X-Plus Gamera 1966 Vinyl Figure Review

FIGURE SPECS

大怪獣シリーズ 大映特撮編 「ガメラ（1966年版） 大怪獣決闘 ガメラ対バルゴン」 少年リック限定版

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​JAPAN RELEASE: JUNE 2013

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​SERIES: LARGE MONSTER SERIES

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MATERIAL: SOFT VINYL

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FROM: “GAMERA VS. BARUGON”, 1966
大怪獣決闘 ガメラ対バルゴン

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​HEIGHT: 7.75 INCHES / 19.68 CM

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​WIDTH: ABOUT 6 INCHES (FOOT TO FOOT) / ABOUT 15.24 CM

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​LENGTH: (NOSE TO TAIL) ABOUT 12 INCHES / 30.48 CM

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​ARTICULATION: ARMS AND LEGS CAN ROTATE IN SOCKETS BUT NOT MEANT TO

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​REVIEW AND PHOTOS: JOHN STANOWSKI

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After releasing Large Monster Series Figures of foes Barugon and Gyaos, X-Plus finally makes the big turtle available. The figure is based on the 1966 version and good thing too as that was arguably the best looking suit of the bunch.

SCULPT

I’m not an overly avid Showa Gamera fan, so when it came to writing about the accuracy of the X-Plus Gamera 1966 vinyl figure, I had to consult the movie. After comparing detail after detail, I can safely say that I think this figure is ridiculously accurate.

The teeth are large and rounded but this is just to reflect the suit. A nice touch is that the tongue is not molded into the bottom of the jaw and is, instead, suspended above it.

Most of the fingers are individually sculpted.

There is a lot of interesting texturing on this figure. Swirly patterns adorn the head, the front shell is checkered and the back shell …

The back shell is awesome! It looks like each and every plate was individually cascaded onto the back for a really accurate representation of the suit. Each plate individually hovers over the other like long finger nails. (This really makes me wonder how they pull this out of the mold!) Looks great!

One slight problem with the Gamera 1966 is that the center of the belly is dented inward. It’s looks kind of like an invisible log is pressing up against him. It’s a bit hard to capture this in a photo, but if you look at the Side View pose below you can see it a little.

ARTICULATION

The arms and legs have round connections and while it’s possible to rotate them, you’ll likely look to the sculpt as a guide to where they should be. You may also have to tweak the rotation of his legs to make sure his feet are flat on the shelf.

​JOINTS & SEAMS

​Well, yes, there are seams around everything that’s sticking out of the shell. Obviously this is the sacrifice needed for a figure which can have it’s limbs interchanged. It’s a shame for buyers of the Standard Version though.

POSE

Nice pose! I’m just glad they didn’t sculpt him to stand straight up. I mean, the figure has enough of that Showa goofiness we all love already. Instead, Gamera 1966 leans forward almost eager to grapple with Barugon. A nice touch is that the tail does not touch the ground and is suspended in the air above it.

One thing that concerns me is that Gamera is standing at a 45-degree angle. His short tail does little to counter the pull of gravity on his outstretched head and arms. His legs are pretty much the only thing keeping him balanced. The problem with this is that his right leg is a step back. This is the same footwork on the X-Plus 30cm Varan which, it’s reported, tends to fall down when the summer heat softens his feet. Well, today’s 95-degree high here in Philadelphia proved this problem does exist. I gave the figure a gentle poke and it fell forward. (I just read from the X-Plus Kaiju Collectors Club on Facebook that one collector couldn’t even get him to stand right out of the box.)

RIC BOY EXTRAS
The Ric Boy Exclusive Version of this release comes with an additional head, tail and limbs to allow you to put the Gamera 1966 into a crawling pose.

A problem you may encounter when making the switch: the belly becomes jelly when devoid of limbs, especially if you’ve heated it to make it easier to work with. When pressing a new limb into a socket, the bottom half of the shell easily collapses in on itself. It helped me to insert a finger inside to press the belly outward when adding pieces. If your fingers are too large, try using a sturdy pen in one hole to press the belly outward when pushing a limb into another hole. Another tip: when doing the lower body, add the tail first; there isn’t much wiggle room if the feet are in place.

​PAINT JOB

The paint job is boring.
Besides the eyes, mouth and claws, the X-Plus Gamera 1966 is all one shade of black There are no highlights, brushing, dusting — whatever you want to call it. Very often X-Plus will at least use a very slightly lighter black to brush over the higher areas of the skin wrinkles. And I think, maybe, they did that here but it’s so slight and in so few areas it doesn’t even register to the eyes. The good news that liight and shadow do play off the myriad of textures in the sculpt.

SIZE

​LOOKS GOOD WITH THE 30s
I usually keep my 25’s and 30’s separate from each other but if you do choose to combine them, the Gamera 1966 seems to display well with its larger incarnations.

​LOOKS GREAT WITH THE 25s
Naturally the Gamera 1966 Vinyl Figure fits in well with its other Giant Monster Series cousins. I love the fact that Gamera’s shoulders line up perfectly with the others. He’s in scale, baby!

FOOTPRINT

STANDING POSE
The standard version and pose only takes up 12 inches from nose to tail. Plus, since Gamera is leaning forward to much, a good bit of those 12 inches could be hanging over the edge of the shelf. (If your figure is having balancing issues then you don’t want to do this!) Gamera 1966 doesn’t demand a lot of room in the standing pose.

​RIC BOY CRAWLING POSE
Sorry, I forgot to measure this guy while he was in the crawling pose. However, the Ric Boy web site states that Gamera is 36.5cm (14.37 inches) while in turtle mode. I’ve known the Ric Boy site to get dimensions off from time to time so I can’t confirm that but it can’t be far off. The only thing to keep in mind when placing a Gamera 1966 in crawling mode on the shelf is that your kaiju skyline is going to take a hit. Gamera is really low while in this pose. Hopefully you’ll have a figure you can display behind him to fill the gap.

​Comes in the standard Large Monster Series window box with the fancier Gamera series design. If you get the Ric Boy version then you’re gonna have a lot of wires to untie!

Even though I’m not an über Showa Gamera fan, I’m really glad I got this guy! Even though he tends to tumble, he is a deadringer for the suit in the movie, has a lot of impressive details and fits in well with both scales!

MORE INFORMATION

You might also like: X-Plus Gamera 1996 Vinyl Figure Review
You might also like: X-Plus Daiei 30cm Series Gamera 1995 Vinyl Figure Review

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