GODZILLA 1989 - S.H. MonsterArts Kou Kyou Kyoku action figure

Bandai Tamashii Nations has released their first "Kou Kyou Kyoku" S.H. MonsterArts Godzilla figure and it is honestly an amazing figure in every aspect, save one. Aesthetically, size-wise, and in terms of paint, this is what we should have been getting from the S.H. MonsterArts line from the outset!

Godzilla 1989 comes from the movie "Godzilla vs. Biollante", and is the largest S.H. MonsterArts Godzilla that has been released to this point. BioGoji stands about 8" tall, and you'll get nearly 14" out of him from nose to tail-tip. The sculpt is fantastic, from the snout on down, with varied textures across the upper torso, arms and legs. There's very little of the gapping that has plagued previous releases, as there is a floating sleeve at the hip joint. He moves as well as I'd expect him to, in the sense that this is Godzilla, and he mostly walks, stomps, and waves his arms slightly in front of him. My biggest complaint with the NECA Godzillas is that they can't hold their arms and hands in a pose that matches the movie looks. This guy absolutely can.

The paint on my figure is perfect. The eyes are awesome, as are the tiny teeth. I've seen some reviews complain about the paint on the outer, smaller dorsal spines, but I'm happy with the way mine look, all the way down to the tail tip. Speaking of the tail, it's really long and nicely flexible. I can get it to look just like I want it to, without any difficulty.

The "Kou Kyou Kyouku" label refers to another MonsterArts first: lights, sound and music. This Godzilla has flashing dorsal spines and the interior of his mouth lights up (with one of the roars), various roaring/stomping sounds and plays two different theme songs. The volume of everything is adequate and the roars come in several different versions, with differing lengths, as well. The theme songs are long, but sound pretty good. I've seen other reviews complaining about the light effects being too muted, or the mouth not being bright enough, but I'm fine with their quality overall. It's not as loud as NECA's Godzilla 2014, but that's ok. The light gimmick does restrict the articulation (there's none really in the torso, which houses the electronics, and the neck/head articulation is much restricted).

For the Batteries, which are housed in the upper torso...

So, overall, I really love this figure. It's my favorite MonsterArts Godzilla, hands-down, and I hope we get more figures in this scale. With regards to the gimmicks, honestly I can do without them. I'll end up removing the batteries and posing him on my shelf, so they are not something I will use enough to justify the issues they cause. Those issues include the restricted articulation, but my biggest (and only) actual complaint with this figure is this: the price. At about $180, this figure is outrageously overpriced. There's absolutely no way this figure is worthy of an X-Plus price-tag, and if the electronics are the excuse for the extravagant cost, I'd be much happier without them. If Bandai Tamashii Nations can manage to keep the size, sculpt, paint and articulation with a price no higher than $100, I'm all-in for their figures (yes, I've got the newer Shin Godzilla on its way to me at this very moment). Otherwise, I'll have to pick and choose very carefully...