Kaiyodo Revoltech Type 66 Maser Cannon Review

To be honest, I've been on the fence on this one for a while now. While I unanimously dislike any threat against Godzilla since I was a kid, this toy did look really cool. The price though was always the main reason for me to not pull the trigger, till now. I was able to purchase this toy for a great deal and am looking forward to seeing everything out of the box.

For those who are unfamiliar with this fictional military weaponry, the Type 66 Maser Cannon is basically a tank that tows a huge satellite beam with a crane like arm on wheels. The huge satellite head shoots a laser beam that is hopefully strong enough to destroy a large Kaiju or at least thwart their path of destruction. The Type 66 Maser Cannon made it's on screen debut in the War of the Gargantuas.

So what is so great about this toy, and why would Kaiyodo waste their time and resources to reproduce a small scaled tank and cannon that had a horrible success rate in inflicting critical damage to Kaiju? The latter is unkown, but in regards to the former, the best value this toy set offers is, of course, an intricate design of both the tank and cannon respectively.


The tank alone contains a lot of sweet details, just perfect for anyone that like the appeal of miniature tanks other other heavy armored military vehicles. The tank also has lovely green matte finish with clear windows and highly detailed treads. Unfortunately the tank treads are molded on the the toy and has no wheels hidden underneath for mobility.


The Maser Cannon contains about the same detailed armor that the tank possesses, but there is a lot more to the design, especially in how the weapon is rigged. Revoltech put in a lot of effort into making the huge mechanical device that powers the maser look very real, but in a really small scale. There is a lot of molded industrial electrical components such as a power supply, lightning arresters, and some coils.

All wheels below the cannon can freely spin, the base of the cannon can rotate 360 degrees, and the arm has a ratcheting joint in the base, which adjusts the height of the maser's aim. The satellite connects to the arm by a hinge, but unfortunately the up and down movement of the satellite is hindered.

The Maser Cannon comes with miniature pieces or props that were, by assumption, used around some kind of military base or laboratory seen in the War of the Gargantuas movie, and the actual Gargantuas (Gaira & Sanda) themselves battling through a game of strength.


Swapping the lenses, both with and without the protruding laser beam, is the biggest peeve. They snap on the satellite's tip very securely, to a point where removing them with your fingertips is very tricky! Once the lenses are removed, the temptation to snap them all the way back in  is immediately thwarted by the memory of removing them with much difficulty.

Frankly, whether the Maser Cannon is in "perfect" scale with the other monsters is completely subjective. Though, thinking that Kaiyodo was intending to create articulated (Showa) toys that are also scale accurate with other figures seems very unlikely. The funny thing is, even though the Maser Cannon (albeit in different variations) has been featured in various Godzilla movies in the Showa Era, we never saw a monster (at least in a Godzilla movie) stand next to these tanks in the same frame of any scene, unless I forgot something. While the tank and Maser Cannon seems too huge and bulky when compared to the other monsters, another toy reviewer, Vault from itsalltrue.net, visually demonstrated that the size comparison to other Showa monsters from Revoltech are actually quite reasonable.

Unfortunately, I only have my S.H. MonsterArts (Heisei) Godzilla figure to compare the Maser Cannon with. I don't have the SHMA Godzilla (Showa) figure on hand to stand alongside the cannon yet. However, I do have a Revoltech Baragon in hand, which will be reviewed next week. Baragon may not be in perfect scale with the Maser Cannon, but he does look good posing and interacting with the set.

I think it's safe to say that a fan of the Showa Era may very well be pleased with the Type 66 Maser Cannon. Accessories aside, the look of the toy, given articulation, and displayability is definitely above mediocre. Although other Revoltech figures continue to inflate in prices, I don't see the Maser Cannon being worth a substantial markup. To this day, an average of $30 - $40 (not including shipping) on eBay still seems reasonable.