After the release of S.H. MonsterArts Mechagodzilla, Tamashii Nations followed up with online accessories. Like other series, the S.H. MonsterArts line has retail merchandise along with online exclusives that sell at a higher price. The first online release of the SH MonsterArts series is the Toho special effects pack. Tamashii Nations made this available at the end of 2011.
A common sight in Godzilla movies is that of humanity attempting to defend itself against Godzilla. It usually results in the kaiju trashing the military forces, although from time to time they manage to put up a decent fight. This is through the use of well-known weapons such as the Super-X series of flying warships as well as the maser tanks. This set consists of both and weapons that appeared in the Heisei series. Specifically the 1989 and 1992 entries although the spiral ray is from Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla II (1993) . Used in tandem along with the S.H. MonsterArts figures, it allows for a recreation of fights between man and monster.
The accessories available in this pack include a mix of air and ground weapons. For the air component, the set has three ASTOL-MB93 maser aircraft, three F-16s and the Super-X2. The flying warship also includes parts to switch out for use of missiles as well as the fire mirror. The set also includes two bases for stands along with multiple stands to handle the different aircraft. For the ground component, the set includes five MBT-92 and five MBT-93 maser vehicles. Finally, there is the spiral fire effects pack to simulate the use of Godzilla's main weapon in its powered up mode. The design is an exact duplicate of the atomic ray effect that the S.H. MonsterArts Godzilla had when Tamashii Nations first released it.
In terms of detailing and paint for the military weapons, it is very nice considering the small size. Not surprisingly, there will be some mistakes as one of the MBT-92s had a small problem with its paint job in the front. As for the Super-X2, its coloring is solid green although a bit lighter than its movie counterpart is. It could have a few more coloring details, particularly on the engine intakes and the main camera as well as perhaps a few other things. Overall, the paint for the vehicles is mostly accurate to the movie versions. However, due to the small size, some details will not be included and also features some mistakes with the paint.
Still to have these at all is nice due to their accurate scale in comparison to the regular sized figures of the monsters. Before these arrived, it was difficult to find vehicles in correct scale with Godzilla and the other monsters. The best shot would have been models in the very small scales. These vehicles are useful to display the combat between humanity and the kaiju. They can be used for both S.H. MonsterArts and the regular Bandai vinyl figures.
Unfortunately, it has been several years already since the release and it is very difficult to find. Furthermore, this along with the UX-01 Garuda & Mecha-Godzilla Effects Pack were not readily available in America. If a customer finds it on eBay, it will go for an exceptionally high price. Fortunately, Tamashii Nations has already announced the release of a new special effects pack. This will include the Super-X3 taking the place of the Super-X2 and two damaged buildings along with the complement of maser tanks and aircraft.
Overall a pricey but worthy addition to use alongside the S.H. MonsterArts figures.
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