Go Hero's Tentikill
by Jager

From the depths of Steven Forde's imagination emerges Go Hero's Tentikill. This hulk of a vinyl toy comes slithering out of the deepest part of the ocean to battle your Designer Toys with its purple tentacles of evil! This is the first in a line of villains ready to battle Go Hero's... uh hero: Mechabot. This is a very large Designer Toy and is sure to stand out in any collection.

The first thing you notice about this beast is the large yellow eye. The shape of the eye seems to be a reference to a big smiling mouth. Like Batman's nemesis, the Joker. Only this isn't a smiling mouth, it's an evil eye with a large curved pupil. The eyelids have a ridge around the edge that seems to look like lips; also giving the impression of a mouth, and a curl for style at the top. The toy's sculpt is such that it really looks like it is a squishy, slimy sea creature. At first glance it seems to be symmetrical, but upon closer inspection it becomes obvious that it's not. The body is an off center mass with more belly on the left than right and its head is swollen on one side as well. The tentacles on the left aren't mirror images of the tentacles on the right as one might think. Each is a different angle or size. All of these details add to the toy's credibility as a Designer Toy. There is a red row of scales down the back of Tentikill referencing dinosaurs and possibly Godzilla. And there are bumps all over his body adding to the feeling of a sea creature or maybe a little bit of a frog-like feel is there. He has eight points of articulation: arms and six tentacles. Sadly, the tail and head don't swivel, but this doesn't detract from the overall feel of the piece. Tentikill sits very sturdy on its base (not the tentacles) so he is sturdy even when six are turned upward. The paint apps are clean with no bleeding onto the base purple, but what really stands out is the "glaze". The toy is covered in a shiny coating to give the impression of a slimy or wet (just emerged from the ocean) look. This really sets the toy off!

Obviously, this toy is homage to Kaiju and other Asian TV shows/movies. It pulls this off very well by referencing many, but being an original sculpt; and if you're a fan of that genre you will instantly love Tentikill. But vinyl collectors should take note of this enormous vinyl as well. It towers over many vinyl pieces in size can stand with pride being a nice Designer Toy in its own right. This is the first of a line of Mechabot villains and I look forward to seeing more from Go Hero.

Go Hero has a nice site with info on their toy lines and a shop to order Tentikill and the super articulated Mechabot.

Check out our Designer Toy page for our coverage of this toy movement. All in one handy place for your clicking ease.

Article ©2005 MillionairePlayboy.com unless otherwise noted. All characters are property their original owners.