This review touches on the differences, if any, between S.H.MonsterArts Godzilla (2002) released in 2018, 2020, and its 2nd reissue released in 2023. If you are looking for more specific details regarding the figure itself, please checkout the full review of the 2018 release.

 

For the very first time in the lines history, a figure is reissued more than one time! To some they may roll their eyes and say, "why does this figure have to be reissued again!?" while for others there is hope that this version will attempt to fix issues that are present with the original and first reissue. I'd say the bigger news behind this would be now that Tamashii Nations has officially reissued something more than once within the line, this opens the possibilities for figures that have already received one reissue to be re-released once again... But that's a discussion for another day. Godzilla (2002) receives this special 2nd reissue to commemorate the 20th anniversary of Godzilla Against Mechagodzilla (2002)'s theatrical debut. I know, I know, why didn't they reissue Kiryu (2002)? Simple, because Bandai decided to go a more premium route with Kiryu which will undergo Soul of Chogokin treatment accompanied with LED gimmicks, a larger scale, and diecast parts to boot. Still, S.H.MonsterArts can't be left behind, and the past two releases of Godzilla (2002), though mostly solid, still had some issues. As they say, third times a charm?

 

Before diving in, what exactly is a reissue and how is it different from a repaint or a decisive battle version? A reissue aims to reproduce the product as it was in its first release-- no new additional extras or improvements are expected. That being said, there are usually subtle differences as they are not made in the same production run. This reissue was released as a general sales item in Japan and made available to the USA through Bandai Namco Collectibles. The price increased from the original and first reissue's $89.99 MSRP to $94.99 MSRP.

 

Design:

 

There are no changes to the sculpt. There also doesn't appear to be any major mold degradation. All the details present on the previous releases are still here for this one. For more of an in-depth look at the sculpt, refer to the the 2018 release review.

 

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Articulation:

 

The articulation engineering is mostly the same... Mostly.... I am happy to report that the issues with joint tolerance in the arms, specifically the left arm, are seemingly fixed. At least for my figure. Both arms bend at the elbow without falling off. The left arm also can bend a little more as a result. This was one of my major critiques of the original and first reissue and I'm beyond thrilled that it's been fixed this time around. Remember, joint tolerance can vary figure to figure. Other than that, the rest of the figure's range of motion is fairly identical to the previous releases. The tail is the absolute highlight of this figure. If you'd like more specifics on articulation, please refer to the 2018 release review.

 

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Paint:

 

Because the reissue was not made from the same production run as the OG or the first reissue, there are some subtle differences. The charcoal gray throughout the body is perfection this time around. I never really noticed it until comparing all three versions together, but the OG has weird blue highlights in areas around the thighs and arms. The first reissue eliminates the blues on the main body, but introduces blue shading at the base of the dorsal spines. The dorsal spines have hardly any dry brushing effects compared to the previous releases, but  the coloration is very well blended. Some may say that it loses sharp detail, but to me this looks more natural. As mentioned before, the first reissue had a slight blue shading effect at the base of the dorsal spines which has been done away with for this release. The paint for the teeth is okay. There are spots that are missing some coats, but overall it's typically what's expected at this point. Not horrible, but could have been better. The paint on the nails of the hands and feet is a little darker compared to the first reissue, but not as dark as the OG's. I'd say that it's a healthy blend of light and dark this time around. Doesn't look bad at all.

 

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Lastly, did they fix the eyes this time around? If you weren't aware, the OG used decals for the eyes and while they looked really good, eye wonkyness was abundant across the board. It was changed up for the first reissue which uses digital paint for eyes. The end result had consumers voicing that the decal system was far superior. The first reissue's eye paint was widely criticized for having bland and pixelated coloration, with the pupils being to far up into the head, and in some cases not even visible. That said, I am happy to report that the eye coloration has significantly improved this time around. The pupil is visible and in the position that it's advertised to be in. There's also a thin white line of paint that separates the pupil from the iris which adds extra detail. Overall, I'm really relieved that this has been improved, but also can't help but feel a little sad that it took three tries to get the eyes to a satisfactory state. Regarding paint application, these are the only significant changes I noticed. Anything I haven't specifically stated here is largly the same across all releases. That being said, the paint application for this version is the best of the three. If you want to see more about the paint application on the OG, please refer to the 2018 release review.

 

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Accessories:

 

The reissue does not come with any accessories. So please enjoy this action packed scene with S.H.MonsterArts Kiryu (2002)!

 

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Overall:

 

If I had to choose between the the three, the 2nd reissue is the better representation. Godzilla (2002) is an fantastic figure that every S.H.MonsterArts collector should own. The articulation engineering is on point with tighter joint tolerance and the paint application is nearly perfected. How to tell the difference between releases? The OG box has a Red Bandai Logo and the the first reissue has Blue Bandai Logo. This versions box will have the BANDAI NAMCO logo in the top right corner as well as the GODZILLA AGAINST MECHAGODZILLA logo in the top left corner. Additionally the front of the boxes have a gold sticker that indicate which release year they're from: 2018, 2020, and 2023. If you don't have the box in hand, you can further verify by checking the copyright info under the left foot. 2 DOTS mean it's the 2nd Reissue. 3 DOTS mean it's the 1st Reissue. 4 DOTS mean it's the OG.

 

Please enjoy the comparison view below. The complete image gallery of this review can be found in the SHOWCASE GALLERY.

 

OG (Left) vs. 1st Reissue (Middle) vs. 2nd Reissue (Right/Bottom)