Welcome back, collectors. In this review, I will be taking a look at the last figure (hopefully) of the wave 1 PlayMates Toys Godzilla vs Kong figures: the Skull Crawler. The Skull Crawler first appeared as the main antagonist in Kong: Skull Island and looks like it will be making a return in Godzilla vs Kong. Ever since Lanard Toys released their Kong: Skull Island figures, fans have been praying for an articulated and highly detailed Skull Crawler figure. Has PlayMates Toys answered their prayers or has PlayMates Toys flushed their hopes and wishes down the toilet? Let's dive in and find out if this is worth the $10 purchase at Walmart.
Packaging:
By now, you know the drill for these figures. The Skull Crawler comes in an open box type packaging. On the front of the box, you will find the movie's title, the promo image for the battle damage gimmick, the logos, and the name of the figure. The movie's title is on the left side of the box and the name of the figure is on the right side of the box.
Doing the same dance with the back of the box, you can find the movie synopsis on the top right corner. In the middle is another promotional image for the figure with the HEAV. The name of the HEAV is a spoiler, but I will go over what it is in the "Accessories" section of the review. On the left of the promotional image is the toy's description, which reads, "The most dangerous superspecies on Skull Island, the ferocious SkullCrawler attacks with razor-sharp claws and whiplash tail to dominate opponents in battle!"
On the bottom of the box, you will find more promotional images for other figures. Some of them are already out except for the two new figures, Kong with Jet Fighter and another monster that I cannot reveal yet. If you know the name of the monster that is censored then please don't spoil it in the comments section in consideration of others that want to watch this movie blind.
Sculpt, Paint, and Articulation:
This Skull Crawler figure is not based on any known toys that were released by previous companies. This means this toy is all brand new and it looks pretty good. Even though some details like the chest are smoothed out the details are still noticeable. Most of the body is painted with regular grey color, but the first thing you will notice is the red highlight that starts from the head, runs down the spine, and stops at the base of the tail. To have the red stop at the base of the tail does look a little odd to me. I would've preferred to have red run down to the tip of the tail. In Kong: Skull Island, the Skull Crawlers did not have this red highlight in the movie. So could this version be a new species or could it be a design choice from PlayMates Toys? We will have to wait and see when Godzilla vs Kong arrives in theaters.
If you remove the back end of the Skull Crawler, it will reveal the battle damage gimmick like on the other figures. It would've been cool if the spine was painted bone white instead of the whole inside being just red. This is just so the spine is more noticeable and not hidden from the muscle part of the battle damage gimmick.
The Skull Crawler's face has a lighter shade of grey or a bone white color that really gives the meaning to the name. The creature literally looks like a skull that crawls. As for the eyes, they're okay, I guess. It is so small that it is hardly noticeable unless you got a closer look. The eyes are painted yellow with a black dot for pupils. As you can see on mine, one of them looks misaligned with the area where the eye is suppose to be painted, but like I said. They eyes are hardly noticeable unless you got a closer look.
When it comes to articulation, this Skull Crawler has a few points of articulation. The jaw is on a hinge so it can open really wide and close. The shoulders and elbows are on swivel-hinge combo joints so it can stand taller or shorter or have running, charging, or reaching or you can have it re-enact a scene from Titanic. The tail is on a stationary ball joint so you can twist and turn the tail, but you're not going to make wag or tail-swipe another monster. Despite having a small amount of articulation, plenty of fun can be found with this figure.
Accessories (Spoilers):
In this section of the review I will be talking about a spoiler. This is only a minor spoiler, but if you want to skip this part of the review you can scroll past this section and head straight to the "Size Comparison" section of the review.
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PlayMates Toys Skull Crawler comes with a new vehicle in the movie called HEAV. The HEAV is an acronym for "Hollow Earth Anti-gravity Vehicle". Even though the movie's synopsis revealed that the movie will be exploring the hollow earth how the characters get to the hollow earth is what makes this new contraption a minor spoiler. If you have seen Underwater, you will know why traveling at such low depths is dangerous. The deeper you go, the heavier the pressure. My guess is that in Godzilla vs Kong this machine will suppress that pressure when they get closer to the hollow earth. How it will move is also debatable. I have heard some people speculate that it could hover, but by looking at the sides of the vehicle it looks like vents and the legs of the vehicle look like they can walk more than it can hover. Who knows, maybe it does hover.
Size Comparison:
Here is the Skull Crawler with the rest of the PlayMates Toys Godzilla vs Kong figures, S.H. MonsterArts Godzilla 2019 and King Kong 2005, and the NECA Godzilla 2019 figure. This Skull Crawler is the shortest standing at 3.75" tall. However, it is also 12" in length making the Skull Crawler the longest figure among the 6" PlayMates Toys figures in this line. So some shelf space will be required. While it is a PlayMates figure, this Skull Crawler can definitely fit in with the NECA Godzilla figures and maybe with the S.H. MonsterArts King Kong.
Final Thoughts:
PlayMates Toys Skull Crawler w/ HEAV has a pretty good sculpt and paint is questionable since we have not seen the movie yet. However, it does have a good range of articulation mainly being the arms. I think this is another action figure from PlayMates Toys that you should not pass up on. Always a reminder that this figure and the rest of these toys are meant to be played with by kids and not really meant to be collected. Yet, I think you will find plenty of fun with this figure.
What are your thoughts on PlayMates Toys Skull Crawler? Do you think it's one of the better figures in the line or do you have a different impression? Leave a comment in the comments section on your thoughts on the PlayMates Toys Skull Crawler figure. Make sure to follow me on my Facebook, Twitter, and Minds pages to stay up to date for more news, reviews, and discussions.