Godzilla Toys Stand the Test of Time

Occasionally, a movie character comes along that stands the test of time. No character has been featured in films much more often than the creature from the sea, Godzilla. Godzilla was first featured in the 1954 Japanese film, Godzilla, with a heavily edited version released in the United States in 1956 know as Godzilla, King of the Monsters. Since that original Japanese film, Godzilla has appeared in 28 films, as well as, numerous novels, video games, and comic books. However, one of the most popular spin offs of this famous creatures films are Godzilla toys. These detailed action figures became extremely popular following the 1998 Hollywood remake of the Japanese film of the same name starring Matthew Broderick, Jean Reno, Maria Pitillo, and Hank Azaria. Since the release of the film, hundreds of thousands of these Godzilla toys have sold worldwide.

Some Great Godzilla Toys

Although for some reason, most people call this Kaiju Mechagodzilla, it's actualy called Kiryu to keep it from being confused with the other two Mechagodzillas. with a drill hand movable head, arms, and tail and extremely durable, this Kiryu is one that should be added to any Kaiju collection!

What is the one monster that Godzilla fears? Who is the real owner of the name King of Monsters? One need only look at this three-headed, two-tailed golden titan of terror to know the true answer.

King Ghidorah is often positioned as Godzilla's arch-enemy, appearing in more films than any other monster except for the main man himself and his mechanical copy MechaGodzilla. Like all of the residents of Monster Island, he has gone through different looks and incarnations, probably the most drastic being Mecha King Ghidorah from Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah and Kaiser Ghidorah from Final Wars.

The figure here is from the Godzilla 2000 toys series, specifically the third Millennium film Godzilla, Mothra and King Ghidorah - Giant Monsters All-Out Attack. This gives him a much more "dragon"-like feel, rather than the softer look of the Showa period.

This figure is lots of fun, with good enough craftsmanship to be put on view but sturdy enough to be a kid's plaything. The wings are moveable, but the rest of the body is stationary. He is bigger than the other figures in this line, which is appropriate for the character. It is a great figure, and a must-have for any Godzilla toy collection.

This version of Godzilla is one of my favorites. He's looking pretty awesome with the enormous purple fins and savage expression. The pose is pretty unique, too - Godzilla is depicted advancing quickly, with one leg half off the ground.

The arms and legs are posable. I think the tail is, too, but usually turning the tail does nothing but mess up the spine alignment. Another quality effort from Bandai Creations.

As with most of Bandai's Godzilla toys, Gigan here is a beaut. His arms, legs, and head are posable. The tail looks like it should be posable (there's a seam), but you can't budge it. Gigan looks good enough to display on a shelf but is cheap enough and durable enough to make a fine children's toy, as well. This is a great addition to my son's large Godzilla final wars toys collection. I have bought many other Ban Dai toys for him and they make great toys for my son to imagine play with.

My 6-year old Godzilla fan FLIPPED OUT on Christmas Day when he saw this Godzilla. They've been inseparable ever since. I love it - I think it's great. I saw another review that said it was ugly. Well, not sure Godzilla gets so many dates as it is - I think the toy is fantastically well done - surprising detail and quality construction for Godzilla plush toys. That's probably it's only drawback; my son loves it so much it'll soon end up like the velveteen rabbit- all worn, grungy and tired out, but completely loved.

For a Godzilla fan it's a must have! It's th ebiggest figure in my collection and I love it. Painting is done well, spikes on his back are done well. Best part I think is the tail...it's NOT just striaght or has a slight bend to it upward like most of the smaller figs like trendmasters or others. It touches the ground...then angles back, then a lil back forward then upward. Gives the figure a dynamic feel to it...cause in the movies he tail is always moving about and doing stuff.