Godzilla.

He is undoubtedly worthy of his title, “King of the Monsters”. Having spanned six decades and 31 films, Godzilla’s appearance has changed many times over the years. From the lumbering, black and white giant from the original film to the bright orange Burning Godzilla in 1995 to this year’s incredibly huge and bizarre Shin Gojira.

Due to the visual as well as personality differences between the variations of Godzilla, I’ve often thought of him to be similar to Batman in this regard. There are multiple story lines, tones and personalities during the years that clearly set both very campy and very dark moods. From the original 1966 Batman television series to The Dark Knight and similarly, from the child friendly protector of the 1970’s to the dark, nuclear nightmare of 1985; Godzilla and Batman have followed equally varied paths.

For their seventh Godzilla figure, NECA Toys decided to visit what is undoubtedly one of Godzilla’s darkest designs, the 2001 suit.

Like all previously released NECA Godzillas, this one features no accessories. The pieces you see along with Godzilla in these photos were provided by myself.

This suit only appears once in the film series in “Godzilla, Mothra and King Ghidorah: Giant Monsters All Out Attack” or better know to fans the world over simply as “GMK”. Right from the beginning you can see how it stands out. This film is rare in the series as it not only sees Godzilla return to his darker origins, it also makes him the flat out antagonist of the film. Godzilla’s long time nemesis King Ghidorah actually appears as a force of good in the film, a first for the franchise.

In this film, Godzilla is possessed by the souls of all the people of Asia, both Japanese and non, who died in World War II and are upset with Japan for forgetting the sacrifices they made. This can be seen in his angry eyebrows and pure, white eyes.

This version also features larger claws on both the hands and feet than have been seen in most Godzilla suits.

The spins on his back also carry through with the white color scheme of this suit.

The anger is also clear in Godzilla’s face, caught in a sort of mid snarl look.

Compared to previous NECA Godzillas, the meanness of this one is obvious.

The tail of this Godzilla is also slightly shorter than previous suits.

I’m a massive Godzilla fan and the 2001 suit is one of my personal favorites.

It was refreshing to see Godzilla return to his origins in being a symbol of fear and I was very happy when NECA announced he would be joining their ranks.

Godzilla 2001 is available online and in stores now for around $20. Again, please note, this figure does not come with any of the accessories you see here.

For all the latest NECA Toys news and information, follow @NECA_TOYS on Twitter and you can follow me @Ode2Ash.

Thanks very much for reading!