Shinji Higuchi Talks Kaiju Figures for Shin Ultraman

The director of Shin Godzilla and the upcoming Shin Ultraman discuses new soft vinyl figures for Gabora and Neronga

When the first teaser for Shin Ultraman came out, fans were quick to spot two classic kaiju from the original series, Neronga and Gabora. Now, director Shinji Higuchi, who also directed Shin Godzilla, spoke about the upcoming soft vinyl figure releases for the two monsters. Higuchi, who himself is a fan of collecting soft vinyl, or sofubi figures, spoke about the appeal of the prototype figures of the kaiju.

Higuchi explains the characteristics of Neronga and Gabora’s modeling as a hybrid of Toho kaiju and Tsuburaya kaiju. Notably, both kaiju suits were created using the Baragon suit from Toho’s 1965 movie “Frankenstein Conquers the World.” Originally, the Baragon suit was first used as the base for Pagos in Ultra Q before being implemented to create Neronga, Gabora, and Magura during the original run of Ultraman. “A Toho kaiju has a biological feeling, but a Tsuburaya kaiju has shining horns and a rotating back. There are gimmicks and mechanical power. There is also a direction that is a little different from a biological feeling, which is attractive.”

A transparent version of Neronga and a closed version of Gabora will be sold based on the CG models from the movie later this year, sporting the highly detailed designs that will be seen in the movie. “It’s really nice. It’s wonderful. You can see the greatness of the mold by inking it or putting your hands on it… I’m most happy when I’m making a work and it becoming a soft vinyl.”

The Movie Monster Series Neronga (Clear ver.) figure and “Movie Monster Series Gabora (Closed ver.) figure are currently up for preorder via Premium Bandai for 3850 yen each and are scheduled to be shipped out in November. As of this article, Shin Ultraman does not yet have an official release date.

Source: Mantan Web