Burning Godzilla [Godzilla Monster Series 5"]

November 2025 is clearly the month of Burning Godzilla. With the 30th anniversary of Godzilla vs. Destoroyah in December, the all-new Fest Godzilla II: Shinjuku Burning released earlier this month, and, well... I got a bunch of related toys recently and decided to cover them in November. Godzilla Day and all — it made sense.

Today we're looking at the Burning Godzilla 5" counterpart to the Destoroyah I talked about last week. As I reiterate every time I talk about a toy from this line, I've really grown to love the Godzilla Monster Series 5" figures. I repeat it for two reasons. One, it's true. Two, this is the internet — you've got to repeat yourself constantly.

I don’t believe I’ve covered a Heisei era Godzilla in this series here on the site yet. However, in some aspects, there’s not much new when it comes to this figure. It’s got the same articulation you expect from this style of Godzilla toy: legs move at the hips, arms swivel at the upper bicep, and the tail swivels... because you have to attach it after opening the box. I don’t think that actually counts as a joint, but movement is movement. Of course, these aren’t the type of figures you buy for articulation.

To quote Billy Bob Thornton from the classic movie Sling Blade, “No sir, I don’t reckon.” Then he said uh huh a million times and ate a shit ton of mustard. These types of figures make great representations of classic screen monsters — and that’s exactly what this figure is.

Seriously, why did he eat so much mustard?

The sculpting on Godzilla is really great. It might just be another Godzilla to some folks, but for fans, the differences are crystal clear. Godzilla looks a great deal like the MogeGoji suit used at the time. Of course, he’s in the traditional Godzilla colors except for the burning detail that makes Burning Godzilla stand out. Don’t ask me why a slowly dying Godzilla looks so great, but dammit — it looks amazing.

All that radioactive dermatitis looks beautiful despite probably hurting like hell. A wonderful mix of coppery reds and oranges extends to his spinal plates so perfectly. The nuclear meltdown inside has even tinted Godzilla’s eyes to match. Every cloud has a silver lining, apparently — because, you know, he’s dying here. But it’s so pretty. His internal pain has resulted in beautifully red and orange eyes that just look so good.

No wonder Godzilla is so angry — here he is in pain, and I’m telling him how great he looks. Sorry, big guy. I’d give you a hug but... well, you’d step on me. Clearly I don’t have anything bad to say about this toy. It’s a wonderful depiction of a memorable version of Godzilla that thankfully doesn’t cost much. How can I find any fault in that?

Destoroyah [Godzilla Monster Series 5"]

Godzilla vs. Destoroyah is turning 30 this year, and in case last week’s Burning Godzilla Egg Monster post wasn’t a clear indicator, we’re spending some time observing it. This is also totally by coincidence, because I got some toys related to that movie a few weeks ago and am just now getting around to talking about them.

Regardless, it’s an AWESOME movie that came out my senior year of high school and felt so much more dangerous and edgy at the time than it actually is. I was 17 and it was the 90s, bear with me.

This Destoroyah is from Bandai’s 5-inch Godzilla Monster Series vinyl figures, which I’ve become a fan of over the past year. Just the right size and just the right price. And yes, I know the regular-sized Bandai vinyls were $9 a few years ago. It sucks. We’re all pissed about it. Moving on.

This is a great little figure of Destoroyah. Like, the sculpting is really great. I’ve always liked his design, and it’s really appreciated here. Destoroyah is a kaiju that began life as a colony of Precambrian crustaceans exposed to the undersea conditions created when the Oxygen Destroyer detonated in 1954. They mutated and evolved into the monster we have today.

So yes — a bunch of sea bugs got super-powered into a giant death demon because of the nuclear anti-oxygen murder bomb from the first movie. Shit happens. It’s crazy.

For what’s essentially a cheaper toy, Destoroyah looks freaking amazing. His sculpting is excellent and brings out all that nuclear-powered evil. Unfortunately there’s not much articulation to speak of — you can twist the tail and adjust the wings a bit. However, you don’t buy these figures to do the fucking Iron Man pose in your detolf. You buy them because you love these monsters and just want them around. Put him next to your movie collection or by the PlayStation... or in that detolf. He'll look great.

Speaking of, that red really pops. The color looks amazing, and those giant wings? Perfect. I love this design. It’s just pure horror in rubber suit form. I’ve always felt like Gigatron from Car Robots / Megatron from Robots in Disguise (2001) borrowed from his look. If only there was a red version. Honestly, I can’t say anything bad about this. I freaking love it.