S.H. MonsterArts Mothra 1992

While browsing on eBay, I came across a listing for an unopened, new condition S.H. MonsterArts adult Mothra for a decent price. The seller was from a shop in Irvine, CA., not far from me, so I purchased the figure and it arrived in less than a week. I’ve always wanted to get the adult Mothra from the SHMA line, and this listing was too good to pass up, so now it’s mine. I had considered the possibility of getting the Super7 Mothra, but that figure won’t drop until December, and their stuff tends to be hit and miss. I’m happy to finally own the adult queen of the Monsters.

The figure is sculpted after Mothra’s look from the 1992 film, Godzilla vs. Mothra. Her body is more brown and orange, she sports yellow talon-like claws on her legs, bright blue compact eyes, and of course, those distinctive large, black, orange, yellow and red patterned wings. Everything is sculpted and painted beautifully. Those wings are hard plastic, so make sure she’s sitting securely on the base, so as to not risk the figure tumbling down and experiencing breakage. Speaking of the display stand that’s included, the base is black with yellow artwork of Mothra and Battra, as well as her name. The plastic cradle goes under her legs and abdomen, and then plugs into the stand. It’s a bit flimsy, and not as secure as the one that came with Battra, so be wary of that when displaying her. Perhaps not too high, to avoid a big fall if she should tumble. The base and stand are the only accessories she comes with.

For her articulation, the 2 pairs of wings on each side are on hinges, can move up and down, and are pretty solid as far as holding a pose. I wish that they had slightly more range as far as bending down, and while the bottom pair bends down far, the top pair doesn’t, as the hinge gets in the way of it bending too low. That’s about the only complain I have, and it’s not that big a deal. Her mandibles are on hinges that allow the mouth to open, and she sports ball joints on her neck, head, antennas, several on her abdomen, and 2 hinges on each of her six legs, allowing them stretch out and curl inward. I had watched a few YouTube reviews where several collectors complained about at least one of her legs easily popping out of the base, but thus far, my figure hasn’t had that problem. All the legs stayed on the multiple times I posed her. There were several complaints about the adult Battra’s legs falling off easily as well, but mine didn’t have that issue, either, so I guess I lucked out. Or maybe I just have a light touch….

After wanting an S.H. MonsterArts adult Mothra for years, I’m happy to report that now that I own her, she is totally worth it. She looks absolutely majestic with those big, colorful wings, the articulation is good, and so was the price. Mothra’s look has remained mostly the same, albeit some color changes, and more or less fluff on her body, until the film Giant Monsters All-Out Attack, in which her body was much more wasp-like in appearance. For the Monsterverse, they really changed her look, with a tiny, skinny body and very large wings. I’ve never cared for that version of Mothra (or most of the Monsterverse kaiju cast save for a small handful). I’m more than pleased to have in my possession the classic version of this popular Toho monster. With this purchase, I now own most of the Heisei era SHMA releases, except for Burning Godzilla, Destoroyah, and King Ghidorah (though I’ve preordered the HIYA one).