Much like the previously reissued X-Plus Toho Large Monsters Series Godzilla 1968, X-Plus recently released their reissue for their Anguirus 1968. Why are they reissuing these figures? If you're unfamiliar with X-Plus the company has essentially been releasing figures from the monster smash, Destroy All Monsters (1968,) as a means for collectors to build a display culminating with last December's release of the Toho Large Monsters Series King Ghidorah 1968. As of the start of 2015, X-Plus has been reissuing key figures for said display (Godzilla 1968 in January, Anguirus 1968 in March, Gorosaurus in May, and so on.)
I used to own the original standard version of the X-Plus Toho Large Monsters Series Anguirus 1968, released back in October 2012 alongside the Toho Large Monsters Series Godzilla 1968. I sold both figures late last year to help pay off other monetary priorities. Selling both, amongst another key figure (Rodan 1964) filled me with utter regret, which is why it makes me incredibly happy that I now have a prime opportunity to regain what I lost and then some. My ultimate intention is to build the entire X-Plus Destroy All Monsters figure display. The other Toho Large Monsters Series reissues I need left, besides Gorosaurus (coming out in late May,) are Rodan and Varan. Without any further ado, let us get on with this review.
From his toes to the tips of his horned crest, Anguirus is a short guy at around six inches in height. However, in length he is over a foot and a half. Don't let the numbers fool you, Anguirus is not as small as he sounds and makes up for it in overall mass and wide body. The sculpt is very well done and manages to capture Anguirus' underdog/not-backing-down nature. The paint work on the Anguirus reissue is a tad different from the original release. I don't have it to compare with, but the overall color scheme looks a bit darker and the spikes and horns are much more defined, which I'll explain more about later. It's really great to look at.
The level of detail that X-Plus puts into their figures is incomparable with most other brands like Bandai. What I've noticed on this figure, that I haven't on my original, is the slight shades of red in Anguirus' eye. Not certain if that was present on the initial release or not, but it looks amazing and adds more life to this figure, more so than before!
As we go down lower on his body, Anguirus' skin is specked with a lightly dirty brown color to give the figure a lot more depth, and detail. To me, it resembles the dirt stuck on Anguirus' suit during the final battle in Destroy All Monsters. What I've also noticed is that the little spikes on Anguirus' lower arms were colored in on this release unlike the original where they remained unpainted.
As I've mentioned before, the spikes on Anguirus this time around look a lot more defined than the previous release. It amazes me how each of Anguirus' spikes are painted individually with a great sense of detail. The bright bone color contrasts well with the dark brown skin color on his carapace.
Anguirus perfectly fits in scale with the Toho Large Monsters Series Godzilla 1968. Together they are ready to battle against evil forces like King Ghidorah or Gigan. I would have included King Ghidorah into the scaling shot, but since I'll be packing out in a few weeks I chose to box it up.
With this release being a RIC Boy exclusive, Anguirus was accompanied with a mini version of the Moonlight SY-3 spaceship, the craft used by the protagonists in Destroy All Monsters (1968.) It's a nicely sculpted replica of the vessel and nicely displays with the figures. If one wishes to display it as if it were flying one could easily use a Tamashii Stage Act 4 Stand and hold up the ship using a display clamp.
All in all, Anguirus is another great figure from X-Plus. I loved it before, and with this reissue having extra detail added to it, it makes me love it a whole lot more! If you're interested in acquiring this figure, it isn't available normally at retailers. I suggest checking out eBay and looking for figures below $200 and from sellers with a approval rate of 99% and above.
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