The 3rd Showa entry to the S.H. MonsterArts line (or 4th if you count the 1964 repaint “Emergence Godzilla” release) is a very welcome one in the form of MechaGodzilla 1974. With, at the time of this writing, the 3rd release of another version of Kiryu, it’s nice to see the original badass robot hit the scene.
Details
Design wise, I’m pretty happy with this figure. I especially like the little wrinkles on the sculpt which makes it look like the actual suit. It’s got a good weight to it too and the undersides of the feet are die cast. Tilting the head downward really gives it that sinister look which makes MechaGodzilla look awesome. It’s also nice that he’s able to transform into his flight mode as well.
Articulation
The mouth can open and close, and the hands can rotate 360 degrees. The shins can also rotate 360 degrees as well. When it comes time to do some arm articulation, there’s a slight problem but it’s easily fixable. At the shoulders, there are 4 rings mean to simulate the hose ridges on the suit. There have been reports of the rings falling inside the figure (which isn’t actually possible because there’s no opening so this can happen), which cause a lot of confusion and complaints online and in review videos. The good news is that there is a very simple fix for this issue as demonstrated in this video:
I was unaware of this method prior to shooting the photos and as you can see, the ring count is uneven. This method is VERY helpful for unsticking those shoulder rings.
The shoulders can move 360 degrees and The neck and move back and forth a little bit and side to side while the head can move 360 degrees. The legs can rotate 360 degrees and they can move outwards and inwards for various poses.
In putting MechaGodzilla in flight mode, the head easily moves straight up and you can easily straighten the tail out.
MechaGodzilla comes with extra hands (with missing missile fingers to make it look like they’ve been fired). Also included is the beam effect, stand and base. The effect part has a hole where you’re supposed to insert the stand. The hole in the beam effect that I have is defective due to the hole being shallow. For the photo, I had to just place it on the stand. From what I can see, I’m the only one with this problem so it seems to be an isolated issue. To open up the chest piece to position the beam, simply push the bottom of the chest panel open.
I’ve included the instruction sheet that came with the figure for this review for those who want more detailed instructions.
For paint, circular sections on MechaGodzilla’s head are a tad sloppy but really not a big deal. The cool metallic red paint looks real nice on the figure. Even the missile tips in the mouth are painted nicely. The yellow circle (?) in the chest is perfectly painted and so are the eyes which are painted clear plastic.
There are nice little touches here though. For example, the mid section has a darker discoloration to match its screen counterpart. The hands do too but you’d have to look a lot closer to notice. The rest of the figure is painted in an all over silver paint job which looks great.
Overall
MechaGodzilla is a cool figure but I feel is a little over priced at almost $90. Still, it’s great to see such a cool design enter the S.H. MonsterArts line and it’s nice to see another Showa era monster in the line. It’s a worthy addition to collectors of the line or for those who just want an awesome looking figure. You can’t go wrong with MechaGodzilla 1974!
**Below are a number of bonus images, including a scan of the instruction manual, Mechagodzilla in flight mode, and various close-ups.**
