Kaiju Week in Review (December 31, 2023-January 6, 2024)
Episode 9 of Monarch: Legacy of Monsters was a huge one, wrapping up the flashback storyline with gut punch after gut punch and dropping half the cast into a new realm of the Hollow Earth, Axis Mundi. I'm being vague because there's a very big twist at the end. Chomping at the bit for the finale.
@quazies has graced us with another animated Godzilla short, this one focusing on Rodan and wringing surprising emotion out of the daffy bird. And I continue to get a kick of out this Animal Crossing-esque Monster Island. This is their fourth Godzilla video; if you're unfamiliar with them, correct this immediately.
The new issue of TotalFilm has a sizable article on Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire. My notes:
Trapper (Dan Stevens) is a sort of Titan veterinarian.
Emphasis on filming in real places; the Hollow Earth is a mixture of Greenland, Iceland, Hawaii, and Australia. Also mentions some sort of physical Kong prop and another full-sized HEAV.
Apex isn't in this story "in a literal way," but Monarch seems to have copped some of their tech; Kong's B.E.A.S.T. Glove is implied to be one example. Sort of disappointing that the Monsterverse continues to avoid having a recurring human villain, but then it would've been hard to keep Apex in the picture, between the Mechagodzilla scandal and all their key members dying.
Rome is mentioned as a location in the film, which was reinforced this week with a Japanese trailer showing Godzilla astride the Colosseum prior to his evolution. As a half-Italian, I'm thrilled.
Wingard is aiming for late-Showa Godzilla vibes. Not possible on a nine-figure budget, says I, but I'm curious to see what he comes up with. Adds that he "wanted the color palette of the film to resemble the experience of what it was like to walk down a toy aisle in the 1980s[.]"
Wingard on Skar King: "[He's], in a way, the closest that the human threat has ever been juxtaposed onto a titan itself. The Skar King almost represents an upscaled version of the worst parts of humanity, just as Kong represents some of the best parts of humanity."
Now, about that cover... they're doing the bisexual lighting on purpose at this point, right?
The new Godzilla Battle Line units are Orga and Kiryu Kai (Heavy Arms Type). Orga's pretty fun, dropped into the arena by the Millennian UFO and respawning with half health once defeated. The new Kiryu is a major addition, dealing 30% more damage to units that cost 7 energy or more.
This is my first Kaiju Week in Review covering 2024; for a look back on all that happened in 2023 in kaiju film, television, and video games, I'll refer you to this excellent video by @zagorudan. @vintagehenshin has one out on indie tokusatsu as well.
This is a year ending in "4", so a lot of Godzilla movies have big anniversaries on the way. The biggest, of course, is Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla, turning 50 on March 21. Toho wasn't celebrating golden anniversaries in earnest when the other non-Godzilla members of the Big Five reaches theirs, so expect a Full Weapon Strike of merch, comics, and short films. We already know Mechagodzilla's in the next Godzilla Rivals issue, though not top-billed. Ultraman Leo, ESPY, Evil of Dracula, and Prophecies of Nostradamus also turn 50 this year.
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We are now in the Age of MonsterVerse.
My boy's now 10 years old!!! 🥳🥳🥳
Happy 10th Anniversary to my first childhood movie and first Kaiju film to watch: Godzilla 2014!!!
I've never been familiar to kaijus before until my dad watches this favorite movie when I was 9. TBH, I was quite scared yet fascinated by this film all because I faced my fears and idolizing Godzilla more. So much that I started to follow more and dig deeper to the lore.
I search through Google about the meaning of Kaiju and I was instantly surprise to see there are so many Kaijus owned by Toho (aside from me also watching Pacific Rim). That time, I become a huge Godzilla fan and one kaiju that seems to take my interest was Mothra.
And Mothra shall be my next review and discussion in this upcoming KOTM anniversary, alongside Rodan and Ghidorah! From now on, I am going to watch Godzilla 2014 today.
In addition, I will watch again the full MonsterVerse movies. RIP my phone storage..😅
LONG LIVE THE MONSTERVERSE!!!
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Plot twist: what if "Ghidorahstan64", the internet troll harassing Bernie, is actually Ghidorah/Mechagodzilla's mind that escaped into the internet cyberspace
...oh my god, he turned into APEX from Shadowrun: Dragonfall...
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Some lore for my Kaiju au, Gyaos used to be Goji's girlfriend at one point but eventually they broke up and now she's dating Gamera so now Godzilla has a burning hatred for Gamera since he's dating Goji's ex. A few other things, Gyaos and Ghidorah are siblings and Monster X is their dad, Hedorah likes those fucked up disturbing films like begotten and human centipede, Anguirus might have brain cells, Kong and Mothra used to be old college buddies, Megalon started hanging out with Destoroyah ever since Gigan ditched him, and last but not least, Godzilla's friend group consists of Anguirus (obviously), Kong, Rodan, King Caesar, and sometimes Jet Jaguar (the only employed friend in the group) anyway they sometimes be on that regular show type shit y'know.
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