Graphic novel review - Godzilla Vs. America: Chicago

 Reviewed by Cord Scott, UMGC Okinawa

 Costa, Mike (writer), Ryan Browne (artist, colors) Kevin Knipstein (colors), and Brian Kolek (letters), Tim Seeley (w) Heather Breckel (a), Ezra C. Daniels (w,a,c), and Caroline Cash (w,a,c). Godzilla Vs. America: Chicago. Sherman Oaks, CA: IDW Publishing, 2024.  ISBN: 978-27714-03395. $12.99. https://idwpublishing.com/products/godzilla-vs-america-chicago

 

For any franchise or continuing character, there is a point where fans (or the creators) want that character to be in new surroundings.  To that end, the newest aspect of the popular Godzilla franchise has been re-envisioned as Godzilla versus U.S. cities.  The first in this new series is Godzilla versus Chicago and it features four different stories all written or illustrated by creators with ties to the Chicago area.  The stories all feature an aspect of the visual make up of Chicago.  Given this reviewer’s ties to the Chicago area, I had a great time with a lot of inside jokes.

The first story (of the four total) uses the gimmick of the fan man, a paraglider who often lands in major outdoor events.  The character   Fangoolie, is a nod to the Chicago-based character called Svengoolie, who hosted a TV program showing old horror movies.  In this story, his ill-timed landing at a Chicago football game causes his reputation to be destroyed.  His new job is as a janitor of a Mechagodzilla storage unit located beneath the Pritzker Music Shell and Pavilion, and Fangoolie sees his way to gaining public trust back.  While the story ends horribly for him, the inside jokes for this story are locally recognizable: the concept of “dibs” where someone digs out a parking space in the winter, then calls “dibs” by putting something like a chair out to hold the spot; a cheese grater head worn by a Chicago sports fan, along with the score of the Bears losing to Detroit by a large margin; and a comment on “da East” (in this case, anywhere East of Chicago) and the verbal affectations of Chicagoans.

The second story deals with one of the Chicago train lines, the Blue Line (which technically is the oldest line in Chicago, at least in part), and its run toward Jefferson Park near O’Hare Airport.  This is a subtle nod toward the fact that not all trains run to their terminus.  In this case, the story has Godzilla following close to a blue line train as it goes in and out of the tunnel system. 

The third story arc features Godzilla serving as de facto urban renewal for a poorer neighborhood on the South Side.  The story has an alderman who, when trying to lure Godzilla away from downtown, volunteers his neighborhood to place floodlights to lure the monster. As the story unfolds, the reasons for the alderman’s “offer,” combined with the fact that he lives in the affluent suburbs north of Chicago, show that he is merely looking to quickly get a reason to demolish the area, then sell to developers at a profit.  These stories may not be entirely factual, but they have elements of Chicago politics throughout them. 

The final story, told in green overlaying black and white art, is of a woman who hears of Godzilla’s arrival in the Windy City.  One panel shows the unnamed heroine in a convenience store. As Godzilla threatens destruction, she drinks a questionable energy drink, which is advertised as a Giant Women Energy Drink and soon she is equal in size to Godzilla. When she grabs a giant Chicago flag to cover herself, she notes that it is okay, as she was “born in Uptown, not Naperville.”  Ag phrase native Chicagoans often hear, where a suburb is not considered Chicago proper.  In the end, the giant woman drinks more, becomes large enough to pick up Godzilla and then throws him eastward.  The comment “Screw Indiana” is again one that might seem mean, but it is very common in the area.  The reviewer is not from Chicago originally but did hear a lot of these exact comments at one point or another while living there. 

In all, this comic book is one that combines a lot of local artist talent, art for those who live, or have lived in Chicago, and should serve as a template for the future “location” comics planned in the series.  In all, it was a fun, fast read which combined a familiar character, with unexpected locations. 

Graphic novel review - Godzilla Library Collection, Vol. 6

 reviewed by Cord Scott, UMGC Okinawa

Churnow, Bobby (series ed.) and Alonzo Simon (collection ed.) et al. Godzilla Library Collection, Vol. 6.    Sherman Oaks, CA: IDW Press. ISBN 979-8-88724-385-6.  $29.99. https://idwpublishing.com/products/godzilla-library-collection-vol-6

Godzilla is one of the most resilient characters in popular culture. He premiered in a 1954 film, and continued in a variety of other media, from toys, to cartoons, to comic books.  This addition to the Godzilla-verse is a compilation of comics.  This volume compiles three stories: Cataclysm, Godzilla in Hell, and Oblivion.

The first story arc, Godzilla: Cataclysm, centers on a few people living in a post-kaiju apocalypse.  The setting is clearly downtown Tokyo, with the Tokyo Tower in Roppongi as a reference.  The main character of this arc is Hiroshi, a man who has lived long enough to see grandchildren, but one who is clearly haunted by the presence of the kaiju. Life is now a hardscrabble of finding anything to use to live.  As his grandson Araha and his female friend Shiori go out, Hiroshi is haunted by dreams of the kaiju and his interaction with them. 

After an attack by kaiju on a grizzly bear, and a seemingly exponential growth of plants (later determined to be the kaiju Biollante), Hiroshi laments the fact that the villagers are going back towards their old ways of human sacrifice to appease the kaiju, whom they see as gods.  Hiroshi is also haunted by the guilt that he was a part of a kaiju mind-control project aimed at Destoroyah (another enemy kaiju of Godzilla) which subsequentially sparked the wrath of the kaiju.  While the story arc ends with the idea that the kaiju are going to always be here, regardless of the success or failure of some kaiju over others, the arc ends with a blast that sends Godzilla into a hole towards the center of the Earth. One of the more interesting aspects of this story arc was that it is presented in muted colors, symbolizing the pall over the earth in the aftermath of the kaiju fights.

Book two, Godzilla in Hell is told from the perspective of Godzilla as he falls into the middle of the earth.  The story is a comparison to Dante’s Inferno.  The protagonist, in this case Godzilla, is sent to successively lower levels of the underworld, where he continues to fight a series of monsters.  The story is told with minimal expository dialogue.  Mostly, it is what we have always valued most in Godzilla movies: a fight between two (or sometimes more) monsters battling for dominance.  One level of hell involves the spiritual manifestations of people attacking Godzilla, while another features the monster Anguirus as the two fight on a frozen plane of existence.  As a sidenote, one nice artistic touch in the frozen wasteland was a ship with Valdez written on the prow, a clear reference to the environmental disaster of the Exxon Valdez off the coast of Alaska in 1989.

The various fights make for interesting visualizations, especially a battle with red, bat-like creatures who act like piranhas, stripping Godzilla’s skeleton to may make a new, more violent and vindictive monster.  The book ends with a quote from the Buddha: “Better to conquer yourself than to win a thousand battles. Then the victory is yours.  It cannot be taken away from you…not by angels or demons…heaven or hell.” (p. 225-226).

In Godzilla: Oblivion, scientists are working on a machine to teleport physical items through a temporal port.  The idea here is that a “school in Cambridge, Massachusetts” is working on a machine to propel humanity to a different time or place.  The Japanese backer, Ms. Yamada and her chief scientist Dr. Eli Talbert, at one point realize that the search for scientific truth may mean unethical decisions or horrific outcomes (p. 280).  As with many science fiction outcomes, playing God does open a dangerous hole, through which kaiju like King Ghidorah come into our world. 

There is a series of issues about the ethical dilemmas of achieving unwarranted outcomes.  To that end, there is a discussion of whether to close the portal in favor of putting all the kaiju in one world, while abandoning the other.  There is also a discussion of whether there will be repercussions for using a nuclear weapon against any of the kaiju.  This sort of irony is part of the story arc and how humans might ruin their home area, to move to another world.  In the end, the monsters who have invaded Earth 2, invade Earth 1 and proceed to destroy it.  The story ends with a cliff hanger: have humans really abandoned the Earth to the kaiju?

The stories are all inter-connections of the Godzilla universe.  The setting of the opening arc in Tokyo brings the series back to the Japanese starting point.  The idea of Godzilla having to face his own personal demons in variations of hell is also an interesting take.  Finally, the continual aspects of science and the concept of “can we” versus “should we” is important and timely in this era of AI.  In all, the book is another important addition to the Godzilla comics canon. 

Graphic Novel Review: Godzilla Library Collection Vol. 4

 reviewed by Cord A. Scott, UMGC-Okinawa

Chris Howry (w), Matt Frank (a), and Jeff Zornow (a). Godzilla Library Collection Vol. 4. Sherman Oaks, CA:  IDW Publishing, 2025. 280 pp. US $29.99. ISBN:  979-8-8872-4265-1. https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/770074/godzilla-library-collection-vol-4-by-chris-mowry-matt-frank-jeff-zornow/

Godzilla is one of the most internationally recognized characters in popular culture today. Over the course of more than 40 films, countless toys, cartoons, and a variety of media, the character and the franchise show no signs of waning. To that end, it is a natural extension of the character to be in comic book form. As is noted, Volume Four of the Godzilla Library Collection is a collection of issues 1-12 of Godzilla:  Rulers of the Earth. As to whether this collection is to be read in succession with the other volumes is unclear, but as with any Kaiju series, there is a lot of action to absorb from reading the volume.

This series starts from multiple vantage points. The first is from the USS Wimbish, a U.S. submarine tracking an unknown kaiju. While it gives the appearance of Godzilla, it seemingly becomes a new kaiju, dubbed Zilla. Without any idea of how this new monster will act, it is tasked with tracking the monster in the water. The second vantage point is on the concept of Megazoology in Hawaii. One participant, Lucy Casprell, has hopes of joining a research team led by Dr. Kenji Ando. All of this culminates with the appearance and destruction of Honolulu by Godzilla. The last vantage point is that of Steven Woods, the hardnosed soldier tasked with the hunting of kaiju, and who has a grudge after several from his team were killed.

From this point, much of the volume centers on what we have come to expect from Godzilla films and comics:  kaiju fights and a lot of general destruction. We are introduced to many from the Godzilla gallery through the fights. In fact, some of the monsters are introduced so quickly, that it becomes difficult to follow them all in the book. The story also involves two alien races, the Devonians (a sea race) and the Travelers (a shapeshifting race) fighting over the Earth as an eventual home. To this end, they both use the kaiju to wipe out the human race or, at minimum, substantially cull the race.

Some of the kaiju become more prevalent than others. The two humanoids, Manda and Giara, are used in the story arc as a part of weapons (or in this case, kaijus) of mass destruction program (112). China becomes a part of the arc when they note that they have one of the kaiju contained and have kept him as a contingency.

Throughout the series, the regular characters, within the pantheon of kaiju, are brought in:  Gigan, Orga, Mechagodzilla, Mothra, Rodan, Manda, Varan, and Destroyah, to name, but some. The counter to some of these kaiju is the use of robotics, and this necessitates the introduction of another movie character and ally of Godzilla, Jet Jaguar. The readers are treated to Jet’s backstory as well.

By the end of the book, the battle of the titans has left the world damaged, some kaiju back under control or in containment, and scientists looking to study their new subjects for weaknesses.  In this regard, the series is similar to two Showa era Godzilla movies, “Destroy All Monsters” (1968) and “All Monsters Attack” (1969).

The volume shifts back to the intergalactic war on Earth, as the Devonians are revealed to be shape shifters, who have, in fact, utilized the kaiju and humans to eliminate their alien enemy, and humanity. In all, the series is left on a cliff-hanger as the war has escalated, and the Travelers seem to have the upper hand.

The volume has all the hallmarks of Godzilla media:  massive fights, massive destruction, and a storyline that fills the gaps. One problem that does occur is that the monsters are brought in so quickly, and not always with “introductions,” to the extent that it gets confusing. If one has not memorized the catalogue of monsters, it can be overwhelming. Additionally, the characters seem a bit one dimensional. This issue might not be as problematic if one was reading all the volumes, but if a reader just looks at this volume, it may give the characters a limited emotional connection to their plight.

There are also some nods to the movies. Mothra is brought in as a character, as are the twins, who serve as a conduit for communications with humans. Not all the monsters from the entire series are used, either. These characters might be introduced in a later volume.

In all, it is what one has come to expect of Godzilla stories:  action, some interaction between people and monsters, misconceptions and biases towards other races or species, and even commentary on how some groups might be used as unwitting pawns in a wider war. For those who grew up with the movies, or were introduced to Godzilla later, it is still a form of simple fun. It is just missing a rubber suit and model cities to destroy.

 A version of this review will appear in IJOCA 27-1

Graphic Novel Review: Godzilla: Skate or Die!

reviewed by Cord A. Scott, UMGC-Okinawa 

Louie Joyce (w, a). Godzilla: Skate or Die! Sherman Oaks, CA: IDW Publishing, 2025. 128 pp. US $17.99. ISBN: 979-8-8872-4186-9. https://godzilla.com/products/godzilla-skate-or-die

 

      Godzilla is now a worldwide cultural phenomenon. This is no surprise to IJOCA's readers, but the idea that a movie from 1954 on the dangers of atomic weapons could inspire a variety of media decades later speaks to the longevity of the character. Godzilla:  Skate or Die is one such book in this wider pantheon.

Louie Joyce, who wrote and illustrated the graphic novel, has his additional influences. The culture of skating and urban life shows in the style of illustration that is presented. Set in Australia, it is an additional homage to the Japanese Kaiju.

The premise of the story is simple at its core:  four friends, who share the common bond of skating, have set up a secret skate park named “coin toss” in an abandoned office above a coal mine. While doing this, they witness a meteorite in the sky, and wish. After spending considerable time setting the park up, it is a prized goal that will not be easily surrendered, if it is threatened. The characters Egg, Sushi, Jules, and Rolly are spirited in their desire to try new ideas, even if it means “bending” the law concerning trespassing. As the four are gearing up for a day of skating, they are literally shaken by various tremors. Soon, it dawns on them that the area of Broken Hill, where the skating area is located, will become the epicenter of the tremors:  the Kaiju Varan, and the King of the Monsters, Godzilla.

When it becomes obvious that the two titans are heading to a conflict with each other at their hidden park, the four evade the police and a mandatory evacuation by authorities. From this point, they play a cat and mouse game with the police, all while trying to prevent the destruction.

As the carnage of the area continues, the four fall into a fissure in the earth, only to find that it leads to a series of tunnels below the admin buildings. As another quake hits, the floor collapses to reveal yet another subterranean level, this time much newer in appearance.

Amid this chaos and searching, the general in charge of the facility is trying to determine what the threats are, and how the facility may be saved from destruction. It is then revealed that many of the incidents are connected because of a meteorite that arrived on Earth on the day the skate park was built. This is also a power source for mechas on which this lab is working.

The meteorite seems to be both a power source, as well as a beacon, which will wake others. As things seem bleak, Rolly hits the meteorite, disrupting its pulse.

Towards the end of the battle, when it seems all is lost, the skaters are given assistance from a security guard at the base, who has admired their skating (to the point of having compiled security camera footage/montage).

When they get to the surface, it looks as though Godzilla will be defeated by Varan. Rolly, the most daring of the four, determines that it is important to save Godzilla, as he has a connection with him. Following a diversionary attack on Varan, Godzilla gains the upper hand and sends Varan into outer space.

The story is fast-paced, and stylistically interesting, but tends to be somewhat confusing at times. For example, there seems to be a connection between the general in charge of Sushi, but this is never really determined. There is sentimentality, with a skateboard deck that was given to Sushi by a dying mother. This board becomes a talisman of sorts, as it represents a connection to her mother. Finally, there is the requisite large-scale fighting that we have come to love and expect with anything related to Godzilla.

There is also the bigger connection between Godzilla, the skaters, and the location of their park. Was there something further that drew them all to the same location? There are some circumstances, but nothing determinate. Overall, it is an interesting crossover, but it may not appeal to many.