primitive.

TEXTURE: I realize how difficult it must be to represent hair, fur or leafy bodysuits in a sculpt but I think the sculptor did a great job on these figures. Gaira is particularly impressive.

​Both figures have moveable joints at the shoulders, wrists, below the knees and the ankles. Gaira has an extra joint on the left elbow. Every one of these joints has a special place they want or need to be. Correctly positioning the joints in the legs will ensure that your figures stand well on their own and don’t topple over. The hands are the only joints where you have a little freedom to tweak.

These joints are somewhat well hidden on the Sanda figure which was sculpted to have material drape over and hide them. Gaira isn’t as lucky and these joints are a bit more visible.

On both figures, the head and shoulders are molded onto one piece, the bottom of which is a jagged line which zig-zags up and down over the top of the body. Also on both, these glued seams are not an overly perfect match. If you’re picky like I am and want to find something to complain about, look here closely. Thankfully this mismatch isn’t nearly as obvious from the front as it is the back.

Also on both figures, the lower teeth, lip and chin are a separate glued piece. On Gaira, this is well hidden, but not so much on Sanda.

​Both figures have a pose which faithfully captures the personality of each Gargantua.

​Sanda’s pose shows he’s ready to rumble, yet knows restraint thus proving the older brother is wiser.

​Gaira’s pose shows his immaturity; that or his acceptance that he’s the smaller guy. His arms are raised to protect himself from his non-people eating bully of a brother, yet he seems ready to kick some ass if pushed too far.

Sanda’s body has a base coat of a medium brown with a myriad of tan highlights and darker brown shadows. All of these colors are much more visible in person and I’m afraid my photos don’t do them justice. The finger nails are a glossy brown which is a nice touch for a toy, but they’re a bit too glossy to be realistic.

The much less impressive Gaira is covered in mostly one shade of green with sparse darker green shadows and just a scant touch of light brown here and there.

The brightest color on Sanda is on his hair and parts of his shoulders. His face is a dull, unsaturated brown which looks pretty good to me. The transition in the paint from hair to face is done well. But for some crazy reason, the ears share color with the hair, not the face… lazy and disappointing. The teeth are very well done. And, the eyes are very impressive in that they’re so small yet somehow they managed to add whites and pupils.

Gaira disappoints again with a face that is far too dark. It looks like this time they tried to make the ears closer in hue to the face rather than the hair, but the attempt is barely noticeable. Teeth here are also well done and the reddish inner lip feathers nicely into the green of the face. Again, the eyes are really good seeing as how they’re so tiny. Even more impressive is that they managed to fit in some color around the pupils unlike Sanda.

In movie reality, the Gargantuas aren’t nearly as tall as Godzilla. Yet, these figures look perfect beside other figures in the Toho 30cm Series like the X-Plus Godzilla 1964 seen above. If anything, they’re actually a little larger than the others. And, of course, they’re absolutely taller than the X-Plus Baragon 1965 (right) and other figures in the Large Monster Series.

MASER, HASHA!
Finally, an X-Plus figure damn near in scale with the Revoltech Type 66 Maser Cannon! If I remember correctly, Gaira’s foot was just larger than a car. The tank pulling the 66 is much larger than a car so this looks like a perfect match!

Usually, discussion of a figure’s footprint, or the shelf space it takes up, isn’t warranted when it comes to biped figures, especially those without tails. They just don’t take up a lot of space. But Sanda and Gaia are a two-figure set and many, if not most, collectors will want to display them together. As a unit, including the space inbetween them, they could take up the same amount of space as two 30cm Series Godzillas. Here are four ideas on Gargantua arrangements which take up slightly different spaces.

​FINDING MORE BALANCE
It’s usually a precarious arrangement when you let biped figures stand on their own two feet without support. Though, I have to say I am amazed at how well both Gargantuas stand without any aid. They look as if they are top heavy, yet they just laugh at my little test pokes.

However, There’s no reason why you shouldn’t invest in a little insurance for the long-term shelf arrangement. You may not have noticed but the figures in all four of the photos above are touching each other. This is further enhancing their already pretty solid balance so accidental bumps into the shelf should be of less concern. Just get them both arranged around about how you’d like and then, while making sure both feet are flat on the shelf, slowly push one figure toward the other until they touch. Take care not to have one slightly pushing the other. The rough texture on both make it easier for them to “lock” together. Now they’re working as a team!

​By John Stanowski Originally posted January 12th, 2014​ on Kaiju Addicts.

大怪獣シリーズ ウルトラマン編 「宇宙忍者 バルタン星人（REBORN）」

​JAPAN RELEASE: AUGUST 2010

​JAPAN REISSUE: 2012

​SERIES: LARGE MONSTER SERIES

MATERIAL: SOFT VINYL

FROM: “ULTRAMAN” EPISODE 2, “SHOOT THE INVADER”, 1966
ウルトラマン

​HEIGHT: 9 INCHES / 22.8 CM

​WIDTH: 5 INCHES / 12.7 CM

​ARTICULATION: ARM, WRISTS, ANKLES

​REVIEW AND PHOTOS: JOHN STANOWSKI

Alien Baltan (or Baltan Seijin, also sometimes referred to as ‘Baltan 1’ in toy circles) is one of the most popular and beloved of Ultraman‘s foes. He’s shown up numerous times with many suit upgrades in multiple Ultraman series. He’s even shown up in the original “Ultraman” twice, the second time with one such suit change. But our guy here is the original, as seen in the very second episode of “Ultraman” titled “Shoot The Invader!”

Baltan, and 2.3 billion of his arthropod buddies, escaped from their dead world by miniaturizing themselves and fitting into one spaceship to find a new home. After scoping out Mars and realizing it was loaded with Spacium (their own version of Kryptonite), they came to Earth. Originally, they only wanted to swipe some scientific equipment from 1960s Japan which somehow was a perfect match for their super-advanced interstellar craft. But they soon realized that Earth wasn’t just a nice place to visit and that they would like to live there. Unfortunately for them, Earth had Ultraman and the Science Patrol to greet them.

This character is the very first alien to battle Ultraman here on Earth. Yes, Ultraman’s first foe, Bemular, was from another planet, but he was a kaiju. Baltan is a seijin, or alien. Baltan is also known for his ability to change his size, create multiple copies of himself to confuse enemies and also for his famous laugh which was borrowed from the 1963 film “Matango” (マタンゴ), or as we know it better in the West: “Attack Of The Mushroom People“.

X-Plus has made numerous Baltan figures (some of which you can see here). This review features the 2012 re-issue of the original 2010 Large Monster Series Space Ninja Alien Baltan (Reborn).

LIKENESS
Sculpt-wise, this figure is an insanely accurate representation of the suit used in the 1966 episode. Not only is it a deadringer for the “real” thing as a whole, it’s finer details, up close, are remarkably authentic.

​Every single detail on Baltan’s lobstery, insectoid face has made it onto the figure. I’m talking about tiny details you never even even got a good look at when watching the show. See those grooves on the forehead? There’s 10 of them on either side. This is precisely how many there are on the suit! Crazy! X-Plus does not disappoint!

EYES
Baltan’s buggy eyes are made of clear plastic molded in orange. While smooth on the outside, they have a bumpy, insectoid texture on the inside. I think this is just incredible attention to detail.

The sculpt of Baltan’s claws are freakishly accurate, even down to the subtle bumpy texture. While reviewing the episode, I paused the DVD on a close-up of the claw and compared it to the X-Plus figure and I was pleasantly surprised at the level the sculptor went to reproduce it. On the TV I saw that the inside edge of the top pincer was fairly straight, while the lower pincer had more of a curve on the front half. The X-Plus sculpt mimicks that precisely!

As for that row of rectangular indents: there are nine… exactly how many there were on the suit.

INNIE OR OUTIE?
This row of indents occurs only on one side of each claw; the other side being simply smooth. These claws are removeable and both fit on either arm. I shot all of the photos for this review with the indents on the inside, but it would be just as accurate to switch them and have the indents face outward.

All of the scenes featuring Baltan at human-size had the indents on the outside. However, when they shot the scenes of Baltan on the miniature set to battle Ultraman, the indents were on the inside. Perhaps the indents were meant to switch sides when Baltan increases his size, but I’m thinking that someone on set simply wasn’t paying attention and let suit actor put the claws on the wrong hands.

On the shelf, I’m keeping the indents on the outside of the claws, and have them rotated slightly inward to more mimic the posture of the suit as it was seen inside the science building in the episode.

There are joints above the biceps which are worked into the sculpt very well. My figure will allow me to rotate the left arm at this point. The right doesn’t want to budge and I don’t plan to force it to find out if it does the same. The ankles rotate but the seams are well hidden because they occur at the top of Baltan’s “boots”. The right foot is a bit loose possibly because of the wiring installed for this 2012 Ric Boy light gimmick release. The giant claws can rotate easily at the wrist and can also be removed. This joint is a curious design with the wrist being just a simple cylinder that slides into the claws with no “suction cup” flange to hold them in place. They’re long enough, though, that I wouldn’t worry about the claws falling off. The only joint that does bother me the waist. Though it could be said that this joint is worked into the sculpt, it still ‘sticks out’ to me but is nowhere near a deal breaker.

Baltan stands in an uneventful pose showing neither action nor personality. He may not look like he’s about to do battle with Ultraman, but it’s just fine for display. It could be said that Baltan was often in this pose while stalking the Science Patrol as they investigated in the science building .

Baltan has a dark blue base color with light blue highlights and markings. They did an especially good job on these triangular patterns as they were applied on totally smooth surfaces with no “lines” in the sculpt to stay inside of. No doubt, stencils were used. The colors here look great!

The claws are a semi glossy silver which have dark brown “drips” falling from the wrists. These brown lines are the least impressive aspect of the paint job since they are crude representations of what was seen on the suit. They also exude a “by hand” quality. Bright tan areas and hard plastic eyes molded in orange steal some of the attention away from the bright claws. Overall, if it weren’t for the sloppy brown lines on the claws, I’d give this paint job and A+.

At first glance the X-Plus Baltan looks to be a good match for the Ultraman figures… that is, if they’re crouching. (Above: X-Plus Ultraman C-Type Specium Pose).

Size comparisons with standing Ultraman figures is another story. As usual, the Large Monster Series kaiju don’t have the same reach as the Ultramen do. At first, Baltan seems to be just a little shorter than the X-Plus Ultraman A-Type Standing Pose (above), but if you attempt to line them up at the shoulders, you can see these guys just aren’t in scale with each other.

​However, Baltan is a great match with other Large Monster Series Ultra kaiju. It lines up perfectly with other X-Plus Reborn figures: Gomora, Bemular and Red King.

It’s obvious the X-Plus Baltan does not take up a lot of space on the shelf, especially if you don’t use the included clear stand and base (seen below). If you don’t, you may need to apply some putty under the front of his feet. This figure has weak ankle joints and leans slightly forward. Even if you’re able to balance him on his own, it would be a precarious thing to do without some extra support.

The original 2010 Ric Boy release came with an extra set of arms which were bent at the elbows for an alternative look. (See photos below close up photo.). The 2012 Re-issue Ric Boy (seen above and below) did not come with the extra arms but instead offered a light gimmick.

LEDs behind the buggy eyes run down through the body and accept power from the batteries in the base via a port under the right foot. The included base holds two LR 44 batteries and a plug rising out of the top. A switch on the side of the base controls the power. I need to mention that the base is made of thin plastic and not very sturdy. And, as often happens, the figure doesn’t stand completely straight while the heel is impaled with this plug. You might want to consider using the clear plastic arm, which also attaches to the base, to keep your figure from leaning.

By John Stanowski Originally posted January 12th, 2014​ on Kaiju Addicts.

東宝大怪獣リーズ 「ガイガン」

​JAPAN RELEASE: MARCH 2012

​SERIES: LARGE MONSTERS SERIES

​MATERIAL: SOFT VINYL

FROM: “GODZILLA VS. GIGAN”, 1972
ゴジラ対ガイガン

​HEIGHT: 10 INCHES / 25.4 CM

​WIDTH: 5.75 INCHES / 14.6 CM

​LENGTH: ABOUT 11 INCHES / 27.9 CM

​ARTICULATION: SHOULDERS, HIPS

​REVIEW AND PHOTOS: JOHN STANOWSKI

X-Plus made a few Gigans. There is a 30cm Series Gigan in vinyl, a variant with “nighttime” paint scheme, a polystone version and, in 2012, a Large Monster Series (25cm) version. This review is for the latter.

LIKENESS
Green, rubbery skin, gold scales, winged fins, hooks and pincers! There’s so much to see on this kaiju and I think this figure got pretty much every detail spot on. It’s a winner!

​THE VISOR
Gigan’s cyclops visor, as well as the bead above it, is molded in clear, red-tinted plastic. It’s smooth on the outside and has a bubble pattern texture on the inside which shows through to the front. This is a technique X-Plus was to use again on Kumonga. It’s a great effect and it looks awesome.

TEETH
Gigan has a short row of individually sculpted teeth on either side of his beak which aren’t visible at many angles, further obscured by the side “pincers”. But they’re a nice touch to discover while handing the figure.

SCALES
The golden scales that run across Gigan’s belly, back and tail are rendered impressively on this figure. It must have been a monotonous task for the sculptor to make every single scale and to take so much care as to give each and every one of them depth. Now THAT’S X-Plus for ya!

SAW
The “chest saw”, one of Gigan’s key weapons and distinguishing characteristics looks great on this figure. The spikes look particularly impressive from the side as they recede behind the previously mentioned scales.

FINS
The back fins look amazing and true to the suit. I have to say, though, that the “ribs” seem a tad thicker than they should be, and the foldy, wrinkly texture between them seem a bit overdone. The suit did have these wrinkles… just not so many of them. But without nitpicking, the back fins look remarkably like the “real thing”, especially with the crazy-accurate paint job they have.

There are highly visible, doll-like seams at the shoulders and hips, but just like on robotic figures, these make sense. The actual Gigan suit did have “seams” of it’s own in these areas and was part of the design. So no complains there. But there are a couple of real nasty lines which are not inspired by the suit. The neck is a separate piece and a seam can be seen running along the base of it. Because of the gold scale texture in this area, this line is deep and dark. A similar crack can be see where the tail meets the body, also visible because of the scales. Though not glaring, they are still visible enough to make me notice and wish they weren’t there. The only other seam worth mentioned is one between the head and the neck. It’s worked into the sculpt really well and visible only from above. Overall, this figure doesn’t do a very good job of hiding some of its lines. It’s not too good, yet not too bad. And considering how great this figure looks (I like it better than the 30cm sculpt), I wouldn’t let them dissuade you from hunting this one down and adding it to your collection.

Gigan sways his stance ever so slightly to his right. I noticed this for the first time in almost a year while taking this photo. So, the pose is mostly standard yet with a touch of character. And, since the arms are moveable at the shoulders, you’re able to tweak the pose significantly.

THE GREEN & THE GOLD
Gigan’s green is flat and subdued. Again, just the way I like it. It’s looks like a good match to the suit and make the figure more realistic and less toy-like. The scales are gold and only slightly glossy. And because the texture is so deep at the underside of each scale, shadows abound making the whole area come to life with realism.

THE FINS
The rear fins have a ton of paint detail over the “over-sculpted” surface. They are an off, dark yellow with browns radiating out from the back. I’m pleased to report that it is almost scary how well X-Plus completely and accurately reproduced the colors here. A+.

THE SILVER
Finally, the silver bits: beak, claws and chest “blades” are a clean, bright silver. I was originally going to write that these areas were too bright and because of that, seemed a bit toy-like. But every Gigan photo I look to for reference just proves that X-Plus did a great job a matching this color. They may still seem to be too bright under the lights of a photography set-up, but on the shelf I think the color is spot on. I just wish they took the time to add some grunge and grit as they seem overly “clean”.

THE VISOR
Okay, so the visor is a plastic piece and not painted. But it is a part of the color scheme. It’s molded in a sort of watermelon red which seems to get deeper on both sides, in the “corners”. Lots of reflection and refraction add lots of visual interest here.

SIZEWISE, IT FITS RIGHT IN
At ten inches, the X-Plus Gigan fits right in with other figures from the Large Monster Series. (Pictured left to right: King Caesar, Godzilla 1968, Gigan, Mechagodzilla 1975 and landing stage Hedorah.)

Gigan’s tail is shorter than a 25cm Godzilla’s tail and this immediately makes it easier to fit this guy on the shelf. Because the tail slightly curves to the figure’s right, I display mine on an angle facing the left. This leaves room on the left (from your view) to have another figure fit in beside him. I like to keep the arm closer to the edge of the shelf down low, and the arm further away raised up. This way you see everything and obscure nothing.

​The Ric Boy Exclusive version of this figure came with a light-up eye gimmick. I don’t have it, so I can’t show you. But I can tell you that it pre-dates the current light gimmick arrangement which includes a battery pack “dongle” which plugs into the figure. The Ric Boy Gigan requires you to pop the head off in order to flick a switch to activate the visor light.

I’m not a big fan of having a black box stuck in a figure’s leg, but having to pop the head off is far worse. I have the 25cm Ric Boy crawling Baragon and Giant Series Skydon which both require popping off the head. Needless to say I pretty much never play with the light feature on these.

I postioned these in a way reminiscent of the scene in Godzilla vs. Gigan where Gigan stands watching Godzilla get laserbeamed by the tower, unaware that Anguirus is sneaking up from the side.

​By John Stanowski Originally posted January 1st, 2014​ on Kaiju Addicts. 

​大映30CMシリーズ 「ガメラ（1999年版）」

​JAPAN RELEASE: DECEMBER 2013

​SERIES: 30CM SERIES

​MATERIAL: SOFT VINYL

FROM: “GAMERA 3: THE REVENGE OF IRIS”, 1999
ガメラ3 邪神〈イリス〉覚醒

​HEIGHT: 12.25 INCHES / 31.11 CM

​WIDTH: 10 INCHES / 25.4 CM

​LENGTH (NOSE TO TAIL): 14 INCHES / 35.5 CM

​ARTICULATION: NONE

​REVIEW AND PHOTOS: JOHN STANOWSKI

​With the recent release of X-Plus’ 30cm Series Gamera 1999 we now have all three Heisei turtles represented. And I think it’s safe to say that this is easily the most impressive of the bunch.

​I have to admit I was surprised to see Gamera 1999 with such a small head. It didn’t look that way in the movie, did it? Yeah, it did. It’s just a lot more obvious on the figure with no fire and smoke and shadows from the film getting in the way. (This is why I’m worried about upcoming Godzilla 2014 figures with super obvious elephant feet.) Well, small head aside, this is one amazing vinyl!

Not only is this figure a good likeness, it’s pretty big! It stands significantly taller than the Gamera 1995 and especially the Gamera 1996. And without a crouched pose like the other two have to varying degrees, the 1999 figure looks… grand.

One thing I really love about the Gamera figures are the shells. They’re so un-Godzilla-like and shake up the status quo on the X-Plus shelves. The shell on the Gamera 1999 figure is especially impressive. I’m not talking about the sculpt but the suit itself. This time around those armor plates get more jaggy and radiate outward making for a more menacing appearance. And, yes, the sculpt captures that. It’s a shame the wall gets to see it more than I do.

As for non-glued joints, there’s quite a few. There’s one above both knees. (They can rotate, but really shouldn’t.) And, curiously, there are two, TWO, on each arm. One above the elbow and one above the bicep. These seams are worked into the texture of the skin, but I tend to still notice the lines above the biceps. (Grrr).

The head pops off easily at the base of the neck, though I’m not quite sure why you would want to do that.

As for glued pieces, the top half of the body which includes the front, shoulders and top half of the shell are a separate piece. The center plate on the chest is also a separate piece. On the Ric Boy exclusive version of this, this area is battle damaged so the factory probably had used the same body for both and just added on the appropriate center piece. The front half of each foot is also a separate piece; be careful when plopping him down on the table.

​Once again, the pose is pretty standard and I like it that way. Thankfully, this Gamera figure isn’t hunched over like the 1996 version and stands even taller than the 1995 version.

Like the other two Heisei Gameras in the X-Plus catalog, Gamera 1999 is covered in a base coat of black, a dull greenish brown on the chest and dark green on the shell. There are no highlights brushed on the main body (sniff), but the shell is a mix of dark and even darker greens and looks great.

The mouth is a glossy off red, maybe a touch too glossy and the eyes are a sort of light, lime green with black pupils. These eyes are piercing and really stand out!

And a really nice touch is that every claw on both the hands and feet, as well as the spikes protruding from the forearms and shins are made of translucent material that have been touched up with graduated shades of black, brownish tan and finally almost clear at the tips.

​Left to right: X-Plus Gamera 1995, 1999 and 1996. Funny how the bodies kept getting bigger while the heads got smaller. The 1999 vinyl is noticeably taller than its two predecessors. I don’t know if that’s accurate or not but they look good enough together. If you have all three and you’re not anal about displaying them “in order” the photo above might be a nice set-up for your shelf.

The 1999ers! Gamera 1999 and Godzilla 1999 were released in the same month, line up in height, and make quite a pair!

Gamera 1999 is 14 inches long from nose to tail, but only 12 inches from toes to tail. It’s easier to fit on the shelf than a Godzilla, but you’ll still have to place him at an angle unless you’ve got the room. Make sure you have the headroom for this guy, too. He’s over 12 inches tall.

The Ric Boy Exclusive version of this figure comes with battle damage. It has a small hole in the center of his chest and another in center of his shell from where Iris impaled him in the movie. (Though in the movie, this hole was much bigger.) The figure’s right hand… isn’t there. Instead there is a bloody stump from where Gamera burned it off in order to free himself from Iris. Brave turtle! This version is further detailed with green Gamera blood at the site of all injuries.

And as a bonus, this figure comes with an extra piece. An attachable “Plasma Fist” (the thing that what finally done in ol’ Iris) is made of translucent material and highlighted with firey yellows and reds.

I did not get the Ric Boy version so I don’t have any photos of it to share with you. 

The X-Plus Gamera 1999 vinyl comes in the standard 30cm series blind box with art on the front. Inside the main body and a tail piece are wired in to a plastic shell.

ASSEMBLY
The tail connection on Gamera is triangular and this usually requires a little more effort to attach than with round tails since twisting is required to make sure the tail end flange doesn’t buckle. But, I had no trouble attaching it because, again, I used Rich Eso’s “Squishy Soft” method of not just softening the “butt”, but REALLY softening it up (while keeping the tail cool). It popped right in.

I already said it: the X-Plus Gamera 1999 vinyl figure is easily the most grand of the Heisei figures. The detail, height, pose are all fantastic. If you don’t have a favorite, I suggest hunting this one down!

I’m a tad disappointed, though, that there will always be another version of this guy out there that I don’t have. Unlike other Ric Boy exclusive versions, this one doesn’t come with something extra to add to it. The entire Ric Boy is basically a variant. So choose wisely!

​By John Stanowski Originally posted December 18th, 2013​ on Kaiju Addicts. 

​東宝30CMシリーズ 「ゴジラ（1999版）」

​JAPAN RELEASE: DECEMBER 2013

​NORTH AMERICAN REISSUE: JANUARY 2017

​SERIES: TOHO 30CM SERIES

​MATERIAL: SOFT VINYL

FROM: “GODZILLA 2000: MILLENNIUM”, 1999
ゴジラ2000 ミレニアム

HEIGHT: 12 INCHES / 30.4 CM

WIDTH: 8.75 INCHES / 22.2 CM

​LENGTH (NOSE TO TAIL): 18 INCHES / 45.7 CM

​ARTICULATION: NONE

​REVIEW AND PHOTOS: JOHN STANOWSKI

The Godzilla Heisei era ended in 1995 with “Godzilla vs. Destroyah” to make way for a Hollywood attempt at the franchise. Shortly after, Toho Damage Control quickly sprung into action to release “Godzilla 2000: Millennium” (1999) to put things right. Okay, it’s more likely they were trying to cash in on the then recent notoriety of the Centropolis production butcherd though it was. Monster maker Shinichi Wakasa designed a new suit for a new millennium based off original concept work from Yuji Sakai. And thus a new Godzilla was born!

Enter the X-Plus Godzilla 1999 figure, already a vinyl fan favorite!

Just released earlier this month, the X-Plus Toho 30cm Series Godzilla 1999 is a knockout! It’s a great likeness and captures the nuances of the new design very well. I have no problem saying that the sculpt is fantastic and is probably the essential representation for collectors who like it hyper-real (no stylization).

It’s also a nice size. I was so afraid this figure was going to be another shorty like the Godzilla 1984 and 2004. Nope. If anything, this thing is just a tiny touch on the tall side.

​I was a bit alienated when I first saw this new Godzilla suit design back in 2000. It’s pointy head (which some say is inspired by the 1962 suit) and it’s insanely spikey dorsal spines were just too much of a departure for me. Over time, though, I grew to love this look. I mean, check out those fins! I would have to say that if any Godzilla suit was able to be proclaimed a work of art, it’s this one. And the X-Plus figure nails it!

One thing to note on this figure is its especially deep skin texture. I’m not sure if it’s accurate, even after having watching the movie again last week, but it looks awesome. It sometimes looks as if the figure has a slight under-bite. And the fact the head is tilted upward doesn’t help.

This is praise for both the suit and the figure: this design is so dynamic! The shape of the head, mouth, eyebrows and fins just seem to jet out lines to the front and behind. Tell me you don’t get a sense of sweeping motion from the photo of it above.

THE HEAD
Perfect! The teeth are individually sculpted (as per usual with X-Plus figures) and his three pairs of “fangs” located in the front, middle of the side and near the rear are well represented. You can’t see it from the side, but the teeth and gums are slightly seated below the “lip” and there is a super fine line of detail there. This level of attention just blows me away.

One curious thing about the sculpt though, is the figure’s left eye (seen above on the right). I’m not quite sure what’s going on here but it seems sunken in more than the other eye. Plus, the higher the angle from which you look at it, the more it “disappears” under the hood-like brow. I didn’t even notice this curious flaw until collector/reviewer Samson West brought it up. It’s not visible from the sides, nor from the front when your line of sight is pretty low. This bothers me, but it’s not a dealbreaker.

The tail comes in two pieces and both of them fit on seamlessly, except for a slight line at the top of the tail where it meets the body. Legs are attached to the body without glue seals (just like GMK) but, surprisingly, there aren’t really any visible seams but rather creases which seem to be part of the sculpt. There’s a noticeable filled seam on the neck right under the jaw which, thankfully, isn’t visible most of the time. And there are two glue seals right above each bicep. Curiously, the seam on its right arm was filled well, yet its left arm has a sort of rubberband indent around it where a visible line does interrupt the tree bark texture running over the skin. A series of short spikes in the sculpt cover the seams which run down the back on both side of the piece which holds the fins. All in all, not too bad!

​Once again, a pretty standard pose, and once again, me likey! Well, mostly. The legs are spread in a wide stance and I don’t recall seeing this pose in the movie. Though I have seen behind-the-scenes photos where suit actor Tsutomu “Tom” Kitagawa had the legs spread like that.

Either way, it makes for a dynamic figure. Everything about it involves triangles radiating outward from his stance, his claws, his triangular head and fins. This figure seems to emit a feel of swooping motion even when it’s just standing there. This suit is the Nike Swoosh of Godzillas. (Did that make any sense?)

I often wonder if the sculptors for X-Plus base the poses on specific scenes. In the case of this figure, I noticed that if you place it on a table and stand in front of it, it looks just like the scene when Goji was getting scanned by Orga for peeks at his Generator G’s.

The X-Plus Godzilla 1999 vinyl figure is painted with a dark black with a lighter asphalt brushed over a few areas, mostly the thighs and chest. There is also a super subtle dark silver applied on the spikey textures on either side of the back fins. And that’s it.

I didn’t notice this at first but as I scrutinized the figure for this review, I realized that most of the black areas are just black. Other than the few areas mentioned, there are no other highlights. And I am disappointed by this. Now, this base black coat is semi-glossy which gives the figure a bit of a wet look. Because of this, light plays off the paint and deep textures in the sculpt to create a lot of light and specular highlights. But, personally, I really, really would rather have had more paint highlights brushed onto this figure. Sigh.

FINS
The fins on the back of the figure are made of translucent material molded in a purple-ish/magenta-ish color and have black sprayed around the “roots”. The fins on the tail, however, are made of the same vinyl as the rest of the figure. They are painted a dark purple and they don’t quite match the fins on the back. The extent of this difference depends on how the figure is lit. Light from the room can illuminate the fins and make them a brighter color. Yet even when tucked away on the shelf and against a wall, the fins still don’t match up but the difference is less noticeable.

I sampled colors from both sets of fins and added the circles to make it clearer how the colors differ. This is only a rough demonstration though because, again, the back fins seem to change color depending on where the figure is placed.

Even though it’s mildly entertaining to see the fins illuminate when placed in front of a light, I’d rather the figure was more accurate. His fins were not made of crystals and did not let light pass through them in the movie. X-Plus was trying to save time and money by using the same translucent fin material used on the Ric Boy Exclusive light-up version on the standard. Boo.

EYES
Around the black pupils are corneas which seem more tan than yellow. And beyond those are whites best described as smokey. There really isn’t very much contrast in the eyes to make them look like… eyes. From many angles it’s difficult to even see the pupils and instead you get a sort of GMKish look, or a found-dead-in-the-river/zombie kind of look. It may not seem so in the photo above since this is such a close view, but in normal viewing conditions, the detail in the eyes are often hard to make out.

The 1999ers! Gamera 1999 and Godzilla 1999 were released in the same month, line up in height, and make quite a pair!

The X-Plus Godzilla 1999 is just a hair taller than the Godzilla 2003. But it seems even larger when you consider the mass and girth of it’s neck and body.

THE MILLENNIALS
Godzilla 1999/2000, Godzilla 2001 and 2003. If this is your favorite era to collect, you’ll be glad to know they scale well with each other. Sorry, I forgot to include the 2004!

​Godzilla 1964, 1999 and 1992 come from different eras, but they still line up in the height department.

Another Godzilla figure means another long tail. The figure is 18 inches long from the tip of the nose to the end of the tail. Subtract two inches if you let the nose hang over the edge of the shelf. The tail moves back away from the body in almost a straight line until 1/3 from the end it curls upward and to its right. This figure would fit better on the shelf if it were facing right. If you have a larger space to display him, then lucky you, you’re gonna need it!

The Ric Boy Exclusive version of this figure came with a light-up fin gimmick plus something extra no one was expecting: a light emission from the mouth depicting Goji gurgling up an atomic loogie! AND, DAMN, IT LOOKS GOOD!

Collectors, myself included, were worried about how X-Plus was going to be able to make purple/magenta fins glow orange when the light gimmick was turned on. Looks like they managed to do a fine job of it.

I can’t comment much on these features since I haven’t seen one in person. I was getting sick of the whole light-up fin thing so I ordered the standard version. I had NO IDEA the fins would look as cool as they do in the photo above. And that mouth light… I’m… such a…. fool.

Special thanks to “Ryu Hayabusa” for the use of his photo!

​The X-Plus Godzilla 1999 vinyl comes in the standard 30cm series blind box with awesome art on the front. Inside the main body and two tail pieces are wired in to a plastic shell.

ASSEMBLY
As already mentioned, the tail comes in two pieces. I would recommend attaching the larger piece to the body first and adding the rest of the tail last. If you’re going to need to do some twisting, the shorter the tail, the better.

I can usually tell if I’m going to have trouble inserting a tail when I first see it. It seems every other figure I get gives me trouble. In the case of this figure, the tail has a huge ‘flange’ (the part that hooks inside the body). Before I would have winced at this, but after having seen Rich Eso’s video on how to connect X-Plus tails, I wasn’t expecting to relive my Space Godzilla and Hedorah tail nightmares.

In his video, Rich says to heat the body with a hair dryer (not the tail), until it was “squishy soft”. Up until now I had gone as far as ‘just’ soft. This time I heated up Godzilla’s butt until it was as soft as rubber. And just to make sure I had zero trouble, I had earlier cooled the tail off in the refrigerator. When assembly time came, it literally popped right in. After that, attaching the second part of the tail was even easier. From now on…. squishy soft for me. Thanks, Rich!

​Though I’m not happy with the dorsal fins being made of translucent material, the lack of highlights and the overly shiny black skin, the X-Plus Toho 30cm Series Godzilla 1999 is still a fantastic likeness and one of the best vinyl figures to come out in 2013. Get it! Doooo eeet!

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

東宝30CMシリーズ 「メカゴジラ（1974版）」

​JAPAN RELEASE: DECEMBER 2011

​DIAMOND RE-ISSUE: NOVEMBER 2013

​SERIES: TOHO 30CM SERIES

​MATERIAL: SOFT VINYL

​FROM: “GODZILLA VS. MECHAGODZILLA”, 1974

ゴジラ対メカゴジラ

​HEIGHT: 12.5 INCHES / 31.75 CM (ADD .75 INCHES WITH BASE)

​WIDTH: 6.5 INCHES / 16.51 CM (WITHOUT BASE)

LENGTH: 9.5 INCHES / 24.13 CM (TOES TO TAIL, WITHOUT BASE)

​ARTICULATION: NECK, SHOULDERS, RIGHT ELBOW, WRISTS, HIPS, FEET.

​REVIEW AND PHOTOS: JOHN STANOWSKI

Mechagodzilla first reared his shiny head in an attempt to boost slumping ticket sales in the film “Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla” in 1974. The movie succeeded in generating more money, but not by much. The sequel, “Terror of Mechagodzilla” was the last Godzilla movie until the series was rebooted in 1984. But enough of the somber death-of-a-series talk. The series went out with a bang with a double dose of one of the franchise’s more memorable foes!

Mechagodzilla first got the X-Plus vinyl treatment in December of 2011. Being a limited run, as with all X-Plus offerings, this figure became scarce and collectors watched it’s price tag go up and up.

Enter Diamond Distributors, the folks who stock most of the comic shops in the U.S. and Canada. They struck a deal with Toho which would license X-Plus to manufacture reissues of old favorites for distribution in North America. To learn more, see my post on the Diamond North American Reissues.

The first wave of X-Plus / Diamond Reissues were announced earlier this year and preorders were taken back in April of 2013. After a long wait, Godzilla 1954 and Mechagodzilla 1974 have finally arrived in the hands of eager collectors!

This review covers the X-Plus Toho 30cm Series Mechagodzilla 1974 Diamond North American Reissue, which should be almost identical to the original release.

​I have to admit, I wasn’t overly excited about my preorder finally coming through. X-Plus has blasted us with Mechagodzilla this year with a 25cm MG ’74, then a 25cm MG ’75. And then they did it yet again with another 25cm ’74 ‘base’ version! With that mecha-saturation, and the somewhat flat production photos of the 30cm version making it appear ‘simple’, I almost considered backing out of preorder.

I am so, so glad I didn’t. I LOVE THIS THING!

Though I have to admit that it still seems kind of ‘simple’ compared to the 25cm versions. These smaller figures seem more dynamic in the texture department. As you know, X-Plus strives to mimic the actual suit used in the movie rather than a stylized or idealized version. Like Ultraman, Mechagodzilla has a lot of smooth surfaces where the suit just loved to crinkle up with cracks and creases. The sculpt of this 30cm version does have them, but no where near as much as the shorter Large Monster Series versions. It’s this lack of crease detail that makes it seem simple to me. It just seems more “clean cut”. I’m beginning to think that, perhaps, the 25’s actually have too many creases and that this 30cm has it right.

It also seems to be thinner than the 25cm barrels of cosmic fun. Despite these shortcomings, there’s an aura about this sculpt that… I don’t know, seems solid and strong. And it just looks freakin’ amazing on the shelf with my other 30s.

​The head boasts a rotating neck joint, hinged jaw for both open and closed poses and yellow, plastic eyes with great texture detail and light refraction. Though, again, it’s seem simpler than the heads on the 25’s with smoother details on top of the snout and on the sides of the neck. A nice touch is a hinged door on the chest which you can open to reveal an energy beam emitter. The door works well and stays shut when asked. I would probably still recommend not messing with it too, too much.

OH, GROAN. IT’S A BASE
One unusual aspect of this figure is the addition of a separate earthy-styled base required for the figure to stand properly. Hmm. Not diggin’ that. Myself, I’d rather the tail swooped down to touch the floor which would allow the figure to stand securely on its own.

I’ve seen photos from other collectors demonstrating that it is possible for the figure to stand on its own, but I imagine that would be a teetering, precarious arrangement. Either way, it’s out of the question for me as my figure has demonstrated zero ability to stand on its own without the base. I do, however, have a solution for those of you who would like to go base-free. Scroll down to the “Footprint” section to learn more.

​Seam lines simply are not a factor on this figure because of it’s robot anatomy. And since the tail and body are one piece (with no assembly required) there’s nothing to see in the rear.

​X-Plus vinyls are in the ‘statue’ category and usually don’t have articulation. That is, unless it’s a robot where moving joints don’t look at all out of place. The 30cm Mechagodzilla has multiple moveable parts and joints. There’s rotation available in the neck, shoulders, hands, hips and feet. The right elbow rotates also but the left elbow doesn’t seem to. There is also a hinged jaw and the chest door opens to reveal MG’s beam weapon. You may need to employ the ankle joints in order to get the figure to stand properly on its base.

The pose is neither overly exciting nor boring. The feet are spread out enough to create a sense of movement without the over-the-top stance which the 25cm version has. The arms are bent at 90 degree angles. And, of course, the available articulation points give you room to modify the pose. The tail gently moves to the left.

​The X-Plus Mechagodzilla 1974 is covered in a base of dark silver with just a touch of gloss. It has darker silver airbrushed in as shadows. Overall, the figure’s appearance may be too dark… but I like it! The MG logo on both arms and the missile launchers inside the mouth are in a dirty red (nice!). The “ears” are done in a more metallic red and the smaller circles within are darkened (something the 25cm versions didn’t have room for). There are traces of red and pale blue highlights airbrushed here and there which are so subtle you have to consciously look for them. Like it!

​The X-Plus 30cm Series Mechagodzilla 1974 is a little on the tall side. Though it seems a perfect scale match with this 30cm Series Godzilla 1954 (also part of the first wave of Diamond North American reissues), Mechagodzilla is a tad taller than all of the other Gojis in the line. And he gets even taller (about three quarters of an inch) if you place him on his base.

​Despite being on the tall side, Mechagodzilla still has to look up to the X-Plus 30cm Series Hedorah, as do most other figures.

Sorry, Kiryu. You may be sleeker and more advanced, but this 1970s barrel-chested retro space robot seems to be bigger than you! Actually both figures are 12.5 inches tall. Kiryu is actually a tad shorter if you measure by the top of their “skulls”, but it’s that fin on the top of Kiryu’s head that’s reaching up to the 12.5 inch mark. Also, heads on Showa suits seem to be larger in proportion to the rest of their bodies than the Heisei and Millennium suits and I think in this case that’s making MG ’74 seem even larger.

For those who have yet to get their very first X-Plus 30cm figure and need a better sense of size besides reading numbers… Here’s the MG reissue beside a DVD, an iPhone and a Chogokin Mechagodzilla 1975. Yeah, looks like the X-Plus MG can kick that iPhone’s ass.

​Even with its base, the X-Plus 30cm Series Mechagodzilla 1974 doesn’t ask for extra room on the shelf. You can thank the shorter tail.

​GO BASE-FREE WITH THE TAIL LEAN
Mechagodzilla is already on the tall side. And the included base pushes it up higher by another three quarters of an inch. If this bugs you, then don’t use the base! Mechagodzilla’s tail does not touch the floor, but it is the perfect height for resting on the tail of a nearby Godzilla. In the photo above, my Mechagodzilla is getting support by way of a Godzilla 1984 tail. It works great and the figure is surprisingly stable. And it now looks more in line with the other figures.

Scroll up to see this ‘tail lean’ in action in the first three photos of the Size Comparison section.

​The X-Plus Toho 30cm Series Mechagodzilla 1974 Diamond North American Reissue comes in the same box as its 2011 predecessor. The only difference is the “Previews Exclusive” logo printed on the box art. This should serve as a guide for aftermarket figure hunters trying to identify items found on Ebay and other sites.

Another difference is that the warning labels on the back of the box are printed in English. Finally we get to see what all those kanji and hiragana were going on about! (Click the photo above for a larger view which you can read.) The brief instructions found inside the box are also printed in English.

​Despite the need for a base, the potential to receive a warped figure and the barrage of other Mechagodzilla figures offered this year, the X-Plus Mechagodzilla North American Diamond Release — or the original 2011 Japanese release — is pretty badass indeed. It’s a great likeness and it will break up the monotony of dark skin on your 30cm shelf. Get it! Get it noooow!

By John Stanowski Originally posted November 28th, 2013​ on Kaiju Addicts. 

​東宝30CMシリーズ 「３式機龍（2003版）」
STANDARD VERSION

​JAPAN RELEASE: OCTOBER 2013

​JAPAN RMC RELEASE: SUMMER 2014

​JAPAN WONDERFEST REISSUE: SUMMER 2014

​NORTH AMERICAN (DIAMOND) REISSUE: SEPTEMBER 2016

​SERIES: TOHO 30CM SERIES

​MATERIAL: SOFT VINYL

FROM: “GODZILLA X MOTHRA X MECHAGODZILLA: TOKYO SOS”, 2003
ゴジラ×モスラ×メカゴジラ SOS

​HEIGHT: 12.5 INCHES / 31.75 CM

​WIDTH: 7.25 INCHES / 18.4 CM (TOE TO TOE)

​LENGTH: 13.75 INCHES / 34.9 CM (TOES TO TAIL)

​ARTICULATION: SHOULDERS, LEFT ELBOW, WRISTS. (BOTH ELBOWS ON RIC BOY VERSION.)

​REVIEW AND PHOTOS: JOHN STANOWSKI

​The third incarnation of Mechagodzilla, Kiryu (Machine Dragon), is a shiny, giant mecha built around the original Godzilla’s bones which first appeared in “Godzilla Against Mechagodzilla” (2002) and again in “Godzilla x Mothra x Mechagodzilla: Tokyo SOS” (2003). A while back, X-Plus released the 2002 version of Kiryu as a Real Master Series resin statue which was pricey and fragile. I used to daydream of a re-release of this figure in vinyl. And then, just as I had started to forget, X-Plus came through and announced a vinyl release of the 2003 version!

This release wound up being delayed and the usual month long stretch of anticipation was doubled. But now (cue heavenly-sounding chorus), the X-Plus Kiryu 2003 has finally arrived.

NOTE: This review is for the standard version of the new X-Plus Kiryu 2003 Vinyl Figure. While I do like the backpack and arm gear on the Ric Boy exclusive version, I was under the impression that it was not detachable. And since I had to choose one, I chose the standard version because that’s how we see Kiryu most of the time and my personal preference. See Rich Eso’s video review to see that version (link below).

And now feast your eyes upon Mechagodzilla 3… a.k.a. Formula 3 Machine Dragon… a.k.a. Kiryu.

​For some reason, the X-Plus Kiryu box does not come with the usual 30cm box art and instead looks like a re-issue or Wonderfest box. Note that this is the box for a Standard version figure. The box for a Ric Boy version will have a thin, black sticker attached below the title on the front. Inside, Kiryu is tucked into a plastic shell and held in place with several wires. If you’re not a box keeper, don’t forget to pull out the extra Drill Hand taped into the middle of the shell!

Well, this is new. Instead of the usual hole in which a tail need be inserted, the Kiryu figure has a “nodule” (or a super scientific term would be “nubby”) which needs to be pressed into a hole at the end of the tail. In this case, I actually like it. Works good. I would suggest heating the hole in the tail (just the ridges inside the hole; not the whole end of the tail). It worked best for me when I heated it just a little. I suspect that if it were overly warm and squooshy (another scientific term) that it might work against you since the ridges wouldn’t have a pressing need to spring back into place. Just support the body, push and twist. X-plus reviewer, Rich Eso, suggests grabbing the tail end by running two or three fingers inbetween the tail’s spines when doing this.

​The biggest thing that worried me about a vinyl version of Kiryu was whether or not X-Plus would do a good job on all of the machine details. Sure, they’ve done several Showa era Mechagodzillas before, but that guy didn’t have the smooth symmetry that Mechagodzilla 2 and 3 had. It turns out that there was NOTHING to worry about.

Every panel, shield, groove, pipe, piston and bolt is captured amazingly well in the X-Plus sculpt and brilliantly duplicated in soft vinyl. And since this figure is based on a robot, it must have been easier for X-Plus to make more pieces that usual — but without the lines! It’s hard to tell what was molded together and what was glued on. The eyes are molded in clear, yellow plastic with a line texture on the inside. Another fantastic touch is the individually molded black cable on the sides of the head and also at each hip. There are SIXTY-SEVEN little mini-dorsal plates on the tail alone!

Throughout the body, tucked under the openings at the joints in the shiny armor is the black, fibroid innards with incredible line detail.

Even the bottoms of the feet and tail are busy with detail! This is the X-Plus advantage!

The standard version of the X-Plus Kiryu figure comes with an alternate Drill Hand, the weapon which finally ended the fight with Godzilla in the movie. I found it interesting that a standard edition was given an extra feature; that’s usually something only the Ric Boy versions get. (See below for Ric Boy version details.)

While I’m on the subject of hands: they’re very soft, squooshy and thin. If you pop the right hand off and look inside, you’ll see just how thin they are. Also a good time for me to mention one gotcha about this figure. The right hand is really loose and could simply fall off if brushed. (In fact the hand was detached on my figure when I first unboxed it.) When handling or moving your Kiryu keep this in mind lest ye drop and misplace a hand.

RE-ATTACHING THE RIGHT HAND
The super thinness and squooshyness of the right hand makes it difficult to insert back into the forearm; it just crumbles under the pressure. When I had to re-attach the right hand I first placed it in the refrigerator for five minutes to let it get stiff. I then heated the front of the forearm and brought them together.

​There is no need to discuss seams since lines fit right in to the robot motif.

As usual, the tail is a separate piece and is further comprised of three parts. Each of these are not glued and have wiggle room, but they are not meant to be twisted or rotated. The body/tail joint is a perfect, flush fit. However, on my figure, it tends to pull away from the body on the bottom of the joint when standing on its own.

Kiryu has a pretty standard pose, but it’s mostly a good one. He stands tall and straight with his feet level (no stepping motion). It seems to have its “shoulders back and chest out” and looks sturdy and formidable. Click on the photo above for a larger, hi-res view (as with all other photos on this page).

The only disappointment with the standard figure is the default position of the arms. When relaxed they seem to be in a typing pose. When raised at the shoulder they look like a knitting or a getting-a-manicure pose. Either way, it’s not very kaiju-like. A far cry from the arm positions shown in the early production photos.

​Kiryu has articulation in the shoulders and hands. And, though stiff at first, the right elbow also rotates.

THE LEFT ELBOW
I’ve noticed that my figure will allow me to rotate the left elbow. It doesn’t do this without complaining, and every time I do it I wonder if I’m about to break it. It seems X-Plus didn’t want you to rotate this joint for some reason. And I suspect they did this by making the joint inside shaped like a square. I don’t know this for sure, and I’m not about to pull it off to find out. But when I wrestle with the left forearm and rotate it, it fights back, but it does move. And after about 90 degrees it suddenly finds a new “place” it like to be. That’s what made me think of the square joint. Just to be clear: the black elbow piece does NOT move. It is GLUED to the bottom of the upper arm. If you attempt to rotate the left arm on your STANDARD Kiryu, press and hold the elbow to minimize pressure on the glue seal. Doing this doesn’t really accomplish much except making the arm straighter. I’ve decided to stop messing with it and just leave it in it’s standard position.

Ignore all of this if you have the Ric Boy version which has elbows that move freely in any direction.

​The X-Plus Kiryu vinyl is covered in a base coat of glossy silver that’s just right. It’s not overly shiny (like the S.H. Monsterarts Kiryu) and the light loves to play off its surface with lots of speculars. They also did a fantastic job of airbrushing soft, super-subtle shadows with an ever so slight darker silver which, combined with the speculars make this figure look AWESOME.

The ‘fiber’ surfaces lurking beneath Kiryu’s armor at all of his joints (waist, thighs, knees, tail segments, etc.) were given a lot of loving attention. After being covered with a base coat of black, all of the elevated fibers and lines in the sculpt were brushed over with a dark silver to create a visual texture on top of the one in the sculpt. OUTSTANDING!

The figure also has a few extra colorful details such as markings and emblems. The “warpaint” arrows on both cheeks are overly hand-rendered and splotchy unlike the perfect red triangles on his arms and knees and the MFS-3 logo on his chest.

​I started this X-Plus review site to try to help spread the word on this great line of vinyl figures, not to complain or point out flaws. But another reason I started this site was to provide the kind of information I was seeking when I first discovered these figures. And since this figure has a hefty price tag, I feel the need to go on a little mini rant about the lack of quality my figure seems to have received on the assembly line.

The jaw on my Kiryu figure leans to one side and is very obvious when viewing it from the front. I tried to nudge it back into position but it’s been glued in and wants to stay where it is. Same deal with the neck. The factory folk glued the bottom of the neck in on a slight angle and his head kind of tilts to his left. On the bright side, both of these are not noticeable from the side view. Also on my figure, the three doors which lead to the Triple Masers buried in the chest is one piece… and was glued on crooked enough to bug me. But the left shoulder is the worst offender. Over the left upper arm is a dome shaped shoulder piece… and it was glued on crooked. Now this is one flaw that’s highly visible.

Finally, after attaching the tail on my figure I noticed right away that it swoops down LOWER than the plane the feet are meant to stand on. Either that, or, the lower legs were glued to the knees improperly. Bottom line, when I place my figure on the shelf, the tail pushes the figure up slightly so that its heels are off the ground. This force also pulls slightly at the tail joint and there’s a sliver of a gap on the bottom.

All of these problems were on the particular figure that I received. That’s no guarantee that if you get this figure that yours will be the same way. Reviewer Rich Eso has reported that his Ric Boy version is perfect. I still felt the need to mention these problems to alert you that should you go after this figure you’d be playing a game of X-Plus Roulette. I also want to point out that, despite all of these flaws, this figure is still AMAZING and if I had the chance to buy it again, I would.

BENT FINS
Collector James Martinez originally posted these photos of his new Kiryu figure at the X-Plus Kaiju Collectors Facebook Page showing how numerous fins were significantly curved out of shape. Luckily, for me, my figure did not have this problem anywhere near to this extent. But while I was untying the wires in the back of the plastic shell which the figure ships in, I could see what happened to James’ figure. The fins were touching the shell as there wasn’t enough room left for them. Still, not bad though for a figure with over 60 small, thin fins on the back and tail. I’m just glad they were able to make this figure in vinyl.

It all worked out in the end for James, though. He heated them with a hair dryer and nudged them back into their intended shape.

At 12.5 inches the X-Plus Kiryu vinyl figure fits in perfectly with most of the rest of the Toho 30cm Series. Most importantly, it looks great next to its foe, the X-Plus Godzilla 2003 which was released three and half years ago. It was a long wait, but these two are finally ready to tango! (And for those of you who missed out on the original release of Godzilla 2003, you’ll be glad to know that it was re-issued late December 2013 / early January 2014 as a Ric Boy with light-up fins. It’s also going to become available again as a standard re-issue in North America in 2014.)

If you have yet to get your first 30cm Series X-Plus figure, knowing that it’s 12.5 inches helps but doesn’t really illustrate its size. The photo on the left shows the Kiryu vinyl beside a DVD and iPhone for a sense of scale. And on the right a photo for those collectors who think their S.H. Monsterarts Kiryu is enough Kiryu for one collection.

It’s 13.75 inches long yet isn’t much of a hog on the shelf. Placed at an angle, the tail easily slips behind its nearest neighbor.

​The X-Plus Kiryu Ric Boy version comes with the Back Unit and Arm Units. The Back Unit does come off as a separate piece. The Arm Units, however, are glued into place. This version also has freely-moving elbows for easier articulation. See Rich Eso’s video review for more information. (Link below!)

By John Stanowski Originally posted November 11th, 2013​ on Kaiju Addicts.

​東宝30CMシリーズ スペースゴジラ（1994版）

​JAPAN RELEASE: OCTOBER 2013

​NORTH AMERICAN RE-ISSUE (DIAMOND): JULY 2016

​SERIES: TOHO 30CM SERIES

​MATERIAL: SOFT VINYL

FROM: “GODZILLA VS. SPACE GODZILLA”, 1994
ゴジラ VS スペースゴジラ

​HEIGHT: 14 INCHES / 35.5 CM (TO TOP OF SHOULDER CRYSTALS)

​WIDTH: 8.5 INCHES / 21.5 CM (AT THE SHOULDERS)

​LENGTH: 18 INCHES / 45.7 CM (NOSE TO TAIL)

ARTICULATION: NONE

​REVIEW AND PHOTOS: JOHN STANOWSKI

​Godzilla vs. Space Godzilla (1994) wasn’t a shining point in the movie franchise but it did provide an interesting foe. Who better to battle Godzilla than a copy of himself? Sure we got a taste of that with 1974’s Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla but that just turned out to be a poser or sorts. Space Godzilla is the real deal. And while he may not be the most imaginative kaiju, he still managed to have a distinctive look which is (mostly) faithfully reproduced in this new vinyl figure by X-Plus.

One of the first things I hear from other collectors is: ‘he’s fat’. But is it really? Well… sort of, yeah. It’s actually difficult to get a good look at the details on Space Godzilla in the movie with all of the smoke and energy weapons fire, but I did get good peeks here and there. The figure seems to be too wide from the front. And its thunder thighs from the side view offend authenticity even more. I’m left wondering what visual sources the sculptor used as reference. Is it possible he had good, clear views of the suit from production photographs? Could it be that SG just appeared to be thinner because the wide angle lens on their film camera on the set squeezed the image inward ever so slightly? Who knows? It looks like the X-Plus Space Godzilla is on the chunky side.

Here’s a side by side comparison. They do seem to be equally chubby. But note the groove across the belly on the figure. This groove is not there on the movie still which makes me think the suit actor is hunching forward making him look fatter. What do you think?

OTHER DETAILS
The dorsal crystals on the back are thicker than they are on the suit. They’re also ‘spread out’ more. In the movie, they were closer together more like standard Godzilla fins. Usually, details like this bother me. But everything else about this figure is so awesome that I find myself look on the positive side. I love this thing!

There are a lot of nice textures on this figure. Most notable are all of the tendon-like grooves than line his front section from throat to groin. The sculpt where the body starts to blend with the shoulder crystals looks awesome.

​I’m particularly fond of the head on this figure. It just looks great from all angles! Every one of those tiny teeth are individually sculpted.

The dorsal fins on Space Godzilla are comprised of crystals. For these, X-Plus used a very translucent, almost clear, material. These would be perfect for lighting with LED lights, but even the Ric Boy exclusive verion’s light gimmick only extended to the shoulder crystals and head “crown”. Why, then, did they use this material? Even though they don’t light up, they do allow some light from the room to pass through them. You can also see some crystal-like refraction from inside them.

While this material is a nice touch as far as adding a new ‘texture’ to the figure, their fragile nature worries me. These fins are very thin, squooshy and bendable. If you ask me, they seem kind of cheap-looking since they clearly look like plastic and have hardly any paint applied except for near their bases where they are individually glued into the back.

The material used for the shoulder crystals is different and looks much nicer. I wished they used the same stuff on the fins.

One nice touch, though, is that the crystal fins on the tail piece use the same material as on the back. This would have been a good chance for X-Plus to save money and just mold them in vinyl and paint them white like they did on the crystals at the tip of the tail which does look different. Instead they took the extra steps to keep up appearances.

One final note on these: While reviewing this figure I found a scratch on one shoulder crystal and another on a dorsal crystal. I don’t know if this happened in the factory or if I’m the guilty party. But it’s clear that they scratch easily.

​As far as I can see there are eleven different pieces (not including the head crown and individual dorsal crystals) and a myriad of seams to go with them. In standard viewing conditions only one sticks out and that runs around the neck just below the head. The neck, shoulder crystals, shoulders and upper chest comprise one piece. The seams where the arms are glued in are visible but are occur at natural creases in the suit. The feet, I suspect, are separate pieces but the seams are filled in well. (Don’t slam him down on the table!)

Viewed from behind there is a visible seam around the back piece to which individual dorsal crystal (made of another material) are glued. There is an unsightly intersection of seams where the back piece meets the shoulders which is not a problem from most display angles. The tail joint seam is acceptable on the left side but is, however, not flush on the right side and has a visible “step”. The strip on the back which holds the spines doesn’t quite make it all the way down to meet the tail so there is a small gap there.

I’m not complaining as most seams are out of view under normal viewing conditions.

Nothing fancy here. The X-Plus Space Godzilla is posed into a simple stance with even feet and claws reaching slightly forward. Not that that’s a bad thing since that’s how he appears in most of the movie. His head does seem to lean forward slightly like he’s unfearfully staring down Godzilla. A+, X-Plus!

(Click on the photo above for a high resolution view, as with all other images on this page!)

X-Plus did a great job on Space Godzilla’s bluish black skin color. The end result has only a tinge of unsaturated blue. It comes off looking realistic and very un-toy-like. There really aren’t any differing shades of the blue in the form of highlights or shadows. But there are super dark reds brushed in on the legs, thighs and sides of the tail.

A sort of blood red is brushed over the higher elevations in the texture of the throat, chest and (groin?). It doesn’t clash with the bluish black and just looks good, good, good. If you look closer you’ll find some extra effort put into placing red in veinish, lavaflowish cracks around the shoulders under the crystals. And even subtler red is brushed along the bottom of the tail. Not bad attention to detail for an area you hardly see! Great job!

The eyes are comprised of large black pupils are surrounded by a ring of firey orange which in turn floats on red ‘whites’. You can only appreciate the details here if you look closely. From a distance the eyes just look dark with a slight touch of orange. The mouth is a deep, dark red with off-white teeth. The tusks and claws are white with redish, purpleish color fanning out from the cuticles. The toes are a super glossy pearl white, and a little too bright and shiny in my opinion.

The head crown is molded in a clear, gold material. The dorsal crystals are mostly unpainted translucent plastic. While it gives off a crystal ‘vibe’ in contrast to the rest of the figure, they all seem ‘cheap’. The rest of the smaller ridges running down the tail are painted a glossy, pearl white with tinges of red.

The X-Plus Space Godzilla is noticeably taller than the X-Plus Godzilla 1992 (closest thing I have to a ’94). Some say that Space Godzilla was taller than Goji in the movie, but this seems to be pushing it. I reviewed the movie again and there were two scenes where the two monsters went nose to nose. In the first scene, Space Godzilla was, indeed, taller than Goji, but not by as much as seen in the photo above. In the next scene they were somehow mysteriously level with each other and appeared to be the same height. In the end it’s overly obvious that Space Godzilla is definitely larger than most other figures in the Toho 30cm Series.

Here’s a size comparison with the X-Plus Godzilla 2004. Would you believe both figures are in the Toho 30cm Series?

And for those collectors who have yet to get their first X-Plus vinyl, here’s the new Space Godzilla amid an array of common household items. (Common to most Godzilla fans, anyway.)

To sums things up: it’s big.

SHELF HOG

Big figures are always a challenge when trying to find space on the shelf for display. And the X-Plus Space Godzilla isn’t going to make things any easier for you. It’s 18 inches long from nose to the backmost curve of the tail. But for the shelf we only need concern ourselves with the distance from the toes to the tail and that still requires a whopping 15 and a half inches! To make matters worse, the tail curves and then swings forward again. This makes it difficult to get another figure close to Space Godzilla’s right side. Well, I’ll leave this problem with you to handle. This is the price we pay for big figures!

The Ric Boy exclusive version of this figure comes with a light gimmick. Nested deep inside the figure lay wires and LED lights which make the shoulder crystals and head ‘crown’ glow.

The shoulder crystals look awesome when lit. The frosty, translucent material used diffuses gentle illumination perfectly and they look great with and without the light. The problem is the light is way on the faint side. You’ll need to carry your new Space Godzilla into the shadows or turn off the light to fully appreciate them.

The golden, crystal crown atop Space Godzilla’s head, on the other hand, glares like a hyperactive lighthouse. In my opinion, it’s too bright.

LIGHT LEAKS

And then there’s this: pinpoints of light speckled over the shoulders creep out unexpectedly through the paint. It would appear that the shoulder crystals, shoulders, neck and chest are all one piece made from the same translucent vinyl. The bluish black paint over the skin was intended to conceal the light emanating from within, except in the crystal area. But on my figure, the paint runs thin in some of the cracks and crevices in Space Godzilla’s textured skin.

(The light leaks don’t photograph easily. In the photo above I used a very long exposure so that the leaks would show up. The result above is very close to what it looks like to the eye.)

While this is obviously a mistake or lack of quality control, in a way it does look kind of cool, even if it isn’t accurate. In the end, I’m not really complaining because I know that I will rarely use the light gimmick, if at all. I’m just happy enough to have this awesome, huge hunk of Space Godzilla awesomeness.

The X-Plus Space Godzilla box is huge! It’s 16.5 inches tall and 16 inches wide. If you order this guy through the mail, expect an even bigger shipping box! As usual, the figure inside lays wire tied into a plastic shell with plastic sheeting covering most of the sensitive parts and extremities. The tail comes in two pieces.

ATTACHING THE TAIL

If you’ve ever wondered where Godzilla’s butt is… Alright, enough of that. Pictured above is the main tail joint and I have to say this was one of the toughest assembly jobs I ever encountered. I usually heat the butt end of the figure with a hair dryer until the vinyl is very soft and squooshy. With the tail still firm, I then hook one side of the flange into the hole and then squeeze, push and twist until it’s attached. As you can see by the none-round shape of the hole, twisting had limited effect. After three attempts I got it in. Hopefully you’ll have an easier time that I did.

The tail comes in two pieces which, in my case I assembled together first. I’d like to suggest to you that you attach the main tail piece to the body first if you’re a twister like me. The tail’s curved shape when assembled got in the way for me.

​The X-Plus is a huge, hunk of awesomeness. Its larger-than-usual size gives it a lot of presence on the shelf and its extra weight just feels good when holding it. When you get this figure, you’ll feel like you got something really cool. The paint job is awesome, especially since there is so much that could have gone wrong. But they did it right! The mixture of materials used on the figure gives it an interesting look. My only problem with it is that the dorsal crystals seem really cheap and flimsy. I’d be crying tears of joy if only they were made of the same material as the shoulder crystals. And, once again, I’m overly impressed with the head and face.

By John Stanowski Originally posted November 6th, 2013​ on Kaiju Addicts.