Mechagodzilla

Review by VIR

Mechagodzilla: a harbinger of death and tyranny. Created by the alien race known as The Simians, Mechagodzilla exists for one reason: to be a vessel through which the human race is subjugated. Not even the mighty Godzilla can stop the unyielding destruction of Mechagodzilla!

With this, Bandai gives us the Classic Mechagodzilla vinyl figure from the Toho tokusatsu film Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla. A retro representation of a classic character, this vinyl piece is sure to please any and all Godzilla and vinyl fans.

Godzilla 6.5 Inch Vinyl Figure Classic Mechagodzilla

Let’s review:

Aesthetics:
Mechagodzilla is one of my all time favorite robots. Having gasket joints, being covered in exposed bolt heads, and having an arsenal to rival the largest army, it pretty much declares everything I love about giant robots.

You get four colors: orange, red, gray, and different gray. The dark gray helps split up the monotony of the light gray so the overall figure looks complete rather than unfinished. The red and orange explode out from the grays and are very nice to see.

This being vinyl, the paint apps aren’t spectacular in anyway (one could even call them somewhat sloppy). That’s not to say that they are bad, though. The two grays are consistently tight but pretty much slathered on, and the reds and oranges have overspray. The only excuse here is that it’s vinyl; what really were you expecting?

The sculpt and detail on this figure are great. Every bolt head, every gasket ridge, every riveted sheet of metal is represented here. Its arms and legs have sculpted angles and folds in them to emulated the suit used in the movie, and each arm and leg are a different piece; a lot of love went into this figure, I can tell.

Articulation:
Being made of vinyl, you get what you expect: swivel joints at the head, shoulders, hips, and waist. Mechagodzilla doesn’t move in a great way, but each joint does sport 360 degrees of rotation.

While MG doesn’t do a whole awful lot, one can still get some pretty cool looking poses out of it:

Yeah. . . MG will stand there real good.

Mechagodzilla stands at 6.5 inches tall.
Being made out of hollow vinyl, he doesn’t have great heft or presence; he’s pretty light. Of course, once again, it’s vinyl.

Accessories:
Mechagodzilla comes with a hefty dose of nostalgia.
Other than that, nothing.

Gimmicks:
At this day and age, I would count being made of vinyl as a gimmick (and a really nice one). Things being made of vinyl is pretty much reserved for designer toys or retro figures. This line of vinyl figures coming out is to tickle the sofubi otaku in each of us, not the regular suburban child.

Closing Remarks:
Mechagodzilla is—quite frankly—a really cool robot.
Vinyl is—quite frankly—a very magical substance.
When these two ideas are put together in one package, I can’t help but love it. This Mechagodzilla toy is a wonderful representation of a classic character and a long lived tradition of sofubi Godzilla toys. If you like Godzilla, robots, exposed bolt heads, and vinyl, then do yourself a favor and pick this guy up.