This figure, released in 1983 and representing Godzilla's appearance in 1962's King Kong vs. Godzilla, was the first figure Bandai ever made of the character. As such, it is the progenitor of nearly the entire mondern Godzilla toyline. Overall, the figure is a wonderful piece for collectors, even if it does not perfectly match the film.
In comparison to earlier figures by Marusan and Popy, this figure is extraordinarily well-detailed, with heavily-scupted skin-flaps crisscrossing the whole thing. The paint is typical of early Bandai--a strong base coat with metallic highlights and a few carefully-rendered details. The resemblance to the original suit is fair as well--certainly not as good as the eventual six inch version, but capturing the important features quite nicely. The figure is quite tall, too, standing about ten inches. This does put him out-of-scale with the Bandai King Kong figure, but oh well.
If I have any gripe with the figure, it's the articulation. Given that it's displayed mostly-statically on a shelf at all times, it's not that big of a deal, but the choices they made are a little odd. The arms move, and have a good range of motion, but the legs only rotate laterally below the knees. Why? The tail also ostensibly has articulation, but in practice is mostly confined to one position.
Still, I cannot help but like this figure. It's very charming, very big, and communicates a great deal of what I like about Godzilla. I had to search for a while to find one in good condition at a good price, but I think it was worth it.
As I write this in 2023, Western sellers tend to price this figure around $100 or more, which in my opinion is a little ridiculous. I bought mine a few months ago from a seller in Japan and paid around $50. It's not uncommon to see them sell for less than that.