SH MONSTERARTS GIGAN (1972) | Figure Review

Did you guys know my favorite monster from the Godzilla series besides the Big G himself is Gigan?
Yeah, I think I might've mentioned it a couple of times...

Whether it's the classic Showa design or the badass Millennium update, Gigan will always hold a special place in my heart. So it goes without saying that an SH MonsterArts figure of the Showa version was long overdue in my book (along with the MUTO's, but I guess we'll see how Hiya Toys does with their upcoming figure...)

And, OH...
MY.
MOTHRA!

This figure looks incredible. The sculpt is damn near immaculate. Every time I look at this thing from head to tail, I find myself amazed at how detailed this figure looks.
The visor especially stands out nicely.

The paint work is pretty good as well. I've noticed the green might be a tad darker than what we're used to with Gigan but I really like it a lot. The gold compliments the figure well. I did notice a few stray spots on my figure that didn't get painted though, but that's not a big issue for me with this figure, we'll get to that later. The silver on the horns, claws and spikes look on point and yes...they are varying degrees of sharp!
I also really like what they did with the tips of Gigan's fins. 

I really cannot express enough how much I love this Gigan figure. You could tell me I'm looking at a shrunken version of the actual suit and I'd believe you!

Gigan has a decent bit of articulation, but it's here where things might get a bit iffy. 

Gigan's head can't look up too high but it can look down pretty far. He can look left/right and the neck can tilt side to side. 
The mouth can open, though not very wide and the mandibles can move in and out, just handle them gently.

The torso is completely immobile. I've heard some complaints that the buzzsaw can't at least move up and down. But honestly, it's not something I'm losing sleep over. 

Gigans arms are capable of rotating all the way at the shoulder. The elbows do bend, but maybe not as much as you'd like. At least the forearms can rotate freely.

The legs can move forward/backward and in and out, but you'll probably have to maneuver the thigh piece a bit to do it. We have a pretty good bend at the knee and the feet can rotate and pivot. The feet on my Gigan like to pop off a lot.

As for Gigan's tail, I'm happy that the spikes on this tail are nowhere near as fragile as the ones on the 2004 figures meaning I can handle this tail without much worry. The movement of the tail is very nice and it can hold a pose well. The movement is hindered a bit by the lower tips of the fins.

Oh yeah...I didn't mention the fins when talking about the body, did I?
Well, here come my issues.

This figure is advertised as having moveable fins to get Gigan into a flight mode. To do this, you'll have to gently pull them up at the base, exposing one delicate looking joint holding the fins and you can move them side to side and even rotate the outer fins if you're insane enough. Just looking at this one little joint, it looks so fragile and thanks to many rumors of it breaking, I'm now not ever going to handle the fins on my Gigan, ever. 

If you want my humble opinion, I don't think the fins should have been movable anyway. Because that's not even what Gigan looks like when he's flying, THIS is:

I'm going full fanboy here and I don't care. Go watch Godzilla vs. Gigan, Godzilla vs. Megalon or even the Zone Fighter episode with Gigan in it, that's what his fins look like when he's flying.
If I'd have been in charge of this release, I'd have the sails removable via several pegs and replaceable with the fight mode sails. Oh, and included an appropriate flight stand.
But without any of that, or even a hypothetical laser effect part, I do have to ask why does this figure costs over $100? I get that this was to commemorate the 50th Anniversary of 'Godzilla vs. Gigan', but I dunno, does that really justify the recent trend of pricing figures without accessories nearly the same price as ones that do?

But with all that said, I do have to say I am pleased with this figure regardless. Being a Gigan superfan, the sculpt and paint of this figure is more than enough to get me to not regret purchasing it for my collection. If you can get him, go for it. If you can get him for a deal, even better.

Till next time, I have been your host Gryphon

and thank you for joining me here in my lair.

So long...

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