Wastelnd: Review - Destoroyah (Bandai Creations)

Just as Godzilla spawned from the nuclear bomb, Destoroyah - the "final boss" of Godzilla's Heisei continuity - was awakened, and mutated by the deadly Oxygen Destroyer; a device used to defeat the first Godzilla back in 1954, tieing the kaiju atrocities by the hip. Dripping with evil, edgelord energy, Destoroyah, despite his sole onscreen appearance, has become one of the most celebrated Godzilla nemesis; fans actively clamoring to see him introduced to the current Godzilla continuities to this very day.

Bandai's first Destoroyah came alongside the film in 1995, with a slightly resculpted version arriving in 1998, this time taking the usual 6" MMS scale. As the figure was reissued with various minor paint alterations throughout the early 2000s - all the way up to 2025, with an upcoming Godzilla Monster Series downscale - American subsidiary Bandai Creations released a wholly new sculpt in 2007, as part of their MMS-esque sofubi vinyl series.

Destoroyah is certainly one of the best sculpts to grave the BC lineup - or even MMS, for that matter - covered in intricately rugged, carved detail, with a unique roaring action stance bringing the great destroyer to life. I'll quickly mention his face does look a little extended, but hey - that's the only issue I can narrow down. Standing a good head over Godzilla, the figure has a perfectly massive presence - beautifully demonic, and regal, with his huge outstretched wings and ostentatious pose. Even his tail is nicely done, foregoing the usual long, meandering tails of the hang-tagged MMS so as to fit BC's cardboard packaging; adding to that pose, and saving a bit of shelf space, too, which I always appreciate. Though some might prefer the open-endedness of the original figure's more generic look - the BC is, of course, very specifically sculpted - I absolutely love figures that take a more animated approach to their pose, even if that usually means they're more functionally akin to statues than action figures.

That being said, Destoroyah's quite articulated; featuring nine points - including all four wings, and a segment of his pincer tail. It's fairly typical, but still really great stuff, especially for what could've easily been a static figure. Though unnecessary, all I could really ask for is a head turn - could've broken him out of that pre-determined, albeit still wicked pose.

Cast in a deep, earthy maroon, shiny red and bronze sprays highlight his body, with vibrant red wings, yellowed claws, white teeth, and sparkly lime-gold eyes. It's a fantastically intricate deco, perfectly accentuating and bringing out the underlying sculpt. Even his tail is subtly sprayed - they've left just about no stone unturned, save for his - gasp! - unpainted mouth. Heaven forbid. My only, teensy-weensy widdle nitpick is that its always bothered me how the wings aren't the same fiery red as his body - big deal, I know.

Various further reissues of the original MMS have been released since, all with less, and less paint, really emphasizing just how much the BC version has to offer. Even just this year, an all-new "2.0" Destoroyah sculpt was revealed... though, there really ain't much of a difference, the 15 year old BC still reigning supreme. Makes you wonder why he was omitted from MMS EX, a line which ported various BC figures into MMS proper - the weird, wonky BC MechaGodzilla '74 made it in, but not the borderline flawless Destoroyah?

BC's Destoroyah might just be the spin-off sub-series' finest hour, and is certainly the best MMS-type take on the kaiju, by far. Though less and less common - and pretty definitely never seeing a re-release - he's absolutely the destroyer any fan should seek out.