Bandai S.H. MonsterArts Series, King Ghidorah 91 – Bandai S.H. MonsterArts Godzilla Series has been the recent rage in the Godzilla Collecting Hobby. From praises for articulation to accurate representations of Godzilla and its kaiju foes to disdain for the series high aftermarket prices and poor quality. Bandai recent release of King Ghidorah has turned into an excellent example of this. Lets take a closer look at the Bandai S.H. MonsterArts King Ghidorah.
Packaging for the S.H. MonsterArts King Ghidorah is very eye catching. The box itself is very large and measures roughly 14″ in height and width, resulting in shipping and the overall cost being rather high. King Ghidorah itself is complete and requires no assembly. The figure is nicely secured in platic support trays to prevent damage. idn poker
The back of the packaging shows King Ghidorah in several poses, including firing its rays, flying, and facing off with S.H. MonsterArts Godzilla. https://www.benchwarmerscoffee.com/
Once removed from its packaging, I first inspected the head and necks and found a wide range in articulation. All three heads can be postion as desired with minimal limitations. All three mouths can be opened and even the tongues can be slightly reposition. https://www.benchwarmerscoffee.com/
As seen on the Bandai S.H. MonsterArts Godzilla, King Ghidorahs jaws can become offset when opened. Fortunately this does not look as distracting on King Ghidorah as it does on Godzilla. The horns on the heads of King Ghidorah have some bend, but I can see these breaking if the figure is dropped. The teeth and whiskers below the jaws are solid and could possibly break if not handled with care. https://www.benchwarmerscoffee.com/
Next, I examine the controversial wings and was surprised when the figure came apart on me at the midsection. I was not alarmed for the figure easily reattaches, but I was able to take a closer look at the componets that support King Ghidorahs wings.
I was very suprised that a small base of plastic supports the joints for the wings. I have heard reports that when you attempt to adjust the position of the wing at the high end, it is a sure risk that base will snap. It appears to me if this figure is even dropped, that base will snap. I would suspect glue can be used to re-attach the wing if broken. This is clearly a poor design and may limit the production of this figure. If any adjustment is made to the wings, it should be handled closest to the body. I do question how long the base can support the wings overtime. The wings do appear sturdy, but say, displayed in the flying position. I question if that base can break due to the weight of the wings. You must also take care with the spikes on the ends of the wings. I can see these easily breaking as well.
I examined the legs and the tails next. While the legs and feet have articulation, there is not any positions to put King Ghidorah while standing, but the feet can be reposition and put back for the flying postion. The tails has a wide range of articulation and due to the tails being so long, there is minimal risk of the figure falling face forward. Unfortunately, when looking at the back of the figure, noticable gaps are found on the back and even the wings. Since this figure is best viewed from the front, the gaps are not noticeable, but it is a shame the gaps can be seen. The end of the tail has many spikes and while there is some flexibility in the spikes, you would still want to use care not to break any
The S.H. MonsterArts King Ghidorah includes rays and a display stand to show King Ghidorah doing an allout attack.
The display stand supports rays for all three heads and due to the wide range of articulation the figure has, multiple displays can be achieved.
The problem I find with displaying the rays is there is no sturdiness with the display. The rays are simply placed in King Ghidorahs mouths and just rest on the supports. If you move one head, it’s possible all the rays will fall off the supports and mouths.
One of the most important things to a Godzilla Collector is scale and the S.H. MonsterArts King Ghidorah and Godzilla fit perfect together. I did attempt to recreate the famous “Stranglehold” scene from “Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah 91”. It didn’t come out as good as it did in the film, but had fun trying.
Dispite the flaws I see in this figure, Bandai did a heck of a job doing an excellent representation of King Ghidorah 91. Outside of a model kit, this is the best version of King Ghidorah 91 out there today. It is a shame for a toy to have so much articulation, yet must handle with care. I wonder if Bandai will redesign the support for the wings for future re-releases, but considering the price and the size of the packaging, this may result in this figure not being a big seller, so a second run of this series may be unlikely. Overall, the Bandai S.H. Monsters King Ghidorah 91 is an impressive figure. The detail and size is amazing. While I’m not a fan of the ray accesory, I was very pleased with how King Ghidorah looked with the rays. If you are into the S.H. MonsterArts Series, I do recommend adding King Ghidorah to your collection.