Review: Godzilla: King of the Monsters (2019) - NECA Godzilla (2019)

I saw Godzilla: King of the Monsters during the opening weekend, I loved it. 5 years ago I went to watch Godzilla and I had my doubts but this, this I was very excited for. Especially after watching the "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" version of the trailer, I was hooked. I tried to avoid watching most trailers and it was definitely worth it. Since I didn't watch the trailers I also didn't get a lot of the film spoiled, I won't go into that today. The main reason I was skeptical about it was because Rodan, Mothra, and King Ghidorah would appear in the film and I wasn't ready for those three iconic monsters to get the Hollywood treatment. Sure, Godzilla (2014) didn't look terrible, he is definitely a Godzilla but an American Godzilla at that. It has the overall shape but the face looks a little generic but it's grown on me. Let's get to it!

The box is okay, a little too gray and blue but it works I guess. You get a generic picture of the model that they used for the movie. You also get the logo for the movie with the monsterverse logo at the top.

You also get the 65th anniversary logo with what looks to be Shin Godzilla on the side. And on the top right you get the NECA logo.

The back has a product shot of the figure and it looks good. As far as I know Mothra has already come out, I'll go hunting for it soon. 

The sides have some information of the figure, initially I thought it was about the Godzilla in the movie but the 12" from head-to-tail and the 25+ points of articulation didn't seem right. There's also a little read up that talks about the Monsterverse. 

The box has a flap that's held through velcro, you get more product shots and a window to see Godzilla through. 

Out of the box, all you have to do is attach the tail which is on a ball joint. And first thing you'll notice is the dorsal fins on the back of Godzilla, they take their more classic appearance rather than the sharp ones he had in the first movie. The paint is also a huge improvement, for the most part. There's a lot of color variation on the skin. The detailing is also a lot sharper.

Unfortunately for the figure, the face doesn't look very good...

You can see it on both sides, the sloppy paint job on the eyes and teeth. It makes him look more like a fish than the King of the Monsters.

The details on the dorsal fins are amazing, you can see the body detailing, they look more like growths. The paint on the fins aren't much different than the rest of the body.

The chest has a lighter color that is similar to that of the 2014 Godzilla figure.

For the most part he's a completely new sculpt. You'd think that would be a good thing but the previous body was a lot better in terms of articulation.

It's hard to give him a threatening pose and he just looks derpy overall. The feet are an improvement though, look at those things.

If you're good at posing, you can make this figure look amazing. Make use of those restrictive ball joints on the torso, neck and head.

The joint on the mouth opens a lot further than the 2014 one. The tongue is also more present.

The legs are an absolute pain, they're on an oddly cut swivel joint and is a huge downgrade form the hips that the previous figure had.

The arms are on ball joints, the elbows and knees are on a hinge and swivel. Feet are on ball joints which do their job, a little tight. Wrists have a hinge and swivel, the arms by far are the most articulated part of the figure which is sad.

Much like the 2014 figure is that he looks a little thin from the front, and if you watch the movie, Godzilla is pretty swoll there.

The tail is on a couple ball joints that aren't too restricted but don't really hold the position well.

There's no additional accessories that come with this figure which is unfortunate.

Still, I like this figure and there are people who fixed the poor face paint but I don't have that skill.

He doesn't stand upright like the previous one so you can't pose him like he was in some of the posters where he shoots his atomic breath into the sky.

As much as I really have the sloppy face paint I do like this figure.

The cardboard piece that has the ocean with an aircraft carrier can be a good set piece. 

Now if only he came with the atomic breath...

Still, for $25 it's a pretty good deal. Much cheaper than the S.H. Monsterarts version. If it wasn't for the hips and the limited torso articulation this would be almost perfect for the price point. Either way, you should watch the movie and if you want to get this figure look out for paint defects. I found mine at a GameStop and as far as I know that's the only place to get it in store. Target has the 2014 in stock as well so if you want that as well you can get it there. Good luck! Also go watch the movie!