1998
marked a big year for Bandai as they kicked off their
very large Godzilla
Island series, based on the TV
show of the same name which in a great marketing ploy
also featured numerous Bandai figures prominently.
As expected, including in this new "six inch line"
(although this figure is closer to eight) was a version
of one of Godzilla's most popular opponents: King Ghidorah.
Now the version selected for the monster was the
one from 1991's Godzilla
vs. King Ghidorah, marking the second time
the firm created a vinyl for the Heisei version
with the first being the nine
inch figure released
the same year as the movie's debut.
Thankfully, this release is a lot
more faithful to the source than its predecessor.
The wings and everything are distinctly for the
Heisei version of the monster. The heads in particular
are very nice. Bandai paid a lot of attention to
this aspect of the monster, and it paid off. The
folds of skin below the eyes, the smaller scales
through out, the way the nose is constructed, there
is a lot done well with the face area of the figure.
Sadly, the rest of the body is a little lacking.
There are scales from head to toe, sure, but it
looks too clean otherwise. It lacks in
detail and appears too simplistic overall. It looks
particularly odd since the heads are so detailed,
making for an odd juxtaposition between the two.
The creature also looks to skinny, and doesn't
effectively convey the mass and bulk of the Heisei
version of the three-headed monster like it should.
The wings are a bit of an exception at least.
There are folds in the hide to give it a sense
of realism and look more impressive overall. Of
course, they are far too thick considering how
thin they were in the 1991 movie, but this is easily
overlooked considering something more sturdy was
needed for the creature to survive the rigorous
play tests kids all across Japan would put the
toy through.
In terms of the paint job, well it's hard to go
wrong with King Ghidorah considering the creature
is almost entirely golden. It does thankfully avoid
odd shading techniques, which the earlier Heisei
vinyl from the company fell prey to. The teeth
and mouths are all correctly colored here, and
fairly spot on. The eyes look good, although they
are painted a vibrant red rather than the more
correct brown hued ones seen in the movie.
Overall, the figure does a lot of things right,
but I always found this to be a slightly boring
King Ghidorah figure. Still, it's pretty easy to
come across even more than a decade after its release,
either this initial figure or the reissues of the
mold that followed, and is kind of the de facto
release for the Heisei version. So many collectors
still have reason to snatch this toy up if they
don't already own it.
As a side note, this figure is "G-03" of the original
Godzilla Island line, although it was also later
re-released outside of the line with a different
tag that same year.
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