Hello everyone, welcome back to another toy review. This time we are focusing on one of two of NECA's latest releases in their Godzilla figure line: Godzilla 89 (aka Bio-Goji). This version of Godzilla first appeared in the 1989 movie Godzilla vs Biollante. In the aftermath of Godzilla's return and causing mayhem all over Tokyo, a piece of Godzilla's skin was discovered during the clean up and through mad science, Godzilla's cells were blended with the cells of a rose and the cells of a scientist's dead daughter. This caused a mutation forming into the plant monster Biollante. However, Japan has grave news. Godzilla had escaped from his volcanic prison and is seeking to challenge the abomination of a clone the humans had created.
NECA had announced that in mid-August they will no longer be making nor selling Godzilla merchandise due to their license expiring. This announcement has caused this release and Godzilla 2003 the most sought out toys by collectors of July. Is NECA's Godzilla 89 figure worth the purchase or does it sink like the Titanic? Let's dive in and take a look.
Packaging:
Ever since NECA released their Godzilla 2019 line, they have been releasing new figures and rereleasing older figures with the new packaging and the trend continues with this release. On the front of the box we see the poster for Godzilla vs Biollante. The poster was illustrated by Noriyoshi Ohrai, which has done many illustrated posters for the Heisei Godzilla series from Godzilla Returns in 1984/85 up to Godzilla vs Destroyah in 1995. The poster is really the main focus of the packaging as that is what fans admire most and to this day the poster still holds up amazingly well as a piece of art.
Inside the box, you will see a promo picture of the toy on the flap and a window where you can see the Godzilla 89 figure inside the box.
On the back of the box, two more promotional pictures can be found and the description of the movie down at the bottom. The movie description reads, "Emerging from a fiery pit in Mount Mihara, Godzilla returns to wreak havoc once more! Drawn to Ashinoko Lake, the creature faces off against a hybrid monster created from the cells of a human, a rose, and even Godzilla! Will Godzilla's strength and power be enough to defeat the might and ferocity of Biollante? Or has Godzilla met his match?"
Paint and Sculpt:
Godzilla 89 is beautifully sculpted. He really looks like he was pulled straight out of the movie. Most of the body is charcoal grey and has a green wash that can be seen under certain lighting. The face looks amazing at how close it looks to Godzilla in the film with the ridges and wrinkles. However, when the mouth is open all they way then he looks like his jaw broke and his face would look kind of goofy. So Godzilla 89 looks his best with his mouth closed or partially open. At least it allows us to see inside the mouth clearly and the tongue is painted maroon or a color like it. The teeth are like a dirty white or a yellow color. It is kind of hard to tell the color, but the teeth are also nicely sculpted. I also like the tan color on the nails of his claws and toes. They looks dirty like Godzilla has been walking the streets of Tokyo and crushing buildings. There are some minor scuffs on his left claw, but it doesn't bother me at all.
The dorsal fins down the middle are made of a softer plastic where as the rest of the dorsal fins are using same tougher plastic as the rest of the figure. The dorsal fins are using the same white paint that we've seen with the previous figures from NECA like Godzilla 62 and 64 versions. I am not too big of a fan if the paint they used for dorsal fins. When I did my review on Godzilla 62 I mentioned how the paint seemed to be chipping off and I had to go and repaint the dorsal fins. For now, the paint is not chipping or rubbing off and I hope it stays that way.
Articulation:
Godzilla 89 has a great range of articulation allowing you to pose him in almost any pose you desire. Godzilla's entire body is made up of ball joints for the most. The only parts of the body that are not ball joints are the jaw, shoulders, elbows, wrists, hands, knees, and the tip of the tail.
The mouth and the hands are on hinges so you can have the mouth open or closed or have Godzilla looking like he is about to throw a punch if you desire. The shoulders, elbows, wrists, and knees are swivel-hinge combo joints. They kind of act like ball joints, but the range is a little more limited than a ball joint. The tip of the tail is on a bendy wire, which actually scares me because of the stories I hear about them snapping if used too much. However in this case, I don't have to worry about using the bendy wire tail since the rest of the tail are all ball joints and it already flows without having to move the bendy wire at all.
When taking the figure out of the package, the first thing that needs to be done is to heat it up with hot water or a blow dryer. When I first started playing with mine a lot of the joints were not moving at all so I used hot water to wake up those joints. You will also need to dip the socket in the tail in hot water since the tail comes unattached and it is impossible to assemble the tail without that hot water bath.
Accessories and Size Comparison:
Godzilla 89 comes with a beam effect part for Godzilla to use. The white and pearl blue colors remind me of mint gum or listerine mouth wash. It looks so sparkly. To use the effect part you need to have Godzilla's mouth open and align the effect part with the mouth. You can tell which way to insert the beam based on the imprint of the lower jaw on the stem of the beam. Once the beam is inserted, Godzilla is now ready to destroy Tokyo or Biollante with his atomically mint fresh breath.
Godzilla 89 stands 6 1/2" tall, so he is a little taller than your regular 6" Godzilla figure. Standing next to him are Godzilla 2003 (standing 7" tall) and Godzilla 2019 (standing roughly 6" tall) both from NECA. You will need to make about the same amount of room for any other 6" figure on a shelf. I do not have the S.H. MonsterArts Biollante figure with me at the moment, but as soon as I find her I will post more images on here showing the size. However, I heard they do scale fairly well together. So once I find her more images will be posted.
Final Thoughts:
In these final moments for the Godzilla line, NECA really blew expectations for me. I am going to claim right now that this is almost as good as S.H. MonsterArts Godzilla figures. NECA went all out with careful attention to detail in the sculpt, the paint looks neatly applied and nicely colored, and the range of articulation is almost flawless. If you have been debating on whether or not to pick this guy up, do not wait another second. The price for this figure has already jumped from the regular $25 to $30 due to these figures being constantly sold out online and in stores. I recommend looking for them in your local comic book shop. That is where I found both Godzilla 89 and the 2003 figures. Again, do not sit on this. August is just around the corner and these figures do not last on store shelves for very long.
That's it for this review! Next up, I have NECA's Godzilla 2003 figure, which should be up some time tomorrow. Then, I will post my thoughts on NECA's Godzilla line as a whole. And lastly, I will have my review for the PlayMates Toys 11" Giant Kong figure later in the week. Do you have the Godzilla 89 figure? If so, what are your thoughts on the figure? If not, are you planning to pick one up? Let me know in the comments section on your thoughts on NECA's Godzilla 89 figure. Make sure to follow me on my Facebook, Twitter, and Minds pages to stay up to date for more news, reviews, and discussions.