X-Plus Large Monster Series Gigan Vinyl Figure Full Review

FIGURE SPECS

東宝大怪獣リーズ 「ガイガン」

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​JAPAN RELEASE: MARCH 2012

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​SERIES: LARGE MONSTERS SERIES

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​MATERIAL: SOFT VINYL

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

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​HEIGHT: 10 INCHES / 25.4 CM

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​WIDTH: 5.75 INCHES / 14.6 CM

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​LENGTH: ABOUT 11 INCHES / 27.9 CM

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​ARTICULATION: SHOULDERS, HIPS

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​REVIEW AND PHOTOS: JOHN STANOWSKI

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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.

SCULPT

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.

​JOINTS & SEAMS

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.

​POSE

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.

​PAINT JOB

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.

SIZE COMPARISONS

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.)

FOOTPRINT

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.

RIC BOY EXCLUSIVE FEATURE

​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.

​SUMMARY

​Despite a few crack-like seams, the X-Plus Large Monster Series Gigan 1972 is one helluva figure! Its superb sculpt, myriad of textures and truly excellent paint job make this figure an outright prize. It’s rare but deserves to be hunted down and added to your collection.

​EXTRAS

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.

​MORE INFORMATION

• Rich Eso’s X-Plus 25cm Gigan 1972 Video Review.

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