NECA Godzilla 84/85 reissue

I went ahead and picked up the new NECA GODZILLA 84/85 reissue since they made several new changes to it. They made several improvements to the sculpt. Let's check it out.

The first thing to note is that it comes in one of the new boxes that reproduce the poster of the movie that the figure is from. The new boxes are really nice and colorful. The first change that you immediately notice on the figure is that his dorsal spines are larger and remodeled in a more detailed sculpt. The light paint apps really allow the pattern to stand out. The figure is molded in a lighter grey color, whereas the 1st release was a darker blue. The new spines are a huge improvement that make the figure look much better.

Everything else on the figure seems about the same, including a bendable tail like the older figures. I wish they had sculpted it in different sections like the newer releases. The new figure has dark shading on the chest lines, as well as on his cheeks (as you can see in the above photo). The darker spots on his cheeks really stand out in light, and they look odd when you really notice them. Other than that, the paint is great.

The articulation seems improved over the 1st release. There is a new hinge on the wrists that allow them to move inward and out. The head, neck sections, shoulders, thighs, waist and tail are on ball joints. The elbows and knees have swivels and hinges, and the feet can pivot and rock. And finally, the mouth can open and close. The lower jaw seems smaller and it doesn't open as much as the initial release, but it also makes the face look more natural from the profile, whereas the older figure looked a bit odd from the sides. Even though most of the joints are the same, some of their movements seem smoother on the new one, especially the neck. I feel like his head can now tilt more from side to side.

I would say that the new resculpted dorsal spines and lighter color, as well as the new box, make the reissue worth getting. There are a few more tweaks they could've done to make the figure really great, like a thicker, segmented tail, or including an extra or 2 like the Super-X ship, but what they did is an improvement. The 84 suit is one of my favorites, so I'm happy with it. No other company has a highly articulated 84, and S.H. Monsterarts hasn't released an 84 either, so this is your best bet. And NECA figures are quite affordable as well, so that's also something to consider.

The next figures we'll get from NECA will be the 89 and 2002 sculpts, both of which look nice. I plan on getting the 89 sculpt for certain. Now if NECA would just give us a 55, 67, 68 and 75 sculpt, I'll be tickled atomic.

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