On Holiday

You're used to seeing a new week post at this time... well... it's a holiday weekend. I'm taking some very much needed time off to recharge my batteries. Instead this week will start tomorrow and today is something of an anomaly. Sorry for the break in schedule, I just really needed some rest. Thanks everyone for reading Zone Base! It means so much to me to see you all enjoying my nonsense. Regular posting will resume tomorrow.

I Don't Say He's Got To Go

I've not been covering Playmates Godzilla vs Kong toys here much for no particular reason. So I thought I'd do something about that as I have some and plan on buying more. With the movie's release date changed again (I fucking swear...) it seams like a good time. 

I've talked about Playmates general Godzilla line here before and have been pretty positive about it. This isn't the same line, it's literally an action figure line. Not soft or hard vinyl, action figures similar to the Godzilla toys Trendmasters produced in the 90's. I can only hope these guys get Cyborg Armor too. That'd be freaking amazing. *cough*

As you can probably guess the line has multiple versions of Godzilla and Kong in it. There's also a few other kaiju from the Monsterverse thrown in for good measure. Today I'm talking about the Godzilla with Heat Ray figure. I first typed 'hat' instead of ;'heat' and now I really want to see Godzilla with a hat ray.

This figure is from the standard assortment (there's a giant/mega size class as well) and might be the same mold as the Godzilla with Radio Tower figure. I don't have that one yet, but it looks like it is. The difference would be the paint job and included accessory. 

This figure has a much darker skin with super nice looking translucent blue back plates. He comes with a 'heat ray' burst of flames meant to represent his atomic breath. The 'heat ray' part is the same colored plastic as the back plates, which looks nice. Clearly Godzilla is charging up that blast. 

His mouth is articulated to open or close. Obviously when inserting the 'heat ray' piece, you'll need it open. It doesn't just prop up in there either. There's a little ball joint that inserts into his upper mouth. Usually these companies bullshit that kinda of thing, so I found the insertion point pretty nice. 

The figures in the standard range have removable battle damage similar to older Jurassic Park toys. Just a satisfying chunk of meat that can get ripped off exposing the gore underneath. The chunk is a rubbery piece that snaps into place pretty well and doesn't fall off easily. Godzilla is reasonably articulated. Head swivels, half the tail is on a ball joint (has to be snapped on after opening package). Legs move at his hips and arms on shoulders for tearing high tension wires down.

No matter who makes the figure, you can only expect so much articulation on a Godzilla toy. Anything over that is a plus. It's a good figure, I can't really find any faults with it. For all the negativity I've seen in kaiju groups on the Playmates Godzilla toys, I've been steadily enjoying them. Each his own I suppose. The line is exclusive to Walmart here in the states. I kinda love it.

Kong Is King And This Toy Is Pretty Good Too

Playmates new Godzilla and Kong toy line is starting to show up at my local stores. My wife snuck a few of them into my birthday presents last week with much appreciation. Kong here represents his appearance from Skull Island in the standard line, while there is a larger figure available as well (I'm getting that too, no worry). I'm admittedly smitten with the Monsterverse's version of Kong, but dang I love this toy. While the Bandai toys that preceded Playmates line were sofubi figures, these new toys are outright action figures similar to the Trendmasters line from the 90's. I have noticed Playmates reissuing some of the Bandai sofubi toys, so maybe they're doing some distributing for Bandai as well. I'd love that.

Kong is roughly in scale with the standard kaiju figure around 6-7". He has a solid hard plastic body with a more rubbery plastic for his arms, legs, and head. Think of the build used in a 80's He-Man figure and you're not far off. Kong's arms and legs move classic swivel joint style like a Kenner Star Wars figure and now I'm imagining him driving an X-Wing. Not too shabby. His feet also swivel helping to stabilize him while standing. Those long gorilla arms can throw off the weight a bit. His head is on more of a ball joint allowing for a greater range of movement. This may not seem like much, but thanks to his nice head sculpt, it adds a lot more personality when having Kong look around.

I have a hard time not loving Kong or Godzilla as is. I literally feel my chest swell with happiness whenever the subject comes up. The amount of exhilaration I felt as I was playing with this toy, let alone talking about it now, is off the charts. I'm really happy Playmates took over the license. Not that I didn't love what Bandai has been doing, it's because I'm so happy with this toy. I'm excited for the line in general and look forward to more releases. When the Kong Vs Godzilla movie comes out, I might go nuts grabbing figures. I've seen a few leaked pics and man they look great.

Doom Island Sounds Like A Nice Place

I've yet to find the Playmates Godzilla figures at my local stores. To be fair, last years assortments were a little slow to stock as well. I've seen the larger Kong and Godzilla, but not the standard size. When I see folks in kaiju group getting them, I'm reminded a bit of the Trendmasters Godzilla toys of the 90's. Some are similar to the Bandai vinyl toys (some are reissues of those too), some are outright action figures. I prefer the vinyl toys, but I'm not going to complain. Part of me hopes they get features like the weird battle armor and stuff those Trendmasters figures got. Playmates isn't afraid to do stuff like that (see TMNT), so fingers crossed.