In 1996,
American publisher Random House picked up the Godzilla
license from Toho. Although they stopped producing
Godzilla stories just two years later, the company
produced an impressive output. Most fans are aware
of the non-fiction Official Godzilla Compendium
and the two lines of novels released by Marc Cerasini
and Scott Ciencin, but Random House also released
five picture books featuring the Big G, with the
rarest of these being Godzilla Saves America.
Unlike the other four illustrated stories, Godzilla
Saves America is a hardcover book with 3-D
illustrations. Included in the book are a pair of
“Special 3-D Godzilla Glasses”. Unfortunately,
I've long since lost mine, but since they're
only common anaglyphic lenses (red and blue/cyan),
one doesn't need the original pair. Still,
it's cool that Random House went through the
trouble of making 3-D glasses with Godzilla's
face printed on them!
The story is about Ghidorah's arrival on
Earth. As he heads towards America from the Atlantic,
Godzilla rises from San Francisco Bay and traverses
the United States to help Mothra do battle with
the three-headed demon in New York. If the story
sounds familiar, that's because it is; the
very next year, Marc Cerasini would use this story
as a template for his novel, Godzilla 2000
(no relation to the 1999 Toho film). Unlike the
later novel, however, this story seems to be a standalone
piece, although some references are made to previous
Toho films (Godzilla has driven Ghidorah away from
Earth before; Ghidorah himself is sent to Earth
by aliens of the Hunter D Nebula (relatives of the
aliens in Godzilla
vs. Gigan (1972), perhaps?)). The story
is a very easy read that still manages to show a
lot of detail. There are very few dull spots and
the monster action is descriptive. One oddity here
is the inclusion of Rodan, who appears on Mt. Rushmore
to lay her (yes, her) eggs, as in Godzilla 2000.
While it gives kids a view of the famous monument
and a look at another famous Toho monster, it doesn't
lead anywhere and it's liable to confuse younger
fans familiar with the Rodan character (drawn like
the Trendmasters toy, à la Godzilla on
Monster Island).
Like the rest of the Random House picture books,
this story doesn't feature any major human
protagonists and the only dialogue takes place while
the militaries and governments of the world try
to stop Ghidorah. While Godzilla and Mothra are
never given any thoughts or real motives, they are
the main characters for whom we root. With this
being an illustrated story for children, that's
all right.
The illustrations by Tom Morgan and Paul Mounts
are above average. Morgan and Mounts were both responsible
for the aforementioned Godzilla on Monster Island.
Everything is drawn like the earlier book, but the
art has improved overall. It's still not as
good as the work seen in Godzilla vs. Gigan
and the Smog Monster or the later illustrated
Godzilla stories, but the book features some interesting
illustrations which are enhanced when looking through
the 3-D glasses. Speaking of the 3-D illustrations,
everything that pops out here is given a thick black
outline (obviously the source of the illusion) which
isn't all that distracting while looking at
the book without the glasses on. In fact, one can
still see the pictures without the glasses, which
is very convenient for youngsters that might have
lost or damaged their pair.
Overall, Godzilla Saves America is a fun
little book. Speaking personally, this was always
a favorite of mine as a child with the 3-D artwork.
Collectors might want to check it out if they can
get a hold of a copy, especially with the now rare
glasses, but casual fans should probably skip this
and pick up Godzilla 2000 for its more
mature take on the story.
-
Cody Himes
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