Toy Review - Gigan (Also Christmas at the KoB)

Yo, Erebus? Alex? Cornwind? You dufes out there? We're having our RP holiday special at Zoofights. It's a very relaxed and worry-free affair. No drama, no epic plots, just general silliness and an opportunity for Christmas-flavored shenanigans. Personally I think it's a great chance to hold Feed Yer Mates. We'll see, I guess.

Here's another figure from my extensive collection.

Gigan, a truly bizarre monster perhaps best described as a "cyborg chicken", was one of Godzilla's most popular foes in the seventies. Debuting in the cheesefest Godzilla vs. Gigan and reappearing in the even more ridiculous Godzilla vs. Megalon, Gigan is a bully and a coward who likes to pick on outmatched opponents but runs away when he's in trouble. In both of his films, Gigan has an ally to help him fight Godzilla - and in both films Gigan ditches his "friend". Over thirty years later, Gigan made a spectacular comeback with a badass redesign that made him a very popular kaiju, and I've got a toy of that one too. But I digress.

This figure of Gigan was made by Bandai Creations, an American branch of the Japanese toy giant. Throughout the 2000s, BC has made a fairly good series of Godzilla figures, which has been great news for fans of Godzilla toys as it means that monster figures are being sold in the USA in big-box stores - most Godzilla toys are only found online or in specialty importing shops. The exposure to kids also helps Godzilla a bit in staying relevant. I fully expect Bandai Creations to take advantage of Godzilla's new film (which is releasing sometime in 2012 or 2013, I believe).

This toy features posable head, arms, and legs. The arms are positioned a little oddly, though - Gigan's left arm looks strange if it's moved out of the default position. The paint job is simple but effective, which I'm fine with - a really fancy paint job often means a more expensive toy.

This is probably the best 70's Gigan available. If you like the character, this is the toy to get.