NECA Shin Godzilla 12-Inch Head-To-Tail Figure – Toyark Photo Shoot

Last Summer, the first Japanese Godzilla film since 2004 was released by Toho. The film, Shin Godzilla, was a complete reboot of the franchise, with no connection to any of the previous installments. The film re-imagined Godzilla as an ever-evolving force of destruction. Throughout the film, Godzilla evolves into larger, deadlier forms. With each form, Shin Godzilla becomes increasingly more powerful, culminating in one of the films best, and most destructive sequences. Much of the marketing for the film focused on Shin Godzilla’s fourth form, which portrays a disfigured creature that looks to be in a constant state of agony. The film gained critical acclaim, even winning Best Picture, Best Director and more in Japan.

It is the fourth form that we are looking at today, in action figure form. NECA’s Shin Godzilla figure was recently released, and Toyark sponsor Dorkside Toys has sent along for the figure for us to check out. After the jump you can find my review and over 40 photos of the figure.

Related Dorkside Toys Links: NECA Shin Godzilla, All NECA Figures

NECA Shin Godzilla 12″ Head-To-Tail Figure

Pros

• Very detailed sculpt
• Lots of articulation throughout
• Small arms have a great range of motion for size
• Tight joints
• Strong paint work
• Surprisingly heavy for size

Cons

• Head seems elongated compared to film version

Overall
The Shin Godzilla design has been a polarizing topic since it was first revealed. Some absolutely love it, and it feels like more people have warmed up to it as time has gone on. After seeing parts of the film, the design makes much more sense in context. For me, I do appreciate it more than when it was initially revealed, but the design still isn’t one of my favorites. The proportions always felt a little odd, especially with the design being so bottom heavy. Though, the super destructive “final form” from the movie, to me, was the best form in the film. I do have a feeling that future films in the franchise will further evolve Shin Godzilla, as the movie only ever showed him in a constant state of evolution. The ending of the film heavily points to that.

As for the figure, it does a really nice job of portraying the fourth form from the movie. The sculpting for this design could easily make or break the figure. The design is so heavily textured and full of gaping wounds instead of the heavy scales of previous Godzilla’s. NECA did a nice job of bringing those details to a figure of this size. From top to bottom, the figure is full of heavy scarring, wounds, and assorted texturing. The head sculpt feels a little elongated in the snout compared to the film, but it is just as gruesome as you would expect. The jagged and crooked teeth combined with the nearly perfectly round looking eyes gives off a look of agony. The sculpted details give way to some strong articulation on here. The legs have some solid range of motion, the tail has a mix of smaller and larger ball joints and the torso, neck and head all have full ball joints. The jaw is also articulated. The tiny arms have a surprising amount of articulation, with nice movement in the shoulders, elbows and wrists. The paint deco compliments the sculpting nicely. The blackened, almost charred looking skin features some nice subtle transitions in color, while each crack and crevice is filled with a fiery colored red paint.

NECA’s Shin Godzilla is a worthwhile addition to the NECA Godzilla line up. It’s got a solid sculpt, good articulation, and a nice weight to it. The MosnterArts version may wind up being a bit more movie accurate, but at under $20, this is a great pick up. You can see a few select photos below and the full gallery after that.