X-Plus 30cm Series Godzilla 1984 Vinyl Figure Review

​FIGURE SPECS

​東宝29CMシリーズ 「ゴジラ（1984）

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​JAPAN RELEASE: APRIL 2013

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​JAPAN REISSUE (SHINJUKU BATTLE VERSION): SEPT./OCT. 2016

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​NORTH AMERICAN REISSUE (DIAMOND): DECEMBER 2016

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​SERIES: 30CM SERIES

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​MATERIAL: SOFT VINYL

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​FROM: “GODZILLA”, 1984 (OFTEN REFERRED TO AS ‘THE RETURN OF GODZILLA’ AND ‘GODZILLA 1984’. KNOWN AS ‘GODZILLA 1985’ IN THE WEST.
ゴジラ

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​HEIGHT: 11.25 INCHES / 28.57 CM

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​WIDTH: 7.5 INCHES / 19.05 CM

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​LENGTH: 13.5 INCHES / 34.29 CM

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​ARTICULATION: MID-TAIL, KNEES

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​REVIEW AND PHOTOS: JOHN STANOWSKI

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After a nine-year hiatus, Godzilla returned to theaters in ‘Godzilla’ (1984). This was the first of the Heisei films. Gone was the wacky Godzilla of old, and in his stead, a frightening force of nature. After a lackluster entry into the 25cm line, X-Plus presents a much improved 29cm version.

​SCULPT

First and foremost, the X-Plus 29cm Godzilla 1984 is a vast improvement over the 25cm version (above right). The new figure is a darned good likeness. The 1984 Godzilla’s signature design of the head are well represented. A lot of collectors feel this figure is a tad slim in the belly area.

Godzilla’s grumpy looks are captured in the sculpt. The mouth is wide open in mid-roar and reveals a set a fantastic-looking teeth. X-Plus did, however, take one liberty by correcting the position of the eyes, which had a tendency to drift apart in the movie.

VISIBLE SEAMS & JOINTS: Not much to complain about here as far as seams. There are some behind the elbows if you look, but overall they’re not very obvious. The tail joint isn’t a perfect fit, but that detail is in the rear so you won’t be seeing much of it. The knees rotate; first time I ever saw that on an X-Plus figure (but that’s me). The knee joints are worked into the sculpt so aren’t overly obvious. There is a chance that mid-way down the tail your dorsal fins don’t quite line up. If that is the case, just give it a twist, there’s a joint there.

POSE

The X-Plus Godzilla 1984 seems to lean forward from the waist up; a common position seen in the movie. This may account for his apparent lack of height when compared to other figures in the 30cm series. The right leg is a step back. This, combined with the upper half of the body leaning forward, makes the right side profile look a bit odd; almost like it’s ready to fall forward. (See above.) This figure looks GREAT from most other angles!

PAINT JOB

​Mostly pretty standard stuff here. Godzilla 1984 is uniformly the usual asphalt black. There’s a darker black under the eyes. There are some areas, though, which appear glossy here and there on the front, legs and sides. I don’t know if this was intentional or if something happened while they were painting it. The teeth are an off-white and not stark at all; they look great! Claws have a tannish, boneish shading. And perhaps most impressive, are the eyes. X-Plus took the time to add tiny, little, red veins creeping into the whites. (Click on the side-view headshot above for a larger view.)

​SIZE & FOOTPRINT

​Godzilla’s tail makes a hard turn upward making his footprint only 13.5 inches long. This will definitely make him easier to place on the shelf.

​The X-Plus 29cm Godzilla 1984 is actually only 28 and a half centimeters tall (11.25″). This is noticeably shorter than his pals in the same line. The lack of height may be attributable to his pose (he’s leaning forward). But if you compare the size of his feet to the others you’ll find that they’re smaller. This figure, though, makes up for a lack of height by just looking so fantastic.

​The X-Plus 29cm Godzilla 1984 comes in a blind box with awesome cover art. For some reason, the gold sticker on the box is marked “2012” even though this was an April 2013 release. The figure inside the box is in two pieces, wire-tied to a plastic shell. The joint for the tail piece is somewhat triangular. This made it a little difficult for me to insert using my preferred method of heating the butt, but not the tail. In the end I wound up defying the glue and pulling the dorsal piece away from the rest of the body, leaving a little gap. X-Plus reviewer Rich Eso had warmer weather when he assembled his ’84 and he said the tail went right in with no problems at all. So, if the weather is a bit cool when you assemble yours, you might want to heat both the butt and tail before connecting.

​EXTRAS

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