Godzilla: High Grade is a line of two-inch tall collectible Gashapon figures produced by Bandai. These figures are released in sets that usually coincide with the newest Godzilla film. They were sold in vending machines and all require at least minor assembly.
In 1998, Bandai re-released the figures from Set 1 under the name "Godzilla: High Grade EX." These figures featured slightly different paint jobs than Set 1, and were sold exclusively at 7-11 stores instead of in vending machines.[6] Just like Set 1, Godzilla: High Grade EX features the following figures:
Set 10 was released in 2003 along with the film Godzilla: Tokyo S.O.S.. All six of the figures in this set are new molds, but all except Ebirah are based on monsters that have already received High Grade figures.[11] The figures in this set are:
In 2004, to celebrate both the release of Godzilla: Final Wars and Godzilla's 50th anniversary, Bandai released a 12th set of High Grade figures.[12] All of the figures in this set are featured in Final Wars, and include:
In 2014, Bandai released the first new High Grade set since 2004, not counting the Godzilla Chronicle reissue sets, in commemoration of the 2014 American film. It features four figures:
Series 2 was released at a later time and included four variations of the 2016 Godzilla, including a figure of its first, barely seen form.
Unknown Creature/First form
Second form
Third form
Fourth form
Another line of four figures, known as Shin Godzilla Climax was released later on. The set contained three new variations of the fourth form, and a repainted second form.
Second form - Maquette ver.
Fourth form
Fourth form - Frozen ver.
Fourth form - Maquette ver.
Trivia[]
There has been a set of High Grade figures made for every Godzilla film since 1994.
Bootleg markings (top), Actual Bandai markings (bottom)
Starting in summer of 2000, bootlegs of the Set 4 figures began appearing on the internet, and remain common on sites such as eBay and Amazon to this day. The bootleg figures are generally smaller and feature sloppier paint jobs. They also lack the marking on their tails that lists the copyright date and "BANDAI CHINA," instead simply listing the word "CHINA."[13]
